Anyone else into buying/building mechanical keyboards?

[amalgamas]

I would love to buy a new full size keyboard but I have no idea what kind of switches I would want. I tried a brown set and the feedback seemed vague. I like the idea of a quiet(ish) but has a tactile click? Any suggestions?

Sounds like you want maybe a little bit of a stronger spring, your standard brown will be a 45g, I'm in the same boat so I went with the 67g spring tactile from Zeal.

If you're looking to buy a complete keyboard and not looking to build your best bet is one of the Drop boards, like the Shift with the Halo Clears:

Drop SHIFT Mechanical Keyboard | Full Size Hot Swappable

This full size customizable mechanical keyboard features hot-swap switch sockets, RGB backlighting and underlighting and is made of sturdy CNC-alumnium.

drop.com

Or the Glorious GMMK in a full size, custom, with the Glorious Panda's:

The GMMK - Full Size USA - Prebuilt

This Full-Size (104 keys) GMMK Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard comes preinstalled with brown Gateron switches and black keycaps. Glorious is the world's first and best Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, that allows you to easily swap between Cherry, Gateron, & Kailh switches. Minimalistic...

www.pcgamingrace.com

 

[SenenCito]

Sounds like you want maybe a little bit of a stronger spring, your standard brown will be a 45g, I'm in the same boat so I went with the 67g spring tactile from Zeal.

If you're looking to buy a complete keyboard and not looking to build your best bet is one of the Drop boards, like the Shift with the Halo Clears:

Drop SHIFT Mechanical Keyboard | Full Size Hot Swappable

This full size customizable mechanical keyboard features hot-swap switch sockets, RGB backlighting and underlighting and is made of sturdy CNC-alumnium.

drop.com

Or the Glorious GMMK in a full size, custom, with the Glorious Panda's:

The GMMK - Full Size USA - Prebuilt

This Full-Size (104 keys) GMMK Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard comes preinstalled with brown Gateron switches and black keycaps. Glorious is the world's first and best Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, that allows you to easily swap between Cherry, Gateron, & Kailh switches. Minimalistic...

www.pcgamingrace.com

Not a huge fan of drop boards. I say this as someone who has owned like three of them.

Their Quality control is so damn bad and their designs are outaded. That said, the Shift High profile was pretty much my dream board.

If you're not in any rush. Keychron is aiming to release a similar format board, and it looks really fucking good.

Keychron Q5 QMK Custom Mechanical Keyboard

Keychron Q5 is a fully customized compact full-size or 1800 layout mechanical keyboard packed with all premium features and endless possibilities. Q5 is an all-metal keyboard that allows customizable capabilities for every key switch, keycap, knob, and stabilizer. It’s made for your personalized...

www.keychron.com

 

[SenenCito]

Are you left handed?

No but there's a real argument to be said about having the numpad on the left side. Basically you can number crunch without taking your hand of the mouse.

I really want to experiment that.

If I end up hating it, there's a real good chance I can sell that board for more than it cost me.

 

[Menger]

No but there's a real argument to be said about having the numpad on the left side. Basically you can number crunch without taking your hand of the mouse.

I really want to experiment that.

If I end up hating it, there's a real good chance I can sell that board for more than it cost me.

my right hand goes from mouse to 10-key about ten zillion times a day

 

[wabash9000]

I bought a G613 and I liked it so much I bought another for work. I don't get the Romer-G hate or why cherry switches are so popular.

 

[popey]

I would buy a keycult if I could get it for MSRP

 

[bearsdidit]

Sounds like you want maybe a little bit of a stronger spring, your standard brown will be a 45g, I'm in the same boat so I went with the 67g spring tactile from Zeal.

If you're looking to buy a complete keyboard and not looking to build your best bet is one of the Drop boards, like the Shift with the Halo Clears:

Drop SHIFT Mechanical Keyboard | Full Size Hot Swappable

This full size customizable mechanical keyboard features hot-swap switch sockets, RGB backlighting and underlighting and is made of sturdy CNC-alumnium.

drop.com

Or the Glorious GMMK in a full size, custom, with the Glorious Panda's:

The GMMK - Full Size USA - Prebuilt

This Full-Size (104 keys) GMMK Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard comes preinstalled with brown Gateron switches and black keycaps. Glorious is the world's first and best Modular Mechanical Gaming Keyboard, that allows you to easily swap between Cherry, Gateron, & Kailh switches. Minimalistic...

www.pcgamingrace.com

So I’ll need to buy the gmmk and then the GP switches separately? If is pretty easy/fast to swap out the switches?

Thanks!

 

[amalgamas]

So I’ll need to buy the gmmk and then the GP switches separately? If is pretty easy/fast to swap out the switches?

Thanks!

if you do the customize option they'll pre-install them for you, it's more expensive than the normal pre-built but they have a bunch of options.

 

[amalgamas]

Not a huge fan of drop boards. I say this as someone who has owned like three of them.

Their Quality control is so damn bad and their designs are outaded. That said, the Shift High profile was pretty much my dream board.

If you're not in any rush. Keychron is aiming to release a similar format board, and it looks really fucking good.

Keychron Q5 QMK Custom Mechanical Keyboard

Keychron Q5 is a fully customized compact full-size or 1800 layout mechanical keyboard packed with all premium features and endless possibilities. Q5 is an all-metal keyboard that allows customizable capabilities for every key switch, keycap, knob, and stabilizer. It’s made for your personalized...

www.keychron.com

weirdly I've never owned a Drop board, a few of my friends swear by them.

I have had a keychron though, should have thought of that.

 

[amalgamas]

I would buy a keycult if I could get it for MSRP

mother fuck keycult and their stupid forced scarcity pricing.

 

[amalgamas]

my right hand goes from mouse to 10-key about ten zillion times a day

same, it's why I love my CandyBar so much, I wanted a 40% forever but didn't want to have to also get an external 10key, but the CandyBar has one built in. It was a no-brainer.

 

[Menger]

same, it's why I love my CandyBar so much, I wanted a 40% forever but didn't want to have to also get an external 10key, but the CandyBar has one built in. It was a no-brainer.

which is this?

 

[amalgamas]

which is this?

It's the CandyBar Premium from tk.co

It's a 40% that comes in both right and left hand configs with a ten-key.



It's a group buy, they've done three rounds now with the most recent finishing up in Sept of last year.

They'll probably do another run after that one ships in April of this year: https://thekey.company/collections/candybar-round-3/products/candybar-round-3

I was in round 2, after the close it took about 9 months for my board to arrive. Weirdly the keycaps that I ordered at the same time took 4 months longer.

 

[Platinum_Thunder]

No but there's a real argument to be said about having the numpad on the left side. Basically you can number crunch without taking your hand of the mouse.

I really want to experiment that.

If I end up hating it, there's a real good chance I can sell that board for more than it cost me.

Interesting idea.

 

[hootpie]

Boba LT switches should be arriving today. Not particularly looking forward to disassembling and lubing 80+ switches, removing 80+ keycaps, removing 80+ switches, installing 80+ new switches, and installing 80+ new keycaps

 

[Fifafever]

I got a GMMK and liked it enough that I almost fell into this hobby hole. Then I bought a Realforce R2 PFU and it’s everything I never knew I always wanted in a keyboard

 

[amalgamas]

Boba LT switches should be arriving today. Not particularly looking forward to disassembling and lubing 80+ switches, removing 80+ keycaps, removing 80+ switches, installing 80+ new switches, and installing 80+ new keycaps

it's always a bitch but we suffer for the hobby.

 

[amalgamas]

I got a GMMK and liked it enough that I almost fell into this hobby hole. Then I bought a Realforce R2 PFU and it’s everything I never knew I always wanted in a keyboard

Topre keyboards are their own cult

They do make custom cases and keycaps for them but they are stupid pricy even compared to full DIY kits.

 

[hootpie]

it's always a bitch but we suffer for the hobby.

I told my wife "I'm probably going to be busy for like 2 hours today" and she goes "Are you doing weird keyboard things again?"

 

[amalgamas]

I told my wife "I'm probably going to be busy for like 2 hours today" and she goes "Are you doing weird keyboard things again?"

When I did my last keycap change my wife and I made a little assembly line because I needed to clean the old keycaps at the same time.

I would pull the caps and drop them in some warm soapy water, she would pull them out, clean them off, dry them off, and put them in their storage boxes while I put the new caps on.

When she was still working from home she loved showing off the keyboards I would give her to use for her home office to her coworkers as they were stuck on the cheapo logitech boards the company provided.

 

[amalgamas]

I was going to build her a full pink board to match her home office aesthetic but then she ended up leaving that job and going back to managing a bakery.

Maybe if she works from home again in the future I'll carry that out.

 

[Fifafever]

Topre keyboards are their own cult

They do make custom cases and keycaps for them but they are stupid pricy even compared to full DIY kits.

It feels so good and it’s quiet af out of the box (open office lol). I had started reading about dampening and lubing and whatever else people do - I’ll nerd out about shit but not this

 

[hootpie]

When I did my last keycap change my wife and I made a little assembly line because I needed to clean the old keycaps at the same time.

I would pull the caps and drop them in some warm soapy water, she would pull them out, clean them off, dry them off, and put them in their storage boxes while I put the new caps on.

When she was still working from home she loved showing off the keyboards I would give her to use for her home office to her coworkers as they were stuck on the cheapo logitech boards the company provided.

Adorable

If I asked my wife to help me she'd laugh and probably do it, but she probably wouldn't tell anyone about it willingly

 

[monolith]

Funny other people do it with their SO. My wife and I did the lubing and filming of a bunch of switches over the course of a few nights after the kids were asleep. It was actually really nice doing something Ike that together. Just a. quiet relaxing task with some music on in the bg.

 

[monolith]

I got a GMMK and liked it enough that I almost fell into this hobby hole. Then I bought a Realforce R2 PFU and it’s everything I never knew I always wanted in a keyboard

Used my friends GMMK and didn’t like it. Felt cheap to me but the price is really good.