I BOUGHT AN OP-1!!
I was holding out hope to find one that needed repair on a deal, so I finally decided to catalog and sell off under-utilized gear (so long, MicroKorg… 
) and one popped up! I immediately bought it, I’m so stoked!!!
11 Likes
Welcome to the team 
I’ve had mine for 10 years and I still love it as much as I did on day one. Maybe more as I now how to actually use the thing 
2 Likes
Yeah I curious how different it will be having the unit in my hands, instead of day dreaming watching YouTube videos about it. The person I bought it off of is also including a bunch of patches and stuff on it, so that’s also got me curious what’s on it.
I hope they ship fast!
New OP-1 owner here as well. You’ll like it. You’ll be frustrated by some aspects of it, but then you’ll get over that and start using it. I think you’ll love it after a while. Buy a large Pelican case, and make a foam insert to store/transport it. I wouldn’t put it in a bag. It’s built well but I’ve seen enough horror stories to make me want to keep it in a proper case when I’m transporting it or storing it.
3 Likes
I’ve used TE bag for years, bringing the OP-1 to every place I’ve visited, and never had a problem.
2 Likes
Well that’s actually comforting to know it’s not ultra fragile. I just don’t want to snap the connector board. There are no spares ever becoming available.
You won’t break the connector board if nothing is plugged.
I’ve always been careful with my gear, and never had a problem with the connection board.
I was looking at the connector board - the parts look pretty easy to replace.
Apart from the switch and jacks, what are the main failure points? Has anyone seen part numbers that could be swapped in/stocked up on?
has the #s for the jacks, usb and power switch
3 Likes
Thanks a lot ! That’s really helpful ! (I’m putting in a large mouser order soon so can just add the parts to my order to keep as spares…) Cheers ! (They’re very cheap - just added tp my shopping cart on mouser - three switches, usb ports and six jacks - should keep my op-1 going forever…)
Except that when replacing the connectors there is a risk of permanently damaging the solder pads, so you may not get that much mileage out…
1 Like
Very very minimal risk though… unless you are ham-fisted! (replacing those smt parts is usually pretty easy and low risk)
1 Like
Hah well the one I have coming needs a repair to the connector board, so this is all pretty pertinent. I’ll be sure to document my repair to let everyone know where I’m starting from damage wise, and how I end up.
I am handy with a soldering iron and have built a few projects and repaired/ modified other devices.
Edit:
I ordered one of each flavor of those connectors from Mouser, hopefully that’ll be all I need!
1 Like
Yeah, for anyone doing this, cover everything else in kapton tape, slather it all in flux, use a hot air station, and use tweezers to gently pick up and replace the jacks. Don’t use a normal iron if you can avoid it (pressure and heat are not a solder pad’s best friends)
1 Like
Well I definitely don’t have a hot air station… I’ll see how it looks when I get it all apart. I just saw someone on Reddit suggesting someone to bring their broken connector board to a cellphone repair shop as they would have all the tools, not a bad idea if it looks too daunting.
Well I was excited, now a little nervous 
I guess I just need to keep calm and study the repair thoroughly before attempting
1 Like
just be careful and go slow
you’ll be fine
its true u can def lift // destroy pads
but if u have a good plan of attack
& do it cleanly and carefully it shouldn’t be a problem
flux is your friend
desolder braid is good for this too
1 Like
Also, email TE and ask nicely and they’ll link you to a cart where you can order one.
Shipping will take a while but it would be a good backup plan for you to have incase your repairs aren’t successful.
1 Like
Well I’m thinking if it’s easy enough to lift pads, I’m worried that the damage it has already received has ruined the board. I’ve saved more severely damaged equipment but we shall see! How exciting! Lol
That’s a really good idea. They have OP-1 in stock, so I’m hoping that means they have spares as well.
