[IC] Chimera65 - 65% Gasket mounted Keyboard from CannonKeys [GB Final Info!]

[upas]

Note: see the 3rd post for final info

Hi again everyone - Upas from CannonKeys here. You might remember my previous design, the Satisfaction 75. I'm here to show my newest project off - the Chimera 65. Like my other ICs, everything from the PCB to the case was designed by yours truly!





Renders: Janglad

IC FORM: https://forms.gle/VffDrtKMDX9ovuRr7


Inspiration:
The name "Chimera" for this board is super fitting. A Chimera is a creature with the head of a lion, body of a goat, and serpent's tail. Basically, a combination of a lot of different creatures. For this design, I drew inspiration from many other keyboards that I admire, and put some of those design elements together in a cohesive way.

Those boards were:
- TGR 910 (Top Right Badge)
- OTD Koala (Side Curve)
- TX boards in general (The ledge)
- TGR Jane (Dual bottom pieces)
- CA66 (Offset Arrows)
- RAMA M60-A (Back accent piece)
- Keycult No 1/65 (Mounting Style)

I also wanted to add my own design element - the bottom is engraved with a beautiful Chimera crest. It looks good in photos, but it looks way better in person! The idea was for the engraving to span multiple parts, similar to how a Chimera is an amalgamation of multiple animals.

A prototype keyboard was shown at the Seattle meetup:





Features:
- QMK and VIA Compatible PCB
- Centered USB-C Unified Daughterboard
- STM32 ARM Processor
- South facing backlight LEDs (single color)
- Poron Gasket Isolation Sandwich Mount
- Poron feet for Desk / Keyboard Isolation
- 7.5 degree typing angle
- 10.86 mm front height (ledge height)
- 17.86 mm front height (not counting ledge height)
- 7 different parts (Top, Bottom, Brass Weight, Back Accent, Bottom Accent, Badge, Plate)
- Super cool Chimera crest engraving created by Hisui
- Fixed plate - your choice of 1 of 2 fixed plates. Materials TBD based on IC.
PCB supports ISO, but plates will be ANSI. Bottom rows: 1.25/1.25/1.25/6.25/1.5/1.5 or 1.5/1.5/7U/1.5/1.5


There are a few parts I might still change, but I'll definitely keep you updated. I like the idea of the double bottom piece, but may change the bottom accent to match the shape of the crest, kind of like how the Singa Unikorn has the brass lion piece bottom. While this would mean the engraving would be limited to a single material, I think it may look a bit cleaner. Please let me know what you think in the IC

The supported layouts are as follows: http://www.keyboard-layout-editor.com/#/gists/dcf11cfb6bc9c806200939aad93e28b2

Colors:
I'm still deciding on final colors, but I have some colors in mind:

Top+Bottom / Back Accent / Bottom Accent / Badge / Bottom Weight

Black Alu / Burgundy Alu / Burgundy Alu / Sandblasted Raw Brass / Sandblasted Raw Brass (Shown in Renders)
Navy Alu / Gold Alu / Navy Alu / Sandblasted Raw Brass / Sandblasted Raw Brass
Dark Grey Alu / Lilac Alu / Lilac Alu / Sandblasted Raw Brass / Sandblasted Raw Brass

The colors won't be mix and match - they will be set color combinations.

If you have any ideas, please leave them in the comment section of the IC form! I may or may not use them.

Current Status:
Two prototypes have been manufactured, and there is a full completed functioning build including PCB. I will make one more round of minor changes, and get that prototyped. Then we will be ready for Group Buy. I want to fulfill S75 before running this board, so that should give you an idea of timeframe.

Expected Price:
This board is 7 separate parts, meaning its going to be expensive. I'd expect the final price for most editions to land somewhere in the $400-$500 range, if not more.

Acknowledgements:
There are a ton of people who helped me throughout this process, again, who I need to thank. This isn't an exhaustive list because I've received help from so many people, but I absolutely need to call out the following folks:

- Otani - Thanks for all the feedback and brainstorming help!
- 159 - GMK Red Samurai is an amazing call - thanks for the advice throughout the process
- Hisui and Rensuya - I couldn't be more thrilled with the artwork. The Chimera crest is fantastic. Thanks!
- riotonthebay - Thanks for sharing all the details I needed to replicate the no1s mounting style
- ai03 - As always, such a great source of advice
- gok - Thanks for helping me figure out some of the ways to make this design better and easier to machine
- Olivia/Wilba - Always eternally grateful for VIA
- janglad - The renders are amazing as always
- All the keyboard designers I drew inspiration from to make this board a reality

Please fill out the IC form: https://forms.gle/VffDrtKMDX9ovuRr7

[upas]

Frequently Asked Questions:

Q: The PCB supports ISO, will there be plate files available?
A: Plate files will be made public as soon as the GB closes.

[upas]

Hey guys, some final updates!

All units will go live for GB on November 23rd at 10AM Eastern Time.
The Group Buy will be open for 2.5 weeks. It will end on Wednesday, December 11th at midnight.

Standard Unit
$475 - 120 Total Units
Aluminum Top, Bottom - Main Color
Aluminum Back Accent, Bottom Crest, Badge - Accent Color
Sandblasted Raw Brass Weight and Plate

Colors:  (Main/Accent)
Black/Burgundy
Grey/Lilac
Navy/Silver


E-white Edition
$495 - 30 Total Units
Aluminum Top, Bottom, Bottom Crest - E White
Sandblasted Raw Brass Weight, Back Accent, Badge, and Plate


Special Edition:
$725
10 Total Units (5 Black, 5 Gold)

Note: I really tried to drive this price down, but PVD is expensive, and doesn't scale well with volume either.

"Angelic"
Aluminum Top, Bottom, Bottom Crest - E White
Gold PVD Brass Weight, Back Accent, and Badge
Raw Brass Sandblasted Plate


"Demonic"
Aluminum Top, Bottom, Bottom Crest - Black
Black PVD Brass Weight, Back Accent, and Badge
Black Carbon Fiber Plate

Extras:
Alu Badge   $12
Alu Crest $20
Alu Back   $37
Brass Badge   $12
Brass Back   $50
PCB w/ Cable + Daughterboard   $60
CF Plate   $40
FR4 Plate   $25

The extra accent pieces (Back, Badge, Crest) will be available in the following colors:
Black
Lilac
Silver
Navy
Grey
Burgundy

Every unit comes with the following 7 pieces:
Top, Bottom, Weight, Crest, Back Accent, Badge, Brass Plate

Along with:
Poron Gaskets
PCB w/ JST Cable and ai03 Unified Daughterboard
Hex Head Hardware
Bumpons

Each keyboard will also ship in a custom fitted CannonKeys hard foam carrying case, as well as a microfiber cloth.
Plates will be available in 6.25U and 7U

Extras will go live at Nov 23rd 12 AM EST (00:00), 10 hours before the group buy goes live, so that they can be added to cart ahead of time.
Remember, the group buy goes live at Nov 23rd 10 AM EST
 A google form will be sent after purchase to select options.

Estimated Delivery: May 2020

Photos:
Black/Burgundy (Photo)


Crest Detail (Photo)


Renders:
Navy/Silver:


Dark Grey/Lilac:


Black/Burgundy:


E-White/Raw Brass:


Demonic:


Angelic:

[V. Vega]

This is a beautiful board, I LOVE the layout so much!
If you go with the Dark Grey/Lilac combo I will absolutely get one.

[Warrenified]

Count me in Upas

[Rensuya]

The name suits this Frankenstein of a keyboard, it's a beauty for sure. This cannot come soon enough 

[BrutalBanana]

Love the design and loving the layout.

Dark Grey Alu / Lilac Alu is what I would be most interested in. I would be also interested to see if there are more unique color combos added or maybe you get some combos based on some current popular key sets.

[bthezebra]

Love the design and loving the layout.

Dark Grey Alu / Lilac Alu is what I would be most interested in. I would be also interested to see if there are more unique color combos added or maybe you get some combos based on some current popular key sets.

I second this

[Pigjackal]

Interested! Would hot-swap be on the table?

[voxkey]

 

[Lil]

In my opinion the burgundy colour of the render is better than the orange-red of the prototype

[evorus5]

Awesome design but the layout isn't for me. Love the Canon blocker though 👍🏽

[Little4Real]

Tsangan bottom row (1.5/1/1.5/7/1) and I'm in

[upas]

Tsangan bottom row (1.5/1/1.5/7/1) and I'm in

This doesn't really work with this layout, with the offset arrows. 1.5/1/1.5/7/1/1 works on the PCB, so if you really wanted that, you could get a plate made.

1.5/1/1.5/7/1 will be available on my Brutal65 (details on that coming later), which will be a much cheaper board.

[bengine]

Ne Chimera60 or Chimera75 in the pipeline?

[Sycomore]

Well thanks Upas, i now know 100% that i need this keyboard to sit alongside my upcoming satisfaction.

[skrunk]

Any chance of a left winkey blocker?

Loving the design by the way!

[_senya]

IMO this was the best board on that meetup. I came back to it 3 times. Interested.

[SoraNoTenshi]

Ayye. Kewl stuff, unfortunately it looks like it is out of my price-range.

But definetly something cool i will follow.

[nasp]

Love everything about this! Looking forward to seeing the 2nd proto

[breckstar]

Every thought about making the surrounding bezel equal distance or close to equal around the keycaps particularly this build has smaller side and top bezels compared to the bottom bezel.

[Slimjim095]

Would there be different color badges?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[upas]

Would there be different color badges?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This isn't currently planned

[upas]

Interested! Would hot-swap be on the table?

In order to support multiple layouts on the PCB, I'm not planning on making it hotswap.

In my opinion the burgundy colour of the render is better than the orange-red of the prototype

I'm glad, because that's the color I'm going with

IMO this was the best board on that meetup. I came back to it 3 times. Interested.

Thank you for the kind words!

Every thought about making the surrounding bezel equal distance or close to equal around the keycaps particularly this build has smaller side and top bezels compared to the bottom bezel.

It's due to the offset arrows. This bezel configuration looks best given the edge.

Any chance of a left winkey blocker?

Loving the design by the way!

No blockers planned!

Would there be different color badges?


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

No plans on offering different color badges as part of the GB, but I can release the 3D model for the badge so others can get some made after the GB runs.

[Tre3Cycl3S]

Really like the design! Very interested.

I’m not too sure how I feel about the engraving at the bottom. I prefer something simpler (your logo seems perfect here, but it’s already on the blocker, so maybe it’ll be repetitive). Perhaps having the engraving entirely on a single piece like you mentioned might be able to get me totally onboard. But this is a minor point.

Will you be considering adding an option to add foam (between PCB and plate)?

[gotham]

All in on this one 

[BanglesOtter]

This looks pretty cool, love the badge and everything.

[dannyny]

nice logo. in for one if the price is right.

[DuellM]

Any chance for an all white version, missed out on the e-white satisfaction 75 (fraud alert , ended up getting the blue instead). I really want an all white keyboard  .

Sent from my Pixel 3a using Tapatalk

[upas]

Some renders with GMK Voyage on the Navy/Gold Chimera

Note for the logo to match the accent color, you'll have to infill with paint.
The badge will be brass.

[bthezebra]

Some renders with GMK Voyage on the Navy/Gold Chimera

Note for the logo to match the accent color, you'll have to infill with paint.
The badge will be brass.

Show Image

Show Image

Show Image

Show Image

More like oof-pas

[cinnabolt]

Some renders with GMK Voyage on the Navy/Gold Chimera

Note for the logo to match the accent color, you'll have to infill with paint.
The badge will be brass.

Show Image

Show Image

Show Image

Show Image

Looks soooo good. Count me in for a navy kit. Looks so good with GMK Voyage which I am excited for as well.

[MeloDet]

Stop making such nice keyboards UPAS! Gonna have to buy this one too now. Looking forward to seeing the grey and lilac one.

[Faust_]

Will there be split backspace support?

[chive_]

Loving the look of this board! Out of curiosity, has anyone seen any sort of ergonomic advantage to the separated arrow/FN/PgUp/Down keys versus other 65% boards? I figured it'd help prevent accidental presses, but anything else there?

I noticed the new navy renders have a different spacing on the bottom row as well, I think I like that more!

Will there be split backspace support?

Also this

[nasp]

Here's the layout options. I found it in the first post.

http://www.keyboard-layout-editor.com/#/gists/dcf11cfb6bc9c806200939aad93e28b2

[jewel]

Any updates on this IC?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

[Karosu]

im in

[upas]

Any updates on this IC?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

I've designed a new bottom that's more similar to the Singa Unikorn. It's being manufactured and once that's done, I can move on with making decision

One thing I have decided - the Dark Grey / Lilac combo will definitely be offered!

[MeloDet]

Any updates on this IC?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

I've designed a new bottom that's more similar to the Singa Unikorn. It's being manufactured and once that's done, I can move on with making decision

One thing I have decided - the Dark Grey / Lilac combo will definitely be offered!

That's awesome! Looking forward to seeing some renders of that colorway!

[DasGnome]

Dang, might finally have to sell some stuff to fund this beauty!

[blitz]

I know it's not mix and match but would there be extra back accent pieces?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

[iammeuru]

So I'm late to the party chatting about this here, but having seen this at the seattle meetup, and having a lot of time with it after the meetup, I have to say that this is an absolute must buy for me this year... from here to the end of the year, there are literally three must buy boards, and this is one of them... it's awesome!

[Tekniqs]

So I'm late to the party chatting about this here, but having seen this at the seattle meetup, and having a lot of time with it after the meetup, I have to say that this is an absolute must buy for me this year... from here to the end of the year, there are literally three must buy boards, and this is one of them... it's awesome!

this board is for sure on my list as well.

what's the other two if you don't mind me asking?

[forevermadrigal]

Is the layout on the proto going to be supported?

[upas]

I know it's not mix and match but would there be extra back accent pieces?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

I'll definitely consider this. I really like the set colors, but this would allow people to make their own combinations without having to pay for 2 boards.

Is the layout on the proto going to be supported?

Yes, all of these layouts will be supported:
http://www.keyboard-layout-editor.com/#/gists/dcf11cfb6bc9c806200939aad93e28b2

[child]

Can a combination of these be used, eg. 1.25, 1.25, 1.25, 6.25, 1.5, 1.5 ?

[bthezebra]

I know it's not mix and match but would there be extra back accent pieces?

Sent from my LG-H932 using Tapatalk

I'll definitely consider this. I really like the set colors, but this would allow people to make their own combinations without having to pay for 2 boards.

Please do consider it

[nasp]

Can a combination of these be used, eg. 1.25, 1.25, 1.25, 6.25, 1.5, 1.5 ?

Yes, according to the KLE that should be possible

[FredBananaz]

Ooh, this looks good. Definetly interested in this keyboard