teenage engineering EP–133 K.O. II sampler, drum machine and sequencer with built-in microphone and effects

Well, since i bought this I never expected it to be so integral to not only my music making but also just enjoyment. Its design is so charming and unique when you look at it you just want to jam and explore. There are for sure limitations, similar to the OP-1 you can learn to embrace them and make something fantastic.Pros:Runs off AAA’s which is convenient and lasts about 4 hours but usb c power is there in a pinch you can power it from your phone if you wanted to.Factory samples are great but loading in your own transforms it and it’s so easy to load samples in or record.Keys are clacky and very satisfying to play, you have the option to change the velocity settings in the menu.Punch in FX is just so fun, the fx in general are better than the pocket operators with proper reverb and delay which can allow for feedback loops which i likeOnboard speaker is appreciated at this price point and for what type of product it is. And being able to connect other gear to it is a plus.Cons:Build quality is meh, it is sturdy but the knobs and faders have me a bit worried. The knobs have a bit of a deadzone I don’t know whether it’s just my unitThe workflow is confusing if you’ve never worked with something like an MPC. Going through sounds is just chaotic and messy and you have to memorize the numbers 1-99964mb of memory at first doesn’t seem too bad but when you take into account that most of the sounds on here are mono and you want to record stereo then it gets eaten up very quickly.The flashing lights. I haven’t found a way to turn that off but when using some of the punch in fx it flashes quite brightOverall though I absolutely love it perfect for someone who wants to escape computers and DAW’s

When I first got this it looked a bit daunting and I hadn't a clue how to proceed. However half an hour on utube changed all that, and now I'm well into it and learning more all the time. I like it so much I think I'll probably get the medieval one as well.

I bought this primarily as a replacement for my PO32, (not 33), for FX.However, the FX are not as good unfortunately so I will keep the 32.The 133 does have many other uses though.I love the buttons and sampling capability.Using the sw to drag and drop samples onto it and then play back on a keyboard is valuable.It is a shame, however, that this function will disappear at some point as TE refuse to make the sw downloadable. - It only works on-line via a browser.

I've had the EP-133 for a day and I've wasted hours already playing with this thing.Its marvellous!This is my first sampler, with my only really music production experience coming from tinkering around with an Akai MPK Mini. The purchase of the EP-133 was mainly driven my the desire to have something that was battery powered that I could tinker with whilst I'm on the move to experiment with putting some tunes together.Build quality for the unit I received was fine, but mindful of fadergate, I took a great deal of care adding the fader knob just to avoid any issues.The stock samples are good, and uploading additional samples and assigning them to pads simple.Using the in-built mic for samples is okay, but I've only used for a handful of samples so far in a relatively optimal environment.The speaker is okay, but not great. But I'll use mainly with headphones to avoid the wife doing a KO on me.I love how easy it is to tap something out on the EP-133, and although its not possible to export the sequence into a DAW, its great for capturing ideas. Haven't tried connecting it to my audio interface yet.I've wasted hours on the EP-133 so far, and I'm looking forward to wasting many more in the future!

I really don't like writing bad reviews of things, but with the hype on the internet about this device I felt it was time I wrote about it, having suffered first hand with this "fadergate" issue. Teenage Engineering are considered big players in the music tech industry now, even branching out into speakers and recording equipment, so I thought it was important for customers to know, they're not all bad, but this issue really is a stinker which will ruin your FX game.The box is poor for a start - a 10" poorly padded box, which, inside an Amazon cardboard envelope has no real chance of survival. Especially when there's 100s of packages in a van. Teenage Engineering forgot to factor this in when making the packaging, and the flimsy cardboard which surrounds your EP133 will leave you feeling rather annoyed they couldn't be bothered to package it correctly. At nearly 300 pounds you'd expect a lot better than this. Not only that, you have to put the 4 knobs on yourself: which has lead some on the internet to accuse the fader knob to cause this issue. A YouTuber has took his apart, and it's clean the pins were not correctly put facing downwards so that they make contact with the membrane.Other than that, I love the "adding machine" look to it, it's grey and orange look, which feels more like a Roger Linn design than TE. It feels like an Akai, except it isn't. The screen is magnificent too, which saddens me about how bad the rest of the design is. Mini MIDI is frustrating, for example, and no XLRs, but I guess for that price what did I expect?Software wise I found this easy, but more advanced steps are difficult. I didn't really use it much, due to the fader not working, so I didn't really want to get too into it, as I knew it would be a long time before I got a replacement, as a LOT of people have had to return theirs.One aspect I do like is the web software: you can send your samples over the USB cable, and the fact it allows for MIDI over USB. I wish I'd had a chance to use Ableton with it; but sadly, the FX fader was just too frustrating!I hope really this is an oversight by TE, but as I see more people write about it, and have producer friends who've had a similar problem, you just wonder, will we see a better version out this year and just hold our nerve?Must do better Teenage Engineers!

‘tis bRAW 🪃💥 🥷 style 🗝️…