OCAU Mechanical Keyboard Thread (NO ITEMS FOR SALE HERE USE THE TRADING FORUMS)

[Frostex]

Originally Posted by h20xide

Razer just make cruddy keyboards

Thats about as descriptive/useful as me saying "the world is going to end". Care to elaborate...

[mr626]

Originally Posted by iMomOx3

Where do you purchase these keyboards? Honestly hatin on my blackwidow cannot wait to get my hands on a das or filco.

But the other brands that you mention, where are you getting these from? Overseas with a shitload of postage cost? Or are these local?

I've ordered both my PLU and my KBC Poker from Ebay. Postage was about $18 for each of them.

Here are the sellers I have used:

http://myworld.ebay.com.au/bid-stati...id=p4340.l2559
http://myworld.ebay.com.au/qtan5370

Other than that, there are a few options for locally sourced mech. boards:

http://www.mechkeyboards.com/
http://www.auspcmarket.com.au/products/1838/
http://www.pccasegear.com/index.php?...cPath=113_1276

Personally, I was looking for the cheapest way to try a new mech. board with cherry switches. Ebay worked out to be the cheapest option.

You can also get lucky and occasionally get some used Cherry-branded POS (that's point-of sale!) boards that use (you guessed it) cherry siwtches. Don't assume that all cherry boards/switches are good though. I've got a couple of these boards which use cherry MY switches- terrible to type on.

Originally Posted by Frostex

Apart from the price tag whats with all the hate on the blackwidow?

From what I have read, the main problem with some of the Razer keyboards is the build quality. On forums like geekhack (full of keyboard geeks) there isn't many that would choose a Razer board over brands like Ducky, Leopold etc.

[itachi46]

Originally Posted by Frostex

Apart from the price tag whats with all the hate on the blackwidow?

think its from razer's past with some pretty dodgey products or the mechanical keybaord fans hating the fact that its going mainstream or something stupid.

i have one happy with it never had a keyboard from well built. its got a nice weight to it. the only thing i can fault is it doesnt have nkro. so... take that as you like.

[Huggy_Bear64]

Originally Posted by Frostex

Thats about as descriptive/useful as me saying "the world is going to end". Care to elaborate...

They're razer keyboards, 'nuff said.

[Aussiejuggalo]

Originally Posted by h20xide

Ive used the diff variants of Red and Brown (Black and Blue) and I can safely say I prefer the Black for gaming. Typing on it isn't bad at all, and a lot quieter.

I cant stand clicky keyboards thats why i dont want Blues and i heard Blacks r really hard to type on coz they need more force then most switches

[mr626]

Originally Posted by Huggy_Bear64

They're razer keyboards, 'nuff said.

Not really. If you are asking people's opinions on something would you rather have:

"It's brand XYZ, nuff said"

or

"Some people have reported issues with feature A of XYZ, and many people find that feature B doesn't work as advertised"

Personally, I'd rather have the extra information.

Originally Posted by Aussiejuggalo

I cant stand clicky keyboards thats why i dont want Blues and i heard Blacks r really hard to type on coz they need more force then most switches

I don't think they would be 'hard' to type on, but of the modern cherry mx switches they require the most force. See here for more information on cherry switches than you ever wanted to know:

http://geekhack.org/showwiki.php?tit...hes+and+boards
(yes, I'm linking geekhack a lot in this thread, but I guess you get that in a thread about mechanical keyboards!).

Cherry browns might be worth considering as they are lighter than the blacks and don't have the 'click' of the blues.

[Aussiejuggalo]

I don't think they would be 'hard' to type on, but of the modern cherry mx switches they require the most force. See here for more information on cherry switches than you ever wanted to know:

http://geekhack.org/showwiki.php?tit...hes+and+boards
(yes, I'm linking geekhack a lot in this thread, but I guess you get that in a thread about mechanical keyboards!).

Cherry browns might be worth considering as they are lighter than the blacks and don't have the 'click' of the blues.

I just read that one and the Mechanical Keyboard Guide on OCN.

It's really just a matter of what size board, im still looking at the Choc Mini and now the PLU ML-87 they both have what i want and theres only $0.27 price difference

[Rory K]

Originally Posted by mr626

Not really. If you are asking people's opinions on something would you rather have:

"It's brand XYZ, nuff said"

or

"Some people have reported issues with feature A of XYZ, and many people find that feature B doesn't work as advertised"

Personally, I'd rather have the extra information.

Ignore the Huggy_Troll.

Originally Posted by mr626

Cherry browns might be worth considering as they are lighter than the blacks and don't have the 'click' of the blues.

+1, love my Cherry browns. My Das Model S Professional Silent is my first mech keyboard and it rocks. If anything the keys feel like they require less force than my old G110's rubber domes...

[synic]

Just picked up a TenKeyless MX Red Limited Edition.

Bloody love it. Smooth as silk, 45g key weight so lighter to touch on than MX Browns, fairly quiet for a mechanical... and lots of snob value being Cherry MX Reds...

Just had to gloat to those that care...

I got an Filco Tenkeyless in MX Browns and a Filco 2 in MX Reds. Personally I prefer the Reds.

But seriously, mechanical keyboards are an acquired taste, however once you have used one for a week or so there's no going back. Rubber domes feel like crap; mushy, it's like the keyboard needs to think about what your fingers are doing.

If your not sure what type of switch to try, best bet is to treat it like a hobby, and just work your way through them. Mechanical keyboards keep their value better than most computer stuff; just look at the for sale forum. It's hard to get them much cheaper 2nd hand than 20 - 30 % below retail. Otherwise people just don't part with them.

I'd recommend starting with Cherry MX Brown switches and see how you go. Most manufacturers have keyboards that use MX Browns. Then try some MX Blacks, or Blues. Warning, Blues are NOISY. Too noisy of me, but you get use to them. Reds are hard to find, but similar to MX Blacks, but much lighter to type on.

Have fun.

[Huggy_Bear64]

Originally Posted by Rory K

Ignore the Huggy_Troll.

But he's so cute and cuddly

Edit: blues aren't THAT loud, just provide nice feedback
Although I am keen to try black/reds, they might be nicer for gaming and nighttime typing too. Especially combined with the soft landing thingies...

edit edit: what are people's opinions on leopold vs filco? looking at tenkeyless with either black or red switches.

edit edit edit: I guess what I'm really asking is if the filcos are worth the price premium over Leopold...

[mr626]

I've heard a lot of good things about the cherry red switches- the common theme is that people like them more than they expected. If I were ever to try something other than blues, it would probably be reds.

I do enjoy typing on my blues though

Yeah, I don't find blues to be *that* loud. I guess it depends on what you are used to.

Regarding Filco vs. Leopold I'd personally go Leopold. I haven't seen any evidence to date that would suggest that Filcos are that much better. I haven't tried either though so I'm happy to bow to someone else's judgement :-)

Speaking of cherry switches, I'm currently typing on a Cherry G84-4100 compact board which uses ML type switches. If Anyone needs a low profile, small form factor board I'd suggest giving this one a look. Not as nice as my PLU with blues, but still a great feel- much better than any rubber dome boards I've used.

[synic]

Originally Posted by Huggy_Bear64

...
Edit: blues aren't THAT loud, just provide nice feedback
Although I am keen to try black/reds, they might be nicer for gaming and nighttime typing too. Especially combined with the soft landing thingies...

edit edit: what are people's opinions on leopold vs filco? looking at tenkeyless with either black or red switches.

edit edit edit: I guess what I'm really asking is if the filcos are worth the price premium over Leopold...

Filco's are expensive for what you get. Leopold's are apparently lesser quality but that is conjecture based on something somewhere I can't prove. I looked at the Leopolds at PCCG and, I was seriously tempted to get an MX Blue Tenkeyless just to try out. I've always wanted one and the equivalent Filco is $40 bucks more for basically the same thing. At the last minute I get an email from AusPC saying he made a mistake in stock take and had 2 Tenkeyless MX Ltd Edition Reds in stock and it was basically an impulse buy for me. It was a $189 dollar impulse too.

I would try a Leopold from PCCG if you want to start trying Mechanical Keyboads. They are cheaper than anything else, but, I think they will be just as good.

There are so many posts over at GeekHack asking for recommendations, but, bottom line is, its a personal thing and you wont know till you try them out. If you can pick up from PCCG then, $109 entry into the Mechanical Keyboard Fetish is a good place to start.

I don't think Filco's are worth the price premium. They are just snob value; like buying an intel i9 when most people never use even 10% of the processors capability. Filco's are nice, but to start trying mechanical keyboards; Leopolds are just as good, and you probably wouldn't notice the difference with your eyes closed.

[mr626]

Originally Posted by synic

I would try a Leopold from PCCG if you want to start trying Mechanical Keyboads. They are cheaper than anything else, but, I think they will be just as good.
.

Agree with everything other than this. As mentioned, boards like the Choc Mini, PLU and KBC Poker can be had cheaply via ebay- cheaper than anything from local stores. From memory, my PLU ended up being $90 shipped and the KBC was a little bit more.

I guess the other factor is whether or not you want a full-sized board. If you do, the Leopold from PCCG would probably be the go.

[iMomOx3]

Just purchased the Filco Majestouch h20xide was selling. Can't wait til it arrives at my door! Can finally get rid of this razerbw.

[Huggy_Bear64]

Originally Posted by mr626

Agree with everything other than this. As mentioned, boards like the Choc Mini, PLU and KBC Poker can be had cheaply via ebay- cheaper than anything from local stores. From memory, my PLU ended up being $90 shipped and the KBC was a little bit more.

I guess the other factor is whether or not you want a full-sized board. If you do, the Leopold from PCCG would probably be the go.

The KBC and the choc mini have weird layouts which scare me off a bit, but I can't seem to find anything with cherry reds and a standard tenkeyless layout

The choc mini looks the least confusing, but I'm still not sure D: