PO-20 Arcade Pocket Operator - 8-bit Arcade Synthesizer/Sequencer, perfect for chiptune

This review is about the PO-20 Arcade. They may look a bit odd and minimalist, but they sound incredible and provide a lot of fun for the creatively minded. If you are a beginner to electronic music, the PO may somewhat puzzle you, but in the hands of someone with even a little bit of experience, these provide hours of fun and even some serious musical capability. The PO-20 totally takes me back to my youth when I used to own an Atari. The rich 8-bit quality of the square wave arps superbly re-create the atmosphere of that era, but with a modern twist. The chord sequencing is inspired. Very clever indeed, hats of to Jesper Kouthoofd and his team for producing something remarkable. I love the way the chord sequence changes the arps and baseline, even without turning up the drone. The side chain compression simulation on the drone sound is a very cool sounding modern twist. I am also astounded by the very expansive sequencing capability. You can store 16 x 16 step sequences and link them into a chain of up to 128 patterns, that is whopping 2048 steps! The chord sequence of up to 128 "bars" (from a choice of 16 cleverly chosen chords) is independent from this so the options are virtually limitless. Each sound has two parameters that can be sequenced too. I love the fact that I can sync my PO to my Korg Volcas and other synths. Very easy to set up, plug in and select SY2, that's all there is to it! The only bit of criticism I have is about the packaging. I get that this is all part of the overall minimalist design of the product, but does not protect it enough when sent. Especially the knobs are vulnerable as they stick out of the packaging. My first one arrived with one of the knobs smashed in. This is partly because Amazon did not properly packaged it (just stuffed it into an envelope, which got crushed between heavier boxes). The replacement came in the same rubbish packaging, but all works fine. I disagree that the unit is vulnerable to damage. Of course there are always those that treat their kit like Casey Neistat, but then of course nothing is safe from damage. Highly recommended, seriously thinking which one I want next!

I have quite a few drum machines from a maschine plus, novation circuit, kolg volva beats and the pocket operator so I I have a pretty good idea about where this fits into the mix. It's way more powerful than it looks. It's really possible to do some quite complex things on this with only the few settings that you have. For example, yes it's a 16 step sequencer so it's quantized but if you way to have something non quantized you could shift where you trim the same at for example to get it to a microstep. The storage space on it is a bit limiting so it makes you really conserve the space you have. Longer samples for example may be hard to work with. There is a way to back it up to a sound file if you want to though which is nice to have. Recording in it is very easy. The build in mic is ok but record from line in for much better results. The battery life is great so expect a few weeks of continuous use out if 2 battering. The only negative thing I have to say is that the dials are really terrible. It makes it so hard to trim a clip for donfine adjustments. Some people have soldered different ones on that are better quality but I've bit tried it. Get the outrageously expensive case to go with it since it will save your fingers if you use it a lot. Sound quality is good but don't expect high end audio. I've found that if you get a good recording of a sample on it the quality is quite good but this just lends it's self to the type of music it can create. For comparison you can do more on this than a Kirk volca beats and it fits in your pocket. It's actually really good for just jamming and playing live

Very cool little gadget, slightly damaged packaging

I found out about the Pocket Operators a couple of months ago and have since become a huge fan of these amazing instruments. They're fun, but serious enough to be used live and in the studio and not as flimsy as you'd think. The variations of sounds you can get from each of the 15 bass sounds (And 1 micro drum kit) is huge by combining the A and B parameter controls with the 16 play styles (How the note is played) and 16 effects. (Sounds 12 - 15 seem like they should come from a much larger, expensive device!) A seemingly major down point is that they're chromatically locked to C major, so if you want any sharps/flats you need to use the semi-tone bend effect on fx number 15. I thought this was going to be a problem, but I haven't had any issues with it at all, in fact, it enables me to think up more creative basslines. Another thing to point out is that I thought my device was broken straight out of the box as it would not turn on when the batteries were inserted. However, I discovered on a forum that by bending the battery connection points in a little, the problem was solved. I don't think I'll bother getting a case as it looks cool and is pretty sturdy - as long as you don't sling it loose into a bag or leave it lying around on the floor somewhere... Recording lines live can be a little tricky, but once you'e used to it, building up and chaining pattern sequences is quite intuitive and powerful, especially when synced to other Pocket Operators and similar devices. A lot of people have described these as 'Toys', which is a slightly misleading thing if you haven't 'Played' with them; it's small and fun, but so is a Harmonica or a Ukulele, and this can do SO much more. Oh... and there's a little dude running around on the screen while you play things that goes back to bed to sleep when playing is done!

I love this little thing. It sits somewhere between a real professional tool and a toy. It's very small and portable, battery life is pretty good, and it can make a wide range of sounds. Getting a whole track devoted to Tonic is a huge upside; the drum sounds are deep and customizable, and the sequencer is great. Biggest limiting factors are that you are limited in terms of the sounds you can apply to the samples, and also there is two-voice polyphony: one synth sound and one drum sound on any given step. However, despite these limitations, the possibilities are still pretty deep, and chaining patterns together in a pseudo-"song mode" is possible. Overall, for $100, it's a great buy for anyone who loves synthesizers and music production. I wouldn't recommend this to a first-time synth buyer but if you already have a collection and want something fun and diverting, this is the one to get.

Llego nuevo, esta bien chido Con unos tutoriales aptendi a usarlo de volada. Pero si esta algo limitado en comparación a un sampler dedicado, se podria decir q es un sampler de juguete, se lo preste a mi sobrino de 6 años, y le entendio jaja

The PO-28 Robot is the lead guitarist among the Pocket Operator lineup. Its specialty is providing lead synthesizer over the top of the other units, although it is fully capable in its own right. What you get: Lo-fi lead synth goodness. Playing the 16 keys and twisting the knobs will get you the lo-fi equivalent of everything from a haunting guitar to soaring synth and bleep-bloop chiptune leads. Although 16 keys isn't a lot, the unit does let you tune up and down a decent amount to get some range. Great for simple live play. A fully-functional sequencer. The 16-step sequencer also makes use of the 16th sound key which provides 16 different drum sounds. Use some of the low synth lines for bass, the drum key for drums, and then rock out your lead with the high instruments. That's full song capability, onboard. Super cool, and so fun for freeform play. Song play. The sequencer can remember up to 128 patterns in sequence. At 80bpm, that's 6.4 minutes of recorded patterns. You can then use the FM and live play to jam over top of that. You can also punch in more patterns or sets of patterns on the fly, meaning you have almost unlimited play options within the confines of the unit. Connects to other POs. Since this is mostly a lead synth, you may want to immediately connect it to the PO-12 Rhythm or PO-32 Tonic which are more fully-featured drum machines. This will let you control the drum separate from lead, making for more complex song ideas. You can also add a PO-14 Sub for basslines, a PO-33 for samples, or a PO-35 speak for voice/vocoder samples. Or how about a PO-20 for more lo-fi 8-bit arcade sounds? So many options! The POs share clock using a simple stereo ("aux") cable, and the audio will be output by the final unit in the chain. The only downside: Teenage Engineering responded to the fact that at high volume the PO-1X series had distorted sound by lowering the volume on the PO-2X series. You will therefore want to look up some guides people have made for chaining the units- you may for instance want the volume on the Robot maxed out while your rhythm machine is set down to maybe half volume. It's a small oddity, and takes moments to fix. But the Robot is very quiet in use, you really need headphones to enjoy it in anything but a silent room. Overall: Love this thing. It's like the rest of the Pocket Operator line are an 80s electronic band and the Robot is the lead guitarist stepping onstage with a keytar. You can really make some rocking lead parts with this unit, as it has more options to fade in sound creating the sort of haunting guitar/synth sound that layers so well on top of the lo-fi drums and bass from the other units. This is a big recommendation for anyone who already owns another Pocket Operator- take your gigs to the next level. If you can only afford one: While the Robot is great, it's meant to sit alongside other units. The most complete unit for a kid to play with, or for an aspiring musician, is the PO-20 Arcade. The Arcade hits the best balance of rhythm and lead so you can make songs on the train. The other big recommendation is that the PO-32 Tonic, which has integration to the Microtonic software meaning professional music producers adore its added flexibility.

Got it for a good deal! Love these little things!

Delivered. Works.