I also have no idea how it works. Sometimes it’s just a soundgoodizer (sounds like it’s bringing out lower signals while smushing transients in an appealing way) other times it just adds hideous digital clipping.
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per the original OP1 manual:
drive narrows the difference between high and low audio levels, and makes the output sound louder and more compact. at very high levels of drive, the audio starts to sound distorted.
release sets how quick the drive will narrow the difference between high and low audio levels, and at mid to long release times, you’ll start to notice the drive as a “pumping” sound.
you may also use drive to add texture and to make your final mix more dirty and raw.
however it definitely sounds different on field, and not just in a “higher quality” way. OP1 field’s manual reproduces the above and adds a warning:
however in doing so you will lose dynamics and your mix might sound dull and tiring. less is often more in this case so find a balance that works for you.
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Nice! I hadn’t thought to compare the original manual with the op-1f manual and i’d last read the original manual too long ago to remember.
I think that’s actually really helpful in understanding that they interact together and that maybe I wasn’t so far off with feeling like the drive pushes the signal to the threshold of the compressor?
It’s also good to read this and remember that it’s probably good to use as a tool in resampling contexts (like taming the dynamics of a drum loop), but as they suggest use lightly in a mix/master context.
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I always tend to lower the output volume (on the drive page) before starting to add drive. I’ve always just found that around 70 volume, 100-300 release, and 30-50 drive with a slightly slower attack tends to get me to places that I enjoy with the master compressor. It’s just settings I’ve figured out with a decade of the OP-1 and I find they sound good on the Field as well.
Even though I do hate “tutorials” that just tell you what settings to set it at without saying what they do lol. But yeah, I’ve found turning down the volume on the page and then drive goes a long way to getting a tamer distortion while adding compression.
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If you’ve got some few bucks to spare, I’d advise you to buy this :
https://www.synthdawg.com/bookshop
It’s a gold mine and should really help with every TE design.
I know it helped me a lot a first.
And it will most definitely help with the master section!
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I always have it set to 30
If you drive it hard (by lowering volume and maxing drive) you can get the mix pumping.
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1000% worth the $4 and i’ve only just started skimming the master section. Amazing to see over 200 pages on the OP-1F. Even if the bulk is already known, i’m sure there is more than $4 of insight here.
I actually am intrigued in their other guides now, even for devices I don’t have. It’s probably worth a $4 investment to get to know the device well before even purchasing. Could fuel or temper the gas!
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It is somewhat of a sacred book around here. Gotta say it lives by my op1f
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Agree that Notebook guide is great. The TE ‘manual’ is super sparse and sometimes I forget something and just want to check a parameter, maybe when I don’t even have the unit with me. It’s easy to find in that eBook - I couldn’t remember if it was possible to Lift and Drop individual key settings between keys in the Drum Sampler, (or if it was a wish list that never happened) and it was in that book.
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Not my video, but I’ve often enjoyed the music made on the OP-1 Field by the Novak the Enjoyer channel… primarily guitar and real instrument based music using the bult in mic.
Anyway he’s just posted an excellent video discussing his writing and recording workflow on the Field, and there are lots of most excellent tips here, well worth the watch. One of the best videos like this I’ve seen on the Field, approching it from a very different angle than the typical lament that the sequencers aren’t like the OP-Z 
A few colourful words here and there if that bothers you
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Thanks for sharing this one. Amazing content!
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this was such a dope video, subbed
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Have a look at his music videos made with OP-1 Field too… some great stuff there and quite different to what others are doing with it.
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That’s what I do to find the right value for the release…push the drive at first, then set the release to whatever sounds pleasing, then turn down the drive a little, so it’s not too extreme.
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That was a very entertaining video to watch because that dude is hilarious. It also made me realise that I’ve instinctively been recording at the right level in relation to the other tracks for my whole life, so basically getting the mix more or less right already during recording. And it brought back a very early memory back when I started out with a demo version of Cubase and an old zoom guitar multi FX pedal back in 2006 or so. I didn’t know what I was doing at all, I didn’t even know that there could be an EQ on each track in cubase. So for every guitar line, keyboard part or drum pattern I recorded through the zoom pedal, I adjusted the drive, EQ, delay, reverb and other FX right there on the pedal in relation to whatever I had recorded previously. And I think I have kept this habit of recording until this day, which is maybe why I love the op-1f so much, as it really compliments (or maybe even necessitates) this kind of approach.
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I have been super bothered when I want to loop sounds that aren’t aligned with the beat markers. This might have been super obvious to some, but it wasn’t to me. Can’t find it in the manual either.
So to loop a sound, have it selected (red) and then shift+loop. Felt like an idiot when I realized this easy shortcut.
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Hi. First of all thank you so much for this thread! Spent the last week reading, learnt a lot, found inspiration and some superb presets. Good stuff! 
To be able to use some effects, I started to implement an iPad with AUM into my OP-1F + TX-6 setup recently. It works pretty well. However, I wonder if there’s a way to create a sound with OP-1, filter it on the iPad and record it back to the OP-1 without getting trapped into a horrible feedback loop? Connecting the iPad to the OP-1 did not work well so I connected it to the TX-6. Which is also kind of inconvenient because now I cannot use the USB-C port to record something… How’s your setup looking?
I’m sure that this information is in this thread. I probably overlooked it, sorry.
Edit: By accident I found a solution I can work with: iPad (Pro) is able to talk with my Thunderbolt 4 dock I’m using for the Macbook. With the dock’s headphone out routed to TX-6 I’m able to mix, store and record back on OP-1 if needed.
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OP-1 Field for 1.340€! That is a hefty Black friday discount! (For people in Europe):
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Oh the temptation…
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thanks for this
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