Behringer is working on the Behremin, a clone/replica of the legendary Moog Theremin in full analog and for just $99 USD.
End of October, Moog presented the Claravox Centenniel, a next-generation Theremin pumped full of analog and digital technologies. A powerful hybrid Theremin at a price of 1600€. Not affordable especially for musicians who would like to try a Theremin. But it’s more innovative and beautiful than any clone. Behringer is now responsible for the latter.
Uli and his team are currently working on the Behremin, an analog clone of the legendary Moog Theremin. The name is not a joke. A Theremin from Behringer for $99 USD. In Germany, people would name it “Volks-Theremin”, a Theremin for everybody. My German-speaking readers know exactly what I’m talking about.
Behringer Behremin
So Behringer wants to build a $99. Warning there are plans, not an official product yet. However, they wouldn’t be the first to do it. The Widara Distant Voices Theremin also only costs $99, but has fewer features. The Behremin offers two antennas. The vertical one controls the sound and the horizontal the volume. It features a multi-wave oscillator (sawtooth, rectangle), filter, as well as a quantizer that corrects the scale play and accuracy of the control movement.
To round of the sound, you have an onboard delay with dry/wet control, feedback, and time control. On the right side, you have volume control and a headphone input. On the backside, we can see pitch CV, volume CV, and audio out. Interesting, only a MIDI Thru, not a complete MIDI interface.
According to Behringer, they are currently working on this project. I don’t know what to think of it. People love classic analog synthesizers, but are there so many musicians out there who absolutely want a Theremin replica? I think everyone who wants to make serious music with a Theremin will buy the original from Moog Music. Also to contribute something to the story of Leon Theremin’s legendary instrument.
For $99 it would be worth a try, but the risk is high that you play it briefly and then collect dust on the shelf. Okay, it could create some cringy, spooky sounds but unless you put in some serious time it’s going to sound strange and not usable in most cases. I, personally don’t need it and I guess most of them don’t either.
More information here: Behringer
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If the “quantizer” function is similar to the “pitch correction” of the Moog Theremini, this is going to be a steal for $99. If that’s the case, I’m in.
I’m in also, but what the reviewer is trying to say is that he or she doesn’t have the skill to play one.
it’s just an observation: a Theremin is not a classic synth but an instrument that you have to learn from scratch. Do you accept the burden or end up unplayed on the shelf.
Why do we, when Behringer creates a theremin, call it a clone and when Moog does it, we do not call it a clone, but call it just a Moog Theremin? They weren’t the inventors either. I’m not a B nor M fanboy or so ever, but more curious about the reasons why name something a clone and why not.
What did Moog so far with the Theremins goes beyond what a clone is, The Claravox is an analog/digital with new ideas etc, same for Moog Theremin with the Animoog engine. B uses the circuits from the past and replicates as well as possible. That’s why we talk about clones 🙂