NGL, I’m a bit surprised to still see a take like this three years later.
It’s quite well documented/established by now that UX and speed of workflow is (and always will be!) priority #1.
Tiny OLEDs suck for outdoors & direct sunlight, for older eyes (smaller effective area), for melatonin production/night vision, robustness, and need non-negligible power (CPU cycles) and PCB real-estate to drive. It’s not a cost thing (the LED modules actually cost a bit more than an OLED display).
I’m a bit biased, because I like the Woovebox and find the UI to be very clever/intuitive, but saying adding an OLED is as simple as “$5-10” is a bit unfair. Suddenly the existing processor has more work to do to support that screen, so now you may need a more powerful brain, which may be more expensive or bigger, and impact battery life, and so on.
The Deluge added an OLED screen eventually and the community devs will tell you there’s been a performance cost to that upgrade that has had to be accounted for (they’ve done a great job, but it’s been work).
Of course, it’s fair to say a device is not for you in the end
For me, both the screenless OP-Z and the screened XY feel totally fine. I find it much harder to read and decipher the 7-segment text on the Deluge or Woovebox…
7-seg LED segment display for confirming a 0…127 number; fine.
7-seg LED segment display for confirming a UI state; fine.
7-seg LED segment display for making you read Lord of The Rings; not fine.
I loved my OP-Z, but one of the things I really disliked was the LEDs with their colour and brightness representing some(?) state or value. It gives you extremely imprecise feedback, and no reminder whatsoever what you are actually changing. The amount of key combos (in lieu of persistent states/modes) were fine and you’ll learn them eventually, but after not using the device for a while you’re back at square one (or two) trying to do the more advanced stuff. Not to mention any trying to do any targeted sound design (beyond merely trying to listen out for what is happening).
I can’t speak for the Deluge, but for the Woovebox that’s all the screen is deliberately for; confirming what state the UI is in, and what you are changing. That’s it. That’s all. What’s more, once you know the locations of parameters on the grid, you can - as Floyd Steinberg said - operate the device virtually blindfolded (by ear).
90% of the time it shows the exact same static information you’ve seen a million times before. There isn’t a constant stream of stuff to decipher in your regular workflow. There’s nothing vying for your attention, just like on the OP-Z. But when you need the precision and confirmation, it’s there.
Sure, if you want to start changing the more esoteric parameters (compressor type, oscillator rendering style, sample time stretch mode, etc.) you may get some unfamiliar abbreviations. But no OLED screen of the same size was going to help you in that situation anyway (EDIT: What is going to help you in such cases, is a companion app like Wooveconnect that displays the docs as you press the button).
