Although I really love the OPz, its hardware just isn’t up to OP-1 standard unfortunately. Those buttons suck. some of them have dimples, but for my ham-fisted fingers they are too faint. And the button layout makes me trigger the wrong ones, especially in low light. A shame the the glow-in-the-dark-paint didn’t make it.
so what I did was cutting very thin stripes of white electricians tape to mark the four to the floor quadruplets and used 3M 6mm silicone dimples to mark ‘track’, ‘play’ and ‘shift’.
much better!
the case is a nomos watch case, nice leather, well made, enough protection and space for headphones, charger and cables.
Looks good! Also nice case.
I have to say that whilst I’m really digging the OP-Z, it doesn’t feel as inviting to use as the OP-1. I’ve been hooking up an external keyboard with it when I use it at home, and for me at least, using the keyboard to actually play notes on is a last resort.
Less of a complaint and more of a ‘what if’ statement, but I would have preferred if the OP-Z was bigger overall, and used bigger buttons and was metal in construction. Would still be ultra portable, but would feel less fragile - I’m always worried mine might snap in half or something!
the glow paint didn‘t make it because it won‘t last on the unit…the better solution is the backlit mode which you can enter in content mode! put this to true and all Keys except the seq. steps are now dimmly lit ?
Perfect for nearly every situation
I wonder what the battery life is on backlit mode.
@geesbert Nice ideas!
@skintechnician I set mine to backlit and it seems to last quite a while, I expect that it will run out a little faster though, probably get about 5 hours.
I doubt we’re going to see anyone with a snapped-in-half OP-Z. It’s reinforced plastic and well-constructed to boot. Metal might not snap, but it could bend, and it would be a lot heavier.
I’m not a huge fan of the keys either though, despite my tiny ladyfingers 
The silicone caps are an interesting idea! Sometimes during live recording I don’t quite hit them, and other times I don’t quite press them hard enough. Every press has to be accurate and very intentional. Have been wondering if one could add some overlay to make the keys a bit bigger at least. You’d still have to press hard-ish though.
it was a decision by TE to make them this hard, they‘ve reworked the buttons a lot I think.
it’s like the magic within OP-1! once you‘re cool with the hardware you‘ll experience a more accurate feel on every other instrument! the buttons on the Z are small and hard to press but they‘ll activate your concentration and that has to do with all ya little nerves in your fingertips! it’s the most responsive part in your body! the learning curve on TEs machines goes hand in hand with your very own personal expression. I was using the OP-Z blindfolded on the first day , jamming on some filtered chords and used the pitch bend pad for that 70s vibe.
that’s the moment I need to have to accept that things are made for musical expression…
@JohnnyEgo Would love to see a video of someone jamming like that, especially with pitch bend. Just to see the ergonomics of it, do you play it like a piano or what.