I can’t help it, but their website and products give me Teenage engineering vibes. I really hope they do not down this path.
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I’m struggling to see the negative view here. Care to explain?
since they have similar homepages Torso will start making expensive designer audio equipment 
Tables?! 
oooh noes! The S-4 is a table without a screen !!
Worst sampler EVER!
I can only guess, but maybe they meant something like this?
Apart from the Scandinavian connection, I’m not sure there’s much of a comparison IMHO. Based on their track record so far, Torso’s target market appears to be musicians. I’m not so sure about TE’s target market. Synthfluencers, tech bros and oligarchs?
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Ba Dum Tss!!
I’m going to guess $1399 USD for this thing; looks like they’re trying to make what everyone wanted the OP-1f to be, and they see folks paying $2,000 for one of those.
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stop giving them bad ideas guys. Roland for example is going really low price wise, sp404mk2 is in the ballpark of mpc one and digitakt, but costs significantly less. Maybe they have a heart and it costs ~7 to 800
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I would love it for you to be right!
BUT with inflation, supplier shortages and what ever else we are still faced with after Covid.
my guess is $1199
If this would have been released 2019, it might have been possible for it to be $999 or even lower.
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“2 Line outputs” and “2 Line Inputs”
Are they TRS or TS?
2 stereo in and out lanes would be really cool imo!!
while TS1 is undeniably original and great machine, there’re split opinions on its UI. I’ve not used one, but saw a lot of vids, and I’m in the camp that feels a screen would’ve made it only better. (and generally, screens are great supporting tool, leaving it out looks more like an academic exercise for designers rather than a recipe for UI advancement, for complex, multi-layered control schemes definitely.)
the S4 UI is of course yet to be tested, but there’re immediate (albeit smallish) problems to be seen in the pics. the low screen placement is an obvious one. the text printed in small font (similar in size to the screen fonts) right next to it is another. then we have two multi-function buttons marked with same-ish small figures (circle&hexagon), and all those buttons’ legend not aligned with them on the screen…
it’s a perfectionist rant of course. I expect a lot of exciting things from S4 regardless, otherwise wouldn’t even bothered to look into the (possibly negative) details
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Absolutely. I think in its most basic form, the interface has what it needs, but the mental gymnastics of unlocking the T-1’s capabilities wasn’t worth the effort. I almost immediately sold it.
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I don’t know their backgrounds, but as a first product from a design standpoint, screens are a source of tons of potential problems. Either they have hired external development, or they have been studying and prototyping a lot these years to step up to a significantly more complex product like S-4. I really hope they can deliver. Best luck!
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I did too. The build was fantastic but my somewhat limited time to play in the studio was nearly always spent trying to re-remember ways to do things.
It’s somewhat similar to my barrier with picking up video games again after a period of being unable to play. I’ll get the controls down somewhat, make progress, then have a week or two where I’m really busy and can’t play. When I pick the game up again I’ve forgotten the controls but I’ve progressed to a place in the game where not knowing the controls means instant death and I just throw up my hands and go back to playing The Binding of Isaac for the 10 millionth time.
I sold my T-1 on fairly quickly as well. Not blaming the device…more blaming my lack of time and discipline and inability to hold two thoughts in my old brain for longer than 14 minutes. But yeah…I need a screen OR a simple UI, like on my Perkons.
I don’t know, a sampling table? That has potential…
I have to disagree. There are absolutely occasions when I use it and wish there was a little more feedback, but generally I like that it’s more about feeling it out and exploring. I find myself listening instead of looking, and between a DAW and synth menus and everything else, it’s nice to be hyper focused on listening for a change.
It’s not a precision tool where you’re controlling every aspect of every note and event, but I’m ok with that given how performative it is.
I get that. That’s why I bought it, too. It felt like fucking Street Fighter after a minute and I got frustrated. I could never remember the combos 
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This is the price I think too $1199. I’d love to be wrong but this is a very small company. Er301 was 1k to put into perspective.