Looking for Keyboards with brown Cherry switches in Germany

[meltie]

Hi,

I own some Cherry Keyboards with blue switches and also one with black switches. Now I'm looking for a keyboard with brown switches, but they are very rare here in Germany. On ebay, most have black switches with some blues occasionally appearing. No browns :-(

Buying a new one from Cherry is currently over my budget. I know the Raptor Gaming K1 uses browns, but since all the gamer kiddies want this board because it's so 1337, it is rather expensive, even used.  

In the US, there seem to be a lot of keyboards from different manufacturers that use Cherry switches. Does anybody know a keyboard not from cherry that uses cherry switches, especially the brown ones, and is available in Germany?

Thanks,

meltie

[xyzzy]

I know the Raptor Gaming K1 uses browns, but since all the gamer kiddies want this board because it's so 1337, it is rather expensive, even used.

AFAIK, current Raptor Gaming K1 use linear switches (black). I know some have been reviewed with brown switches but I suspect they were early production models.

In the US, there seem to be a lot of keyboards from different manufacturers that use Cherry switches. Does anybody know a keyboard not from cherry that uses cherry switches, especially the brown ones, and is available in Germany.

I think your safest bet is getting a Filco Majestouch, either on Benippon or directly from the manufacturer.

EDIT:
Another possibility could be to get a Compaq MX 11800 keyboard. It's basically a Cherry G80-11900 but with a trackball instead of the trackpad. I've seen it appear many times reviewed in japanese keyboard-fans sites and it has brown switches (not sure if all of the models do, though).

There are a couple for sale on eBay right now: here and here.

If you don't like the form factor of the Compaq board, you can use the 1337 swapping technique and swap your favorite (Cherry) board switches with the browns from the Compaq. I've done it to my Touchboard.

This old thread about the Cherry brown switches can give you even more ideas.

[Eclairz]

http://de.shopping.com/xPO-Cherry-Electrical-Cherry-G80-3000-LQCDE-0-USB-PS
This is a german cherry browns with a white keycaps keyboard, but does not have n-key rollover like raptor k1. For that you need to go and get an expensive japanese filco.

Cherry also make a black keyboard with browns

just basically type "g80-3000" into google and make sure the next letters are "lqcde" which means a german brown stem keyboard and the "-0" means a white keyboard and "-2" is a black keyboard.

German brown stem cherry keyboards are 100x easier to find than english ones, be happy cherry is german

[shadyguido]

I'm selling my new Filco Majestouch Wireless with Brown Cherries.  email me if you're interested: marco at marcosantori dot com

EDIT: and yes, I'd be happy to send it out to Germany via Priority Mail

[meltie]

First, thanks to all three of you for your answers!
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@xyzzy

Good to know that about the Raptor, because I would have been pretty disappointed to buy one only to see it has black stems. I once had one with brown stems but had to sell it again because I needed the money.

I like the Filco Majestouch, but I could buy 3 new Cherry Keyboards with brown stems here in Germany for that price plus shipping. As I wrote, I'm a little short on budget.

The tip with the Compaq keyboard is really useful, though, I think I have seen them on ebay Germany, but didn't give them a second look. I will look out for these now, knowing they use brown stems. Indeed I would swap the switches with one of my other boards :-)
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@eclairz

N-key rollover is not important for me, it's all about the stems.  

The keyboard layout, may it be German or US, doesn't matter. I prefer US layout myself, especially for programming, but in Germany of course German layout is more common and therefore easier and cheaper to get.

I'm aware of the available products from Cherry, of the meaning of the letters, and I also know where I could buy a new one. :-)  As I wrote, I'm just not able to afford a new one at the moment. About 50 EUR plus shipping is a lot of money for me, and I am therefore looking for alternatives.
---
@shadyguido

I bet shipping will be already more than I can spend on the whole keyboard, otherwise I'd be interested.
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It seems I will just have to save some money and wait until a can afford a new Cherry. Other than the Compaq, there seem to be no affordable alternatives. Thank you very much to all three of you for your help!

meltie

[Ulysses31]

Just wondering how much you'd be willing to let your keyboard go for, shadyguido?  Assuming it's as-new condition.

[shadyguido]

It is in as-new condition.  I used it pre-review and popped it back in the box. I'm typing on my M now.  I'd be selling it for what it cost me to purchase.  $250.  It'll go to eBay eventually.  But (since eBay is teh debil) I'll be posting it on a few forums before then.  Do let me know if you're interested.

[meltie]

Finally I bought a Cherry G80-3000 LQMDE on ebay and it has white switches, not brown switches. So far I believed blue=clicky=LSMDE, black=linear=LPMDE, brown=soft=LQMDE. The G80 data sheet doesn't say anything about the color of the switches.

Did Cherry only change the color of the switches for the Soft-touch boards or is there a fourth variant of switches on G80s? Does anyone know?

The white switches in my new board feel totally different than the white switches of all the G81-3000 keyboards I used, so it is not a mislabled G81.

Thanks,

meltie

[lowpoly]

G81 is the MY switch. You see it immediately when you pull a keycap.

[xyzzy]

Finally I bought a Cherry G80-3000 LQMDE on ebay and it has white switches, not brown switches.

Saw that one on ebay.de, was tempted to bid because I also thought it had brown switches.

So what do the whites feel? Are they clicky? I've got a no-brand board with switches that look like Cherry whites but with no Cherry logo on them, so maybe they're cloned. They are definitely clicky, nothing like the browns, I presume they're similar to the blues from the reviews that I read (I haven't touched a Cherry blue yet).

[meltie]

So what do the whites feel? Are they clicky? I've got a no-brand board with switches that look like Cherry whites but with no Cherry logo on them, so maybe they're cloned. They are definitely clicky, nothing like the browns, I presume they're similar to the blues from the reviews that I read (I haven't touched a Cherry blue yet).

They are definitely not clicky, but feel more like the clicky blue ones than like the linear black ones. I'm still looking for a board with browns to compare them with.

Does anyone know if the white ones in my LQMDE board are like the brown ones they usually use for soft click boards?

[Eclairz]

Whites are supposed to be non-clicky but have the tactile feeling of a brown keyboard but with more force so basically a more forceful version the brown keys but not as forceful as blacks.But I think I said this else where on the forum

[meltie]

Whites are supposed to be non-clicky but have the tactile feeling of a brown keyboard but with more force so basically a more forceful version the brown keys but not as forceful as blacks.

Thank you. So basically Cherry is selling two different switches under the same label.

[lowpoly]

The LQMDE isn't for sale anymore, I think.

[lowpoly]

Here's another LQMDE on ebay Germany:

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160282004019

Used with some custom label. €10,- + shipping.

[meltie]

Here's another LQMDE on ebay Germany:

http://cgi.ebay.de/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=160282004019

Used with some custom label. €10,- + shipping.

Thank you, but as I wrote in an earlier post, I already bought one.

[lowpoly]

I know, that was not for you.

[Bluemercury]

I know, that was not for you.

Those are brown switches?i still need to get one....