I was searching for a easy circuit of theremin for my whole life finally I got it. thank you very much great scott. I am building the prototype now and its working perfectly
Theremins are fun. Years ago I built one after a schematic from the net that utilised a CD4069 hex inverter and a CD4046 phase-locked loop. I had no clue how, but actually worked, although somewhat unstable. The frequency always drifted higher and it became unusable after a couple of minutes.
as a professional theremin player you just changed the way that i look to theremin not because of the complicated structure .no no no no. because of your professional playing :)
You will get better sound if the output wave is a sine wave (with minimal noise) and you calibrate the max and min distance to 18khz to 50hz. In that way you can get a better sound response. Try it, really play theremin isn't hard. All you need is practice the distance.
I think that the problem is mainly with the schematics, not with your playing skills. Such circuits REALLY have to be well-shielded, elsewise they output too much noise. I think, that is the reason why your theremin sounds like squeaking. Second, how does the differential opamp even work in such configurations? Subtracting two frequencies never gives a frequency difference unless some distortion occur, is it connected in a comparator mode? If not, try increasing the amplification. I've made a project that was about hearing inaudible ultrasonic frequencies - basically, a frequency mixer of a heterodyne and a mic, which is very similar to this situation. During my experiments I've found that the cheapest and simplest, yet good-sounding solution is to use an analog switch like 4053 to switch between the first signal and the first signal inverted at a frequency equal to the second signal frequency. Maybe you should try this configuration and replace on of your oscillators with a real colpitts oscillator. I can give you the schematics for my ultrasonic sound project if you want to.
Doesn't sound anything like a theramin, you need an even sine wave for a theramin, tuned to a set frequency (such as A, 440Hz) - then when you move your hand, that frequency changes, creating the notes a square wave just sequeels...
I'm a recent subscriber (some of your arduino videos helped me a ton), and just realized this is the same GreatScott as the one on the flier I have hung on my wall for your HackRF One. It's been a goal of mine to own one ever since seeing it at Denver Maker Faire last month. Thank you for being amazing!
I made a capacitive touch midi controller a while back that I hook up to bananas, cucumbers and apples and a Roland synth. Its pretty popular at our local maker fest.
I graduated the last year so now I m electronic engineer, and I m in the same age as you but I m still learning from you and wait for your videos every week , keep going my friend (y)
I’ve learned about making oscillators with inductors and capacitors, but never heard of a way to constantly provide it with power in a way to keep it going, thanks for the lesson
What if you use the triangle-ish waves from the capacitors instead(they have lower harmonics), by subtracting them with an in-amp? Maybe it'll sound nicer since it's easier to filter the harmonics
it sounds too high. is there a change that would lower the pitch an octave or two. it sounds mostly abover 10khz... it might sound nicer in the 500hz to 8khz range... could a different component somewhere change that?
I agree. In therory you need an korrelation circuit between fixed and variable frequencies. XOR is an simple "digital" approximation to this. Linear adding voltages does this not. But if the amplitudes are to high and nonlinear effects occur, it seems to work.
@@Chris-ZL Yes, in HF-technik an mixer is in my option an multiplier - in audio-technik a mixer is an adder. Or, shoud i say: Even in an audio-technik-mixer each input-signal is multiplied with their volume-control and then the signals are added.
That would actually make a great mini proximity detector. Make an electronic controlled mouse-trap or a snack-snatching alarm. If anyone tries to grab a snack, it triggers a siren horn. Attach it to a door handle and you have an anti-tamper alarm detector. Put it in your wall, where the doorbell should be, and you have a 100% waterproof, touchless door chime. Add it to a robot and the robot can sense when you are about to grab it. Add three and the robot can detect you and run the other direction, where is doesn't sense you. :)
A tip for hot gluers. Use a heat gun to pre-warm all the surfaces. Then the hot glue is less prone to making spider webs and the glue will flow onto the surfaces. The reason it does not stick to metal easily is the rapid cooling caused by the cold metal.
As an electrical engineering: This is fascinating, remarkable and inspiring. As a musician: This is an excellent instrument for annoying people!!!! I believe you got this idea from Sheldon Cooper right?
There's a great 3 part UA-cam tutorial on how to do a full on synth starting here ua-cam.com/video/FaoJaLmZaL4/v-deo.html I didn't make these videos I just think it's a great tutorial
In my amazement that they built a Low Frequency mixer in the circuit, so i went in the theremin site and found out what it was, just a capacitor. Obviously, for a crude experiment no one wanted to design a mixer with high specs.
this is more "how not to build a theremin". I understand the concept of "keeping it simple". But if the functionally is reduced to beeing totally useless, then it's simply futile to spend any components (or time) on it. Apart from the soldering practise.
This is a very nice circuit tutorial, but the net result makes this theremin hardly worth the trouble. If you want to make a simple pitch theremin using CMOS ICs, then I suggest the "101 Minimum Theremin" or the "102 Minimum Theremin," which you can Google.
It's been a long time since high-school physics, but couldn't you take the final audible square wave and make a sine wave from it, with an RC circuit? Maybe be a bit more musical... (yes, I will be trying this myself)
The best would be to do 2 levels for this kind of projects, an easy circuit and a more advance one, but it will take a lot longer to make. Btw nice video, as always
you could easily get a better timbre for your theremin by lowering the cutoff frequency to get rid of those high harmonics created by the square wave. Maybe put a variable resistor instead of a simple resistor in your low pass filter ?
You know the ZOOM H1 also has an input audio port? This way you can directly record the audio signal. Afterwards you can always amplify the recording with Audacity.
XOR would be a better choice for the mixer, you need to multiply the signals to get heterodyne products, not just subtract them. Unfortunately you can't throw out too much complexity from the Theremin and keep it sounding like an instrument; square waves sound very harsh because of all the harmonics. The lack of a volume control is less important, but makes it much less useful musically. Narrowing the pass-band on the post mixer filter would help make it sound better, but the timbre will change a great deal over its range.
I agree. In therory you need an korrelation circuit between fixed and variable frequencies. XOR is an simple "digital" approximation to this. Linear adding voltages does this not. But if the amplitudes are to high and nonlinear effects occur, it seems to work.
Great video! Using Schmitt trigger as an oscillator is much better than the ne555 circuit and should be the future of hobbyist electronics. s4:30 One outputs. Yeah! I 've even got a gramma warning here.
For this setup, could I use a battery instead of a power supply??? I think you are using 5V, what would happen if I put a battery with less voltage or a battery with a higher voltage??? Would still work? Please help
how does it sound with a much lower tone (e.g. 200-1000 Hz)? How difficult would it be to replace the pitch potentiometer with another antenna as found on a regular theremin?
This is cool and all but I'm worried people are going to look up Theremin and find this and assume they all sound annoying. Any chance we could get a more.... realistic Theremin build?
what i would make is a vco with an external theremin circuit which produces a dc voltage proportional to the distance of your hand so you can modulate the vco.
I have commented on your videos before asking about this, i want to make a vintage sounding 30 watt guitar tube amp with a clean and dirty channel, ive seen people make videos before where they assemble the pre amp and the power amp but they dont go into detail like you do, they just give you the schematic and schematics with vacuum tubes are too hard for me to understand, can you make a video on it?
A Thermin also adjust the volume with an antenna. So one for the pitch and one for the volume. And as might be good to have a separate LP filter which can be tuned. Don't bother with a midi convertion. It would be like trying to make a midi interface to a violin or bandless base guitar. A Thermin like a violin doesn't have fixed band and notes. Interesting projekt, with potentials. :-)
In one of your videos you showed how to make. A light screen from Laptop screen so can you tell us how to make a portable display without using any other display driver and making driver from laptop
Wow. Can't believe how much circuitry I've forgotten since I last had to build a circuit! 33 years ago this would have seemed so simple to me, now...
That sounds like I'm at the dentist's office.
I was searching for a easy circuit of theremin for my whole life finally I got it. thank you very much great scott. I am building the prototype now and its working perfectly
1:30 Will you teach us how to draw such realistic hands?
It is easy. Never listen during art class in school. That is at least how I draw them.
I actually prefer the one at 1:27
This. is. art! :D
As realistic are his hands, is realistic is theremin.
@@greatscottlab LMAO
Those drawn hands alone are worth an upvote.
Theremins are fun. Years ago I built one after a schematic from the net that utilised a CD4069 hex inverter and a CD4046 phase-locked loop. I had no clue how, but actually worked, although somewhat unstable. The frequency always drifted higher and it became unusable after a couple of minutes.
These videos are what keep me from falling off the edge.
as a professional theremin player you just changed the way that i look to theremin not because of the complicated structure .no no no no. because of your professional playing :)
Can you play I just wasn't made for these times? I just love how they made the theremin sound like a voice
You will get better sound if the output wave is a sine wave (with minimal noise) and you calibrate the max and min distance to 18khz to 50hz. In that way you can get a better sound response. Try it, really play theremin isn't hard. All you need is practice the distance.
I think that the problem is mainly with the schematics, not with your playing skills.
Such circuits REALLY have to be well-shielded, elsewise they output too much noise. I think, that is the reason why your theremin sounds like squeaking.
Second, how does the differential opamp even work in such configurations? Subtracting two frequencies never gives a frequency difference unless some distortion occur, is it connected in a comparator mode? If not, try increasing the amplification.
I've made a project that was about hearing inaudible ultrasonic frequencies - basically, a frequency mixer of a heterodyne and a mic, which is very similar to this situation. During my experiments I've found that the cheapest and simplest, yet good-sounding solution is to use an analog switch like 4053 to switch between the first signal and the first signal inverted at a frequency equal to the second signal frequency. Maybe you should try this configuration and replace on of your oscillators with a real colpitts oscillator. I can give you the schematics for my ultrasonic sound project if you want to.
can you share thos schematics comrade?
Doesn't sound anything like a theramin, you need an even sine wave for a theramin, tuned to a set frequency (such as A, 440Hz) - then when you move your hand, that frequency changes, creating the notes
a square wave just sequeels...
"simple" was his main goal
Yes, but it was "Simple Theremin". Maybe he built something simple, but that is *not* a theremin. Sorry for farting in the bath, but that's a fail.
Exactly, this is a simple noise creator, not a simple Theremin.
Totally agree. As a "distance" detector maybe it work but isn't a theremin. Too much noise and high freq.
The LP filter needs set much lower, like 1-2KHz max to be musical, and subtract the unwanted harmonics of the square waves.
I'm a recent subscriber (some of your arduino videos helped me a ton), and just realized this is the same GreatScott as the one on the flier I have hung on my wall for your HackRF One. It's been a goal of mine to own one ever since seeing it at Denver Maker Faire last month. Thank you for being amazing!
so if you're interested in music, creating your own midi instrument/controller may be a project for another video
I put it on my to do list
+GreatScott! You could make a 3D printed piano keyboard, or make a capacitive touch keyboard =)
I made a capacitive touch midi controller a while back that I hook up to bananas, cucumbers and apples and a Roland synth. Its pretty popular at our local maker fest.
It's also fun to make those with conductive ink on a piece of paper :)
Mathieu Clement Or pencil marks
I graduated the last year so now I m electronic engineer, and I m in the same age as you but I m still learning from you and wait for your videos every week , keep going my friend (y)
Thanks for the feedback. I try my best.
The nicest hand drawn schematics and blueprints on UA-cam. But that drawing of a hand......
I’ve learned about making oscillators with inductors and capacitors, but never heard of a way to constantly provide it with power in a way to keep it going, thanks for the lesson
I'm glad to see that I'm not the only genius who plays the guitar in my style. ;)
Really loving this! Been looking around for small sized theremins in order to build one into my electric guitar, and this might do the trick!
Lol same
What if you use the triangle-ish waves from the capacitors instead(they have lower harmonics), by subtracting them with an in-amp? Maybe it'll sound nicer since it's easier to filter the harmonics
*notices person is a fellow southpaw and spends the entire video in a fervor of happiness about this.*
I just realized you're left-handed like me, double thumbs up!!
send it to rob scallion, he can make it sound good... right?
CJLOLZ I second that 😂😂😂
he can play anything, so......
I would go for andrew huang
I would check out Angelo Moore from the band fishbone
Everything is so well written and drawn, damn
it sounds too high. is there a change that would lower the pitch an octave or two. it sounds mostly abover 10khz... it might sound nicer in the 500hz to 8khz range... could a different component somewhere change that?
I think you might find it worth revisiting the XOR gate which will mix the frequencies, unlike the op-amp which is mixing the voltages.
I agree. In therory you need an korrelation circuit between fixed and variable frequencies. XOR is an simple "digital" approximation to this. Linear adding voltages does this not. But if the amplitudes are to high and nonlinear effects occur, it seems to work.
@@joergfoerster8043 someone probably told him he should use an SA602 Double-balanced mixer, but he substituted the OpAmp 🙂
@@Chris-ZL Yes, in HF-technik an mixer is in my option an multiplier - in audio-technik a mixer is an adder. Or, shoud i say: Even in an audio-technik-mixer each input-signal is multiplied with their volume-control and then the signals are added.
That would actually make a great mini proximity detector. Make an electronic controlled mouse-trap or a snack-snatching alarm. If anyone tries to grab a snack, it triggers a siren horn. Attach it to a door handle and you have an anti-tamper alarm detector. Put it in your wall, where the doorbell should be, and you have a 100% waterproof, touchless door chime. Add it to a robot and the robot can sense when you are about to grab it. Add three and the robot can detect you and run the other direction, where is doesn't sense you. :)
I love your handwriting.
7:49 Why not Hot glue?
I had to use two component adhesive for the antenna anyway. So I just used it for all the parts.
Because hot glue does not sick well to metal.
A tip for hot gluers. Use a heat gun to pre-warm all the surfaces. Then the hot glue is less prone to making spider webs and the glue will flow onto the surfaces. The reason it does not stick to metal easily is the rapid cooling caused by the cold metal.
What is that material to glue?
4:29 could you use the nand logic symbol there instead of the triangle so it doesn't look like an op amp or buffer?
i love your handwriting!
Nice!
Just a question: why are you using NAND gates with an input pulled to HI instead of simple NOT? Wouldn't you get the same result?
@@__MINT_ The easiest way would be to use a ring oscillator.
@@__MINT_ You could, you just need an uneven number of gates.
What do I need to learn in order to know what he's talking about?
Logic gates.
Like Jimmy Page. He played it in Led Zeppelin.
Dwayne Wladyka Page fucking sucked playing the theremin
Just idea, plug output into ATmega32u4 a make cool MIDI instrument
Never worked with MIDI before. Might have to do a little research.
CZ/SK?
greatscott asi nemec
ja nemyslím greatscotta ale teba xD
Or just use an Arduino with Atmega16u2 built-in and flash de LUFA midi firmware. Cheap and simple.
Wait a minute, Great Scott! is promoting the simple schematic???
Very good tutorial.....I won't need a mixer, just going to feed it directly to the power amp and play some music for my dog.
As an electrical engineering: This is fascinating, remarkable and inspiring.
As a musician: This is an excellent instrument for annoying people!!!!
I believe you got this idea from Sheldon Cooper right?
Well, he can definitely play it better than me.
Wow, perfect😍😍 brasilian here
Hi greats Scott could you make a synthesizer using some oscillater like the 556? That would be awesome!
It is on my to do list
GreatScott! Or you could make a quad oscillater circuit using the 4093
There's a great 3 part UA-cam tutorial on how to do a full on synth starting here
ua-cam.com/video/FaoJaLmZaL4/v-deo.html
I didn't make these videos I just think it's a great tutorial
GreatScott! Atari Punk Console? So classic.
In my amazement that they built a Low Frequency mixer in the circuit, so i went in the theremin site and found out what it was, just a capacitor. Obviously, for a crude experiment no one wanted to design a mixer with high specs.
I don't get why this guy haven't reach 1m
this is more "how not to build a theremin".
I understand the concept of "keeping it simple". But if the functionally is reduced to beeing totally useless, then it's simply futile to spend any components (or time) on it. Apart from the soldering practise.
3 minutes ago, but 32 comments! Wow! Great job!
really nice work man!
OMG those hands symbol made my day !!
I LOVE THE HANDS YOU DREW! MAKE A DRAWING FULL OF HANDS
Can you please try and build an FM transmitter and an FM reciever for your DIY or Buy series?
This is a very nice circuit tutorial, but the net result makes this theremin hardly worth the trouble. If you want to make a simple pitch theremin using CMOS ICs, then I suggest the "101 Minimum Theremin" or the "102 Minimum Theremin," which you can Google.
Why did you use ex nor gate for the oscillator when you have one input connected to vcc you could have just used a not gate.
It's been a long time since high-school physics, but couldn't you take the final audible square wave and make a sine wave from it, with an RC circuit? Maybe be a bit more musical... (yes, I will be trying this myself)
What about electric kalimba with set frequencies for each note? using the same principals as the theremin.
2:07 Your diagram is wrong, because the frequency remains constant while the oscillation dies off.
can you make something like a led suit like a costume using led strips
Wow, that's really nice! :D Fantastic work, man!
The best would be to do 2 levels for this kind of projects, an easy circuit and a more advance one, but it will take a lot longer to make.
Btw nice video, as always
+Frost Might be a good idea. I put a more complicated, better sounding theremin on my to do list.
At 6:09 the truth table is for an XNOR gate not a NOR gate.
you could easily get a better timbre for your theremin by lowering the cutoff frequency to get rid of those high harmonics created by the square wave. Maybe put a variable resistor instead of a simple resistor in your low pass filter ?
Do you know exactly what a attenuator is? because ive heard so many different versions and uses abd its getting abit confusing to me
You know the ZOOM H1 also has an input audio port? This way you can directly record the audio signal. Afterwards you can always amplify the recording with Audacity.
I was waiting for it
That's exactly what I was looking for. A bit complicated though but still awesome
XOR would be a better choice for the mixer, you need to multiply the signals to get heterodyne products, not just subtract them. Unfortunately you can't throw out too much complexity from the Theremin and keep it sounding like an instrument; square waves sound very harsh because of all the harmonics. The lack of a volume control is less important, but makes it much less useful musically. Narrowing the pass-band on the post mixer filter would help make it sound better, but the timbre will change a great deal over its range.
I agree. In therory you need an korrelation circuit between fixed and variable frequencies. XOR is an simple "digital" approximation to this. Linear adding voltages does this not. But if the amplitudes are to high and nonlinear effects occur, it seems to work.
If I wanted to build a Theremin with a 10 foot pitch antenna, what changes would I need to make?
Could you make a RF audio transmitter
Great video indeed. Can you make a video of FM transmitter with very detail explanation with BJTs?
It is on my to do list
WOW! I will be waiting for that.
Using a Stabilo pen right now, I have trust in you!
Great video! Using Schmitt trigger as an oscillator is much better than the ne555 circuit and should be the future of hobbyist electronics. s4:30 One outputs. Yeah! I 've even got a gramma warning here.
Awesome video as always😉
Could you do a buy or diy about High Power RGB LEDs ? It could be interesting!
Great Scott! You maybe could add an lm386 amp to increase the output volume! 📡🎶
6:13 This truth table showcases an XNOR IC. The real NOR IC would have a 0 output with both inputs 1.
For this setup, could I use a battery instead of a power supply??? I think you are using 5V, what would happen if I put a battery with less voltage or a battery with a higher voltage??? Would still work? Please help
Isn't that 4077 "NOR" ( 6:08 ) IC an XNOR IC?
how does it sound with a much lower tone (e.g. 200-1000 Hz)?
How difficult would it be to replace the pitch potentiometer with another antenna as found on a regular theremin?
Hello GreatScott can you make a video to explain why we can’t use capacitor as batteries? Or if we can how to archive this ? Thanks for considering
never clicked so fast in my life
do u also play N-game that is how i got quick reflex
Black turbine nope
Good work man
Keep going 😘😙😙
it's not a Moog theremin but it will do
build in an hour, that means it'll only take me 1 or 2 weeks!
Is there a simple circuit for making oscillation. just like those found in toy fish? thanks
great scoot please will u make a video on how to make a 50 watt amplifier
"Not complicated enough yet?"
me: pls. stop
send this to andew huang. please, Im sure he'll make an awesome music out of this
lol, true, the only problem is that shipping this to space is probably going to be kinda expensive
This is cool and all but I'm worried people are going to look up Theremin and find this and assume they all sound annoying.
Any chance we could get a more.... realistic Theremin build?
It's missing lower frequencies - should have the tone and range of that theremin sound as you'd hear on the Beach Boys "Good Vibrations" recording
Is it possible to have two antennas perpendicular to each other tracking x and y position of one hand?
You should make a video about a 555 timer flyback converter or about wifi or bluetooth jammer.
How can I smooth out a square signal to get a smooth sound, also, how can I lower the tone so It ca be a bass theremin???
Tolle Idee, aber so etwas könnte ich niemals umsetzen 😂👌👍
Hi, I need to replace the MCP602 with other Amplifier. I have a LM324 and LM358.
what i would make is a vco with an external theremin circuit which produces a dc voltage proportional to the distance of your hand so you can modulate the vco.
I have commented on your videos before asking about this, i want to make a vintage sounding 30 watt guitar tube amp with a clean and dirty channel, ive seen people make videos before where they assemble the pre amp and the power amp but they dont go into detail like you do, they just give you the schematic and schematics with vacuum tubes are too hard for me to understand, can you make a video on it?
go check out Keystone Science's version of this. I'm sure you can find the improvements you are looking for.
Is there a simple way to change the square wave to a sine wave without the LC Tank circuit? I'm guessing that'll make the sound much nicer.
Useless Fact:
The Main Theme of "Midsomer Murders" ("Inspector Barnaby" for the German Audience) is played on a Theremin.
I would use a Frequency Divider and a lower capacitance (
A Thermin also adjust the volume with an antenna. So one for the pitch and one for the volume. And as might be good to have a separate LP filter which can be tuned.
Don't bother with a midi convertion. It would be like trying to make a midi interface to a violin or bandless base guitar. A Thermin like a violin doesn't have fixed band and notes.
Interesting projekt, with potentials. :-)
In one of your videos you showed how to make. A light screen from Laptop screen so can you tell us how to make a portable display without using any other display driver and making driver from laptop
Hey scott! I was wondering what electronic component shelf you were using to store you'r small components in.
I wonder if you can make a video to build a cnc plotter using old dvd writers. Can you?