Teenage Engineering PO-20 Pocket Operator Arcade Synthesizer

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 bought this for my kids to experiment with music on. They've so far not shown any interest, but that's ok since I'm having tremendous fun messing around with this! The instructions are good for getting you started, but I found some good tutorial videos on youtube that really helped me get going with this. Sound quality is really good (obvs depended on what speakers/earphones you're using). Recording the output on PC should be really straightforward if you've got a line-in - if you don't have, you'll need to think about buying a cheap USB sound card with a line in to be able to record your music. Really tempted to save up for one of the other pocket operator devices now.

It's such a happy little gadget! I'm in the same boat as some others; a toe-dipper trying to get into electronic music. The PO-12 rhythm was probably where I should've started but I went with the Arcade after hearing the awesome chiptune effects on YouTube. And its adorable. No regrets so far. If you use tutorial videos and the instructions that come with the Arcade, you'll be writing fun patterns and chaining them into tracks in no time. Like an hour at most. Also it's very easy to carry around so will be great for travel entertainment. Furthermore it sounds great plugged into a speaker if you want to show pals the tracks you've made. A great first synth/drum machine, has given me the confidence to look further into synth music and likely will buy another PO or other synth soon.

I have wanted a chiptune trinket for a very, very long time. And along comes Teenage Engineering with a premade, cost effective bleep-blooper. I am in love; from the minimalist and simple packaging allthe way through the grit sweeps and the FX... love it! It's playable in minutes, very easy to learn. The built in speaker is limited, but decent and connecting it to my speaker system reveals a shocking level of depth. For such a tiny thing, the sound is huge! Next up, the PO-137 😎

This is a basic loop device with 16 stored sounds that cannot be replaced. That said it fits in your pocket and I take it everywhere - it's really addictive. It is not easy to use straight out of the box, get ready for loads of frustration as you master creating your loops, but imagine somebody giving you a piano... The instructions tell you how it works, but it's going to be a while before you play your first few bars. I will definitely be buying other Pocket Operators, just might have to save up first as they are expensive. You could get an app for ur phone that works just as well, if not better, and I have had many of them but I would still rather use the PO. It's hard to explain, almost like reading real books vs e books.

Nice lil machine you can spend hours playing with, for easily making arcade game style themes. Reccomended for some fun on the sofa or taking on trips. I'm not giving it 5 stars because the instructions booklet is a bit scarce, and because it could include a protective case.

These are Teenage Engineering's/Cheap Monday's answer to the Korg Volca range, though about half the price but just as much fun, I have this and the PO-12 which is the drum machine, to be able to sync these together and have them play in unison is an absolute synch to do, they also connect with other synths like the Korg Volca's, though I did struggle to play both PO's and my Volca set-up, something sounded 'off time' of course this could have been down to me not selecting correct sync modes across the set-up? The Arcade is a must have synth if your into 80's arcade type sounds, it has drum, bass, synth sounds so is really an all in one unit but combine it with others in the PO range and you have a power house of sequences and sounds!

I fell in love with the Arcade in seconds, the chip-tune beats hit me right in the nostalgias. Everything works flawlessly and you can start programming in your own tunes right away, the learning curve isn't too high and it will be a long time before you get bored messing around with the different parameters. The chord function is awesome and it affects some of the other 'notes' depending on the patterns played. I'll be buying another PO without hesitation. I bought a case at the same time, it's not necessary but it is a nice touch, if a little pricey.

Pas du tout dans l'univers du son je me régale a faire des bidouilles inutiles et me satisfait du pierre résultat. Il y a un côté régressif et très galvanisant a pianoter sur les touches qui changent de couleur et l'écran qui se met à jour. Je n'en ferais probablement rien de plus mais ça reste un régal a utiliser.

Great little musical toy. Hours of fun

This is actually the coolest thing ever. I have not put it down since receiving it. Easy to learn and very addictive. My only concern is the lack of casing. It’s literally just a chip board with a screen and buttons/knobs. Time will tell if this is an issue, until that point this pretty much a perfect little device.

This little guy blurs the line between being a toy and being a "real" instrument, and my time messing around with it has been the most fun I've ever had with a synthesizer. All of its sounds are reminiscent of old school video games and arcade machines. You get an 8-bit Mario fireball "bloop" sound, chord stabs, arpeggios, simple percussive sounds, and each sound can be tweaked in its waveform and pitch. As you play with it, you essentially feel like you're creating a scene in a video game, everything moving to the beat of the music. You punch the buttons on this crazy looking computer chip thing, objects on the screen dance to the music, and you're surrounded by crunchy and crisp 8-bit sounds of nostalgia. Its physical build quality is exceptional. All the buttons feel very solid and sturdy, and the feedback you get from each button is perfect. You know when you've pressed a button, and you know when you've turned a knob. A weird thing you have to get used to is how naked it is. It's basically a naked computer chip with buttons and a screen on it. Even the batteries underneath it are exposed. None of this is to say it looks flimsy, though. It looks like I can drop it a few times and it'll hold up just fine. Plus, this unique look adds to its personality, and is bound to turn heads. Musically speaking, it's not the most powerful synth in the world, and it has many limitations (eg you can't do sustained notes, notes are mostly limited to the chord you set the pattern to, everything is cemented into 16 beat sequences). But in a lot of ways, these limitations allow for even more creativity in the way you use it to make music. One unexpected thing is how small it is. I was expecting it to be small, but it's basically the size of my palm, and about the same size as an iPhone 5 (see photo). Overall, I love this thing, and I'm sure it's going to be a coffee table piece 24/7 now, so me and anyone else can pick it up and start making some cool beats at the push of a few buttons. This synth is perfect for people who grew up with retro video games, gamers, chiptunes fans, and anyone looking to create some cool old-school video game sounds. Highly recommended!

Ich mache sehr selten positive Rezensionen, aber das Gerät ist es wert. Zwar braucht man auch hier ein Stündchen um sich einzuarbeiten, lohnen tut es sich auf jeden Fall. In Kombination mit den anderen Pocket Operators kann man noch viel mehr Tiefe erreichen, und ein Effektgerät a la NTS-1 bringt auch noch einiges, der Arcade kann aber als Einzelgerät selber schon so viel, dass er sich als Musikgerät mit Kopfhörern in der Bahn bestens eignet. Auch 5 Sterne an das Musikhaus Korn, die waren schnell und freundlich beim Umgang mit einer Rücksendung.