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[Mechanical Keyboards] Clickity Clack! We build them ourselves now!

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Posts

  • jungleroomxjungleroomx It's never too many graves, it's always not enough shovels Registered User regular
    edited June 2020
    a5ehren wrote: »
    You can get a 9-key switch sampler for like $15. It won't help you with keycap profile (though from what I can tell the differences are tiny, with the main thing being OEM-profile are easier to find in stock), but it at least gets you the major Cherry switches to try.

    Some keycap profiles are massively different

    Like KAT is going to be fairly close to OEM, but other ones like XDA, DSA or SA are really different.

    jungleroomx on
  • MrBlarneyMrBlarney Registered User regular
    Aww, no. It's like you guys want me to spend all my money on the keyboarding hobby. ;)

    I'm just trying to keep myself from diving too deep, too quickly, with only one month of use so far on my first board. So even though I know I could do some research in the meantime by getting a switch tester, I'm trying to justify holding off for better opportunities to learn and test out more possibilities in person for the rest of a build. (And anyways, my mind has already gone so far off the shallows to start considering some of the more boutique switches. My Cherry Browns have been quite good so far, but... what a world out there that I don't know about! Hmm, Zeal switches seem promising... and my mind keeps wandering deeper and deeper.)

    4463rwiq7r47.png
  • a5ehrena5ehren AtlantaRegistered User regular
    The deep end of the MK pool is for crazy people only. 99% of the difference is from your first change to mechanical from membrane.

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    Still looking for my own modest white whale: replacement Cooler Master keys. :lol:

  • jungleroomxjungleroomx It's never too many graves, it's always not enough shovels Registered User regular
    Synthesis wrote: »
    Still looking for my own modest white whale: replacement Cooler Master keys. :lol:

    I thought CM's were standard with a 6.25 spacebar?

  • jungleroomxjungleroomx It's never too many graves, it's always not enough shovels Registered User regular
    a5ehren wrote: »
    The deep end of the MK pool is for crazy people only. 99% of the difference is from your first change to mechanical from membrane.

    I'm not a fan of below TKL size boards, which seem to be 99% of the enthusiast grade keebs being produced. Like the 60% is just a big no.

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Synthesis wrote: »
    Still looking for my own modest white whale: replacement Cooler Master keys. :lol:

    I thought CM's were standard with a 6.25 spacebar?

    Oh, they're standard, the silly thing is I'm just trying to find spares that match the appearance of the MK730's existing keycaps because I like how subdue they look. It doesn't matter, except I'm annoyed CM doesn't just sell spares when it seems like an obvious choice.

    Synthesis on
  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    Synthesis wrote: »
    Still looking for my own modest white whale: replacement Cooler Master Corsair keys. :lol:

  • MrBlarneyMrBlarney Registered User regular
    a5ehren wrote: »
    The deep end of the MK pool is for crazy people only. 99% of the difference is from your first change to mechanical from membrane.
    I dunno, sometimes you look at your standard four-door sedan, then you look at that luxury car, and you think to yourself "yeah, that might be nice". At least keyboards come in at a lower price point than cars. (Though on the downside, it's easier to collect multiple keyboards than cars too.)

    4463rwiq7r47.png
  • a5ehrena5ehren AtlantaRegistered User regular
    a5ehren wrote: »
    The deep end of the MK pool is for crazy people only. 99% of the difference is from your first change to mechanical from membrane.

    I'm not a fan of below TKL size boards, which seem to be 99% of the enthusiast grade keebs being produced. Like the 60% is just a big no.

    Yeah, I do enough number entry to where I want the full-size. Anything smaller than TKL just seems like you're begging to create bad muscle memory so you can't ever use anyone else's keyboard. Kind of like an ergo but without the comfort.

  • BlazeFireBlazeFire Registered User regular
    I regularly switch between TKL (home), full size (work), and a 65% (work as well) without issue. Soon an ergo will fit into that as well.

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    I don't think that's as big of a change as someone who goes ortholinear. Your entire muscle memory changes at that point.

    There's also the unwritten arms race for fewest number of actually needed keys.

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    edited June 2020
    (Goddamn this board for eating my post.)

    Okay, so, I've decided to buckle down and order some (hopefully more resilient) PBT keycaps to replace the ABS keycaps on my Cooler Master MK 730, since importing replacements from the UK storefront (good grief) would cost more than 50 euros. Plus, the case seems to be that PBT keycaps hold up better to cleaning, etc., than ABS.

    That's where you guys come in--can you recommend a PBT that would "match" the rest of the keyboard? As much as I like the stylistic features of things like side-printed keycaps, it'd be pretty jarring, especially since I'll probably just be replacing the alphabet rows. I'm not against two-tone/"pudding caps", in fact I think they're the bee's knees, but I would like something that closely resembles the current style. Any suggestions? This is an area I have zero shopping experience in, unlike the keyboards themselves, so I'm leaning towards something like these ones from Razer.

    su2iczp0vo8e.png

    Synthesis on
  • Shazkar ShadowstormShazkar Shadowstorm Registered User regular
    I’ve totally adapted to my ergodoz ez now at least

    I still need to memorize some of my extra layers better but overall pretty good!

    And I love being able to adjust and reprogram it

    poo
  • Shazkar ShadowstormShazkar Shadowstorm Registered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Mugsley wrote: »
    I don't think that's as big of a change as someone who goes ortholinear. Your entire muscle memory changes at that point.

    There's also the unwritten arms race for fewest number of actually needed keys.

    Ortholinear definitely made me relearn how I typed
    But it wasn’t too bad after a bit, but the first week or two was brutal

    But I still manage to type on my laptop keyboard mostly fine

    Took me a bit to be able to switch between both without going crazy but now it works

    Shazkar Shadowstorm on
    poo
  • mightyjongyomightyjongyo Sour Crrm East Bay, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Synthesis wrote: »
    (Goddamn this board for eating my post.)

    Okay, so, I've decided to buckle down and order some (hopefully more resilient) PBT keycaps to replace the ABS keycaps on my Cooler Master MK 730, since importing replacements from the UK storefront (good grief) would cost more than 50 euros. Plus, the case seems to be that PBT keycaps hold up better to cleaning, etc., than ABS.

    That's where you guys come in--can you recommend a PBT that would "match" the rest of the keyboard? As much as I like the stylistic features of things like side-printed keycaps, it'd be pretty jarring, especially since I'll probably just be replacing the alphabet rows. I'm not against two-tone/"pudding caps", in fact I think they're the bee's knees, but I would like something that closely resembles the current style. Any suggestions? This is an area I have zero shopping experience in, unlike the keyboards themselves, so I'm leaning towards something like these ones from Razer.

    When you say match do you mean the keycap profile or the color scheme?

    How attached are you to shine-through? If you just want the blue on black kind of look, the GMK pulse keycap set is pretty close: https://mitormk.com/portfolio/gmk-pulse-2019/

    Keycap sets can get awful pricey though. The most affordable brand is probably Taihao: https://shop.tai-hao.com/products

    mightyjongyo on
  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Synthesis wrote: »
    (Goddamn this board for eating my post.)

    Okay, so, I've decided to buckle down and order some (hopefully more resilient) PBT keycaps to replace the ABS keycaps on my Cooler Master MK 730, since importing replacements from the UK storefront (good grief) would cost more than 50 euros. Plus, the case seems to be that PBT keycaps hold up better to cleaning, etc., than ABS.

    That's where you guys come in--can you recommend a PBT that would "match" the rest of the keyboard? As much as I like the stylistic features of things like side-printed keycaps, it'd be pretty jarring, especially since I'll probably just be replacing the alphabet rows. I'm not against two-tone/"pudding caps", in fact I think they're the bee's knees, but I would like something that closely resembles the current style. Any suggestions? This is an area I have zero shopping experience in, unlike the keyboards themselves, so I'm leaning towards something like these ones from Razer.

    When you say match do you mean the keycap profile or the color scheme?

    How attached are you to shine-through? If you just want the blue on black kind of look, the GMK pulse keycap set is pretty close: https://mitormk.com/portfolio/gmk-pulse-2019/

    Keycap sets can get awful pricey though. The most affordable brand is probably Taihao: https://shop.tai-hao.com/products

    Both ideally, and I do like the shine through. The GMK keycaps do look pretty similar, but I'm looking for PBT if possible. Thanks for the suggestions though, really I'm not at all familiar with this.

    Synthesis on
  • mightyjongyomightyjongyo Sour Crrm East Bay, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    If you don't like the look of the taihao keycaps (they do have backlit keys here) then in general what you want to look for are OEM profile keycaps. Double shot PBT is generally what you want because it means the legends are also PBT and not screen printed - but since you're going for backlit keys it's a non-issue for you. Sometimes the backlit keycaps are referred to as shine-through, but I think you'll usually see backlit.

    If you don't go with major/mass produced brands, expect to pay upwards of $80 for a keycap set. Since you have a tenkeyless keyboard any standard set will do, but be careful and make sure the set you buy isn't just for alphas and includes arrow keys, function row, etc (assuming you aren't planning to mix and match sets).

    Other keycap profiles you might enjoy are Cherry profile, or if you don't actually like the curvature of the keys, DSA/XDA profile keys are all uniform height. I prefer DSA, personally, but some people are just used to the OEM/cherry profile. There's a good comparison of the profiles here

  • BucketmanBucketman Call me SkraggRegistered User regular
    When WFH started I invested in a Logitech G613 wireless keyboard. And its mechanical! And its been wonderful, I don't think I could be doing WFH without it

  • SynthesisSynthesis Honda Today! Registered User regular
    I ended up going with the Razer Doubleshot PBT keycaps. Which are not cheap ($29.99 for a full-sized rather than tenkyeless format), they're still pretty nice for what you get. And the PBT keycaps have a very nice, slight textured feel to them, on top of being more robust--so much so that I'm considering replacing everything but the dual-function keys (my one complaint is that they don't quite match the style of the default keycaps, on top of being slightly dimmer as expected).

  • cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

  • minor incidentminor incident expert in a dying field njRegistered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    minor incident on
    Ah, it stinks, it sucks, it's anthropologically unjust
  • cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

  • schussschuss Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I got a silent red varmilo for my WFH setup and it's amazing. I may replace my das keyboard with browns I like it so much more.

  • cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    schuss wrote: »
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I got a silent red varmilo for my WFH setup and it's amazing. I may replace my das keyboard with browns I like it so much more.

    It's squishier/firmer?

  • minor incidentminor incident expert in a dying field njRegistered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

    I've used browns, I just prefer reds. Never tried clears, but they're the stiffer version of browns, I think, right? Should be close to blacks. If you prefer the feel of browns over reds, you'll probably like them if you want something a little stiffer. I tend to rest my fingers on keys a lot when gaming, so the stiffer resistance feels better to me and keeps me from hitting things by accident as much.

    Ah, it stinks, it sucks, it's anthropologically unjust
  • cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

    I've used browns, I just prefer reds. Never tried clears, but they're the stiffer version of browns, I think, right? Should be close to blacks. If you prefer the feel of browns over reds, you'll probably like them if you want something a little stiffer. I tend to rest my fingers on keys a lot when gaming, so the stiffer resistance feels better to me and keeps me from hitting things by accident as much.

    Ah misread this at first, you're saying black switches would probably be nice for the additional resistance, reds are smushier?

  • LD50LD50 Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

    I've used browns, I just prefer reds. Never tried clears, but they're the stiffer version of browns, I think, right? Should be close to blacks. If you prefer the feel of browns over reds, you'll probably like them if you want something a little stiffer. I tend to rest my fingers on keys a lot when gaming, so the stiffer resistance feels better to me and keeps me from hitting things by accident as much.

    Ah misread this at first, you're saying black switches would probably be nice for the additional resistance, reds are smushier?

    Reds and blacks are the same except for the spring strength. Reds aren't 'smushier' per se, they have a lighter actuation force.

    I took me a bit of time to get used to not resting my fingers on the keys, but I prefer the lighter touch long term. I type a lot for work (even more now that WFH means I'm doing nearly all correspondence via text) I was starting to experience some hand pain typing on stiffer keys. Reds have eliminated that.

  • mtsmts Dr. Robot King Registered User regular
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

    I've used browns, I just prefer reds. Never tried clears, but they're the stiffer version of browns, I think, right? Should be close to blacks. If you prefer the feel of browns over reds, you'll probably like them if you want something a little stiffer. I tend to rest my fingers on keys a lot when gaming, so the stiffer resistance feels better to me and keeps me from hitting things by accident as much.

    Ah misread this at first, you're saying black switches would probably be nice for the additional resistance, reds are smushier?

    He's saying brown is to clear and red is to black. They are same switch type except they require different force.

    I didn't like reds.i have a brown board and a black board. Prefer the black. I probably would like clears.

    camo_sig.png
  • schussschuss Registered User regular
    schuss wrote: »
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I got a silent red varmilo for my WFH setup and it's amazing. I may replace my das keyboard with browns I like it so much more.

    It's squishier/firmer?

    firmer press with no detent, so it's more continuous.

  • cardboard delusionscardboard delusions USAgent PSN: USAgent31Registered User regular
    mts wrote: »
    Been gone for a bit but kind of itching for a new board. I have a Filco Ninja Majestouch 2 at work and a Ducky Disco TKL. Both are brown switches, looking to get something TKL with a firmer switch so probably clears... anyone have any experience going stiffer from browns? Maybe @minor incident ?

    I've had a couple of keyboards with black switches (stiffer reds). Would strongly recommend for gaming. It would be all I would buy if black switches were more common.

    Have you tried clears or browns for comparison?

    I've used browns, I just prefer reds. Never tried clears, but they're the stiffer version of browns, I think, right? Should be close to blacks. If you prefer the feel of browns over reds, you'll probably like them if you want something a little stiffer. I tend to rest my fingers on keys a lot when gaming, so the stiffer resistance feels better to me and keeps me from hitting things by accident as much.

    Ah misread this at first, you're saying black switches would probably be nice for the additional resistance, reds are smushier?

    He's saying brown is to clear and red is to black. They are same switch type except they require different force.

    I didn't like reds.i have a brown board and a black board. Prefer the black. I probably would like clears.

    That's my thinking too.

  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
    edited June 2020
    Hey all! I decided to drop some monies for a quieter experience since I've been working from home with my partner more often and the sound of clickity clacks is grating on us both. I went and placed an order for the STRAFE RGB MK.2 Mechanical Gaming Keyboard — CHERRY® MX Silent from Corsair.
    fomaz9bixt2k.png
    I was wondering if anyone had one and could give their opinions and experience. Also, if there were further things I could do to reduce the sound of the Cherry Silent Switches.

    I also bought a 'Silent Gaming' 1000hz polling mouse from MOJO Tech Inc. on Amazon for $45 which didn't have a ton of reviews, but looks promising enough.
    8dp56lz9e73n.png

    The Mouse should be coming today so I can give a review on that later, but any PA reviews of the Strafe RGB with Silent Switches would be appreciated!

    KoopahTroopah on
  • jungleroomxjungleroomx It's never too many graves, it's always not enough shovels Registered User regular
    I've used 2 corsair boards in the past and while they're a pain to customize their stock configurations are pretty solid. I cant imagine you'll be disappointed.

  • BucketmanBucketman Call me SkraggRegistered User regular
    Finally pulled me wife into the mechanical key life.

    She picked up a Azio Retro typewriter keyboard this past weekend in bronze and black. I have to admit, and a very good looking device. The backlight is in the letters and not behind the keys and it and a good solid build and very very clicky keys.

  • MugsleyMugsley DelawareRegistered User regular
    @KoopahTroopah you can potentially add o-rings to your keycaps if you need further sound dampening

  • mightyjongyomightyjongyo Sour Crrm East Bay, CaliforniaRegistered User regular
    aside from o-rings they also make these foam pads you can put on the switch as well. note that both options will reduce the travel distance and may make keypresses feel worse than you expect.

  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
    So I haven't used the MOJO mouse (which I found out is the model MJ-189) extensively yet, but the RGB customization on the mouse is pretty decent. The manual says the left and right mouse buttons are only warranted for 5mil clicks though, which I feel is a low number but I don't know, so we'll see how long it lasts. The clicks are really really quiet though so, excited for that. It also has slight pressure adjustments for the left/right buttons to make them easier or harder to click.

  • VoodooVVoodooV Registered User regular
    My original plan was to wait until I was ready to build my new uber rig to get a high end keyboard and mouse, but my old Razer Black Widow was getting extremely ratty but most of all my mouse was getting extremely flaky and cutting out very often so I searched around and found this:

    https://www.gamingnexus.com/Article/6090/Aukey-PC-Gaming-Peripheral-Collection/

    budget mechanical keyboard and mouse combo from Aukey who normally makes accessories like chargers, usb cables, and ear buds. The reviews were really good so I scooped it up. So far I'm liking it. Nothing fancy though and it will tide me over till I am ready to get something higher end.

    My old Razer Black Widow should be salvageable so I'm going to put it through a deep clean. I knew it was going to be dirty, but damn.

  • WindburnWindburn Registered User regular
    Roccat Vulcan 121 AIMO

    Does anyone know if I can make profile changes (keybindings, lighting effects, etc.) using Swarm on my home PC, then use that profile on another computer without Swarm installed?

  • KoopahTroopahKoopahTroopah The koopas, the troopas. Philadelphia, PARegistered User regular
    Corsair keyboard came today. It looks and sounds great. Super quiet and feels good, needs more testing and using it to get used to the new switches. The only issue I have so far is the space bar is much much louder than the rest of the keyboard, which is making me type quieter than normal. The switches on the keys themselves feel awesome though.

    Does anyone use iCUE? Is it a resource hog or can I just leave it open while my computer is on?

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