#101

this seems like an odd reaction to a community which so readily embraces nagras and all manner of digital tape

i’m most curious about what could be done with onboard mem and opz integration for additional features and tape control

price is higher than i want but if it’s ever in stock i might sell some gear to buy one

seems right up my alley even tho i have little interest in the radio or mantras

17 Likes
#102

The ob-4 is a device to release inner demons of a community :slight_smile:

6 Likes
#103

Wow, this 1TB is like a 1,000 GIGO!

#104

Other than the obscenely high price which makes it completely unaffordable to 99.9% of college students, I could see this as being a really attractive choice for dorm residents.

I’d have loved something like this more than thirty years ago.

(God, was it really that long? sigh)

1 Like
#105

We are in the waning years of a wasteful abundance which has, almost as if by coincidence, created some objects which facilitate beautiful experiences against a backdrop of unfettered cash-grabbery. A fair few people have, as of late, had much room to dream and experiment. Too early to call the outcomes of this experiment, too risky to condemn costly visions for being costly.

Can’t know, can’t know, can’t know.

Excited to hear what @glia might do.

6 Likes
#106

A few months ago I abandoned the “hipster” path of buying gadgets to play with and went to buy gadgets to make music with. I sold my OP-1 and OP-Z to buy some eurorack modules. It didn’t make much sense to me that an OP-1 cost significantly more than an ER-301, so I made that decision. I think TE are very good at creating iconic collector items, and honestly the new OB-4 is no exception. Its design is very careful. It’s probably perfect for a minimalist home with concrete walls, polished resin floors, and large windows overlooking large coniferous forests. Regardless of whether I have abandoned the TE path, it is nice to see such objects, even if it is in a design magazine for cool people or on the shelf of a store like Pause Ljud & Bild.

11 Likes
#107

I feel like decision what is gadgets to play with and what is gadgets to make music with is very personal and while I am happy to hear that transition out of TE stuff was beneficial for you, but I wouldn’t discredit their instruments as purely toys or something to play with in contrast to making music.
I heard really cool stuff made on OP-Z (like by already mentioned @glia) or OP-1 and while I am really dissapointed in TE overall I will be first to say that they have really good sense of design and UX. I am giving them some flak but I recently played drone/ambient live gig where OP-1 and OP-Z played a main role and I did not feel at any moment that I am not making music or that I would be better off using other tools (reliability issues aside - as this was crossing over my head and I was a little bit worried what if another set of keys on my OP-1 will decide to stop working during the gig).
Of course this goes generally deeper as I personally feel that all music is “playing” and there is too much of “serious” attitude in music and art making in general.

5 Likes
#108

It’s a beautiful piece of design heavily influenced by the work of Rams of course.
But it’s essentially a portable radio and therefore doesn’t really match the expectations of the electronic music producing community who, on the whole, have speakers sewn up.

It partners the speakers and remotes that these guys have made and tells me that music producing gear isn’t really their target market. I was disappointed when I saw this - but at that same time I discovered Monome which fulfils both my need for elegant design and developing music tech. Let’s face it a lot of their gear doesn’t really go deep enough and feels like toys.

#109

Yes, probably the line that defines what is a gadget to play and what is a musical instrument is thin, especially because at all times when I play, be it my modular synthesizer or the violin, the ultimate goal is mere enjoyment. However, the conclusion that I have reached is that beyond the fact that I consider the OP-1 an instrument that will go down in history for its concept and design, it has become an excessively valued object, especially for real applications. Probably if we put aside its revolutionary design and focus solely and exclusively on sound, the device is from my point of view mediocre. Or rather, I wouldn’t consider it mediocre if its price were € 600 … It’s just a personal thought.

#110

I have to agree - I own an OP1 and I rarely use it. But I won’t part with it because I’m sure in 20-30 years from now some museum will pay a fortune for it!

#111

I LOVE instruments that feel like toys. Sturdy toys.

I spend dozens of hours a week trying to make my Serious Gear feel more and more like a toy – that is, playing with it.

7 Likes
#112

i made a startling discovery that it’s legal to play the piano if you don’t know how
I played with a piano for four hours and I didn’t get arrested or nothin’

18 Likes
#113

I’m curious mostly if it has more of a reference monitor sound as I make music with my Bluetooth speakers outside and haven came across any that give you accurate sound. Right now I’m using a JBL boom box wich is nice and loud and music does sound pleasant through it but if you making your own music on it and bring it into the studio there can be disappoing mixed and or levels as the speaker colors the sound greatly. If the OB-4 is more on point with sound accuracy I think it’s price point isn’t that bad. And hey if it saves you 2 hours of messing around that’s cool. It is unclear if you can actually save that tho.

#114

i haven’t read through this entire thread but enough to (maybe?) see that everyone is judging this thing WITHOUT HEARING IT. it is, after all, at it’s core, a SPEAKER… and well-designed (from an audio point of view, not visual) speakers can be VERY expensive… if this thing sounds way better than most other bluetooth speakers out there (which, in my experience, all sound pretty bad) then it could partially justify its price.

i think it has some interesting features and a battery powered NICE sounding speaker would be pretty interesting…

not throwing my support behind it, but not trashing it either until the verdict comes back on the sound quality… i mean, that’s why you’d buy it first and foremost… as a speaker… the rest of the features are just extras. the sound quality will make or break it.

15 Likes
#115

I know pretty much everyone is disappointed in the OB-4 right now… but the thing isn’t even out yet and nobody knows it’s full potential. I agree w/ @taylor12k. If the thing sounds really good then everything else is extra.

I think TE always gets flack on all sides from people for weird reasons.
They aren’t a synth company, they aren’t a speaker company… are a design + engineering company that happens to love making audio products. With them, I really feel that you get what you pay for. some of their stuff is really expensive and some is super affordable. I got my OP-1 almost 10 years ago when they were almost half the price of what they are now. I think i have #98 out of the first 100 and it is still working great (the only issue I have ever had involved spilling water on in and I had to replace the internal mic but that was inexpensive and easy to do myself). If It died today I would totally pay market price to replace it… It isn’t a toy, it isn’t a synth, it isn’t a DAW or a looper… It is an OP-1 and I don’t think you can compare it to anything else out there.

15 Likes
#116

Simple physics make it unlikely to sound too good.

Thin box
4 inch woofers close together
Single reflex vent it seems
Battery power

No free lunch.

Also no grilles (unless I’m missing something) is beyond stupid form over function.

Gonna be funny when the hipster carrying this walks into the corner of a cafe table

1 Like
#117

We don’t know yet, the potential is there. They may offer the grilles as an add-on for as little as 90 usd later on.

4 Likes
#118

Makes no sense to me to release this without any proper demos. :upside_down_face:

#119

If it’s spec’d to the amplifiers, I can’t really see why this should be a physical unlikelihood. Simple or not.

#120

Yesterday I actively tried to rip the speakers with my fingers… I mean really tried my best and didn’t leave a mark. Yes I didn’t try with a sharp pointed object like a knife but these things are not made of paper.

4 Likes