New user impatiently waiting for his first modern mechanical keyboard

[larsjuhljensen]

Hi folks,

I've been lurking for a few months on this forum and have been wanting to get a modern mechanical keyboard for about as long. Living in Denmark and not wanting a keyboard with Danish or pan-Nordic layout, that turned out to be much more difficult than anticipated. However, I am now impatiently waiting for my CM Storm QuickFire Stealth with Cherry MX brown switches ordered from the US to go through customs.

I am not a complete stranger to mechanical keyboards, though, having grown up on an IBM Model M.

Cheers,
Lars

[Brandfuchs]

Oh, very interesting; I wonder what you will think of a keyboard with brown switches once you got it. They are quite different from the buckling spring switches of an IBM. Have you been using this keyboard until recently?

[Frenir]

Hi folks,

I've been lurking for a few months on this forum and have been wanting to get a modern mechanical keyboard for about as long. Living in Denmark and not wanting a keyboard with Danish or pan-Nordic layout, that turned out to be much more difficult than anticipated. However, I am now impatiently waiting for my CM Storm QuickFire Stealth with Cherry MX brown switches ordered from the US to go through customs.

I am not a complete stranger to mechanical keyboards, though, having grown up on an IBM Model M.

Cheers,
Lars

Welcome kinsman!
I would recommend trying out a blank keyboard layout, being able to touch type makes keyboard shopping easier for us Scandinavians with special layouts. 

[larsjuhljensen]

No my IBM Model M days ended something like two decades ago. I am pretty sure I will like the brown switches. I went to Copenhagen Games in mid April, mainly to get the chance to try out lots of mechanical keyboards. So I was lucky enough to several hours typing on keyboards with red, black, brown, blue, and green switches.

Choosing switches turned out to be not as difficult as expected. I did not at all like typing on linear switches, so that quickly ruled out red and black. I found the green switches to be way to heavy to type on. The only options left were thus brown and blue, which I found very similar to type on. Since I found the clicky noise of the blue switches slightly annoying, I went for brown.

[larsjuhljensen]

Welcome kinsman!
I would recommend trying out a blank keyboard layout, being able to touch type makes keyboard shopping easier for us Scandinavians with special layouts.

Thank you! I do touch type, so a blank keyboard would indeed be perfectly fine. However, I also didn't find any place in Denmark that would sell me a blank tenkeyless keyboard with brown switches.

[Brandfuchs]

However, I also didn't find any place in Denmark that would sell me a blank tenkeyless keyboard with brown switches.

Technically, you would be fine with just the keycaps, but then again it might not be easy to acquire those, either.

So I was lucky enough to several hours typing on keyboards with red, black, brown, blue, and green switches.

Green switches?! By the gods, where did you get a keyboard with such switches in Europe?! What model was it? Please tell me, I have been dying to try them, their specs looked really interesting to me!
... and, how were they?

Choosing switches turned out to be not as difficult as expected. I did not at all like typing on linear switches, so that quickly ruled out red and black.

D'accord! I can see how they are useful for gamers, though.

I found the green switches to be way to heavy to type on.

Well, other than that, like... how was their sound, was it similar to the blues?

The only options left were thus brown and blue, which I found very similar to type on. Since I found the clicky noise of the blue switches slightly annoying, I went for brown.

I specifically like the accustic feedback of the blue ones that I have now, but then again, that is one of the big virtues of mechanical keyboards: You can use the switches that fit your desired purpose, for example your working and writing habbits. For me, the browns were too light and felt a bit "wobbly", significantly reducing my typing speed and quality as compared to buckling spring and cherry blue switches.

Greetings

~ Brandfuchs

[larsjuhljensen]

Technically, you would be fine with just the keycaps, but then again it might not be easy to acquire those, either.

Indeed, I also explored that avenue with little success.

Green switches?! By the gods, where did you get a keyboard with such switches in Europe?! What model was it? Please tell me, I have been dying to try them, their specs looked really interesting to me!
... and, how were they?

It was at the Komplett exhibition at Copenhagen Games. It was one of the CoolerMaster keyboards that they had there with green switches - I don't remember exactly which one. At the moment I can find the CM Storm QuickFire TK with green switches on their website. They were much, much heavier to type on than blue switches, which caused many keystrokes from my pinkies to not register. The click was similar to blue switches but somewhat deeper.

I specifically like the accustic feedback of the blue ones that I have now, but then again, that is one of the big virtues of mechanical keyboards: You can use the switches that fit your desired purpose, for example your working and writing habbits. For me, the browns were too light and felt a bit "wobbly", significantly reducing my typing speed and quality as compared to buckling spring and cherry blue switches.

Indeed, different strokes for different folks. And if I had come straight from the IBM Model M, I would probably have preferred blue switches. But I've now spent years on Apple chiclet keyboards and gotten used to lighter and more quiet typing.

Cheers,
Lars