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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Clickey on Tue, 26 July 2011, 18:36:26
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My model M came in the post and WOW, it is so much nicer to press than any of the cherry switches (I have tried all except reds). I can see why Model M have such a following.
I can't believe how it feels as soft as my browns despite the higher force required. I bet this is because of sideways buckling spring instead of vertically compressed springs. The sound it makes is very nice and crisp and it feels much sturdier than any of the cherry boards I have touched (double layered keycaps feel so sturdy). I love everything about this keyboard except that it is 2kro.
I heard Ripster say model F are NKRO. Do they feel the same as model M? How complicated is it to mod an F to be PS2 compatible?
My mechanical rankings so far:
Buckling spring > Cherry Ergo clear > Cherry Blue > Cherry brown > Cherry Clear > Cherry Black > Cherry MY
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Welcome to buckling springs!
The Model F AT is already PS/2 compatible.
The Model M is not as soft as browns. Browns actuate at 45g, the Model M at 75g. I use browns day to day because they're easier on my messed up hands.
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It says in the IBM wiki that Model F is not compatible with modern computers? If they are, why do people not seek them instead of model M?
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It says in the IBM wiki that Model F is not compatible with modern computers?
Just the XT boards aren't compatible.
If they are, why do people not seek them instead of model M?
Because they hate the layout I presume (I hated it even before the launch of the extended keyboards)
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If you can find an AT Model F terminal board, that would be the most PC compatible, both in terms of protocol and in terms of layout. Though, I have an XT Model F, and while it does feel quite nice, I still prefer the feel a bolt modded Model M with new springs, myself.
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Sigh, I had a Model M years ago and loved it but I managed to lose it somehow. Trying to track one down in my country in 2011 is not an easy thing.
Enjoy your model m, and take good care of it :-)
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I had been typing on a Cherry POS board w/ browns at home for the past couple days. This thread prompted me to hook up one of the Model Ms in place of it, since I think that my exercise in trying out various modern keyboard switches has come to an end.
Damn, I missed you, Model M. Only thing I like better about the Cherry board is the more prominent nubs on F, J, and numpad 5.
Now the similar Cherry board with clears is almost as nice feeling, and it's quiet which is important at work. But the M just looks nicer... got this one used and filthy and dang those dye sub keys look good, 'specially with the colors on Alt and the numpad. Just classic and you couldn't even tell that this is an old beater from five feet away.
Enjoy your Model M. Really, if it weren't for the clacketiness, I'd probably use M's exclusively. I like 'em that much. It feels like a professional-grade tool, not something that you are using because that's what came with your PC.
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Better change the order of preference in your sig then ;-)
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I just got mine recently and it's absolutely awesome to use. I still haven't gone back to MX blues and I'm not sure when I will.
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Grats on your new purchase dude!
I still prefer my buckling spring board over my board with cherry blues. You're not alone!
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What's funny is I had a model M (I'm pretty sure of it) sitting at my parents house from an old ass IBM 486 computer. I didn't know it was a model M til I came here and looked at pictures of this fabled keyboard and recognized it. So I call my mom and ask if she could check the storage for it and she tells me that a couple weeks ago her and my dad did some cleaning and she tossed out a couple of old keyboards haha including an "IBM one" that we've had down there for a long time. She felt really bad and thought that since they've been in storage for some 10+ years that it was time for them to go. My dad said to keep them because he's a pack rat. Oh well, shame on me for not finding this site sooner eh?
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Mr626, I'm happy to ship one to you, if you are willing to pay to ship it. It wouldn't be for a while, as they are all packed in prep for a move, but let me know.
N8N, have you tried one of the 1397000 Model Ms? It's pretty nice. And I believe there is a Cherry terminal board with the same layout with clears, but it's pretty rare. You should really buy yourself a Deck for work. The terminal (emulator) boards are quite large, though, so not sure if that's doable. Also try out the floss mod, it really quiets down the keyboard without changing the feel really at all. It's about the same noise level as my kinesis (browns), for instance. Don't know why I didn't think to suggest this in the past.
Clickey, if you like the feel of the one you have now, you really have to try out a bolt modded version. They are really that much nicer, especially over a heavily used model. Unused springs and heavily worn springs really really feel different. Especially if the wear isn't even.
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Sorry, didn't see your post there theferenc. Thanks for the offer- I'll keep it in mind :-)
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I heard Ripster say model F are NKRO. Do they feel the same as model M?
Better in fact, slightly lighter and more springy (noisier as well). They are better built too.
Just the XT boards aren't compatible.
There are quite a few Model F keyboards, including some that I haven't got around to documenting on the IBM Wiki. Out of them, only the AT is readily compatible. There are a few more, like the later-generation terminal keyboards and the XT that are easy enough to convert. Then there are some of the obscure older ones which are not trivial to adapt.
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N8N, have you tried one of the 1397000 Model Ms? It's pretty nice. And I believe there is a Cherry terminal board with the same layout with clears, but it's pretty rare. You should really buy yourself a Deck for work. The terminal (emulator) boards are quite large, though, so not sure if that's doable. Also try out the floss mod, it really quiets down the keyboard without changing the feel really at all. It's about the same noise level as my kinesis (browns), for instance. Don't know why I didn't think to suggest this in the past.
No, I haven't tried the terminal board - no opportunity to do so. I thought about a Deck but I think I want something a little more squared away looking. The Deck really does look more like a gamer board than a serious tool. The Cherry POS board is doing just fine though, at this point buying another keyboard would be just vanity, although I may do it anyway just to get plate mounts... that's how I'll justify it anyway :)
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Honestly the layout on the at f is more of a problem than the 2kro on the model m. (no numpad enter is surprisingly big for me, and weirdness with esc, etc.)
That and if you really want to use it, you will need to open it up and mod at least the spacebar (though it isn't as bad as stock space invader spacebars) if not to also add a few keys.
Also, if you wanted it because of the NKRO (presumably for gaming) then there was also a thing about how capacitive switches and the tech available for that at the time at which these were built. They introduce some (don't know how much) extra latency just in the sensing of the switches activating. Don't know how that could be tested.