432c Proto, Built in JIS 4.5u. The grey is very dark, so much that I have decided to not run a black variant of the board (at least for now).
Samples of the 533c Navy and 188c Dark Red. Please bear in mind, these are V1 protos. Read "The original Safa" for more info.
A look at the bottom, and engraving, which are not infilled stock. I recommend oil-based Acryllic paint to get a similar effect to how it looks on the JIS build
This green will not be in the group buy.
A few QOL insights...
Brass weight coverage - made to cover as much of the alphas as possible. Being such a low profile board has its limitations, and this was as much coverage as I could reasonably achieve
Alignment pillars - a simple way to assemble the case and not worry about alignment. These cover both the X and Y axis'
USB tolerance - uh...yeah...kinda obvious. Also helpful for locating the port when not looking directly at it, as the entire ledge leads to this point.
The original Safa
More The initial design from October 2020 was intended to have a simple external profile, which has carried over to v2. Each unit had 8mm uniform bezels and were all WKL units – I tried to make it work, but I was not happy with the aesthetic result. Note the engraving changes as well, you can see in the prototype photos noted above
The following changes were made from v1 to v2
- AFH reduced to 18.5-19mm from 20.5mm. Small, but significant change for comfort at such an angle
- Side bezel reduction, likely what takes this from being an “okay” board to something that looks significantly sleeker
- Engraving updates – rounded off, cuter font
- Engraving location – moved to inner radii of Pause key
- Weight rework – lower case height, therefore thinner weight. However, weight now covers more surface area in return, giving a more balanced tone across all alphas
- USB rework: up 1mm on y axis. Now there is a groove on the back ledge to easily identify the location
- Plate tolerances: much much tighter on north and south sides. Still room for wiggle, may tighten, but this will increase the risks of fitting
Price target & availability
- Price target: $400 (or under) excl. VAT. This price is heavily dependent on material cost and factory limitations being put in place. Hence, this is a target - It can go up or down by the time February rolls around.
- Will ship in custom fit hard cases.
Availability: 400 units See below- Feb 14th for GB
After listening to people in the hobby I have the utmost respect for, as well as advice provided by vendors, this is no longer an unlimited run, and will instead be capped at 400 units (+ extras for backup).
One (very) good outcome to this is an estimated ETA of 6/7(ish) months for board production. I would rather deliver a board faster at the same price than wait a year. I am keeping this to 400 to allow me to release a possible F12 version sooner than expected, so if you prefer an F12 variant, keep your eyes out for it (ETA Q4 2022)
Vendors
- EU, worldwide - MKBEU
- Asia - Hex.KB
- India - Rectangles.store
- Considering other vendors - this list is not final
Soundtests
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pGhf0mRoGE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFWezluM5dM
https://youtu.be/9EkjwVae_2M
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Y_Vnjhn_80
Credits
David & Evy - awesome PCB work, as well as general guidance
The entire MENA server - for having my back throughout the past year
Boyos - you know who you are, thank you for the constant encouragement
g1lbrt, Hueth, Lovi, Poesjuh, Simone - For your testing, building of protos, and honest feedback
Bachoo - for your early render work, as always, much love
Discord
Its my house, don't smash the doors in!
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