At this year's NAMM show, Moog Music is announcing a new model in the hugely popular Etherwave Theremin line - the Moog Etherwave Plus!

The new Etherwave Plus builds on the success of the Etherwave Standard by adding built-in CV (Control Voltage) outputs. The CV signals are proportional to the pitch and volume of the theremin's audio signal and can be connected to the pitch and volume CV inputs of a Little Phatty, Voyager, or other analog synthesizer. Control anything from the cutoff frequency of a Moog Ladder Filter or the LFO Amount on a Moogerfooger Ring Modulator to the stereo panning on a Minimoog Voyager.

Specifically, the “Plus” features include:

• Pitch & Volume CV Outputs - control a different CV parameter with each hand
• Gate Output – trigger envelopes and other events
• Pitch Preview/Headphone Output - with separate volume control, lets you hear your note before the audience does.
• Power LED - instant visual power status on dark stages

The Etherwave Plus will sell for a suggested price of $519.

Current owners of the Etherwave Standard can have their theremins upgraded to match the specs of the Etherwave Plus with a kit for $149 or as a factory-installed upgrade for $179. We previously announced the factory-install option, but the field-installable kit was a pleasant surprise!

For more information, visit http://www.moogmusic.com/theremin.

Hmmm...interesting. This will certainly help expand peoples ability to interface with all of the other Moog instruments and devices.

I hope this isn't intended to replace the existing Etherwave. Not everyone would be able to put the CV/Gate ports to good use. Also, there are many people who think the standard Etherwave is already too expensive. It may be they seem to be in the majority only because they are more vocal.

I am assuming this is not the new "Pro" theremin we have heard rumors about. If that is yet to come, then Moog Music will have something to offer thereminists of all stripes. What more could we ask for?

I am deceived.

Lots of us have been waiting for a successor of the Etherwave Pro. What do they offer us instead?

- CV and Gate outputs that a vast majority of us doesn't need.

- Pitch preview, a feature that on does or doesn't like, and which may be installed for much less money.

- The power on indicator, a nice-to-have feature but also available in an easier way and at a lower price.

But... they didn't think of a mute switch, the first feature that a rather classical style player would perhaps miss. But seen the problems that some Etherwave Pro owners had with it, it is perhaps better...

The main drawbacks of the Etherwave Standard, increased distortion at lower frequencies due to locking effects, rather modest waveshaping due to the lousy diode mixer and the linearity issues haven't been attacked.

I am deceived.

I think it's great they're able to iterate on an already popular design in tough economic times. I'm not sure I'd be pushing development of a new high end pro model right now. Though, the development time for those kind of things is so long, if they started now, it might be ready by the time people are willing to spend money again.

I am delighted.

more than less...
It shows commitment to theremin players and the viablilty of the instrument while a pro model is still being developed (or so we're told and I believe it).

They put features from the EWPro here, like the CV outs, plus the gate, that for the fast growing number of non-precision players and sound artists discovering space control interfaces will open up a lot of options out of the box.

What the Moog foundation did with theremin controlled video was great and we may see a lot more of real time space controlled performance art with this model out there.

I was hoping for a new Professional too!! But wonder about the business side of as well, this is a bad, baaaaad year for a small company already fighting the economy, and policies of it's own government to survive, to over extend production. Trust me if Moog went in the red, there would be no government bail out for them.

At least we have a new well designed model rich with possibility that's going to help new players find the magic of the aether. I'd be interested to hear if the linearity is better.

I'm delicious
err delectable
err delighted

It makes sense to bring the etherwave in to line with their other products and give it CV functionality. Presumably the idea is that they will consequently sell more Moogerfoogers to thereminists and theremins to Voyager owners.

I have to say their promo vid isn't entirely selling the product to me.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c8uE3Q8p9Jo

(I like the bit with the gate.)

I think there are better ways to illustrate the potential - like putting it near the hands of people who are good with theremins and electronic music and can produce a piece of music that will appeal to experimenters and traditionalists alike.

I think it's a waaaaay better offering than the original upgrades presented end of last year. They have a new custom front panel for it (CV Jacks are on the bottom), and you don't have to send in your machine if you want to update it, too!

Awesome. :)

Still waiting for a new Pro...

I appreciate the upgrade path; that is a nice thing they've done IMHO.

But not for me, I expect. My one piece of gear that had a CV/Gate input was my beat-up Micromoog, sold to my sister roughly 12 years ago, and last I heard still in the hands of the guy who was going to restore it for her.

I understand why they didn't include a MIDI output, but it would have been nice to have given how many musicians work in software. I'd love to drive something like FM8 or Alchemy with my Theremin.

I'm real curious to see and hear what Pamelia Kurstin might do with this though. :)

There are some MIDI-CV converters out there:

http://www.synthzone.com/cv.htm

... some of them are rather pricey, though. But anytime you open the machine so it can talk to something else-- you will attract more people to the device. Marketing the "Plus" as a synth controller, is a really good idea.

Amazing! The best that could happen!
I have wanted CV-stuff from day one. Now I can finally put that little animal into my Juno-60 and really get grooving.

I'm getting the field kit!

Toffe, please keep us updated with how it goes. :-)