As a studio enthusiast and electronic musician, I always felt this was a reasonable price for the OP-1. I have a _lot_ of synths here, ranging from the high end Moog Voyager to various Pocket Operators by Teenage Engineering.

$2000 however is just too much for this. The Polyend Tracker sells for $500 used in comparison, and while its drastically different - is vaguely competitive to the OP-1.

Polyend also just announced another groovebox that is vaguely competitive to the op-1 for $800. Looks a bit like a slimmed down deluge, which for half the price of the new OP-1, I would highly recommend to anyone who wants a portable music station or groovebox in general. I've had it for about 5 years now and they are still actively working on it which is a nice bonus.

Wasn't it originally manufactured in Europe to boot? Seem to remember a major price rise coming when they had moved production to Asia. There were many people selling their used European models for more than they had paid because it was still cheaper than the new RRP.

I guess TE took advantage of demand for an established product and use it to subsidise their other lines and new development, which I can't see them selling much volume on for the most part (maybe Pocket Operators?).