Making the Open Theremin From Scratch 

An xlr would be a good addition for the project, it would get rid of an extra grounding cable and sound quality would probably be better. Theremin players have serious skill and body control, I could not even play one note in tune.

Haha, good eye. I should have say that I used some scrap parts from a discard bin which happened to be finished anodized aluminum.

@@LockeLaboratory I figured it was something like that. I just thought it was funny because when I improvise it often includes tape and hot glue 😅

Thanks! I vaguely remember that it ended up 50 percent cheaper than buying a premade kit since you end up qith quantity 2. I want to say 20 ish dollars for bare boards and shipping, 40 ish for parts from mouser, 15 for the copper tube. Other things like tripod, speaker, cables I already had on hand.

github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3_Shield www.homedepot.com/p/Everbilt-1-4-in-x-10-ft-Soft-Copper-Refrigeration-Coil-Tubing-1-4-R-10RE/203654086 This is where I got the bill of materials. It is in ODS format which is a Libre Office spreadsheet file. Second link is for the tubing I bought from hardware store. The only things that weren't on the BOM's were the knobs, the banana plugs, and hardware to mount a tripod. Those things I improvised. Good luck on your build!

I would always encourage trying and taking a dive to learn new skills. It can be fun, kind of like building a model. Its kind of like learning how to ski, first time is often lots of failure but by the end of first session you may have already gotten the hang of it. If you have a steady hand and the right equipment, it isn't too bad. The trickiest parts for this kit may be the header connectors that adapt to the arduino as well as the IC chips. I'd recommend also getting a practice soldering kit to try first so your first try isn't spent on the theramin kit you found. You will need tweezers, flux, solder, solder braid, and a temperature controlled soldering iron. Best of luck.

Hi Alexandru, I didn't use the schematic at all I simply looked for the reference designators that were silkscreened on the PCB. Then used the provided BOM to cross out the line item after each were soldered.

@@LockeLaboratory C22 seems to be different in the schematic than in the BOM: github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3_Shield/issues/5 So for you it works anyway . Cool! Thanks for the answer. I'll start putting together my own soon.

@@alexandrumihaibudes3852 Great catch! I didn't even notice it. It appears C22 is simply a low pass filter for the output of the DAC chip. Going with the 47nf (what I did) will lower the cut off frequency of the low pass to about 1.5Khz whereas the schematic shows 10nf will have a 7.2Khz cut off frequency. I'm curious how that will affect the sound output, what did you suggest to github as the correct value?

@@LockeLaboratory It was not me pointing it out there on Github. My understanding of electronics is novice , yet I stumbled on this comment there when checking what I got to do. Yet not many people made the attempt like you to build it up from scratch . My parts will arrive in a week or so. Ill let you know how it sounds with the other cap

There is a grounding pad on the bottom of the theremin. I just used a clip on test lead to clip onto this ground pad and with the banana jack end of the test lead into ground port of an outlet.

@@LockeLaboratory thank you Jimmy

github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3 Here is what I used. There is a newer version out apparently

Download here github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3

Here you go: github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3

Sorry about that. I got a new camera and wanted to try out the time lapse feature. I didn't know people would be interested in the soldering part at real time speed. I could put in my queue a video on soldering technique if interested.

You can get it from the creators here. gaudishop.ch/index.php/product/opentheremin-v3-shield-and-antenna-kit-bundle/ you'll need to also buy an arduino to plug into it

TKS Brow. I love you jobs. see ya

Hello, you can find it here: github.com/GaudiLabs/OpenTheremin_V3_Shield

@@LockeLaboratory Ok. Thanks.

@@LockeLaboratoryHow do I send it to them? There are so many.

@@Berghiker in the git download there is a folder called PCB. In that folder is another one called "Gerber_Files" simply zip all the files you find in "Gerber_Files" to send to the PCB manufacture. From there you can order bare PCB's. You'll have to specify things like overall dimensions, quantity, number of layers (2), surface finish, etc.

@@LockeLaboratory Ok

That is a very interesting project. Since the particle load isn't very high for that application, you may get away with a simple fabric furnace filter with activated carbon sheets. An electrostatic precipitator might be overkill in this situation unless you are dealing with a lot of outdoor air pollution.

Yea making boards is lot of work. Much less time to just buy :) thanks for watch!

I dont think a theramin would do a great job of this? I think the antenna responds to grounded objects such as a person. A metal detector would be a better tool for finding metal.