Teenage Engineering OP-1 Field

FM VERDICT
7.1
Field is a stunning evolution
of the original OP-1. Only
the price holds it back from
scoring better
SOUNDS GOOD: The all-new speaker
might look the same but is such an
improvement that it’s almost worth
the asking price alone. Almost
FULL COLOUR: The four colour
encoders are in place from the
original OP-1, allowing control over
their coloured parameters (albeit with
different colours this time around)
SCREEN STAR: The screen has been
updated and has all-new designs for
most OP-1 features and also offers
crystal clear sample editing
BEST CASE: The OP-1 Field case
might look similar to the original, but
it now includes a built-in FM antenna
and a better microphone
synth types, sequencers, effects and
drum kits (although these have been
completely re-engineered), there’s not
a lot sonically extra with Field. But
not only does the speaker give
everything a new lease of life, the
extra features do add a lot. So while I
could spend the rest of this review
just listing those extras, let’s focus on
what they mean to the most
important aspect of Field: its sound.
On the synth side, for example,
the new Dimension synth engine is
very fl exible and solid, with controls
to change the variable waveform,
stereo width, frequency and
resonance. Within the Synth section,
as with the other three main areas
(Drums, Tape and Mixer), the four
keys beneath the screen take you
even deeper. The fi rst shows the
selectable Engine screen with the
four parameters you can change, the
second an adjustable envelope, the
third a choice of eight effects (with
the new Mother reverb being
particularly good) and the fourth is an
LFO section. Several modulation
options include MIDI, random,
tremolo and, my favourite, Element.
Here you can use external sources
like the mic, FM radio and audio line
in to modulate tuning, effects and
more. As with the original OP-1, you
can use the G-Force option to
physically move the unit to modulate
a parameter – and yes, it can still
sound like a lightsaber if you wish.
The next main section is Drum
which is beefi er now, with all-new kits
and the beats are harder, more varied
and sharper. Either use the rather
good DBox drum synth to create beats
and kits from scratch or use the Drum
Sampler. Here a break is typically
sliced into constituent beats and
mapped across the keys. There are
15 varied kits to pick and, of course,
you can sample in and create your
own. Like the Synth Section, the four
keys beneath the screen let you
choose the Sampler of Dbox,
envelope, effects and LFO options.
This brings us to the third Tape
section, another big update. This still
has four tracks of recording but you
now get six minutes per track and can
store up to eight different tapes. To
use the recorder, simply select a
track, hit play and record together
and play. There’s a metronome option
and the number keys offer all sorts of
‘tape tricks’ like setting loop points,
repeat effects, tape reversing and a
form of automation.
You also get four different tape
machine emulations to use – Vintage
4-track, Studio 4-track, Porta 4-track
and Disk Mini. Studio gives you the
highest 32-bit quality and total ‘tape’
silence, Vintage adds a bit of wobble
and noise, Porta gives you cassette
lo-fi hiss and Disk Mini gives, well, I
wasn’t really sure. Slightly less
volume to my ageing ears… Still,
good to have the options.
Given the many other features,
this is a great upgrade, but what
about the biggest question of all: is it
really worth £1,999? I’m wrestling
with it, to be honest. If you take Field
for what you get – all of those synth
engines, sampling, drums,
sequencing, recording, effects, and so
many more features all packed into a
device you can literally take anywhere
and make a pro-sounding album with
– then perhaps £1999 doesn’t seem
too bad. But I can’t help picturing in
my mind what two grand gets me
elsewhere: the entire Korg Volca and
Pocket Operator range, with change
left over for a decent four-course
meal. I have to conclude that OP-1 is
not worth the asking price. That said,
this asking price can be reduced
signifi cantly if you shop around. I’ve
seen Field for £1,599 (Thomann or
BAX) which seems far more
reasonable if you can get one (it
currently appears to be sold out in
many stores). And the original OP-1’s
secondhand asking price is now a
more reasonable £650 to £750 so
that could also be a route to
OP-1-ness if you want to risk it. Field
is as controversial as the original
OP-1. It is beautiful, feature-packed,
easy to use and a stunning sounding
device that is both expensive and
divisive. It is, then, the perfect
evolution to keep the OP-1 saga
going. But if you’ve got £1,999
burning a hole in your pocket waiting
to be spent on mobile music making?
Get yourself a MacBook Air.
SOUNDS GOOD:
The all-new speaker
FULL COLOUR:
The four colour
SCREEN STAR:
The screen has been
BEST CASE:
The OP-1 Field case
SOUNDS GOOD:
SOUNDS GOOD:
The all-new speaker
Teenage Engineering OP-1 Field | Reviews
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FMU388.rev_teenage.indd 77FMU388.rev_teenage.indd 77 02/09/2022 12:2802/09/2022 12:28