FM|VERSUS
Reviews | Xxxxxxxxx
HEAD TO HEAD
Teenage Engineering’s OP-1 is one of the most desirable pieces of music production gear of the past decade. In fact, when TE temporarily stopped making the OP-1 in 2018, it became so essential that secondhand prices soared into four figures, well beyond its initial price. A few years on, though, and perhaps realising the technology was well over a decade old, Teenage Engineering went back to the OP-1 drawing board, and at this year’s Superbooth, announced OP-1 Field. This is a much pimped-up OP-1 - not a replacement, more a flashier and more expensive older sibling that TE describes as ‘a continuation’ of the OP-1 line. It has 100 more features, an even more eye-watering price tag and has caused enough of a buzz to finally knock secondhand prices of the original OP-1 into a much more sensible territory.
But can OP-1 Field really be worth £1,999? Let’s find out...
Design & build
Put side by side you’d be hardpressed to tell what has changed between the two OP-1s at first. So, what are the differences? OP-1 Field is a tad lighter and not quite as deep as OP-1. It also boasts velcro pads beneath it so you can attach it to your keyboard or laptop. The biggest difference you notice on power up is the speaker, which on Field comes with a passive radiator and ‘sideshooting loudspeaker grill’. It’s not obviously bigger but is louder than that on the OP-1, and has a much better acoustic design and sound, with the bass far more noticeable.
Then there’s Field’s screen. It’s still not a touchscreen, but it is a big improvement over the original OP-1. The new screen offers much more detail, plus there’s an adjustable brightness control.
The screen and speaker tip the balance massively towards Field, then. Plus, the FM antenna on Field is built into its body, which keeps the unit more compact, and the aluminium surround feels very sturdy.
AND THE WINNER IS…
The OP-1 FIELD takes the lead here because of the speaker, and the extra screen detail is stunning.
Sounds and tone
With an extra synth engine, stereo everywhere, extra sampling features and overhauled beats section, Field is sonically more diverse. The new synth engine, Dimension, is decent if not mind-blowing, and you wonder if it could be added to the original OP-1 as a software update.
More impressive are the synth sampling and drum extras. With different kits and improved sample zooming, everything looks, feels and sounds that much more professional. It still uses the same cool way of dividing up a break or lengthy sample (the maximum time has increased to 20 seconds) into constituent beats, but there’s more accuracy and extra envelope options for transient editing.
The biggest factors that affect the sound are the stereo enhancements and the physical speaker
