I really kind of don't like to look at it. Having owned an OB-6, I actually feel like it loses some psychological inspiration by not looking like what I consider a real Oberheim to be.
Unless they do a limited edition I'm not sure that will happen. It's impossible to please everyone when it comes to aesthetics. For me I'm more a fan of the white SEM Oberheims than I am of the OB line.
I doubt they would sell just the metal covers. But they have made multiple versions of the same thing before (SE), with cosmetic differences, and functional ones like the switch from endless encoders to potentiometers on the Prophet ‘08. In this case, I think the main Oberheim blue line design would have been the correct decision for the OB-X8, because of what it is. It combines three synths, the second two of which had that design. The OB-X design looks like a generic placeholder that was used briefly until they settled on the design they stuck with for years after, their peak years.
In 2022, the gray squares look much more dated than the blue lines would have. As a continuation of the OB line, it makes no sense to go backwards to a design they clearly didn’t like that much, because it was only produced for a year or so before they changed it. The years when Oberheim made “the system” - including the DMX and DSX, all with the same unified design, is what people think of when they think of Oberheim. And the OB-X8 fits right into that era, with the OB-Xa and OB-8.
If anybody had asked me before it was released what it would look like, I never in a million years would have guessed it would be the OB-X. I was not pleasantly surprised, to be honest. Very disappointing.
The synth itself is a complete home run, and it’s a superficial issue, so it’s not the end of the world. But it is something that bugs me every time I look at it, and instead of getting used to it and that going away, it continues to bug me. I wish there was an option for me. And they would make more money from me if there was.
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