Keyboard Megathread

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The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
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It's the only way to live
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Anyone seen the CM Quickfire Storm TK with Blues on sale anywhere? It's still out on both newegg and amazon except for retailers selling it for forty or fifty dollars more.

EDIT: VVV Thanks! I grabbed the last one and managed to get it cheaper than I expected with a new customer coupon.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 09:52 on Jan 31, 2015

# ¿ Jan 31, 2015 06:21

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# ¿ May 5, 2024 12:54

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Anyone have experience with the MK Disco? Seems like a nice piece of hardware for the price point but I'm a little leery of the switches they use.

# ¿ Feb 22, 2017 23:42

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Question for people with 60% keyboards; how long did it take you to adjust to it, and how hard was it? I'm contemplating a Vortex POK3R RGB because I don't exactly have a large desk.

# ¿ Feb 23, 2017 22:53

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Yeah, I'm an author not a programmer so my primary concern is ease of using common word processor shortcuts. I think I'm going to take the plunge on it.

# ¿ Feb 23, 2017 23:22

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

katkillad2 posted:

I need some keyboard suggestions, I recently purchased a MasterKeys Pro L Mechanical Keyboard with Cherry MX Brown Switches. The space bar keeps sticking so I'm returning it, but I don't like it anyways.

I'm not really familiar with the different types of switches, but the Cherry MX Brown felt mushy and I was fat fingering and misspelling things all the time at how easy it was to push the keys. Which type of key switches should I look for?

If it weren't for the sticking spacebar I might consider the same thing with different key switches, but what similar style and similarly priced options do I have? Preferably wired/usb, Full-size, with 10-key.

How do you feel about typing noise? If you're OK with it the Cherry MX Blue and Cherry MX Green switches are both heavier with a similar feeling.

Here's the MK Fission with Cherry MX Blues.

And with Cherry MX Greens.

# ¿ Feb 28, 2017 21:01

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

I should note, the Cherry MX Green switch feels like working on an old typewriter. They really don't want to move.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 21:32 on Feb 28, 2017

# ¿ Feb 28, 2017 21:30

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Wowporn posted:

double post JiZZ WATERPROOF GAMING KEYBOARD
http://www.banggood.com/JiZZ-GX16-Waterproof-LED-Backlight-Mechanical-Handfeel-Gaming-Keyboard-p-976896.html?rmmds=search

HANDFEEL GAMING KEYBOARD

# ¿ Mar 9, 2017 07:07

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

MK, WASD, and CODE also make pretty ungamery keyboards.

# ¿ Mar 10, 2017 01:02

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

leper khan posted:

Wtf is wrong with me and all these keyboards I don't even use.

New thread title found.

# ¿ Mar 15, 2017 18:54

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Nondescript Van posted:

speaking of boards I have but don't use, I just another planck off massdrop because I wanted ones with zealios. I've already bought a realforce rgb, an xmit, and a ducky numpad this year.

I should stop.

Bright side: you could supply all the props for a low budget hacker movie

# ¿ Mar 16, 2017 00:13

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Irony Be My Shield posted:

I'm looking to replace my pack-in rubbish keyboard. I primarily use it for gaming but I do a fair amount of typing as well. I'd want it to be under £100 or so.

The most important thing for me is that the keys should feel nice to use even when pressed repeatedly. They shouldn't be easy to accidentally trigger either. I am not very fussed about macros.

What kind of boards should I be looking at? I haven't really had any experience out of cheap pack-ins so I have no idea what the different types described in the OP feel like.

Cherry MX Clears and Cherry MX Blues/Greens are pretty much the standard recs I see these days. If you can give up your tenkey it's not hard to find one in that budget.

For example

# ¿ Mar 27, 2017 02:10

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

If you don't care about RGB backlighting, you can get a full size keyboard for a little bit less.

I can dig around for cheaper lightless boards, but the build quality on these is pretty good.

# ¿ Mar 27, 2017 02:44

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

I'm just a girl who likes pretty colors on her keyboard. :shobon:

# ¿ Mar 27, 2017 02:51

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

well why not posted:

I'm looking into getting a Mechanical, but I'm a macOS user who's very impressed by RGB lights. Ideally I'd like a keyboard with a similar layout to the Apple Wireless keyboard - no numpad, compact size and minimal gaudiness (apart from the lights) - can anyone make a recommendation for me? I'm open to replacing caps if need be.

This is my mechanical keyboard and I cannot recommend it enough. It has RGB lighting that is handled completely in the keyboard itself, no need for drivers on the computer. It takes a day or two to get used to a 60% but it does pay off.

# ¿ Apr 4, 2017 19:25

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

well why not posted:

what's the advantage of a 60%?

You can do poo poo faster once you've internalized the shortcuts, and it really teaches you to use macros. It also means you get to watch people squirm when they try to use your keyboard.

# ¿ Apr 4, 2017 21:04

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Fuzz posted:

I wanna get a small mechanical for under $100 that can easily be tossed in a bag and travel with. Tenkeyless, obviously, as I never even use the numpad because I'm a horrible monster.

Corsair K65 seems like a good deal for the quality... CM Rapid is almost $100 and seems about the same... any other recommendations? I can't afford a Filco or whatever crazy expensive board, I'd literally just be using this when I travel and such and want to game. (Hence no weird folding bluetooth keyboards and such)

The Ducky One is another excellent option if you're not married to LED lighting - the build quality on Ducky is always absurdly good but if you're twitch gaming you might resent Cherry MX Blues.

# ¿ Apr 7, 2017 06:45

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Friends don't let friends buy Brown switches, and Otemu has basically no QC. You might get as completely reliable set of switches or a pile of poo poo.

# ¿ Apr 7, 2017 06:52

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

pr0zac posted:

Seriously loving the idea of building a ultra compact 40% board then attaching it to a gently caress off huge piece of wood as it's base. Please tell me that's purposeful cause it's hilarious.

Add some artisanal keycaps on WASD and you have peak mechanical keyboard.

# ¿ Apr 8, 2017 05:32

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

krut posted:

ok

It's beautiful. It's so beautiful.

# ¿ Apr 8, 2017 05:50

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

PRADA SLUT posted:

Can keyboards with RGB backlighting (like the Corsair gaming ones) produce a white backlight, or does it have to be some color?

Depends on the KB, but the way most RGB LEDs work means white will have some bleedthrough to another color. But they can be solid color just fine. My Vortex POK3R RGB is usually sea-green.

# ¿ Apr 14, 2017 23:51

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Moey posted:

To keep their USB humping dog closer.

Human civilization is a long string of disappointments.

# ¿ Apr 19, 2017 20:53

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Yeah, RGB with any quality starts around the 110-120 USD mark. If you don't have that much to throw around, you really should focus on the basics - good switches, decent backplate (this is the most underrated thing in any mechanical keyboard), and frame quality.

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 18:43

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

LochNessMonster posted:

I'm looking to get a good 60% keyboard with arrow keys (so that's 64+ keys I guess?). Preferably under 100 dollar.

I saw Massdrop has a drop for the Magicforce 68.

Is that a decent starter mechanical keyboard, and would you recommend the gateron switches or shill out the extra 15-20 bucks for cherry mx?

I've heard good things, they have decent QC for Cherry clones. The big question I'd ask is what is the backplate made of? If it's plastic they're gonna feel a bit mushy no matter what. That, and if you get rid of those silly typewriter caps you can upgrade to Cherry switches while still keeping it pretty cheap.

E: looks like it's a hybrid case-plate design and the case-plate is aluminum. Hard to clean, but that's a middling quality plate. There might be a little give, but it won't be the terror of mechanical switches on a plastic plate.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 20:44 on Apr 20, 2017

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 20:36

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Looking over it, seems like a decent buy. Just be careful about that jack, those turns will ruin cables. Keeping the case clean is going to be a little difficult because aluminum loves to hold stains and if you spill anything on it it's going to smell like it for weeks.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 20:51 on Apr 20, 2017

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 20:49

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

The OP is pretty old, and I think it could use an update. I was considering writing it myself. What would y'all like to see in an updated OP?

I was thinking.

- Introduction, why you consider a mechanical keyboard

- going over USB vs PS/2 (spoilers: it doesn't matter as much as it used to)

- the major switch types (Cherry/clones, Topre, ALPS, Matias)

- Should I get this keyboard? (IE list of questions to ask yourself about a mechanical keyboard before you buy it)

- I don't want/need a mechanical keyboard (quick picks for cheap boards to use for your media setup/etc)

- A few decent, cheaper boards that make good places to start

- links (deskthority, massdrop, poo poo I'm forgetting right now)

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 21:07

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Sexual Lorax posted:

The full sperg breakdown of Cherry switches--activation force, "bump", "click", o-rings, etc. It took forever for me to decode what the gently caress people were talking about with blues and browns and blacks and purples and chartreuses and taupes.

Also, glamour shots of boards with badass keycap sets, because that's what hooked me.

Yeah, I was planning to explain the three big cherry lines: red/black, brown/clear, blue/green. As far as I can tell that's the breakdown at the heart of Cherry switches.

Your second point is really good too! I don't go out there with my board (A Vortex POK3R RGB with Blues and their discontinued POM+PBT keycaps) but I love seeing other people's flashy setups.

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 21:20

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Constellation I posted:

Quick question for y'all. Is there a specific term for keyboards with cases that don't "enclose" the keycaps and keyswitches? What I mean is keyboards like the Corsair K65/K70 or the Magicforce 68 where the switches are just resting on a flat surface with no borders or walls around them. I figured enthusiasts always have names for some esoteric poo poo, but I don't think there's a common one for this type.

Reason I'm asking is that those types of keyboards are pretty much the only ones I'm interested in. It'd be nice to just kinda filter what my options are without looking at pictures of every single model of keyboard out there.

Floating key frame, iirc.

# ¿ Apr 20, 2017 21:22

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Here's my current draft of a new keyboard megathread

This is a basic version. I'd like to add a section on DIY keyboard kits and more extensively talk about customization like frames, hand-made switches, and sound dampening clamps once it's up, but it seemed more important to get the basics down first. Any feedback on this draft?

I'd like to start collecting pictures of customized keyboards to put in the OP, so post your best keyboards and I'll mention you in the OP with a picture of your keyboard.

E: Corrected the O-Ring explanation.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 21:11 on Apr 22, 2017

# ¿ Apr 22, 2017 20:53

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Nondescript Van posted:

well as for customizing, there is a lot you could do, such as buy a pcb in a groupbuy from korea, buy some hard to find (at the time) MX White switches from some dude in Germany, then never finish your own case

This board is adorable because it looks like the keycaps are marshmallows.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2017 18:33

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Updated keyboard megathread draft. Added some information Sexual Lorax provided after verifying what I could. Keyboard pictures and a banner have been added. (Thanks Nondescript Van!) Corrected O-ring explanation.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2017 21:11

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Nondescript Van posted:

Just read over the new thread OP. Pretty decent. You should update the 60% section a bit. Pok3r are pretty common, with normal backlighting and also full rgb options. There are also a ton of options in the space now (check mechanical keyboard.com section on it) because a lot of people have realized they don't need repeat keys and don't use the numpad that much day to day (and if you do, there are mechanical standalone numpads for that) and it's good to have the extra desk space.

Perhaps a tiny section for 40% and ortholinear layouts. I can take some pictures later since I have most sizes which should give a good visual comparison.

I do mention them - Pok3r keyboards are made by Vortex. (I'm typing this on a Pok3r RGB with Blues) And while I do think they're a bit better than KBParadise I wanted to shoot for something with the lowest pricepoint possible to get into 60% keyboards with decent quality. I'd love to expand the section on keyboard sizes with some more pictures. Thank you.

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 07:28 on Apr 24, 2017

# ¿ Apr 23, 2017 23:17

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Powered Descent posted:

I like it! But there's a surprising omission: you need some info on the Model M, the Unicomp, and the Buckling Spring, amen.

I considered it and might add it to the next draft. My logic for leaving it out of this one is only one particular uncommon keyboard has them at the moment and I wanted to avoid overwhelming the reader.

# ¿ Apr 24, 2017 18:02

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

ColHannibal posted:

Add code keyboard with clears as the general overall recommendation, it's been our go to pick for a high quality board that gives tactile feedback without clicking.

I knew there was a common rec I was missing and it was annoying the poo poo out of me. Thanks. Will replace the MK Fission rec with a Code rec.

E: out of stock again, will still add but with that caveat mentioned.

# ¿ Apr 24, 2017 20:45

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

An entry on buckling spring keyboards will be in the next draft as a result of feedback. I will be keeping the quick picks list, but I will also be adding a list of trusted companies in the "Should I Buy This Keyboard?" section. Vortex, Varmillo, Code/WASD, Matias, Topre, MK, Ducky, and Leopold are the companies that instantly leapt to mind for me - any other suggestions?

I'm also thinking of adding a section after switches, and before "Should I Buy This Keyboard?" that takes a more indepth look at keyboard sizes, thoughts?

# ¿ Apr 25, 2017 01:36

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

ColHannibal posted:

You missed the more inportant part of my message, Topre is not linear at all... its closest to a tactile feedback switch.

It's corrected in the next draft, promise.

E: And the final draft is here.

Updated description of Topre switches to be more accurate, added Buckling Springs, and a new section on keyboard sizes. I'd like to expand on DIY kits and customization options in the future.

If there are no serious objections this is the draft I'll be passing it by the mods in a few days.

Thanks for all the feedback so far!

The Unlife Aquatic fucked around with this message at 07:05 on Apr 25, 2017

# ¿ Apr 25, 2017 05:14

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

krut posted:

Topre is Topre. Oneness with cup rubber.

I really want a Realforce RGB but I worry the switches are too sensitive to be useful. My board with Reds drove me up a wall.

# ¿ Apr 25, 2017 20:23

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

krut posted:

Begin shill:

GMK Oblivion is LIVE now on Keyclack.com

GMK Oblivion is a keycap set designed by /u/Oblotzky after the code coloring scheme of the same name created by Paolo Borelli.

Each of the base sets totals at 159 keys to cover most keyboards out there, including UK-ISO layout. Ranging from Fullsize, TKL and Winkeyless to 96key, 75%, 65%, 60%, HHKB, Whitefox, Leopold FC660C/FC660M and Clueboard. Probably many more! You'll have the choice between light gray alphas that stand in perfect contrast to their surrounding modifier keys, and white ones if you prefer a higher one.

/shill

Shame they probably look like poo poo with backlighting because those would be great on my Pok3r.

# ¿ Apr 29, 2017 01:03

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

Tagichatn posted:

So apparently my keyboard is loud enough to wake a sleeping baby. Are there any mechanical keyboards that are decently quiet or should I just get a digital?

Cherry MX Silent Black, Matias Quiet Click, Matias Linear, and Topre switches might work depending on what kind of sounds make the baby wake up.

# ¿ May 1, 2017 04:32

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

LochNessMonster posted:

I just ordered my first mechanical keyboard. White Pok3r with MX Browns.

As a Vortex fangirl I tell you you've made an excellent choice.

# ¿ May 4, 2017 19:14

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# ¿ May 5, 2024 12:54

The Unlife Aquatic: Jun 17, 2009; Here in my car
I feel safest of all
I can lock all my doors
It's the only way to live
In cars

My second mechanical keyboard was a Corsair K70 RGB. I can confirm Corsair keyboards are pretty great. Just as a note, the floating key design that Corsair keyboards use makes them unusually loud, my K70 RGB has Red switches and they're louder than the Blues in my first keyboard with an enclosed design.

# ¿ May 10, 2017 23:48

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