Hiwatt Echo Theremin

i've used a the traditional style theremin with an antennae, so i can compare its use with the hiwatt theremin. there is no comparison: the hiwatt is almost unusable. the hiwatt theremin will only produce sound if you place your hand *within inches* of the unit. because your hand must be within inches of the unit, you cannot control the pitch accurately like you can with a traditional style theremin.

the sound quality of the pitches that this theremin makes is OK but as i mentioned above, you can't control the pitch. since you can't control pitch, then you can't "get the sound of your favorite artists" (as copied from the harmony central review guidelines).

i bought this unit completely untested in part because there was a delay built-in. the delay is fine (you can control the delay time and repetitions) but you cannot adjust the delay volume.

the plastic casing would not have survived by gigging with a zep tribute band. the effect is very light in weight. it seems to me that if it's dropped from 4-5 feet onto a hard floor, i'd expect that there would be structural damage.

i did not have to deal with customer support.

having played a traditional theremin and now having bought this without ever playing the model, there's no choice in my mind: buy a traditional theremin instead of buying this model.

this theremin would be great if the proximity range were greater, if the effect was housed in a metal box rather than plastic, and there was better control of the delay (there should be a delay volume).

I have left review of this tasty box in 2002, now I'm back in '05 keeping Germany rock alive. Well, Hansel and Gretel... my Theremin is still rocking the haus. When I'm not hallucinating on Jagermeister, I find this sexy box still very easy to use. Wipe your hand over it and go into outer-space. Tiny blue men rub butter all over me. Anyone can make good sound out of this, even mommy got jiggy with it. My English is second language, please understand.

Since 2002 my gear-orgy has been upgraded from a sleek Cort axe and Hughes&Kettner amp to a Mexican Fender Strat and an Scholz Rockman. I'm going all solid state now, no more amps, I don't believe in them... just juicy direct, baby. I believe my Hiwatt Theremin sounds even better through this new and improved, "Hollywood" rig. Sometimes I take my balls out. The Theremin seems better suited for solid state action, I don't know why... I will call them and ask. It sounds great together with my Bradshaw switching system, I get all the options. With this rig, I'm hot like Leonardo Dicaprio, just not as gay. I wish it had a midi jack so I could program like crazy, into my system, 10 or 30 different Theremin sounds, from "morning gas" to "Steve Vai is going to kidnap me," sounds.

Well... I've abused my sexy box for almost 3 years now, it hasn't let me down or pulled out. It still respects me in the morning after rough abuse on gig. I play my gear hard, especially if it's been a bad boy. Hiwatt has "hi" standards for reliability, but it's real beauty is in it's plastic case. Plastic gets a bad rap by most Americans, but us Germans love it. It's sleek and tough, like me on a Saturday night. Looking for a fight, I can take it. Hiwatt put much thought into this design, I love it.

Well... I call Hiwatt about every week to discuss my gear, and even though I'm not hot pro yet, they still listen to my fantasies. They refer to me as, "The not hot pro yet, German guy," and I love that. Do they know YOU at Hiwatt? They know me, don't be jealous. If and when my sexy hot box can't take it anymore, I know the hot guys at Hiwatt will take care of it and help me out with my tone journey. I hope my English is OK enough... still learning. Back in the 2002 I asked them to make a Theremin with tubes in it, because tubes sound better. That's what Tim Pierce told me. So, I hope they will make a tube version Theremin, that should warm up my rig. Good guys, good support.

I am still playing German rock, because I am German. I used to be in Rammstein cover band, but nobody can be as good as them. Rammstein is best band in world. Now, I am playing 80's cover band all in German. Styx's "Mr. Roboto," Night Ranger's "Sister Christian," and Taco's "Puttin' on the Ritz," are a few of the cover songs we cover. We sing and play them in German, that is our niche. If it was lost or stole I would contact Hiwatt for another one. I find a place for that sound in all of these songs, whether you like it or not. It's very inspiring, I put down my axe and pick up the Theremin. I still wish it had tubes in it. Maybe after my band gets signed, Hiwatt could make a signature, tube powered version for me. That is hot.

with one jack to plug, 4 knobs (level, frequence, delay time & delay level) it's very easy! Manual is very simple, because it's very simple to use this unity!

I like to use the theremin with a ElectroHarmonix BigMuff PI into an another delay unit. if you set the delay time at 0 and the delay level at maximum, you have a string like sound. it's like a guitar string but without the attack of the guitar. so the BigMuff make it scream! the other delay unit it's for sampling loops! i try it even with a CryBaby wha, but i don't like the sound coming out.

i hope the plastic case don't break. i treat it very kindly.

i don't know, but i hope in hiwatt support.

i play psychedelicrockblues with some friends... i like so much the theremin sound, even the public appreciate it! yesterday night i played it in a concert and a lot of persons was fascinated by the sound and by this instrument not very known. i like it!

Very easy to use, whatever sound I imagine in my head comes out. I place my hand over the unit and WOW! I sound like hot pro.

This is the first theremin-style unit I've purchased so I don't really know how to compare it with other top units, but this one is tasty and juicy. The sound inspires me to put down my axe and pick up the echo theremin. I use this box with my Cort axe and my Hughes&Kettner amp, awesome tones I get. Stand back, I'm loud!

I've only had it for 3 days, we'll see about it. I'm pretty hard on my axes so I'm sure the theremin will receive some punishment if it's a bad boy. Box looks good, it should hold up.

Pretty good, not like other big companies. They listened to me even though I'm not a hot pro yet. I mentioned something about making unit with some tubes in it, we'll see if that happens. Just an idea. Friendly guys, call them and talk.

I play in a Rammstein cover band, called Der Weinerschnitzel. I know it's funny name, but we are funny. Check us out. I really like this box, it makes cool sounds, GET ONE. I think it's one of my most favorite tools I use, it would be even more killer if it had tubes I think. Inspiring.

It has only 4 knobs. Real easy to get sound out of it......nice space sounds! Range is VERY limited, only 5 inches as compared to several FEET with a Big Briar Theremin running through an echo effect. Impossible to play anything melodic on the Hi-Watt unit. Low tones can only be made by forcing the circuit to oscillate by bringing your hand very close, then lowering the pitch by carefully backing away....but not too far or it will stop.

Coarse grating digital Theremin sound. Low tones are annoying like the circuit is trying to tell you something is wrong. Gets old quick unless you can replicate melodies. Easy to make space like sounds because of the delay, but it is much better to use a real Theremin with a real delay.

You could probably walk all over this thing and it will still work, just pray it doesn't break.....the whole circuit is potted in a cube of unfixable plastic!

I never needed info or service. Since it is from Hi-Watt, I imagine it would be well supported.

Neat toy but at $140 you may want to save up another $200 and get a Big Briar Theremin to use with your echo pedal.

Let me put it to you this way. If you can't figure out how to use the Hiwatt Echo Theremin you probably shouldn't be playing an instrument.

The Echo Theremin really has great sound quality. I?ve used with it several different amps and also straight in to a mixer and it works good in any situation. When it comes to the settings the delay is what makes it happen you can literally sit for hours coming up with different stuff. I?ve created loops with it in Pro Tools, Recycler and if you have a good loop program the possibilities are endless.

It is a fairly new product but it seems vary rugged and I don't see any need for a backup at a live show.

I?ve dealt a lot with Fernandes and Hiwatt and their customer support is as good as it gets. They respond to your phone calls and e mails generally within one business day and if for some reason there should be something wrong with your product they will take care of you right away.

This little beast could be used in any situation, with a bit of imagination everything from heavy metal to country to R&B to DJ's could have use for this product.
The main thing about this product is that NOTHING SOUNDS LIKE IT!!!
If you are in to cool effects pick one up you won't be disappointed.

The Hiwatt Echo Theremin is a total "plug and play rig"....you just plug it in(one 1/4 output..simple!) and go for it!
There are Controls: Level, Frequency, Delay Time (300 Milliseconds), Delay Level
Additional Features: Single Mono Output Jack, L.E.D. Battery Level Indicator
Power: 9 Volt Battery
Dimensions: (L) 6 1/4", (W) 4 3/4", (H) 2 3/4"
Color: Black with Mirror Dome Antenna
The manual is simple and to the point....quite fine!

I have used the unit through numerous amp rigs and also in direct recording situations...and it has truly worked out as a great trooper!
There is no noise problem whatsoever with the theremin and it's echo settings! Wonderful! Really powerful delay settings are what make this baby a ure delight to work with. Manipulating the feedbakc and delay time while using the theremin is what make this a TOTALLY UNIQUE EFFECT/INSTRUMENT! There are NO BOUNDARIES for tonal expression! The greatest thing is that nothing sounds like this baby in the whole world...NOTHING!

It construction is extremely durable....all rugged plastic and i've already dropped mine a few times....with no problems at all!
I couls see this unit being used in any live or studio situation.
It's a little tank!

I've dealt with Hiwatt/Fernandes on many occasions and their customer suport is spot on! They are there to anwser your phone calls and email IMMEDIATELY! Which is quite rare to find in a large company....even these days! I'm sure if I ever need to get this baby worked on...which i believe will never occur...then my dealer and Hiwatt would be more than helpful to see that my needs were met.

I play all styles of music and the Echo Theremin stands alone as it's own "thing"...meaning that "the skys are the limit as far as what you can do with this machine! From otherworldy sci-fi noises ..to creepy goth drones...to actual syrupy melodic passages...the theremin ROCKS! If you are lloking for the next step in creating an ORIGINAL sound added to your music...then this is DEFINITELY a step in the right direction! THe Hiwatt Echo Theremin IS the coolest thing to happen to my musical world in a long long time...and I know once you get your hands on one...LITERALLY...you;ll agree......HAVE FUN AND GO FOR IT!
GET ONE NOW...YOU WILL NOT BE SORRY!!!! Wow!