The Theremin Dilema!

August 16, 2006 1:11 PM

Help me find somewhere online to purchase a theremin, preferrably cheaply. I'd just be a beginner, so great magical quality isn't an issue. Also, I have no problem with age as long as they function. There's aslo

I've spontaneously decided I want to play the theremin, just because it's an awesome instrument. However, online, I'm having trouble finding one for less than $300- and my price limit is around $150, because I don't want to ask my parents for anything larger than that. I found one assemble-your-own kit for around 100, but I don't know solder wire from french hooks. Please help me find a theremin that I can order off the interwebz that meets my specification. Also reccomend some books to read up on, if you know of any. Thanks for your help!

posted by Glitter Ninja to Shopping (6 answers total)

Try here and here.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 1:17 PM on August 16, 2006

There are a lot on ebay within your price range.
posted by fire&wings at 1:25 PM on August 16, 2006

I know elr bought one off of ebay a year or so ago. I think some guy was making and selling them. It wasn't as attractive as some of the really pricey ones, more of a black plastic box, but it worked well. Just needed to be plugged into an amp. It was $100-ish, if I recall correctly.

I'm not sure who he bought it from (maybe he can help you out there).
posted by ruby.aftermath at 1:37 PM on August 16, 2006

The cheap ones on eBay are pretty much the assemble-it-yourself kits, pre-assembled. The one I got sounded terrible until I got an effects pedal for it. Go to Guitar Center and get the cheapest pedal with the largest variety of effects and you'll have a theremin that looks and sounds as good as any you've ever heard for between 200 and 250 (presuming of course that you have an amp and cords, before I got the amp I'm using now I was running my theremin through a used karaoke machine with surprisingly decent results).
posted by elr at 2:02 PM on August 16, 2006

if you're technically inclined you can buy the theremax kit from PAiA Electronics for less than $100 bucks - but you've got to assemble the electronics (including soldering, I believe) and come up with your own case.
posted by nanojath at 2:48 PM on August 16, 2006

Response by poster: Just to elaborate: I don't have an amp yet. Being the idjit I am, I didn't know I'd need one. :X
posted by Glitter Ninja at 3:18 PM on August 16, 2006