Teenage Engineering OP-1 Synth Controller
By Paul Dakeyne
| Posted in Music Technology
This is the Teenage Engineering OP-1: a quirky little device which appeared on t’interweb around a year ago. You’d be forgiven in thinking it was just a prototype experiment from a group of young turks with a penchant for the weird and wacky but nope, come NAMM 2010 (Hall ‘A’, booth 6409 to be precise), it’s real and it’s there.
Measuring just 28 cms wide and 10 cms in height, the OP-1 is a miniature-combo of synth keyboard (with effects), MIDI controller, sequencer, sampler (with built in mic) and.. a radio(!). The manufacturers promise a, “really cool and creative way to record your sounds and tweak them in a completely new way”. So far so cool then, but is this a serious performer or just a funky ‘do a bit here, do a bit there’ kinda toy? Well, I’m not actually sure to be honest.
Let’s take a peek at the control options first. Designed to be very ‘user friendly’, the Teenage Engineering OP-1′s ‘operator’ section is handled by four brightly coloured, intuitive knobs which translate the edited function on the lush and [in proportion] large OLED screen. The interface clearly has a new way of illustrating any adjustments and certainly seems designed to inspire creativity and ease of use but not befuddle the user.
The manufacturer’s assure basic DAW transport functionality of start, stop, rewind etc alongside soft synth control with the 16 dedicated quick keys and the aforementioned rotary knobs. Whether this involves in-built templates or complex MIDI assignment mapping sessions is as yet unknown.
Unplugging the OP-1 turns it into a synthesizer, sampler, sequencer and effects unit – boom! Grouped into eights of synth models and samplers, these probably translate to being voices and channels respectively – pure speculation on my part though. Adding a further and quite random control option, the unit has a ‘motion-sensor’ which would appear to add modulation and sound texture effects to anything playing, on the built-in sequencer/arpegiattor perhaps?
Into the real funky stuff now as the sampler comes into play, allowing slicing bits off an FM radio transmission or even messing around with any vocal, noise, whistle or sample aimed at the (yes it’s got one of these as well) …microphone.
Using yet more included marvels, Teenage Engineering suggests that you play back your recent masterpiece to your friends. Or hey, why not email them an MP3 while you’re at it? Just don’t tell me it’s got an MP3 encoder built -in too!!
Connectivity is listed as:
• 3.5mm input for audio/external microphone
• 3.5mm output for line out /headphones
• 3-pin power-connector for charging the internal battery or for use with power adaptor.
The power connector itself is the same as used in robotic automation applications (blimey!)
• USB 2.0 port for hooking up your OP to your computer and transferring your recorded music
• Two holes that have been especially machined for a carry strap
Having heard a few of the demo tracks I can safely say I haven’t heard much like it before. It sounds other-worldly, in a faulty oscillator, weird kind of sci-fi way. It feels unusable yet totally usable – I know, confusing… Perhaps this device will be adopted by the kitsch, cool cats, indie-heads and electronica cognoscenti and just about ignored by the mainstream. Either that or the Teenage Engineering OP-1 is about to become the most sought after item on many an artist’s GAS list.
Tags: Controller, OP-1, Sampler, Sequencer, synth, Teenage Engineering
Deary ME I want one.
Rob Sandall