I know that isn't a very descriptive title but I'm in the market for one right now and I don't know where else to go for it outside of another forum site entirely.
I've been into mechanical keyboards for a long time, I've used a couple over the years.
Also while I like membrane keyboards quite a bit as well, they can't seem to offer the performance I need.
I'd be interested to see if there's high-tier ones out there though.

But anyways, here's my situation. I want the "Sony MDR-7506" equivalent of keyboards, if one exists.

I've found for nearly every piece of hardware, there's something along the lines of a piece of hardware that just *does the job* perfectly. I'm not in the market for crazy features, I don't give a darn about back-lighting or looks. I want something that gets the job done well. Not another branded garbage item that will break on me in a year after dropping 80$ on it.

Here's my criteria:
> 0-165$
> Avoid brands like Razer & Steelseries
> NKRO
> It's fine if it's plastic, but it has to be good plastic. Bonus points if It's aluminum
> Preferably 100%, I *can* go without a numpad but I prefer having one, as well as media keys but that's also something I can go without
> Standard Layout (qwerty, sorry to dvorak users but I keep it the same-old same-old)
> Low latency (wired, I'm open to the PS/2 cord stuff but it's still new to me)
> Doesn't require additional drivers
> Preferably not a custom

Other than that, feel free to pitch weird stuff to fit the bill.
I'm looking for performance.

My current board is a Leopold FC660M, if this helps at all.
I like brown switches, keyboards that go "thonk"

Thank you Caezar, but I forgot to add I would prefer it not be a "custom"/"build it yourself" thing as I don't have the time for it.
Also from my past experiences with Keychron they have high wired latency, I don't know if it was just the model but that's my main gripe with it.

Nice profile image by the way

Actually the only issue with my Leopold is the fact it's 6KRO and I wanted something a little bit higher in build quality.
The keyboard I'm looking at right now is actually a FC900R, because It's full-size & has the NKRO.
I was purely asking because I was curious if it was a similar situation to headphones in the sense that I've spent a lot of money on the popular brand stuff just to find out I could buy the studio headphones and have to never replace them ever again.
Thank you for the reply, I love Leopold for that exact reason. They're built to last and they have pretty unrivaled performance for that price-range.
I'm not that big into keyboards but that's what I've gathered at least.

Yeah, a Leopold should last for decades. They have everything solid that people desire [decent stabilizers, double-shot PBT, detacheable cables, strong PCB.] There are basically no drawbacks to them.

I would recommend thick ABS double-shots [Cherry or DCS] at some point down-the-line, if you are using MX Browns. PBT double-shots are a bit heavy for them IMHO, and dampen the limited tactility. But it's not a big deal.

BTW, these are photos from when my MX Brown FC900R PD was modified into a Zeal V2 keyboard:

https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=103412.0

My other FC900R PD uses 65 G [TX] Ergo Clears.

I just now forgot
The reason for my question is this, math-forsaken game

Leopold caps are widely regarded as God-tier. However, I think they are a little heavy to use on MX Browns, that's all.

How about this one?
https://www.corsair.com/us/en/Categories/Products/CORSAIR-iCUE/Gaming-Keyboards/K60-RGB-PRO-%E2%80%93-Drops/p/CH-910D619-NA

Update
I ended up getting THIS board https://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=3563
MX Blue Switches

OK, that's a good board. People like the classic colourway. Yes, I've used Leopolds with PS/2 slots as well. Custom boards, on the other hand, don't necessarily have that feature.