This is yet another Teenage Engineering bauble that as an interested amateur I love to look at and at 1/4 to 1/3 the price might consider buying. I'm glad their target market can justify their prices because their stuff is really nice. I'm just not part of it.
OP-1 field
181–190 of 251 posts
Re: OP-1 field
#182I owned and sold an OP-1. It is a beautiful piece of hardware and its analog controls and mashable buttons provide a more tactile experience than an iPad does. That said, the sounds it ships with really leave something to be desired. My subjective opinion is that anyone who's played with a best in class software synth (i.e., equator2) is going to find themselves feeling pretty limited by the blippy tones that you get…
Yeah I agree, it's not really a great choice as your 'main synth'. I think it's really meant to be a self-contained portable 'music sketchpad'. I owned 2 at one point thinking maybe that was the issue, I like to double up my gear (for example I like to use two TB-303 layered); when that didn't work out the way I hoped on the OP1s I sold them and both were bought separately by traveling musicians that wanted something…
Korg Module is the best noodler out there and it’s 20 bucks. I’ve tried a few portable hardware sequencers, but module on my phone fits the bill so much better.
Just finished a verse and got halfway through a chorus on a 30 minute ferry ride and I didn’t even have to remember to bring anything but my phone.
Re: OP-1 field
#183From 2011: Finally. After more than two years of development the OP-1 is now ready for production. Due to initial limited supply we now accept reservations. Manufacturing, assembly and shipping will be eight weeks. $799 https://web.archive.org/web/20110201230202/http://namm.teena...
As a studio enthusiast and electronic musician, I always felt this was a reasonable price for the OP-1. I have a _lot_ of synths here, ranging from the high end Moog Voyager to various Pocket Operators by Teenage Engineering. $2000 however is just too much for this. The Polyend Tracker sells for $500 used in comparison, and while its drastically different - is vaguely competitive to the OP-1.
Polyend also just announced another groovebox that is vaguely competitive to the op-1 for $800. Looks a bit like a slimmed down deluge, which for half the price of the new OP-1, I would highly recommend to anyone who wants a portable music station or groovebox in general. I've had it for about 5 years now and they are still actively working on it which is a nice bonus.
Re: OP-1 field
#184I clicked through to the store thinking "Come on TE, what pricepoint have you set this time", and it's $2,000. Two grand. I chuckled, and closed the tab.
For the same money it would be possible to buy the full version of a DAW of your choice, Kontakt, Arturia V-Collection and a PC to run them all on. I'm sure the OP-1 is fun, but I doubt it's £2,000 worth of fun.
I hate working with DAWS and plugins. I went all in on modular a few years ago and wish I had done so a decade earlier.
Re: OP-1 field
#185The people complaining about the price tag: I get it. But the OP-1 is literally the only piece of music gear you can bring on an airplane and write a whole song. Why has no one else figured that out? With all these groove boxes etc, why has no other music gear taken the step of being portable and all-in-one. Show me another way to write a song in an airplane, and you can have my money.
I guess you're not yet familiar with the Synthstrom Deluge: https://synthstrom.com Far better than the OP-1, by miles .. See also the 1010music BlackBox: https://1010music.com/product/blackbox Easily set up on an airplane seat-table for production.
The Deluge is huge (size-wise) compared to the OP-1 and doesn't run off batteries, have wifi/bluetooth connectivity, sample editing, etc, etc.
It's a nice groovebox but I don't think it really compares.
$2k is a steep price but there's a lot going on here that's not immediately obvious to a lot of folks.
Re: OP-1 field
#186I owned and sold an OP-1. It is a beautiful piece of hardware and its analog controls and mashable buttons provide a more tactile experience than an iPad does. That said, the sounds it ships with really leave something to be desired. My subjective opinion is that anyone who's played with a best in class software synth (i.e., equator2) is going to find themselves feeling pretty limited by the blippy tones that you get…
Yeah I agree, it's not really a great choice as your 'main synth'. I think it's really meant to be a self-contained portable 'music sketchpad'. I owned 2 at one point thinking maybe that was the issue, I like to double up my gear (for example I like to use two TB-303 layered); when that didn't work out the way I hoped on the OP1s I sold them and both were bought separately by traveling musicians that wanted something…
You're making a good point about VST compatibility over time. One way to at least ensure a track remains playable is to bounce your midi tracks to separate audio tracks (waveform). Clearly, you lose the flexibility that comes with manipulating the original score, but you're guaranteed to be able to playback, eq, and mix the original performance. Not ideal, but better than nothing.
Re: OP-1 field
#187Earlier quoted context omitted.
Yeah I agree, it's not really a great choice as your 'main synth'. I think it's really meant to be a self-contained portable 'music sketchpad'. I owned 2 at one point thinking maybe that was the issue, I like to double up my gear (for example I like to use two TB-303 layered); when that didn't work out the way I hoped on the OP1s I sold them and both were bought separately by traveling musicians that wanted something…
Korg Module is the best noodler out there and it’s 20 bucks. I’ve tried a few portable hardware sequencers, but module on my phone fits the bill so much better. Just finished a verse and got halfway through a chorus on a 30 minute ferry ride and I didn’t even have to remember to bring anything but my phone.
Have you tried the Korg Kaossilator? It's 20 bucks upfront and so far I didn't want to spend that without being able to try it. The description sounds cool though.
Re: OP-1 field
#188Too expensive. But I'm glad there are people that can utilise it well! Eg. RedMeansRecording channel on YouTube!
Re: OP-1 field
#189Earlier quoted context omitted.
It's quite obvious to me that it's a keyboard instrument from the first picture alone. The copy gives plenty of information on the synthesis and sampling capabilities.
Yeah I can see it has a keyboard, presumably some kind of synthesiser. It also appears to have some recording facility, but not clear how to get audio into it - can't tell what ports it has. Is the recording feature just for sequencing internal sample and synth sounds? Or... they highlight the new version now has a 2.4ghz antenna - do you stream audio in/out over bluetooth? A little explanation of basically what it c…
> not clear how to get audio into it
In terms of wired connectors, it has USB-C, line in and out sockets, and a 4-pole audio jack for headset or mic support. OP-1 also has its own mic built into the body as well.
Re: OP-1 field
#190It would be amazing, and not too unlike TE, if they released some of these features as updates to the original OP-1. I'm particularly interested in the new tape recording styles.