Pictures:
http://imgur.com/a/QBk32This afternoon my order from Mechanical Keyboards.com arrived! I was so excited to receive my first Leopold mechanical keyboard!
The keyboard model is the FC750R with Cherry MX Red switches. I bought it at MK.com for $114 with free standard shipping.
The unboxing experience is pretty much the same with every other keyboard: full of excitement!
The box itself is not flashy or anything like that. It is simple, and elegant.
The included accessories are USB to PS/2 adapter, a keycap puller, a replacement spacebar, and of course, the USB cable to power the keyboard.
Also included is a dust cover to protect the keyboard from any dust flying around the room. Very nice touch Leopold!
LEOPOLD FC750R
Build Quality:
The build quality of this keyboard is outstanding, worthy of its status as a high-end mechanical keyboard (comparable to Filco Majestouch 2).
It has a nice weight to it thanks to the metal plate inside the keyboard, which makes it extremely durable and solid (no flex at all, not even the smallest creaks).
The finish of the case is a lot better than the KUL ES-87, with a rougher texture and feel.
To be honest, the Leopold FC750R has the best overall build quality among my eight mechanical keyboards.
Features:
Genuine Cherry MX switches. My unit came with Cherry MX Reds, which is linear and smooth as butter. For some reason, the feel of the Cherry MX Reds
on this keyboard is a lot smoother than any boards with MX Reds I owned. The stabilizers are Cherry Stabilizers. I was expecting a bit of a mushy feel when
I tried all of the stabilized keys (left shift, enter, backspace, spacebar, right shift), but what I experienced surprised me.
The Cherry Stabilizers on this keyboard is not mushy AT ALL (that's coming from a dude who prefers Costar Stabilizers), and offers a solid feel throughout the key travel.
The spacebar has a unique thud or "thock" sound to it (which I really like), which makes it feel similar to my QFR Stealth's lubed Costar Stabilizers.
Prior to getting this keyboard, I tried my friend's KUL ES-87 with Cherry MX Reds. I really disliked the Cherry Stabs on the KUL because of their extremely mushy feel.
This is my first Cherry Stabilizer-clad keyboard I have that is not mushy when pressing the stabilized keys. Leopold, you have my respect!
The keyboard has a detachable USB cable (comes with Velcro straps too). The underside of the keyboard has three cable routing channels, so you can route the cable to
come out straight from the middle, the left, or the right. This is a feature that I thought should be standardized for keyboards with detachable cable. The flip-out feet
of the keyboard is heavily rubberized, so even when you deploy it when typing/gaming, it will stay planted like a rock.
This keyboard also has full N-Key Rollover support.
Keycaps:
Leopold blew my mind with their stock keycaps on the FC750R. The stock keycaps are 1.5mm thick, and made from PBT plastics, which is more durable than ABS plastics.
Adding to that, the legends are printed on the front (or side-printed, which is the same), which means that it will never fade out no matter how often you use it.
This is definitely one of the best stock keycaps I have ever used on a mechanical keyboard. Usually I will swap out all of my mechanical keyboard's stock keycaps (right after purchasing it)
with PBT keycaps, but for my Leo, it can definitely stay the way it is now. Typing on these? With buttery smooth Cherry MX Reds? With Cherry Stabs that are not mushy but solid? Hell yeah!
Sound-Absorbing Pad:
The FC750R is also outfitted with a sound absorbing pad in the case. This makes the keyboard a bit quieter (especially if you bottom out the keys all the time like me).
With the pad, keystrokes sounds much more solid. It might be just me, but the feel of the keys is improved too.
PCB:
The PCB is dual-layered for extra durability.
Keycap profiles:
The FC750R has a quite unique keycap profile. Named the "Stepsculpture 2", the keycaps resembles a Cherry profile, with shorter height. Typing on it feels just as
good as on Cherry profile, but it is slightly different.
CONCLUSION:
The Leopold FC750R is definitely my best mechanical keyboard so far. The build quality is beyond amazing, the stock keycaps are ridiculously amazing, and gaming/typing on
this feels so good. I am really liking the Cherry Stabs on this one. Beautiful and elegant design, with great performance along with it. Leopold, I salute you for this amazing,
amazing mechanical keyboard. It's my first Leo, and I am sure I will acquire more Leos in the future.
Thanks as well to Mechanical Keyboard.com for making the FC750R available at a great price. This marks my first business venture with you guys.
Let me know if you guys have any questions about the FC750R.
