geekhack
geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Guanzo on Sat, 01 May 2021, 05:30:12
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Quiet
White Led
For gaming and typing
Budget $120~
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Best bang for your buck
GMMK TKL barebones edition (https://www.pcgamingrace.com/products/gmmk-tkl-tenkeyless-brown-switch) - ~$60 (hit customize to select barebones) (set RGB to white)
Silent switches - Gateron Silent switches (Novekeys (https://novelkeys.xyz/collections/switches/products/gateron-silent-switches) ~$35)
HK Gaming thick PBT keycaps ~ $39 (Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/HK-Gaming-Sublimation-Mechanical-Keyboard/dp/B085249L6R?ref_=ast_sto_dp&th=1&psc=1))
Expect another $20 for shipping. Lubing and bandaid mod will also make it even more quiet and luxurious. You can upgrade the caps later, though these are pretty nice and come with an assortment to fit pretty much any board so it's nice to have as a spare.
The other option is look at Ducky (https://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=4284).
Great caps, good board, but no hotswap so you can't lube and bandaid mod.
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Leslieann's got some fantastic advice, as always. I have a few more considerations.
if you want linear switches (as most do for gaming), you may find MX silent red to be a bit too light to prevent accidental actuation (I do). The Gateron silent yellows are just a tiny bit heavier and should alleviate that concern if you have it. One of the options for the Ducky is the Kailh box silent pink, which is wonderfully smooth for a stock switch and has additional dust and water protection. It is even lighter than MX red though, for some inexplicable reason. Black switches are too heavy for most people, so I wouldn't even consider those if you haven't tried any.
If you like an exposed plate and/or metal and/or live near a Best Buy, it looks like the Fnatic Mini Streak (https://www.bestbuy.com/site/fnatic-mini-streak-rgb-wired-tkl-gaming-mechanical-cherry-mx-silent-red-switch-keyboard-with-rgb-back-lighting-black/6354338.p?skuId=6354338) is already on clearance so you may be able to just walk in and out with one for a cool $75. The plate is something like forest green in color though. I have one (really only bought it to try out MX silent red in a complete board) and it seems like a pretty decent board to me, but I'm not very picky about linears. The caps on it are thin and laser etched, if that matters, so who knows how long the legends will last. Being so cheap, there's plenty of room for caps. Personally, it isn't something I really care about.
One glaring consideration remains: Do you want a tactile event, or do you not? If it is a dual purpose board, you may lean towards tactile over linear as a compromise. The GMMK is the only board yet mentioned that includes hot swap sockets. These are a blessing and a curse as they will never be quite as robust and reliable as soldered switches, but should you find the switches you initially choose to not be ideal, they can be replaced without the use of a soldering iron.
If you haven't tried a lot of different switches yet already, you may want to pick up a switch tester that has a good amount of silent switches on it before settling on one. I don't think this is really that big of a deal with linears though, myself.
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Rak lam ang pro, dm u/hbheroinbob otherwise known as gazzew on reddit to buy, he is very trusted
or here https://www.amazon.com/EPOMAKER-Bluetooth-Wireless-Mechanical-Keyboard/dp/B09126FQ9C/ref=sr_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=bluetooth%2Bmechanical%2Bkeyboard&qid=1619726681&sr=8-10&th=1
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Rak lam ang pro, dm u/hbheroinbob otherwise known as gazzew on reddit to buy, he is very trusted
or here https://www.amazon.com/EPOMAKER-Bluetooth-Wireless-Mechanical-Keyboard/dp/B09126FQ9C/ref=sr_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=bluetooth%2Bmechanical%2Bkeyboard&qid=1619726681&sr=8-10&th=1
Ajazz' blue switches are literally the worst MX clone I have ever felt. I haven't tried the others. Who knows what's actually in the board though, knowing Ajazz. I wish more TKL boards had volume wheels though.
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Rak lam ang pro, dm u/hbheroinbob otherwise known as gazzew on reddit to buy, he is very trusted
or here https://www.amazon.com/EPOMAKER-Bluetooth-Wireless-Mechanical-Keyboard/dp/B09126FQ9C/ref=sr_1_10?dchild=1&keywords=bluetooth%2Bmechanical%2Bkeyboard&qid=1619726681&sr=8-10&th=1
Ajazz' blue switches are literally the worst MX clone I have ever felt. I haven't tried the others. Who knows what's actually in the board though, knowing Ajazz. I wish more TKL boards had volume wheels though.
oop, forgot to mention that the one you get from gazzew is barebones for 69 ish, pretty good deal imo,