Which mechanical keyboard should i buy?

Veloxi wrote:

I keep telling you guys to go with the classics:

IMAGE(http://atariage.com/forums/uploads/monthly_03_2014/post-9089-0-59805300-1394532572.jpg)

Nothing beats it. Nothing. ;)

The tenkeyless version does.

*Legion* wrote:

The tenkeyless version does. :D

Lies. Life without a numeric keypad? No. Thank. You.

Gotta say these look pretty sweet

http://shop.keyboard.io/

Veloxi wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

The tenkeyless version does. :D

Lies. Life without a numeric keypad? No. Thank. You.

Keypads are the Endless Space of desk space usage.

*Legion* wrote:
Veloxi wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

The tenkeyless version does. :D

Lies. Life without a numeric keypad? No. Thank. You.

Keypads are the Endless Space of desk space usage.

It's amazing how useless the 10-keypad is for me. Was glad to have the option to buy a keyboard without it.

trueheart78 wrote:
*Legion* wrote:
Veloxi wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

The tenkeyless version does. :D

Lies. Life without a numeric keypad? No. Thank. You.

Keypads are the Endless Space of desk space usage.

It's amazing how useless the 10-keypad is for me. Was glad to have the option to buy a keyboard without it.

+1, Internet High Five, Respek Knuckles, etc.

*Legion* wrote:
Veloxi wrote:
*Legion* wrote:

The tenkeyless version does. :D

Lies. Life without a numeric keypad? No. Thank. You.

Keypads are the Endless Space of desk space usage.

Er...I...uh...

IMAGE(http://i.imgur.com/gjUnI0Q.gif)

trueheart78 wrote:

It's amazing how useless the 10-keypad is for me. Was glad to have the option to buy a keyboard without it.

Heh, I am exactly the opposite, I can't function without the 10 key. Although I am a pretty fast typist, I have to bang out numbers on the 10-key, reaching for the top row slows me way down.

Abu5217 wrote:
trueheart78 wrote:

It's amazing how useless the 10-keypad is for me. Was glad to have the option to buy a keyboard without it.

Heh, I am exactly the opposite, I can't function without the 10 key. Although I am a pretty fast typist, I have to bang out numbers on the 10-key, reaching for the top row slows me way down.

Exactly. I learned on a 10-key, can't not use one.

EvilDead wrote:
Abu5217 wrote:
EvilDead wrote:

It says 2016 model. I picked it up. I have a logitech with brown but I find them too loud / clicky when gaming.

Edit: Nevermind. I picked up the 2016 K70 Cherry Red yesterday. Do you have a link for the $90 K90? I can't seem to find it.

Apologies, it was the K70. I fixed the original post. The 2016 model is $109, the older one is $90.

Here's the link.

Oh weird. It's too bad that they are offering the new Red for the same price as the old Blue. I'm not even sure if there is much of a difference though (between the 2016 & older model).

I'm pretty sure the *only* difference between the previous and 2016 models is the logo at the top of the keyboard.

I was gonna say, the Corsair Ks are very nice. Durable and the keys have the right heft to them. I'm so happy with my clicky keyboards these days, hard to remember what it was like not to have them.

Veloxi, I suspect the one area where the newer keyboards are better is the key repeat speed. The Aivia and Corsairs I have have put an end to missed keystrokes, entirely. But I do miss the old IBM and DEC keyboards.

Ok, after waffling back and forth all day, I pulled the trigger tonight. Hope I love it!

I'm looking at these new Cherry boards and its like maybe I deserve that.
That 200usd keyboard.

I keep telling you guys to go with the classics:

These are wonderful keyboards, but aren't so hot for gamers, because they only have 3-key rollover.

Most boards with Cherry switches are good. Corsair's fine (I've got one), and their method of doing multi-key rollover is more compatible with the BIOSes I've used it with, but Ducky also makes very good Cherry-based keyboards, and they're pretty cheap.

If you have a Microcenter anywhere nearby, they tend to carry lots of the Duckys, in all different key switch varieties, so you can try out a bunch of different ones.

I think Corsair only uses Reds? This board has Reds.

edit: Oh, if you're someone who might want to put replacement keycaps on your board, Corsair's not so hot, because their key sizes are nonstandard. This is ... kind of uber-keyboard-nerd territory, but it's the one real knock I'm aware of for the Corsairs. Well, that, and they're pretty expensive.

For what it's worth, I recently picked up a tenkeyless Razer keyboard and it's pretty not bad. I don't like the keys quite as much as the Cherry MX Browns on my previous mechanical, but it's a solid choice if the price is right.

Yo custom keycaps are the best tho.

Aivia is a really good keyboard, which everyone seems to overlook. It's Gigabytes house brand, I think. But anyway, solid, performs well and has proven to be durable for me.

One of the downsides of mechanical keyboards? Volume on calls. A co-worker works entirely remotely, so we're on Skype and video conferences pretty frequently. He sometimes takes notes during meetings. Conversation basically has to stop when he's typing because of the racket his keyboard makes.

Chaz wrote:

One of the downsides of mechanical keyboards? Volume on calls. A co-worker works entirely remotely, so we're on Skype and video conferences pretty frequently. He sometimes takes notes during meetings. Conversation basically has to stop when he's typing because of the racket his keyboard makes.

Your co-worker needs to learn how to toggle mute or use push-to-talk.

Yeah, ideally, but sometimes he's typing while he's talking. I think it's worse because the vibrations travel through the desk and computer directly to the microphone.

Any tips on quieting the spacebar stabilizer rattle? It occurs on key release and dampeners aren't doing anything. I thought the Cherry Red K70 might be quieter but the spacebar is even louder than the Logitech 710 browns. All the single length keys sound fine and are slightly quieter than browns.

Ok, so I got the Corsair K70 and hooked it up, using only the one USB 3.0 option. Installed CUE (Corsair Utility Engine) but the utility is not recognizing my keyboard. The keyboard works fine, as that's what I am using to type this, but no joy in the Corsair software. Any thoughts? (If this isn't the place, I will post over in Tech Help).

Nevermind. Some Googling has shown me that I was somewhat a sucker. Although Corsair's own website says this:

Key-by-Key customizable backlighting

Deep red LEDs with adjustable brightness and key-by-key programmability to light up just the keys you need. It's great for illuminating your key bindings for each game. It's saved directly to the K70 onboard memory, so you can take your light maps with you.

Apparently you can create ONE and only one key-by-key binding. I thought that it had something along the lines of being able to create separate profiles per game. I am seriously considering sending it back. Grrrr.

I like some of their hardware a great deal but Corsair's software sucks. All of it. For everything.

Yeah, I am really torn. The keyboard itself is very good so far. Satifyingly clicky, solid, etc. I honestly don't know how much I really would have used the lighting features (the board does have setting to light only WASD, 1-6 and the arrows) but I feel that it's a bit lame.

Thin_J wrote:

I like some of their hardware a great deal but Corsair's software sucks. All of it. For everything.

Preach. Liked my headset...except for the software. Awful after giving them a year to fix bugs. So it's in a drawer.

I have a K70, but I don't even install the software, and leave the lights off. I bought it for the mechanisms, not the glowy bits.

Yeah, I was seriously considering keeping the K70, until the boss vetoed it.

Spoiler:

The better half was on the phone whilst I was typing. It didn't bother her when she was reading, but she quickly put the kibosh on the clicky keys.

Now I have to find a mechanical that isn't as loud, and I don't think it's just the MX Blues, it's the keys themselves. Back to the search.

Topres are very nice key mechanisms, super quiet and very high quality, although very expensive.

They're basically rubber dome keyboards, but they have a spring under each dome. When you first get them, they feel just like a standard cheapo keyboard, but once they break in, they get super comfortable. They're really good for long typing sessions, and make almost no noise. And their durability is legendary; they're very popular in banks for this reason. They have a capacitive sensor, so there's no actual physical switch to wear out, the solid rubber sheet makes them super resistant to spills, and the springs last for something like fifty million keystrokes.

Only one company makes them that I know of, and I'm aware of two models; the Topre Realforce, at about $250, and the "Type Heaven", at $150. The major difference, IIRC, is that the Type Heaven is made in China, instead of Japan. (It's probably also not built to the same physical standard; the Realforce is so solid you could use it as a weapon. Heaviest/strongest keyboard I've used since the Model M.)

edit: In looking at Amazon, it looks like more manufacturers are starting to sell Topre switches now. I see Filco and CM Storm boards that claim to have Topres. Still very expensive, though.

Amazon sale the other day tempted me a bit too. Then I saw this Azio on Amazon for only $70. Seems to be one of the cheapest mechanical and 4.4 review score on Amazon. Anybody have any experience with that model or brand?

I really should read the difference between all this red/blue key talk before I spend any money too I guess.

I bought a Logitech G710+ with dampened Cherry browns awhile a back for $75~ at BB on a sale. My first mechanical since when the old IBM's were run of the mill.

I'm nowhere near a keyboard expert, but it's worked well for me. It's not as loud as some of the mechanicals I've tried, which works out well in the room it's in (and I do conference calls from home at times).

For the money I paid, I'm happy enough.