teenage engineering is of the most inspiring brands of the 21st century. whether it is the design of their own award-winning products like op-1 and the field system, or collaborations with off-white™, nothing, ikea, google, impossible camera, panic, or rabbit—teenage engineering always seem to be at the forefront of works that are both novel and consequential.
i had the extreme privilege earlier this year of interviewing teenage engineering's elusive co-founder and vp: david möllerstedt. i hope you will find his thoughtful answers as elucidating as i have.
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there is lots of talk about the industrial design of the beautiful products that teenage engineering creates. each of the devices you make have this perfect balance of physical inputs, considered materials, and playful software that really push beyond the average consumer device. could you talk a bit about your approach to engineering and how that plays out in the conception of a new product?
we work in tandem between all disciplines at teenage engineering. the end result when things go well is not a compromise between different points of views but rather a selection of what’s most important for each aspect of a product. when that balance is not found the ideas that didn't make it all the way to a product may later resurface when the right tech, tools, design, etc. materialise. we’re prototyping a lot to test, touch, feel, look and listen to figure out what projects we should move forward with.
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the op-1 field has one of the most playful interfaces i've seen. synth, drum, tape, and mixer and their subsequent menu systems all share the same small screen with colors used to cue users to what inputs to change to customize their view. i would love to hear about how you arrived at the decisions you did and how you partnered with designers to achieve such a layered interface that still feels simple to the user?
all of the op-1 development and design was done in house at teenage engineering by the original core team. in a way it’s a reaction to the much more serious hardware synth scene at the time. the op-1 was called a toy in a way that was not supposed to be positive, but as we knew it also had the depth and professional specs we took it as a compliment.
there was a long period of internal and external testing to refine all aspects of the op-1, i think that was very important, a large part of what we are providing is a creative workflow system.
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switching gears a bit, I'm fascinated by the tp-7 and the mechanical aspect of the motorized tape reel and the way it interacts with recording, playback, etc. what were the challenges in bringing to life mechanical drives, software, and the computerized pieces to make everything work?
we are interested in motors at teenage engineering from many aspects. it’s tactile, and it can make things move. there is a lot of computer control involved and the behaviours can be modified in many interesting ways.
the tp-7 captures all of these aspects. we used the combined experience from previous product with similar technology.
i think the way you can touch and physically interact with the audio really makes the tp-7 stand out.
designers will often pull inspiration from other peers, historical design examples, or inspiration from art and the natural world? where do you pull inspiration from as an engineer? can you give some examples of products or systems that you've pulled inspiration from as you build your products?
the op-1 is a perfect example of a product that borrows heavily from history—taking the best parts of decades of recording and music production tools. the way the early four track porta studios always created the most musical demos, how the 80s casio synths stood out and what hands-on controls do for the speed of creativity. having experienced all of this and then getting the possibility to combine it into a new and portable creation was fantastic. it was also really hard work.
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i would love to close with asking what your favorite teenage engineering product is. what about it makes it enjoyable to use and keep coming back to?
the teenage engineering product i use every day is the ob-4. it has changed the way i listen to music in a way i did not expect. to have good sound always available, to be able to be in control of time and rewind the fm radio is something i did not know i needed but now i can't do without it.
the one product i’m most excited about now in coming out later this year. i feel a strong spiritual connection to it even if i have not spent much time on the direct development. very much looking forward to how it will be received and what creations it will contribute to.
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i also had the chance to spend some time this year with the op-1 field, the ep-133, and the tp-7. there is so much i could say but i'll share a brief note about each:
op-1 field
everything from the inputs to the interface to the software evokes playfulness. it is easy to begin exploring new sounds, layers, and beats. you can also go deep and do a lot—all from a focused interface.
ep-133
this beautiful sample pad is surprisingly tactile for being made entirely of plastic. the interface feels more opaque than op-1 but the iconography and colors on the screen create a vintage arcade feeling.
tp-7
perhaps the most nostalgic of all teenage engineering products for me. it reminds me of vintage tape decks, the sony walkman, and the talkboy (an actual device made as a movie tie-in for home alone 2). the ability to scrub the analog wheel to control sound and load flac files all make the tp-7 feel like magic.
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