WASD v2 Review

[henz]

Some time ago i bought a WASD v2. Ive been meaning to do a review for a while now, this has not happened untill now due to... Lazyness.

What i bought:
WASD V2 88-Key ISO Barebone Mechanical Keyboard.
Cherry MX clear Switches.

WASD provides keybaords with the option to choose barebone. As i was not interested in their ABS keycaps. I loved that they had this option.
The keyboard itself is verry sturdy and heavy as per my preferance. I choose clear switches after alot of searching(lurking here) i decided for the WASD mainly because that was the only keyboard i could find with clears with a reasonable price. Now i am in love with clears(Lubed).

I have drilled my plate so it is now a swtich top plate. Not verry sexy but still verry functional

More

Some people have had issues with  pinging in wasd v2 and the code keyboard. I had the same issue, so i decided that i will lube my switches. I went to the local hardware shop and bought some silicone fat. Worked like a charm. This keyboard now feels like heaven. I couldnt belive there was such  a difference with lubed switches and stabilizers.

The keyboard has dipswitches so you can swap between different layouts. Dworak and colemak etc. When using Fn+<in,del cluster> you can easily handle your music which is one of the most important featueres for me. There is also a dip switch which changes caps lock to L CTRL. IMHO it should have been backspace instead but thats a preference question.

Im thinking of modding my keybaord further adding a aluminum case from TEX. But thats for the future. Now this will suffice, untill my wallet regenrates a bit from some ctrl alt madness.

Peace

[daerid]

I hadn't thought about lubing my switches to reduce the ping. I might just have to try that.

[henz]

I hadn't thought about lubing my switches to reduce the ping. I might just have to try that.

Im not sure what kind of lube you should use. But i bought plain and simple tap grease from the hardware store.

[SpikeBolt]

I own a Filco and recently purchased a WASD V2 with blues at a very reasonable price. I was somewhat disappointed because the build quality is, in my opinion, really lower than the Filco. They cost the same to ship to Portugal but the Filco feels way better.

The WASD V2 has a significant pinging issue, which I don't feel like I should have to fix. If the solution is lubing then they should lubed by default. I noticed that while placing the keycaps on the left side of the keyboard the PCB would "go down" quite a bit, indicating that it probably isn't supported as it should. The plastic feels a lot more opaque than the Filco's, it's just not as sturdy. I got it for 65€ so I can't say it was a bad deal but for the retail price of this board there are a lot better options.

[henz]

What do you mean by placing the keycaps on the left side of the keyboard? I myself bought a barebone as i have no interest in teh WASD pad printed thin plastic keycaps.
How is it a bad thing that the plastic is more opaque? Its a black case, why would you want it transparent? I agree that the pinging is an issue. They should do something about it.
I chose the WASD because i could not find a ISO board with clear switches in any other place. If i wanted reds, blues or browns i would have bought a QFR instead.

[SpikeBolt]

What do you mean by placing the keycaps on the left side of the keyboard? I myself bought a barebone as i have no interest in teh WASD pad printed thin plastic keycaps.
How is it a bad thing that the plastic is more opaque? Its a black case, why would you want it transparent? I agree that the pinging is an issue. They should do something about it.
I chose the WASD because i could not find a ISO board with clear switches in any other place. If i wanted reds, blues or browns i would have bought a QFR instead.

I mean that while pushing the keys down on the left side of the keyboard I caused the PCB plate to go down, which is weird. Opaque was a terrible choice of words, I meant to say that Filco's plastic feels sturdier, thicker, stronger.

You're right though, it's really hard to find an ISO board with clears. ATM I don't think you have any alternative.

[Lu_e]

Filcos have their issues too & some want the removable cable and other bells & whistles.

I like then barebones and will pick one up in a linear variety if I ever need to. Thanks for the review, giving me ideas with the drilling.

[henz]

Filcos have their issues too & some want the removable cable and other bells & whistles.

I like then barebones and will pick one up in a linear variety if I ever need to. Thanks for the review, giving me ideas with the drilling.

Be sure to have a proper drilling tool otherwise this would be a nightmare. Also test removing the switch tops before soldering it on back to the pcb. Doing small fixes by only removing one switch will most likely end up in you hitting the pcb with the drilling tool which is not fun

What do you mean by placing the keycaps on the left side of the keyboard? I myself bought a barebone as i have no interest in teh WASD pad printed thin plastic keycaps.
How is it a bad thing that the plastic is more opaque? Its a black case, why would you want it transparent? I agree that the pinging is an issue. They should do something about it.
I chose the WASD because i could not find a ISO board with clear switches in any other place. If i wanted reds, blues or browns i would have bought a QFR instead.

I mean that while pushing the keys down on the left side of the keyboard I caused the PCB plate to go down, which is weird. Opaque was a terrible choice of words, I meant to say that Filco's plastic feels sturdier, thicker, stronger.

You're right though, it's really hard to find an ISO board with clears. ATM I don't think you have any alternative.

I cant complain on the sturdyness of this case. Only thing i can complain about on the case is that is a ****ter to open. I have been thinking of getting a tex case for it. But its a bit expensive..