I wanted one of these so much 5 or 6 months ago until the field came out. I realize now I would have absolutely hated the workflow but was dazzled with all the features in such a small synth, and the cow filter. I am much happier with the Microfreak I borrowed.
"Analogize".. I'm going to use that! :) - I love your review on this. I have owned the OP-1 twice. The first one I bought most likely was defective upon shipping as when it arrived it had condensation in the display. BUT, it still worked and had fun with it. But then it became a bit unusable, soooo, I did what anyone would do and I returned it. I bought it from a third-party dealer. So my second OP-1 = fun! But it is so incredibly limiting and NOISEY! I have a Hum Eliminator connected to it so that I can put it through my console, but the noise is still kinda there, not as much, but present. For a $1200 price tag I would hope that they would have a better output, not to mention and better input, but I have microphones and an interface for that job. - Sorry about your keyboard, that would peeee me off! With everything said here, I will NOT be investing in the OP-1 Field.
My op-z failed to a point of being unusable, one of my po-32 failed in such a way it won't power up, and my po-16 has developed an issue where it loses all user data after the batteries die. I used to unconditionally love everything Teenage Engineering did but now it starts to seem like there is a finite lifespan to all of their products that is far shorter than the lifespan would suggest.
That is difficult. I have had my op-1 since 2012. A couple years later and one of the keys did fail, probably my fault. But TE was good about it and sent me a few replacement keys for free. I was able to replace the one that broke, and still have a couple extras.
Yeah, the classic TE experience... I guess they live up to their name, their synths feel like they're engineered by teenagers. Brilliant, inspiring and quirky machines, but build quality is super sketchy and their customer service is a joke. My OP-Z is hands down my favorite music machine ever, but it's also so broken that it's almost unusable at times.
That is a good way to describe the OP-1 😁. Apart from the keyboard the OP-1 seems quite sturdy to me. However a product is as good as its weakest part...
Was always curious about this but prices have become ridiculous. Just bought a Polyend Tracker as a mobile unit and really liking it. The OP-1 looks really cool though but I don’t think I’ll ever own it.
To answer your question I would ask how much did you miss it when it was away for repair? But paying 230 Euro after less than 2 years is not a joke, glad you talked about it to warn others.
@@martingoldmannmusic I can feel why. For over $1000 I would always buy something else, like a Deluge or MPC One, and have some money leftover to take my wife out for dinner. But then I am not traveling, I spend 99% of my life at home so the OP-1 was never on my list.
I was left some money by my mum when she passed away , I always wanted one of these, but I didn’t buy it in the end , a gpd pocket 2 and a small midi keyboard is way cheaper and way more powerful
Martin, .. totally guessing, here, .. What if the sliding surfaces of the keys, had some small amount of high grade lubrication? The best stuff, that I know of, now .. is synthetic grease. IF it were the answer, .. it shouldn't be very much of it. Yes, .. there is a tradeoff, in that grease does have dust absorption.
@@martingoldmannmusic I've become a nut, in this regard .. my new synth modules, that I got recently .. I took a toothpick & dabbed around all the knob bases, and so on .. and wiping off the excess, after a week, or so .. it takes time for the grease to creep into where it truly needs to be, too.
Have you considered getting a Synthstrom Deluge? Looking at getting one this month. Seems to be better build quality, battery and AC powered, inbuilt speaker, constant updates, and just has about 50x the number of features the OP1 has. I was looking at the OP1 for something portable for a long time, but I'm pretty set on the Deluge now. Oh, and did I mention it talks to your modular gear? Might be useful to you.
I bought an Akai MPC One while the OP 1 was in repair. Absolutely happy with that machine. The Deluge looks very interesting too :) On the other hand I have to keep my GAS under control ;)
@@martingoldmannmusic haha true. I hear great things about the MPC One, it looks like a really fun box. I mean, it's an MPC, so you can't really go wrong there. I just placed an order on the Deluge. I hear there are strong comparisons between the two. Hope it's going well for you and that your OP1 is back up and running :)
@@RSKT_art yeah I like it. It also is a great machine to get a track done quickly. I tend to use it for background beats in my videos. (Not in this one - this was made with an OP-1 track ;) )
@@martingoldmannmusic Nice. I'm hoping to do the same for my videos using the deluge. I spend enough time working on computers, so making some backing tracks on the couch near the family will hopefully be a breath of fresh air.
I wanted one of these so much 5 or 6 months ago until the field came out. I realize now I would have absolutely hated the workflow but was dazzled with all the features in such a small synth, and the cow filter. I am much happier with the Microfreak I borrowed.
Yep, with my knowledge today, I'd prefer the Microfreak :)
It is an insane price for its build quality.
We're talking Novation Peak and Sequential territory at that price.
Yeah, I can only justify it by the form factor and the fun I had with it. :)
Been sitting on it for a while now and this video helped me take it out of my cart haha
Thank you for letting us know I was considering it but not now.
Thank you for your comment - it is diffcult: a fun machine but this keyboard problem really wasn't fun :(
"Analogize".. I'm going to use that! :) - I love your review on this. I have owned the OP-1 twice. The first one I bought most likely was defective upon shipping as when it arrived it had condensation in the display. BUT, it still worked and had fun with it. But then it became a bit unusable, soooo, I did what anyone would do and I returned it. I bought it from a third-party dealer. So my second OP-1 = fun! But it is so incredibly limiting and NOISEY! I have a Hum Eliminator connected to it so that I can put it through my console, but the noise is still kinda there, not as much, but present. For a $1200 price tag I would hope that they would have a better output, not to mention and better input, but I have microphones and an interface for that job. - Sorry about your keyboard, that would peeee me off! With everything said here, I will NOT be investing in the OP-1 Field.
Thank you very much for sharing your experience, James. And, yes, "Analogize" is Public Domain and free to use ;-)
My op-z failed to a point of being unusable, one of my po-32 failed in such a way it won't power up, and my po-16 has developed an issue where it loses all user data after the batteries die. I used to unconditionally love everything Teenage Engineering did but now it starts to seem like there is a finite lifespan to all of their products that is far shorter than the lifespan would suggest.
oh, that is bad - sorry for that :(
It's a $500 groovebox with a $1300 price tag.
Yep, the OP-1 is quite expensive... :(
That is difficult. I have had my op-1 since 2012. A couple years later and one of the keys did fail, probably my fault. But TE was good about it and sent me a few replacement keys for free. I was able to replace the one that broke, and still have a couple extras.
Haha - they sent my old keyboard back with some keys missing 😊. However the new one has all the keys needed.
I bought the Deluge instead...so Glad I did..
I hope it has a better keyboard than my OP-1 had ;-)
@@martingoldmannmusic The Deluge has a easy change key pad as common parts are available from synthstorm for the owners to buy and swap out etc...
The sad piano parts. 😢😂
If I remember correctly these are in D minor - the saddest of all keys ;-)
Yeah, the classic TE experience... I guess they live up to their name, their synths feel like they're engineered by teenagers. Brilliant, inspiring and quirky machines, but build quality is super sketchy and their customer service is a joke. My OP-Z is hands down my favorite music machine ever, but it's also so broken that it's almost unusable at times.
That is a good way to describe the OP-1 😁. Apart from the keyboard the OP-1 seems quite sturdy to me. However a product is as good as its weakest part...
Was always curious about this but prices have become ridiculous. Just bought a Polyend Tracker as a mobile unit and really liking it. The OP-1 looks really cool though but I don’t think I’ll ever own it.
It just got a little bit cheaper. I think nowadays I would go with the MPC 1. But that doesn't fit in a small suitcase that well ;)
The Polyend Tracker is well built and exceptionally capable.
If the OP1 and Tracker prices were switched, it would make more sense.
Had an eye on the tracker too. Interesting price. Went for an MPC One meanwhile. There are sooooo many great synths out there!
To answer your question I would ask how much did you miss it when it was away for repair?
But paying 230 Euro after less than 2 years is not a joke, glad you talked about it to warn others.
I missed it a bit. But now it sits on the shelf. My relation to this synth cooled down a bit...
@@martingoldmannmusic I can feel why.
For over $1000 I would always buy something else, like a Deluge or MPC One, and have some money leftover to take my wife out for dinner. But then I am not traveling, I spend 99% of my life at home so the OP-1 was never on my list.
As I stated in the video - I wouldn't buy it again. The MPC is a nice and much more powerful alternative. :)
I was left some money by my mum when she passed away , I always wanted one of these, but I didn’t buy it in the end , a gpd pocket 2 and a small midi keyboard is way cheaper and way more powerful
Yeah I guess you are far more flexible with a notebook and a MIDI-Keyboard. (I have a Arturia Keystep for travelling).
@@martingoldmannmusic hi , the GPD pocket 2 literally fits in your pocket and it is great for soft synths , very little latency and very fast .
Martin, .. totally guessing, here, ..
What if the sliding surfaces of the keys, had some small amount of high grade lubrication? The best stuff, that I know of, now .. is synthetic grease. IF it were the answer, .. it shouldn't be very much of it. Yes, .. there is a tradeoff, in that grease does have dust absorption.
Maybe that could have helped. Thank you. :)
@@martingoldmannmusic I've become a nut, in this regard .. my new synth modules, that I got recently .. I took a toothpick & dabbed around all the knob bases, and so on ..
and wiping off the excess, after a week, or so .. it takes time for the grease to creep into where it truly needs to be, too.
Have you considered getting a Synthstrom Deluge? Looking at getting one this month. Seems to be better build quality, battery and AC powered, inbuilt speaker, constant updates, and just has about 50x the number of features the OP1 has. I was looking at the OP1 for something portable for a long time, but I'm pretty set on the Deluge now. Oh, and did I mention it talks to your modular gear? Might be useful to you.
I bought an Akai MPC One while the OP 1 was in repair. Absolutely happy with that machine. The Deluge looks very interesting too :) On the other hand I have to keep my GAS under control ;)
@@martingoldmannmusic haha true. I hear great things about the MPC One, it looks like a really fun box. I mean, it's an MPC, so you can't really go wrong there. I just placed an order on the Deluge. I hear there are strong comparisons between the two. Hope it's going well for you and that your OP1 is back up and running :)
@@RSKT_art yeah I like it. It also is a great machine to get a track done quickly. I tend to use it for background beats in my videos. (Not in this one - this was made with an OP-1 track ;) )
@@martingoldmannmusic Nice. I'm hoping to do the same for my videos using the deluge. I spend enough time working on computers, so making some backing tracks on the couch near the family will hopefully be a breath of fresh air.
An OP-1 not the same
Get the Field.
Nah! :)
@@martingoldmannmusic You will. It’s incredible.
Wait, wasn't that some form of pasta rather than noodles?
Maybe this was noodled up in translation. In Germany we call this kind of pasta "Nudeln". :)
Anyone one else having the same problem?
I remember one or two postings about keyboard problems on reddit. I don't think, every OP-1 has that problem. But mine had...
@@martingoldmannmusic yeah, I checked the OP-1 forum think I saw 2 postings on the subject.. Btw, I have a (used) OP-1 being delivered tomorrow.
@@jazway27 Have fun with it :)
Teenage Engineering stuff is just trendy and not that great.
well trendy for quite a long time :) I really have fun playing with the OP 1. But it is way overpriced imho.