[IC] GMK Iconographic: GB now live! Runs January 8th through February 5th

[Lil]

INSPIRATION




The inspiration for the set is the album cover for Floral Shoppe and the Iconography of ancient times that are a cornerstone of Vaporwave Aesthetics.

GB live: https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=110579

Vendors:
North America: Mechs & Co
Europe: MyKeyboard
Australia & Oceania: Dailyclack
South East Asia: Monokei
Canada: Deskhero
China: Zfrontier EN/ Zfrontier CN

Will use the open source Katakana molds introduced in Mecha-01 by MiTo

GB date: Expected to start the second week of January

US Pricing:
An unfortunate update on pricing

When we were quoted by GMK for the set, it was mid November and the exchange rate from the dollar to euro was .85; this was when the US pricing was decided
Since then the exchange rate has fallen to .81, which follows that there is currently a deficit of 6 euros per basekit on the US pricing versus in November, and means we would be losing money per unit sold at the current pricing @250 moq
To clarify: in mid November 135 dollars equalled 115 euros, whereas it now equates to 109 euros. GMK is a German company and invoices the cost of production in euros. This means to break even at a 250 moq we will have to raise the US pricing.
In addition, with the current global situation shipping costs to Australia and other regions further from the EU are now higher than anticipated

Apologies

Basekit:   $145 USD/ equivalent to 117 euros [Previously 135USD or 115 euros]
Novelties: $52.99 USD [Previously 50USD]
Alphas:     $64.99 USD [Previously 60USD]
Spacebars $24.99 USD [Price unchanged]
Pricing in other regions TBA
IC: *FORM*

KITS:

HELIOS ヘリオス
(Katakana mono-legend basekit)


This is the complete basekit

SPACEBARS スペースキー
(Spacebar kit)


If you forget the spacebars

GAIJIN 外人
(Latin add-on kit)



Not everyone is a touch-typist, that's okay.

NOSTALGIA 懐古
(Novelty kit)

In your heart you are dwelling on the past


BOARD RENDERS by Pikku-allu
A variety of different lighting environments, illustrating how the set might look in different conditions

Ex Arkhes









AKB OGR by Alchemist Keyboards (Mod colour inaccurate)





[Artkey] x [Iconographic]

// Cotton Candy Sirius, Felix and Ursa / 25 Nov 9:00 AM ICT / Form stays open for 6 hours

// Cotton Candy Bull V2 & Devourer / 28 Nov 9:00 AM ICT / Form stays open for 6 hours

https://www.instagram.com/p/CH-k3lwBAv_/



COLOURS





Thanks to Pikku-Allu, Energie, Oblotzky and Kingk22

[donutcat]

I recommend looking at the kits for GMK sets currently in IC and GB and seeing how they're setup, because right now that kit mockup is atrocious.

[Lil]

I recommend looking at the kits for GMK sets currently in IC and GB and seeing how they're setup, because right now that kit mockup is atrocious.

Okay I'll reformat it

[Mcnos]

 

[Lil]

https://cdn11.bigcommerce.com/s-phfhf3/images/stencil/930x420/uploaded_images/ramona-flowers-scott-pilgrim-merch-at-tvstoreonline.com.jpg?t=1551290473

What's up Mcnos?

[equalunique]

Good color scheme & inspiration.

I'd buy but only for an ortho board.

Sent from my Ono-Sendai Cyberspace 7 using Tapatalk

[h.parks]

this will look fantastic on a polycarbonate or clear acrylic board

[Lil]

Good color scheme & inspiration.

I'd buy but only for an ortho board.

Sent from my Ono-Sendai Cyberspace 7 using Tapatalk

I'm not anti-ortho, if enough people want it I can make a separate support kit for compatibility depending on how many keys would be required, but I wouldn't put it into the base kit. From what I've heard in general I do doubt whether it would be feasible in terms of moq or pricing though. What keys would you need for your keyboard that aren't in the base kit?

[SoraNoTenshi]

Just wanted to add something to this:

I don't think that grey is a good fit in here; it is definetly not a common colour in vaporwave, since usually in vaporwave you use bright, neon colours.

You could try and play around with variations of purple, i think that might fit a bit better with the colour-scheme.

Other than that, i find that keyset itself to be too similar to several Miami sets...

[Lil]

Just wanted to add something to this:

I don't think that grey is a good fit in here; it is definetly not a common colour in vaporwave, since usually in vaporwave you use bright, neon colours.

You could try and play around with variations of purple, i think that might fit a bit better with the colour-scheme.

Other than that, i find that keyset itself to be too similar to several Miami sets...

I'll experiment with purple for the mods, but I'm not looking to add more neon colours since I don't want it to be too garish. Although the miami day blue and pink colours seem similar right now, it's mostly due to the KLE. The Miami blue is a cyan blue, whereas the accent here is definitely a shade of green, as for the pink with Miami it's a bubblegum pink but here it's more analogous to a shade of sunset I'd say. Also with the KLE it's difficult to see the alphas which should be easily distinguishable as green, so i'll be getting some initial renders done on the 28th of October, hopefully that will give a better idea of how the set looks.

[h.parks]

the pink in the background is on a gradient, so color matching isn't easy on this one. i think a lighter shade might be more well received even though i like how stark pink the alphas are

[Lil]

Updates!

.Basekit Renders and 3 Mod colour options avail in the OP to help with choosing colours and the set direction! Thanks very much to KingK22 for the Renders.
.Added further compatibility to the basekits, such as F13, second B, along with HHKB and 75% keys and more. Let me know if something's missing that you want
.Updated Alpha and Accent colours, with colour matches and options for which coloured accents and spacebars will predominantly appear in the basekit, and choices as to what colour their legends should be.
.I have tried to format the renders in such a way that helps you decide your preferences by using visual examples as an aid.
.There's a feedback form, so please fill it in if you'd like to have input or see me make changes.

[Funkzilla]

I personally would love pink on green for the mods for contrast to the alphas or a darker purple for more contrast, the beige-y mods dont really appeal to me for the alpha colorway.

[Lil]

Small Update
.Alice-layout board Renders with Pantone 4240c as mod colour
.Removed required answering from most of the questions on the feedback form, so you don't have to answer questions you don't want to
.Mod colours aren't fixed and I haven't decided myself, I will experiment more in the future




With Latin mono-legends

[Lil]

Renders by Kingk22 of the PC En-Dash

[nostr]

Really digging the GMK U9 kit.

[Lil]

I personally would love pink on green for the mods for contrast to the alphas or a darker purple for more contrast, the beige-y mods dont really appeal to me for the alpha colorway.

It's worth a try but darker purple as a mod colour could mean a danger of looking too similar to GMK Taro mods, and as for green as the mods I'm a little worried about making an inverse Cherry Blossom. I'll happily continue to experiment with the mod colours until I'm sure I've got the best option down, but I want to be conscious to avoid emulating colourways where I can. That being said, lots of purple sets use a darker and lighter purple for the mods so that's probably just a knee jerk reaction. My initial intention was to use the colour of the bust of Helios in the album cover for the mods to balance the set but whilst it succeeds at that and I like it, it admittedly might also cause the set to be a half-baked colourful themed set. I'll consider it.

[Lil]

An attempt to move towards a more pink dominated - mono colour set. Adding numpad etc. Thanks to KingK22 for the renders. I'm not sure how well the inspiration translates into a keyset, and so I will consider shelving this for now if I can't find a way to make it work in a way that satisfies me.

[MeloDet]

Don't want to distract from the interest check too much, but was anyone else hoping for Ramona from Scott Pilgrim?

[DrHigsby]

I really dig the light pink alphas with green legends for the alpha block. That really captures what you’re going for here well. I think the light grey and dark pink mods don’t work very well from the renders you have posted. Have you tried green mods with grey legends?

I also think GMK Ramona doesn’t capture what you’re aiming for with the set. Perhaps GMK A E S T H E T I C S? Or GMK Floral?

Anyways, GL with the IC!

[wil]

i think the original base kit with the beige/grey mods actually capture floral shoppe quite well, and is more "vaporwave" than any other vaporwave keycap set that i've seen has been so far.

edit: the more i look at the beige/grey mods render the more i like it. part of vaporwave is embracing the kitsch, and it's a shame if folks don't get that. i'm out if it's all pink.

[LXVRGS]

I really dig the light pink alphas with green legends for the alpha block. That really captures what you’re going for here well. I think the light grey and dark pink mods don’t work very well from the renders you have posted. Have you tried green mods with grey legends?

I also think GMK Ramona doesn’t capture what you’re aiming for with the set. Perhaps GMK A E S T H E T I C S? Or GMK Floral?

Anyways, GL with the IC!

ramona aka vektroid made this album, so the name is pretty on point for the theme

[Lil]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I think the iterations of the set so far have been a bit niche. Although I believe more people would want it if they saw the keyset in person, that doesn't help me get to that point. I've brainstormed a bit with the guys on the Topclack discord, made some big changes which will hopefully give the keyset more general appeal. I hope at the same time, those that liked what I was doing with colours before will like this too. Since the haphazard way I was doing updates before was off-putting, I'll hold off with an update until I've gotten some new board renders done; Maybe make a reddit post and consider renaming/relaunching once I have it all together.

[DrHigsby]

I really dig the light pink alphas with green legends for the alpha block. That really captures what you’re going for here well. I think the light grey and dark pink mods don’t work very well from the renders you have posted. Have you tried green mods with grey legends?

I also think GMK Ramona doesn’t capture what you’re aiming for with the set. Perhaps GMK A E S T H E T I C S? Or GMK Floral?

Anyways, GL with the IC!

ramona aka vektroid made this album, so the name is pretty on point for the theme

Right, I saw that in the OP. I didn’t mean to say it couldn’t work! Just that when I see that album artwork, I don’t immediately think “Ramona,” but perhaps I should. Either way, I’ve been searching for a primarily pink color way and am interested in seeing how this IC shapes up.

[Almost]

Not sure how disgracefully expensive it would be... but is it possible to have a gradient of greys for the mods? i.e. starting from a light gray on R1, ending at a medium grey by R5.

Gradients are key to quality ms paint artworks.  :thubm:

Interested in what you're trying to achieve here; imo the alpha's are perfect right now. Mods ehhhh I can see where ur going, might not be possible cause of small fonts. I think you're doing well to stay away from default waporwave, maybe try some windows XP or 98 vibes in there. Bootleg aesthetics are best aesthetics 

[Lil]

A new basekit idea, with L9 alphas, Pantone 190c for the Mod colour. This has 190u for the alpha legends, but I will probably update it with 190c going forward.

[DrHigsby]

(Attachment Link)

A new basekit idea, with L9 alphas, Pantone 190c for the Mod colour. This has 190u for the alpha legends, but I will probably update it with 190c going forward.

If I’m being totally honest, the green on pink alphas is what got me interested in this kit to begin with. The pink on white alphas are not cutting it for me. I like that you still have that scheme in there with the mods, but the alphas are a bit bland now.

I do appreciate better renders though!

[Lil]

[wil]

i think the initial kit colors are spectacular and geekhack is missing out!

[DrHigsby]

Phew! The all green legends is super sick! I love the render!

[i luv chuletas]

Man the original renders with the green-ish hiragan had me genuinely exciting for my next build.

Seeing the last ones you posted above were a bit of a let down, to be honest.

What appeals about your original direction was the departure from normal color combinations that you usually see. In no way was it resembling miami nights, for example. The latest renders, though still stylish, don't really have anything that make them "Exciting."

Only my opinion, but you should keep playing with that original idea you had. Truly something different, and different is hella good. My suggestion? Try changing the legend color on the original Beige modifiers to match the green, rather than the pink, and it would bring the set much more balance.

I personally like the beige combination with the neon pink and green, it's what made the set so striking.

[Almost]

ai the more I look at those render the more I like it. Keep coming back to ths thread.

It'll match the cool dolphin stickers on beige packard bell OEM boardz, and that's really the only thing that matters. Try some silver grey, like them cheap plastic fronts on e-machine's back in 2000's. Or.... don't

Keep at it, this is going somewhere. GMK Analog Dreams was damn close, this could earn the next ⭐Well Done!⭐ sticker of the year.

[Lil]

It seems like the general consensus is to move towards grey or beige mods. 
Before I get any more renders done or make any changes I'm going to order the pantone colour guide in mid to late February. 
One reason being that the colours are different in person versus how pantone present them on their website which is tuned for computer use or web design; I also don't have a RAL or pantone colour reference decided for the green legends, 
and of the ones that I have got references for, they are mostly uncoated which might be problematic for GMK to match, as uncoated pantones aren't inherently intended for plastics. 
Once I have it in hand, I hope to find satisfactory coated alternatives and reach an end state for the colourway of the basekit.
That being said, I would expect the next update to be in around a month at the soonest

[sojourntv]

I for one love this set, however not for the original inspiration. One of my wife's favorite color schemes is based off this character. He's currently the theme of her setup rn so I would definitely buy this.

[sohitone]

I gotta say, seeing this made me breathe a sigh a relief that I ended up passing on the last couple of vaporwave sets. I really hope this moves forward with the green on pink alphas. I am going to save my candybar premium for this (so I hope there's a 40s kit). Regardless of what happens, though, I hope you know that this is a standout design in a sea of subtle variations on a theme, and I hope you feel confident in it.

[i luv chuletas]

Don't know if you've already played around with it, but perhaps using the alphas' green legend color on the beige mods might give it the pop you are looking for, since the pink looks so muted on the beige mods. Definitely an advocate for how you have the hiragana sub legends in the green, and beige staying as the mods color.

Keeping a close eye on this one, definitely a must-grab for me as is.

[Lil]

I have the pantone guide in hand, I just don't have the neons and pastels colour guide so I haven't chosen anything from there. I may get that also at a later date if I decide the greens i'm considering aren't suitable/neon enough. I've also discovered that the pantone colour references in person often look completely different from on pantones website. I'm currently considering using 429c as the mod colour which is a windows95-grey colour. I am still considering 190c, but it looks different in person - I would describe it as salmon pink; whereas in the renders it resembles hot pink. 1775c and 1777c on pantones website look very close to the original colour inspiration; in person they are closer to shades of orange than pink. The issue is that different, more suitable colours that in person seem to match the inspiration for the set when put into renders look like shades of purple for some reason. This is also the case for how they look on the website. That is unless my monitor is very colour inaccurate, but I doubt that since I have recorded video of the pantone guides and it looks almost exactly the same on my screen as in my hands. I am worried about the renders not being representative.


This is the video of a range of pantone pinks vs pantone 190c

This is a video of pantone pinks vs 1777c and 1775c

This is a render of the basekit using 1775c as the alpha colour; it looks pink (irl it's a orange/pink 'skintone' colour)



This is a render of the basekit using 1777c; it looks red/pink (irl it's an orange-pink colour)



A render using 190c as the alpha colour and a different legend colour than the previous two renders



The first two basekit renders are using 3375c and the 190c render is using 2253c. I like both so my choice will be one of these unless I use something from the neon colour guide. I am also going to get renders done of the basekit using pantone 2038c and 2037c for alphas as these look similar in real life to what is on pantones website and are also close to the original inspiration in colour in person.

[outsider]

This set is going places.  Watching!

[synthtastic]

Oh snap this is gonna be sweet.

[Almost]

Ouff the gray yaesss

1775 C gets my vote when paired with the gray. On my monitor it looks less samlony and more cute flowery blossom, either way really nice.

If your monitor has a "SRGB" mode that should be standardised, but the panel itself might colour it different, and the camera recording too especially if you have warm room lights and sunlight.

[i luv chuletas]

1775c looks the freshest. Miss the beige on the mods though

[Lil]

you have warm room lights

Mistakes were made. I have realised my lights are very warm. There's a big difference in how the colours look under them. I am going to re-record it under neutral sunlight and cold-artificial light and then re-form my opinions. I'll try and post the video a bit later.

Miss the beige on the mods

I will also get a render done of a base-set using beige mods with the new legend colours, they're not ruled out yet

[Lil]

Okay I've re-calibrated my monitor and I have compared the album cover to the pantones again under neutral lighting and the 1775c seems to be the closest match, just a bit lighter than the original inspiration. I am sticking with this alpha colour going forward.

Will update later with more renders featuring alternative mods and also trying to find a better matching green, as i'm not sure the current one suits the alpha colour

[Lil]

Updated basekits up for consideration, please let me know what your preference is
For clarity: the importance of changing the colours hasn't just been to make the set look as good as it can be and match the original inspiration, but to also simultaneously use colour references that can be matched by GMK

4240c as the mods, 7478c as the legend colour



3375c legends



7478c as the legend colour, 429c mods

[steezkeez]

7478c as the legend colour, 429c mods

(Attachment Link)

I prefer this (429c mods) over the beige mods

[i luv chuletas]

Updated basekits up for consideration, please let me know what your preference is
For clarity: the importance of changing the colours hasn't just been to make the set look as good as it can be and match the original inspiration, but to also simultaneously use colour references that can be matched by GMK

4240c as the mods, 7478c as the legend colour

(Attachment Link)

3375c legends

(Attachment Link)

7478c as the legend colour, 429c mods

(Attachment Link)

Man that first render looks bomb AF. Not really loving the grey mods to be honest, feels like it dulls the set out a little bit. Keeping a close eye on this man, you're on to something.

[sohitone]

+1 for beige mods. I'm leaning towards 3375c legends just because i think it's better to err on the side of brightness. Edit: I take it back, greener legend = better

[wil]

3375c legends with beige mods is perfection for me. end game set. i want it!

[Lil]

It's under warm lighting but here's the comparison between the different green legends with the colour references. They do look brighter and more 'neon' under direct sunlight or cold light, but probably not to the degree of the renders - there might be a difference between the web and real-life colours.

I will probably order plastic chips of these colours before I make a final decision. Right now I am intending on adding 40% and van compatibility along with some other stuff to the basekit. The idea being that the overall cost of the basekit still being reasonable, it would be more economical for you vs if it was segmented and you were intending to buy spacebars, or additional kits. I am also intending to add an alphas kit for hiragana mono-legends and I am commissioning more renders for the kits and the keyset on boards.

Here's a work in progress image of the basekit with darker lighting, though i'll use 7478c in the follow up renders

[Lil]

Updated renders for the basekit and additional hiragana alphas add-on kit in the OP (w/dark lighting). Basekit now has support for 40% and van, etc. Board renders also in the works!