Cn you multitrack export from the Xy? With the M8 you can, so that’s possibly a big advantage right there.
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Used to have an M8. Now have an XY. Love them both, but I personally prefer XY for pretty cut and dry reasons-- program versus play, and polyphony per track.
M8 is super quick, but it’s one big menu dive. Must have buttons to push that make noise (rather than programming/scrolling), at least in the composition stage.
As a long time Renoise user, a tracker’s strength, for me, is during the arrangement stage, after all the track’s basic parts are fleshed out. Then I bring those parts into Renoise and essentially do a remix of those parts with all the tracker-y goodies.
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Good point. No such thing on the OP-XY. There’s one assignable filter (ladder, svc, low pass, high pass) as well as a simple high pass filter per track on the OP-XY, and a nice sounding master compressor. So it’s possible to get good sounding stereo mixes out of the box, but if you want to mix your songs in a DAW, it takes a while to multitrack everything. Not impossible, I did that with the op-z and the DT a lot before overbridge was available, but the m8 really has the most convenient stem export system.
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I have both. NOTHING beats the M8. Except a wall of Elektron. The OP-XY is dope though, but I’d wait for updates. Half-Life 3 confirmed.
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That’s interesting. So how does that work, do you record long takes and chop them into sections, or what?
I’ve been doing a lot of long takes into Ableton and then chopping the takes into sections and labeling them so I know what to grab when I want a certain energy or change.
It’a not a bad way to arrange but I’m always looking for something faster and more creative. I have renoise on my laptop and just don’t use it that often because I like recording while jamming on my hardware.
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where is this?
While I haven’t tried the OP-XY, I can vouch that it’s not like that even for the OP-Z with its way more limited sound design.
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i would like to politely suggest that’s a skill issue, but also note that TE seems to have aimed at creating more neutral-sounding workhorse synthesis engines for OP-XY, as opposed to OP-1’s more idiosyncratic synths and fx.
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Shift+Instrument Button (the one on the far left with the sine wave and the 1-8 label). This will lead you to the mod and settings page where you can set the high pass filter, velocity sensitivity and mod, pitch mod, tuning and so on.
I think they’d compliment each other well.
I’ve got an OP XY on the way, but I definitely won’t be getting rid of the M8. I’ve found the M8 to be extremely flexible. Sound design wise, between the different Engines, Modulators and FX lanes(including tables and Aux Tables) and distortions it’s easy to get the sounds idea in your head into reality. I’ve found that it has been able to cover the work that I’d previously use multiple grooveboxes for.
The M8 is designed with song making at the forefront of its options, and this has really helped me to create songs quickly. I’ve found the song mode to be much quicker than the Elektron method. The M8 has been my daily instrument of inspiration for 3 years plus.
Where I see the OP XY being appealing for many is the live playing on the keyboard, knob tweaking and the performance options. It looks like a fun workflow. And I imagine some people will prefer that hands on approach.
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The only thing missing on the M8 is a keyboard. This solved it for me: nanoKEY Fold | KORG USA. I wanted to make the Launchpad Mini MK3 work, but was just too many parts to carry (launchpad mini doesn’t have a MIDI 3.5mm trs out). The M8 is excellent sounding, great workflow from sound design to song production; great file management.
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Do you have it yet? (The korg)
That is an interesting combo.
Bought it as soon as Korg announced. It’s been shipped, but haven’t received it yet.
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Please show your impressions in M8 post once you have it 
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Will do!!
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It’s great!!!
Another amazing feature of the M8 is that is super flexible. If you don like the fonts and the colors of the screen… you can change it.
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Also, on another level, basically everything can be replaced/serviced on the M8: battery, screen, micromod teensy, keys, keycaps.
Admittedly, this is beyond the point of musicality, it won’t help anyone making tracks.
Yet I appreciate this in a device.
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After a week with the GAS at its maximum level with the OP-XY I have finally decided not to go for it and continue to squeeze the most out of my M8.
I am not saying that the Teenage Engineering is a bad device, but here are my conclusions:
Portability: Even though the XY is a very compact device, the truth is that the times I’ve gone out with the M8 it’s been amazing. It literally fits in a coat pocket (case included). You can take it with you in any situation: you’re not going to sit on the bus with the XY or at least it’s uncomfortable, but you can make music with the M8 in any bus situation.
Sound Design: There’s nothing you can’t do with the M8: Various LFOs, Envelopes, Tables, Sample Chopping, Recording (Model:02), Effects, Infinite Sampling, all kinds of Filters… Honestly, the fact that the OP-XY only has two effect blocks doesn’t seem like a small thing to me, it seems like very little!
Sequencing: There is nothing in the components part of the XY that cannot be done with the 3 columns of effects and the tables of the M8.
Keyboard. The M8 being so ultraportable has its downside, it lacks a keyboard. As I said, I don’t see myself using XY or M8 with keyboard outside, but at home or on the hotel in a trip composing more calmly, I can use a Korg Nanokey Fold style keyboard and the solution is still very compact.
Interface: It is true that the OP-XY is much prettier and more intuitive… but the M8 is customizable. You don’t like the colors? You change them, the same with the fonts and other elements.
Community: I think there is no doubt about it, the M8 community is amazing. There is a very, very good atmosphere on Discord, the developer is always open to suggestions and criticism, they always help you… and that makes the experience in terms of UI and updates with new features constant. For example, before there was no fill function… the Polyend Tracker came out with that function, and in a few months there was already something similar in the M8. Who says that in a few months we won’t have something like Brain?
Sorry for the long post, I don’t mean to say that one device is better than the other, it’s just my personal opinion (for others the XY may be much better than the M8, and they will also be right), and to help all those people who are looking for the ultimate portable music system.
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About portability, a distinction should be made between ‘portable’ and ‘handheld’.
There are many great and fully featured portable instruments out there (Deluge, OP-1, Polyend Tracker, etc.), but do you really want to use them outside or while walking?
When it comes to handheld, i.e. an instrument that you can use on the bus or in a café without feeling like a desperate hipster, I don’t see anything so complete as the M8 (the WooveBox maybe?)
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