RABid Posted June 23, 2018 Share Posted June 23, 2018 I'm thinking about getting the new little drum machine from Teenage Engineering, the PO-32 Tonic. I have the MicroTonic that it is based on and love it so I thought this might be a good start. My worry is build quality. These are cheap and look fragile. Does anyone here have any of the PO line? Do they hold up? This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowboyNQ Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 There's a chap on the Korg forums that loves these things. I'll ask him for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Six-string-man Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 Had the PO12 (the poor relation of the PO32) for six months. No problems in that time, but it has been well looked after. I did think of buying a case for it, but objected to paying £30 for a case, when the PO was £50. Not sure whether that is false economy or not! Good luck in finding a Tonic, they have been awaiting stock in Europe for about 3 months, I think they underestimated the demand. Occasionally, do something nice for a total stranger. They'll wonder what the hell is going on! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted June 24, 2018 Author Share Posted June 24, 2018 Ordered a PO-32 from Sweetwater. Kraft Music has one left and Amazon sellers have a bunch. I was shocked when I saw the price of the cases. They are not even closed in the back. They only protect the front. More like a key overlay. This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CowboyNQ Posted June 24, 2018 Share Posted June 24, 2018 There's a chap on the Korg forums that loves these things. I'll ask him for you. Here's the response I received: "Hey Paul, Cheers for the question. The PO's look flimsly but they are quite robust. I had one kicking around in my bag unprotected for a few months while I was using public transport. That bag got thrown around and stuff dumped on it, but the PO weathered the trauma no worries. They come with a 'snap-off' display stand-type hook hole, thing is, the board is that strong, it doesn't just 'snap-off' so mine are still attached. At one stage I was playing them as I went to bed, so would wake up atop of them (still running their sequencers and going plinky-plonky). I think I came out of that worst than they did, I had their imprint on my thigh! I don't think they are indestructible, but they will last with a little care, same you'd give any other musical instrument (I've never slept on any other instrument though, heheh). TE make rubber cases for them that usually can be bought at a discount if you include it when you buy a PO (shop around for the best bundle price). That will offer some extra protection from pointy things and spilt fluids. Hope that helps the decision." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted June 24, 2018 Author Share Posted June 24, 2018 Thanks a lot for the info. That makes me feel better. I ordered one, I may grab a couple more and chain them together. They look handy for taking to the park, lunch wherever, stuck in traffic, etc... This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GovernorSilver Posted June 25, 2018 Share Posted June 25, 2018 I have a PO-32 too. It seems to have held up fine. The POs look like naked circuit boards, but they kind of have a "sealed" look and feel like the Monkey Light units on my bike that I turn on at night during holiday season. Not saying they're waterproof like the Monkey Lights but the protection is better than you might expect. I got a cheap case meant for organizing 3x5 cards to keep the POs and the batteries in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted June 27, 2018 Author Share Posted June 27, 2018 I now have a couple. Fun, but not very loud. I don't know that you could show one off to your friends while in a restaurant and count on them being able to hear it over the crowd. At max volume one is much softer than the other and I'm afraid that might not be by design. My only disappointment is the sync method. You use stereo cables and connect the headphone out to the sync in of the next device while changing a setting on the device. The setting changes the audio path so that one channel becomes sync and the units become mono and use the other channel for audio. I hate that it makes them mono. This can be avoided by using a multiple to sync the units and a mixer to mix them, but that is not handy. As for the build, they seem very solid with most of the electronics being in a compartment with the display. This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GovernorSilver Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 Yeah, the low output is a known issue - they don't want us kiddies going deaf when we plug in earphones. The peeps who make videos and the like demoing these things are probably running them through preamps. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted June 28, 2018 Author Share Posted June 28, 2018 One more thing. I have 4 of these now. Of those, the one I would recommend to anyone here is PO-28 Robot. It may seem like a strange choice at first but it is a good balance of sounds. Decent drum machine. Good sounds for background bass/arp lines. Fun lead sounds to play along with while playing patterns in the background. Lead sounds are monophonic and it has some strong choices. Almost every model has Youtube videos demonstrating sounds and abilities. I advise checking them out before making a decision.PO-28 Robot is made for playing along with the patterns. Arcade has fun 8 bit sounds but you are not going to play along. Office is industrial rhythm with no real play along. Tonic really does sound like the Tonic VSTi which I've had from the beginning and really love, but for the same price you can probably buy the Tonic VSTi. What I want next is one of the samplers, then I will be done. This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RABid Posted June 28, 2018 Author Share Posted June 28, 2018 [video:youtube] This post edited for speling. My Sweetwater Gear Exchange Page Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GovernorSilver Posted June 28, 2018 Share Posted June 28, 2018 One little known feature of the PO-32 is that new sounds and patterns can be installed without the Microtonic software. You just play an audio file and let the mic inport the new stuff. Soundcloud linkcs posted here: https://operator-1.com/index.php?p=/discussion/2975/po-32-tonic-sound-and-pattern-sharing#latest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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