Author Topic: Leopold FC660C  (Read 313895 times)

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Offline spuriousgeorge

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #300 on: Wed, 29 January 2014, 15:56:09 »
Very cool, thank you!  ;) ;)

Offline Linkbane

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #301 on: Wed, 29 January 2014, 16:41:45 »
Quickfire TK MX Blue Corsair K60 MX Red Ducky Shine 3 Yellow TKL MX Blue Leopold FC660C
Current best: 162 wpm.

Offline spuriousgeorge

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #302 on: Wed, 29 January 2014, 17:05:40 »
Thank you! Are you also Linkbane on typeracer? Or do you go by another name?

It would be nice to know one of the many people I lose to on typeracer.

Offline Linkbane

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #303 on: Wed, 29 January 2014, 17:24:25 »
Thank you! Are you also Linkbane on typeracer? Or do you go by another name?

It would be nice to know one of the many people I lose to on typeracer.

Yup, that's me. Same person on 10FF, as well. I don't go on typeracer that often, but probably at least once a week. I usually am on 10FF several times per day.
Quickfire TK MX Blue Corsair K60 MX Red Ducky Shine 3 Yellow TKL MX Blue Leopold FC660C
Current best: 162 wpm.

Offline rowdy

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #304 on: Wed, 29 January 2014, 21:55:45 »
Do you ever find yourself mistyping due to the abbreviated right shift key on the Leopold and on the HHKB? I know it's basically full size, but it isn't quite, and I imagine I would end up overshooting it now and then.

Thanks for the great review!

I don't (on HHKB).  But then it seems that I mostly use the left Shift key anyway.
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Offline Dyslexic

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #305 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 11:20:26 »
I noticed a lot of complaints about the keycaps for this board -- I just got my blank version in on Friday and ohmygod this board is perfect. All I need are two clacks for the ins/del and this board will be my daily driver for the foreseeable future.
| HHKB Type-S | FC660C Silenced | ReΛlforce 23UB

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #306 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 11:48:23 »
I noticed a lot of complaints about the keycaps for this board -- I just got my blank version in on Friday and ohmygod this board is perfect. All I need are two clacks for the ins/del and this board will be my daily driver for the foreseeable future.

My legends are already starting to fade unfortunately. :( But you won't have that problem with the blanks. I'm waiting on some Realforce dye-sublimated keycaps to replace the Leopold ones, so that will solve my problem!

ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline Dyslexic

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #307 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 12:15:14 »
Another FC660C owner in Ottawa, what are the odds? haha. I'd love to see what those caps look like when you get them in.
| HHKB Type-S | FC660C Silenced | ReΛlforce 23UB

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #308 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 12:38:16 »
My legends are already starting to fade unfortunately. :( But you won't have that problem with the blanks. I'm waiting on some Realforce dye-sublimated keycaps to replace the Leopold ones, so that will solve my problem!

Nice! Where did you end up finding the Realforce keycaps? And is it a full set or just modifiers?

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #309 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 13:00:44 »
Another FC660C owner in Ottawa, what are the odds? haha. I'd love to see what those caps look like when you get them in.

Haha, yeah I see that! I just joined geekhack, so I'm not sure how many FC660C Ottawa owners are on here.

Nice! Where did you end up finding the Realforce keycaps? And is it a full set or just modifiers?

Got them on elitekeyboards (a full pink set): http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=access,toprekeys&pid=se09e0_ktf1

But ugh... I don't know if I'll buy them from there again because shipping to Canada was like $33 US + another $37 Canadian dollars in custom fees!!! :'( I don't know where else to find replacement Topre keycaps and I don't have 60 posts yet to go through classifieds lol. I know taobao carries them too, but I really have no idea how to order from there.
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #310 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 13:10:03 »
Got them on elitekeyboards (a full pink set): http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=access,toprekeys&pid=se09e0_ktf1

But ugh... I don't know if I'll buy them from there again because shipping to Canada was like $33 US + another $37 Canadian dollars in custom fees!!! :'( I don't know where else to find replacement Topre keycaps and I don't have 60 posts yet to go through classifieds lol. I know taobao carries them too, but I really have no idea how to order from there.

You'll pay a lot more than what EK charges if you buy off taobao :/ Here are some sets http://goo.gl/2mkYDz imsto will proxy them for you if you're interested http://geekhack.org/index.php?action=profile;u=1827


Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #311 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 13:34:31 »
Got them on elitekeyboards (a full pink set): http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=access,toprekeys&pid=se09e0_ktf1

But ugh... I don't know if I'll buy them from there again because shipping to Canada was like $33 US + another $37 Canadian dollars in custom fees!!! :'( I don't know where else to find replacement Topre keycaps and I don't have 60 posts yet to go through classifieds lol. I know taobao carries them too, but I really have no idea how to order from there.

You'll pay a lot more than what EK charges if you buy off taobao :/ Here are some sets http://goo.gl/2mkYDz imsto will proxy them for you if you're interested http://geekhack.org/index.php?action=profile;u=1827

Thanks! I would've love to get the blue set if I knew about this sooner. Too bad these are becoming more rare! :(
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline reziak

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #312 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 13:59:59 »
I noticed a lot of complaints about the keycaps for this board -- I just got my blank version in on Friday and ohmygod this board is perfect. All I need are two clacks for the ins/del and this board will be my daily driver for the foreseeable future.

My legends are already starting to fade unfortunately. :( But you won't have that problem with the blanks. I'm waiting on some Realforce dye-sublimated keycaps to replace the Leopold ones, so that will solve my problem!

I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

HHKB Pro 2 | FC660C | HHKB Pro 2 Type-S

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #313 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 14:16:23 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #314 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 15:30:50 »
The switches and/or keycaps feel softer on the FC660C than they do on the HHKB. Replacing the stock keycaps with the Realforce ones made a little bit of difference. The dedicated arrow keys is a nice touch compared to the HHKB but the latter is smaller.

Apparently CM's Novatouch will be manufactured at the same factory that produces the FC660C so if you like that keyboard...

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #315 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 17:38:34 »
The switches and/or keycaps feel softer on the FC660C than they do on the HHKB. Replacing the stock keycaps with the Realforce ones made a little bit of difference. The dedicated arrow keys is a nice touch compared to the HHKB but the latter is smaller.

Apparently CM's Novatouch will be manufactured at the same factory that produces the FC660C so if you like that keyboard...

Good to know. I hope the difference you're talking about is a "good" difference. I really do love how this keyboard feels with stock keycaps right now. Although, I did take out the spring in the spacebar since it felt a little too heavy compared to the rest of the keys.

I can't wait to see the first review of the Novatouch. Still a bit of a wait though. I think they said it'll be released in Q2.
« Last Edit: Mon, 17 February 2014, 17:51:19 by nobee »
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #316 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 18:33:19 »
Good to know. I hope the difference you're talking about is a "good" difference.

I guess this won't be helpful but I wouldn't describe the difference as being good or bad, just noticeable. If I could only have one keyboard out of the two then it would have to be the Leopold because of the dedicated arrow keys.

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #317 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 18:59:58 »
Good to know. I hope the difference you're talking about is a "good" difference.

I guess this won't be helpful but I wouldn't describe the difference as being good or bad, just noticeable. If I could only have one keyboard out of the two then it would have to be the Leopold because of the dedicated arrow keys.

Are you talking about the difference between the HHKB and the Leopold or the difference between stock Leopold keycaps and Realforce keycaps on a Leopold? I was referring to the Realforce keycaps.
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #318 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 19:22:28 »
Are you talking about the difference between the HHKB and the Leopold or the difference between stock Leopold keycaps and Realforce keycaps on a Leopold? I was referring to the Realforce keycaps.

Ah my bad! I was still hung up on the keyboard comparison. The difference between the stock FC660C keycaps and the replacement Realforce ones is significant and worth the upgrade. The latter feel firmer and also seem to augment the sound of key presses.

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #319 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 19:42:03 »
Ah my bad! I was still hung up on the keyboard comparison. The difference between the stock FC660C keycaps and the replacement Realforce ones is significant and worth the upgrade. The latter feel firmer and also seem to augment the sound of key presses.

Interesting... I guess I'll see when they arrive!
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline reziak

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #320 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 20:24:55 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?

Hard to admit it, but right now I do  :eek: I actually prefer the mods on the HHKB and the alphas on the Leopold xD they just feel so soft and smooth...


HHKB Pro 2 | FC660C | HHKB Pro 2 Type-S

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #321 on: Mon, 17 February 2014, 20:41:00 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?

Hard to admit it, but right now I do  :eek: I actually prefer the mods on the HHKB and the alphas on the Leopold xD they just feel so soft and smooth...

I do agree, it does feel buttery smooth.
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline aref

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #322 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 12:12:12 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?

Hard to admit it, but right now I do  :eek: I actually prefer the mods on the HHKB and the alphas on the Leopold xD they just feel so soft and smooth...

I do agree, it does feel buttery smooth.

Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #323 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 12:49:23 »
Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Between those two the HHKB's switches definitely feel firmer. I have a RF 87U 55g making its way to me so hopefully I'll be able to compare all three next week.

Offline aref

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #324 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 14:26:38 »
Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Between those two the HHKB's switches definitely feel firmer. I have a RF 87U 55g making its way to me so hopefully I'll be able to compare all three next week.

I'd be interested to here how the key switches compare. Thus far, Ive not found a more agreeable switch than Topre's 55-gram. So your observation will be interesting. I even prefer it to my buckling-spring KBs.

Offline VesperSAINT

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #325 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 14:39:13 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?

Hard to admit it, but right now I do  :eek: I actually prefer the mods on the HHKB and the alphas on the Leopold xD they just feel so soft and smooth...

I do agree, it does feel buttery smooth.

Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Between those two the HHKB's switches definitely feel firmer. I have a RF 87U 55g making its way to me so hopefully I'll be able to compare all three next week.

I'd be interested to here how the key switches compare. Thus far, Ive not found a more agreeable switch than Topre's 55-gram. So your observation will be interesting. I even prefer it to my buckling-spring KBs.



I think it really depends on how you define "firm". If you want talk about construction and overall feel, the 660C definitely takes the cake here because of the overall feel of the butter smooth bottoming-out because of steel plate and the tight construction of the case. It's also snappier and more poppy than the RF 45g. However, that is not to say that the HHKB isn't well constructed. The construction is great on the HHKB, however, it can feel cheap to some people because of its light weight and plastic case mounting, which results in much resonance (also known as the famous HHKB thock). I, on the other hand (like many), personally find this to be the best aspect of the HHKB because it makes it more fun to type on. Now if you're talking about stiffness of the switch, the difference in weight between the two is minimal and probably most depends on how much use they switches have seen.

However, subjectively, the RF 45g definitely feels the lightest, then 660C, and HHKB. I find the RF 45g to be least satisfying and just mushy because of the lack of tactility and soft bottoming-out. The 660C seems to be the best "feeling" because of the balance between tactility/snappy with the most butter/smooth feel when bottoming out (bc of plate). The HHKB is the most "fun" because of the case mounting and how the entire keyboard/case resonates with each bottoming out. Remember, this is my opinion between the three, and that it will be nearly all subjective when it comes to the comparison between the three 45g's. Just a matter of what does one prefer.

They are all far from the 55g though. All hail 55g thorpe. Best thorpe.

Remember to take all this with a grain of salt because in the end, the best way to find out is to try them all yourself. I know that even with over a year of reading pages and pages on Topre, and I felt like I knew/imagined what they felt like, they all felt way different than I imagined when I actually got them in my hands. Same applies for when I got the 55g (already had 660c for awhile before). I just assumed the 55g would feel like a stiffer 45g (and probably like a 45g with the spacebar spring in it) but it turned out to be a totally different animal with different characteristics.
« Last Edit: Wed, 19 February 2014, 14:44:20 by VesperSAINT »

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #326 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 19:08:37 »
I think it really depends on how you define "firm". If you want talk about construction and overall feel, the 660C definitely takes the cake here because of the overall feel of the butter smooth bottoming-out because of steel plate and the tight construction of the case. It's also snappier and more poppy than the RF 45g. However, that is not to say that the HHKB isn't well constructed. The construction is great on the HHKB, however, it can feel cheap to some people because of its light weight and plastic case mounting, which results in much resonance (also known as the famous HHKB thock). I, on the other hand (like many), personally find this to be the best aspect of the HHKB because it makes it more fun to type on. Now if you're talking about stiffness of the switch, the difference in weight between the two is minimal and probably most depends on how much use they switches have seen.

However, subjectively, the RF 45g definitely feels the lightest, then 660C, and HHKB. I find the RF 45g to be least satisfying and just mushy because of the lack of tactility and soft bottoming-out. The 660C seems to be the best "feeling" because of the balance between tactility/snappy with the most butter/smooth feel when bottoming out (bc of plate). The HHKB is the most "fun" because of the case mounting and how the entire keyboard/case resonates with each bottoming out. Remember, this is my opinion between the three, and that it will be nearly all subjective when it comes to the comparison between the three 45g's. Just a matter of what does one prefer.

They are all far from the 55g though. All hail 55g thorpe. Best thorpe.

Remember to take all this with a grain of salt because in the end, the best way to find out is to try them all yourself. I know that even with over a year of reading pages and pages on Topre, and I felt like I knew/imagined what they felt like, they all felt way different than I imagined when I actually got them in my hands. Same applies for when I got the 55g (already had 660c for awhile before). I just assumed the 55g would feel like a stiffer 45g (and probably like a 45g with the spacebar spring in it) but it turned out to be a totally different animal with different characteristics.

Wow, that's a great review of all three. Thanks for that! That was my first thought about the 55g, that it would just feel like the spacebar with the spring it. Good to know the RF 55g is much more than just a stiffer 45g.
ReΛlforce 87U (55g)   Leopold FC660C (Silenced/Lubed)   Leopold 210TP MX Red   Filco Majestouch 2 Ninja MX Brown

Offline 1pq

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #327 on: Wed, 19 February 2014, 22:24:51 »
I think it really depends on how you define "firm". If you want talk about construction and overall feel, the 660C definitely takes the cake here because of the overall feel of the butter smooth bottoming-out because of steel plate and the tight construction of the case. It's also snappier and more poppy than the RF 45g. However, that is not to say that the HHKB isn't well constructed. The construction is great on the HHKB, however, it can feel cheap to some people because of its light weight and plastic case mounting, which results in much resonance (also known as the famous HHKB thock). I, on the other hand (like many), personally find this to be the best aspect of the HHKB because it makes it more fun to type on. Now if you're talking about stiffness of the switch, the difference in weight between the two is minimal and probably most depends on how much use they switches have seen.

However, subjectively, the RF 45g definitely feels the lightest, then 660C, and HHKB. I find the RF 45g to be least satisfying and just mushy because of the lack of tactility and soft bottoming-out. The 660C seems to be the best "feeling" because of the balance between tactility/snappy with the most butter/smooth feel when bottoming out (bc of plate). The HHKB is the most "fun" because of the case mounting and how the entire keyboard/case resonates with each bottoming out. Remember, this is my opinion between the three, and that it will be nearly all subjective when it comes to the comparison between the three 45g's. Just a matter of what does one prefer.

They are all far from the 55g though. All hail 55g thorpe. Best thorpe.

Remember to take all this with a grain of salt because in the end, the best way to find out is to try them all yourself. I know that even with over a year of reading pages and pages on Topre, and I felt like I knew/imagined what they felt like, they all felt way different than I imagined when I actually got them in my hands. Same applies for when I got the 55g (already had 660c for awhile before). I just assumed the 55g would feel like a stiffer 45g (and probably like a 45g with the spacebar spring in it) but it turned out to be a totally different animal with different characteristics.

Still haven't tried my ingenious idea of putting 55g rubber in a 660C, eh? I'm awaiting your review ;)
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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #328 on: Thu, 20 February 2014, 23:02:11 »
I just received my FC660C with blank caps and bypassed the poor printing quality. This thing feels amazing. I'm actually using it instead of my HHKB right now  :eek:

So do you find it feels better than your HHKB?

Hard to admit it, but right now I do  :eek: I actually prefer the mods on the HHKB and the alphas on the Leopold xD they just feel so soft and smooth...

I do agree, it does feel buttery smooth.

Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Which of the two keyboards, HHKB and FC660C, 45-gram key switches feels firmer? I use 55-gram Topres and found RF's 45-gram KB to be too soft for me.

Between those two the HHKB's switches definitely feel firmer. I have a RF 87U 55g making its way to me so hopefully I'll be able to compare all three next week.

I'd be interested to here how the key switches compare. Thus far, Ive not found a more agreeable switch than Topre's 55-gram. So your observation will be interesting. I even prefer it to my buckling-spring KBs.



I think it really depends on how you define "firm". If you want talk about construction and overall feel, the 660C definitely takes the cake here because of the overall feel of the butter smooth bottoming-out because of steel plate and the tight construction of the case. It's also snappier and more poppy than the RF 45g. However, that is not to say that the HHKB isn't well constructed. The construction is great on the HHKB, however, it can feel cheap to some people because of its light weight and plastic case mounting, which results in much resonance (also known as the famous HHKB thock). I, on the other hand (like many), personally find this to be the best aspect of the HHKB because it makes it more fun to type on. Now if you're talking about stiffness of the switch, the difference in weight between the two is minimal and probably most depends on how much use they switches have seen.

However, subjectively, the RF 45g definitely feels the lightest, then 660C, and HHKB. I find the RF 45g to be least satisfying and just mushy because of the lack of tactility and soft bottoming-out. The 660C seems to be the best "feeling" because of the balance between tactility/snappy with the most butter/smooth feel when bottoming out (bc of plate). The HHKB is the most "fun" because of the case mounting and how the entire keyboard/case resonates with each bottoming out. Remember, this is my opinion between the three, and that it will be nearly all subjective when it comes to the comparison between the three 45g's. Just a matter of what does one prefer.

They are all far from the 55g though. All hail 55g thorpe. Best thorpe.

Remember to take all this with a grain of salt because in the end, the best way to find out is to try them all yourself. I know that even with over a year of reading pages and pages on Topre, and I felt like I knew/imagined what they felt like, they all felt way different than I imagined when I actually got them in my hands. Same applies for when I got the 55g (already had 660c for awhile before). I just assumed the 55g would feel like a stiffer 45g (and probably like a 45g with the spacebar spring in it) but it turned out to be a totally different animal with different characteristics.

Everything you've said about FC660C vs. HHKB is spot-on.  :thumb:
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Offline 1pq

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #329 on: Fri, 21 February 2014, 23:48:07 »
Oh did you get your blank one from EK already?
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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #330 on: Fri, 21 February 2014, 23:59:19 »
Oh did you get your blank one from EK already?

I owned a printed version in the past -- but I actually did get the EK order -- the cost to overnight was not substantially more than regular 2day shipping to DC so I ended up doing that. Will post pix soon  :)
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Offline morpheus

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #331 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 03:52:04 »
So are they ever gonna come out with better keycaps for this?

Offline VesperSAINT

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #332 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 04:42:09 »
Everything you've said about FC660C vs. HHKB is spot-on.  :thumb:

:thumb:


Oh did you get your blank one from EK already?

I owned a printed version in the past -- but I actually did get the EK order -- the cost to overnight was not substantially more than regular 2day shipping to DC so I ended up doing that. Will post pix soon  :)

Can't wait to see the pics! I'm probably gonna get a lil' jelly.


So are they ever gonna come out with better keycaps for this?

What do you mean? Like their printing? They just released a blank version. Other than the printing issue, their caps are of decent PBT, imo.

Still haven't tried my ingenious idea of putting 55g rubber in a 660C, eh? I'm awaiting your review ;)

Not yet :P So much worrrk~
« Last Edit: Tue, 25 February 2014, 16:25:22 by VesperSAINT »

Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #333 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 12:45:51 »
Right now I've got my HHKB alphas on the Leo w/ blank mods -- interestingly, the HHKB caps feel much better on the Leo, and the Leo's caps feel much better on the HHKB! The Leo's profile is slightly different -- a little shorter -- and the PBT is thinner. This actually makes the HHKB thock even more, while the thicker HHKB keys reduce the (IMO undesirable) upstroke "click" of the Leo. I plan to do spicebar's silence mod on my Leo as soon as I get the right materials.

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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #334 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 12:52:17 »
The HHKB:

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Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #335 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 13:21:31 »

Right now I've got my HHKB alphas on the Leo w/ blank mods

Show Image


This looks awesome!

Offline nobee

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #336 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 13:32:07 »
Right now I've got my HHKB alphas on the Leo w/ blank mods -- interestingly, the HHKB caps feel much better on the Leo, and the Leo's caps feel much better on the HHKB! The Leo's profile is slightly different -- a little shorter -- and the PBT is thinner. This actually makes the HHKB thock even more, while the thicker HHKB keys reduce the (IMO undesirable) upstroke "click" of the Leo. I plan to do spicebar's silence mod on my Leo as soon as I get the right materials.

Show Image


This looks awesome. I wish I knew about the blank version before I purchased mine! :(
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Offline VesperSAINT

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #337 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 14:38:40 »
Right now I've got my HHKB alphas on the Leo w/ blank mods -- interestingly, the HHKB caps feel much better on the Leo, and the Leo's caps feel much better on the HHKB! The Leo's profile is slightly different -- a little shorter -- and the PBT is thinner. This actually makes the HHKB thock even more, while the thicker HHKB keys reduce the (IMO undesirable) upstroke "click" of the Leo. I plan to do spicebar's silence mod on my Leo as soon as I get the right materials.

Show Image


The HHKB:

Show Image


Those are pretty sexy!!! I rike, so very rike. Your observation on switching the caps is quite interesting! I'm going to have to throw my Leopold caps on my HHKB sometime to see for myself :)

Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #338 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 16:49:34 »
Those are pretty sexy!!! I rike, so very rike. Your observation on switching the caps is quite interesting! I'm going to have to throw my Leopold caps on my HHKB sometime to see for myself :)

I'll be interested to hear what you think.

I stopped by Ace this afternoon and picked up stuff for a silence mod... will provide videos and results soon. 
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Offline tbc

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #339 on: Sat, 22 February 2014, 21:25:53 »
The HHKB:

Show Image


nice!

that IS purple right?

purple caps w/ purple silenced stems would be ridiculous (and expensive)
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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #340 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 05:27:09 »
The HHKB:

Show Image


nice!

that IS purple right?

purple caps w/ purple silenced stems would be ridiculous (and expensive)

No sir, those are the keycaps from blank FC660C. black.
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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #341 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 06:00:55 »
So,

I have completed the silence mod on my FC660C. It is epic. But I have some advice for others: get the soft-landing pads from EK. Don't screw around with anything else. I used adhesive rubber pads from Ace that I punched and trimmed to size and it was a royal pain in the ass. Took way longer than necessary. Also, these were only about 1mm thick, but they are very nearly too thick. In fact, for some keys that were particularly sensitive, I had to sand down the rubber pads to avoid false keypresses. I also had to tighten PCB/plate screws a minimal amount to give the domes as much free play as possible.  Even with this, many keys are on hair trigger status due to the extra dome compression from the pads I inserted.

I believe the soft landing pads are thinner, and either way, they'll save you a huge headache doing it another way.

ANYWAY. Here are the vids. A note in advance-- the FC660C has a voice for radio. IMO, the stock configuration sounds much better on a recording than in real life, including on my 'before' video below. This is true of nearly all Youtube videos of the FC660C. Most recording devices seem to overemphasize the thock and underemphasize the click (upstroke) which is really not accurate at all. Even when trying to avoid false bass detection, videos make the FC660C sound like it has this great rolling, resonant low tone. NOT TRUE IMO. In reality, the upstroke click (yuck) really overpowers the downstroke thock; hence, the silence mod.

The videos are a fairly close approximation, with the caveat I mentioned above. FWIW, In real life, the silence mod sounds way way way better than stock.

Also, not that I did not silence the backspace key.

Vid 1: FC660C before modding ^-^


Vid 2: FC660C after silence mod  :thumb: 


« Last Edit: Sun, 23 February 2014, 06:12:56 by intelli78 »
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Offline avtar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #342 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 09:47:37 »
Too bad about the key sensitivity but sounds like your efforts were not in vain, it seems so silent now :thumb:

Offline 1pq

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #343 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 10:30:41 »
Yeah that's why I didn't do the silencing mod on my 660C--I wouldn't want to reduce the keytravel at all. Sounds really nice, though :thumb:
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Offline spiceBar

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #344 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 19:29:14 »
So,

I have completed the silence mod on my FC660C. It is epic. But I have some advice for others: get the soft-landing pads from EK. Don't screw around with anything else. I used adhesive rubber pads from Ace that I punched and trimmed to size and it was a royal pain in the ass. Took way longer than necessary. Also, these were only about 1mm thick, but they are very nearly too thick. In fact, for some keys that were particularly sensitive, I had to sand down the rubber pads to avoid false keypresses. I also had to tighten PCB/plate screws a minimal amount to give the domes as much free play as possible.  Even with this, many keys are on hair trigger status due to the extra dome compression from the pads I inserted.

I believe the soft landing pads are thinner, and either way, they'll save you a huge headache doing it another way.

ANYWAY. Here are the vids. A note in advance-- the FC660C has a voice for radio. IMO, the stock configuration sounds much better on a recording than in real life, including on my 'before' video below. This is true of nearly all Youtube videos of the FC660C. Most recording devices seem to overemphasize the thock and underemphasize the click (upstroke) which is really not accurate at all. Even when trying to avoid false bass detection, videos make the FC660C sound like it has this great rolling, resonant low tone. NOT TRUE IMO. In reality, the upstroke click (yuck) really overpowers the downstroke thock; hence, the silence mod.

The videos are a fairly close approximation, with the caveat I mentioned above. FWIW, In real life, the silence mod sounds way way way better than stock.

Also, not that I did not silence the backspace key.

Vid 1: FC660C before modding ^-^


Vid 2: FC660C after silence mod  :thumb: 


Great job, and thank you for posting the videos.

The soft landing pads are not thinner, as they are approximately 1mm thick, but they are probably made of a softer material than the pads that you have used. So the rubber dome and the spring of the Topre switches are strong enough to compress them just a little, and eventually everything falls into place.

My mod of the FC660C was one of the first I have ever done on Topres. I think I may have done the mod on my Realforce 88UW before, but I'm not even sure.

Anyway, now that I have more experience, here is what I would recommend:

1. Use EliteKeyboards' soft landing pads, because they do the job and I don't see any other easy way to agree on a useable and well-defined material.
    http://www.elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=access,slpads&pid=sl120_cs
NOTE: O-rings are not suitable. They grey landing pads are not suitable either.

2. You need to slim down the landing pads using a clothing iron. Yep. You do that by putting the landing pads between two sheets of paper (preferably non-printed) and press on them with a hot iron until they are slimmed down to 0.5mm or even 0.3mm. You will need to make a number of trials in order to find the right temperature, the right amount of pressure to apply and how long to press on them. I slimmed them down 4 at a time once I had found the right way to do it.

The slimmed down landing pads work really well. The reduction in travel is barely noticeable. I have been forced to start using this technique when I tried to mod my Realforce 87U. It has lighter keys than the FC660C (some of them are only 30g), so using out-if-the-box landing pads did not work. I had a small number of keys that stayed actuated.

Slimmed down landing pads work on 30g Topre switches, and they work even better with the 45g or 55g.

In 30g switches, they change the feel a little bit. On 45g and 55g switches, they make almost no difference in feel. But they do make a huge difference in sound: the famous "Thock" is still there, but the plasticky "click" on the upstroke is almost gone.

I can't resist to post once again the video demonstrating the difference between a stock Realforce 87U and one silenced using slimmed down landing pads:
  http://www.chesstiger.com/images/keyboards/RF87_silenced_before_after.mp4

Finally, one thing I have noticed in your videos is that your spacebar seems a little noisy. I think you need to put high viscosity lubricant on the stabilizer wire, at every point where it touches the plastic, that will help. You may also need to put landing pads (or something equivalent) under the spacebar, on the stabilizers plungers.
« Last Edit: Sun, 23 February 2014, 19:45:19 by spiceBar »

Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #345 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 21:40:12 »
Thanks for the information. I'll probably add some soft landing pads to my next EK order, compress them, and swap them in.

So you have a total of 3 soft landing pads on your spacebar? Also, yes, I did not use any lube -- will also give that a shot next time.
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Offline intelli78

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #346 on: Sun, 23 February 2014, 22:59:26 »
Update: After 24 hours, the "q" key is now acting up.

Sadtrombone.mid

Looks like the current setup isn't reliable. Gotta get the softlanding pads and do it right.
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Offline Dyslexic

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #347 on: Tue, 25 February 2014, 13:23:37 »
Does anyone know whether it's possible to use a program like autohotkey to create media keys on the FC660C? Ideally, I'd like to have volume up as fn+ins and volume down as fn+del.
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Offline gh_pp

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #348 on: Tue, 25 February 2014, 17:44:01 »
Does anyone know whether it's possible to use a program like autohotkey to create media keys on the FC660C? Ideally, I'd like to have volume up as fn+ins and volume down as fn+del.

Not unless Fn+ins is already a shortcut recognized by FC660C (I don't have one, so I don't know).

If Fn+ins sent PageUp by the FC660C, you can remap PageUp to media function with autohotkey, etc.
But if Fn+ins does nothing, then you're out of luck.


someone asked the same question here:

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=55167.0

you cannot remap hardwired virtual modifier keys like Fn
When you press Fn alone, nothing is sent from the firmware to your computer, so you cannot software remap it.

To do that requires a hardware mod by swapping the stock controller with a teensy

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=12047.0
« Last Edit: Tue, 25 February 2014, 17:46:56 by gh_pp »
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Offline HPE1000

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Re: Leopold FC660C
« Reply #349 on: Tue, 25 February 2014, 18:12:00 »
I wonder if they would make a blank, 55g version of this. I have always liked these leopold fc660 layouts, the delete and insert key spot is amazing for displaying novelty keycaps imo.