geekhack
geekhack Projects => Making Stuff Together! => Topic started by: Diwinn on Tue, 19 October 2021, 06:35:32
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The best Keyboard Kit? I want to know the answer
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how do YOU define "BEST"?
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There is no answer
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Everyone will tell you, the best is your favorite keyboard kit. And that is the only answer, because this hobby revolves around personal preference and opinions.
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Not only what has been said, but most people really only have experience with a very select few keyboards.
While there tends to be a general consensus as to what is good and what is bad, there's really no best.
There's only so much you can cram into a keyboard, at some point it's just "stuff" and there's only so much you can do on such a simple device when so many parts are off-the-shelf parts. The switches are out of their hands, swap sockets are out of their hands, chips are out of their hands, solder joints can really only be so good, pcb can only be so thick, etc.. There's really only so much room left for being better before it's just preference and d*ck waving.
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best I don't know about, but I enjoyed building and enjoy using my Quefrency (https://keeb.io/collections/quefrency-split-staggered-65-keyboard). My criteria for goodness
- fun to build—PCB kit comes with the bits you need, etc., and the soldering was all straightforward through-hole stuff
- available as barebones (just plates and standoffs) or with a pleasingly dorky sandwich case
- looks like a normal 65% keyboard and then splits in half in an entertaining fashion
- in stock rather than only available in some semi-mythical group buy
Non-criteria for me are machined aluminimum body, brass weights, LEDs, and knobs, so if these are priorities for you your favourite will differ!
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The quefrency is such a lovely board, pretty much any through-hole kits usually will be in stock and are good value. Unique and quirky the most time too. Anything keeb.io, keyhive, gboards, all good choices