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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:08:32

Title: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:08:32

Hi, I just got a Ducky Shine 3 Keyboard with blue switches. It is really nice. Very high quality. This is my first mechanical keyboard and I have a couple of questions though:

1) The key profile(top of key area) feels smaller than a normal keyboard. Also, the key area(top of key) feels slippery smooth. Kinda hard to get used to this. Are all mechanical keyboards like this?

2) I use my keyboard mostly for programming and writing emails. There is alot of travel area for pressing a key down. Would a brown switch be significantly better....less travel time for pressing a key down..... for this?

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: SpAmRaY on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:13:34

1) Yes OEM keycaps on mechanical keyboards really suck. That's why so many aftermaket keycaps exist. But if you want to use the Shine 3's backlighting as intended then your options are limited.

2) Perhaps you need topre switches, many programmers seem to love them. Or just different keycaps!

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: bahamot on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:51:45

2) AFAIK, all Cherry MX switches have the same travel distance to register a key.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: HendyZone on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:54:49

if you want lower of the travel distance try to search keycap that use the low profile one like in FC700R  :)

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:58:40

The actuation distance in Cherry switches are all the same. But I think Hendyzone got it right. Cherry profile caps and the FC700R caps make the travel feel much less and that's due to the profile of the cap.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 10:14:06

Ya, I definitely  want to keep the lighting effect of my Ducky Shine 3 keyboard.

What are my options for keys that would be low profile and have that non slippery feel?
Would I have to buy another keyboard and take the keys off of it or could I just buy the keys?
Do the cherry brown switches register more quickly where I don't have to press the key down all the way?

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: CPTBadAss on Sat, 10 August 2013, 10:18:23

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 10:14:06

1) What are my options for keys that would be low profile and have that non slippery feel?
2) Would I have to buy another keyboard and take the keys off of it or could I just buy the keys?
3) Do the cherry brown switches register more quickly where I don't have to press the key down all the way?

1) My vote is for Cherry caps like I said before. But if you think the stock caps are slippery, maybe you'd like PBT caps instead.
2) You could do either option.
3) Yes, the switches actually actuate in the middle so you don't need to bottom out in order to type.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: SpAmRaY on Sat, 10 August 2013, 10:21:19

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 10:14:06

Ya, I definitely  want to keep the lighting effect of my Ducky Shine 3 keyboard.

What are my options for keys that would be low profile and have that non slippery feel?
Would I have to buy another keyboard and take the keys off of it or could I just buy the keys?
Do the cherry brown switches register more quickly where I don't have to press the key down all the way?

Your not going to find much of an alternative that will show the backlighting, yet.

Once this set is released it might be worthwhile to you.

http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=42659.msg983561#msg983561

But do realize most replacement sets don't have 'windows' on the keys for back lighting and also will not have the 4 extra 'app' keys above the number pad.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 12:38:00

What about these keys caps?

http://www.vendio.com/stores/E-sports-Gaming-equipments/item/pbt-key-caps/kbc-104-kbc-semi-transparent-k/lid=19160792

Would they have the PBT plastic so they would be non slippery?
Would they have a low profile?

Also, I'm not sure if mechanical keyboards may even be for me. I love the click feel though.  Would it be realistic to have a mechanical keyboard where the key profile/travel distance would be close(doesn't have to be exactly the as low) to a laptop keyboard?

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: uJalled on Sat, 10 August 2013, 13:16:48

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 12:38:00

What about these keys caps?

http://www.vendio.com/stores/E-sports-Gaming-equipments/item/pbt-key-caps/kbc-104-kbc-semi-transparent-k/lid=19160792

Would they have the PBT plastic so they would be non slippery?
Would they have a low profile?

Also, I'm not sure if mechanical keyboards may even be for me. I love the click feel though.  Would it be realistic to have a mechanical keyboard where the key profile/travel distance would be close(doesn't have to be exactly the as low) to a laptop keyboard?

Those are most definitely not PBT plastic. Try geek_feng's vendor on Ebay if you're looking for keycaps. I haven't checked it out in a while, but I'm sure he has some good stuff.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: HendyZone on Sat, 10 August 2013, 13:23:50

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 12:38:00

What about these keys caps?

http://www.vendio.com/stores/E-sports-Gaming-equipments/item/pbt-key-caps/kbc-104-kbc-semi-transparent-k/lid=19160792

Would they have the PBT plastic so they would be non slippery?
Would they have a low profile?

Also, I'm not sure if mechanical keyboards may even be for me. I love the click feel though.  Would it be realistic to have a mechanical keyboard where the key profile/travel distance would be close(doesn't have to be exactly the as low) to a laptop keyboard?

that is not PBT and isn't low profile caps at all
it's ABS plastic with half clear  :)

that caps with backlight on

More

(https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/68518674/Keyboard/Ducky/IMG_9018.JPG)

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: Kampeki on Sat, 10 August 2013, 13:29:45

BTW with Mech keyboards you don't have to press the key all the way down ( nor should you really ). When you hear the click and feel the bump ( For the mx blues ) the key is registered and you can release it.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: tp4tissue on Sat, 10 August 2013, 13:37:09

When you grow up from staring at bright led lights,  we all went through this,  step into an Ergodox, the keyboard of dreams.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: bigsid05 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 14:31:50

What are the options out there for alternative Shine keycaps? I'd love to get Windows 8 logo keycaps to for the Win keys but would only do it if the transparency matched the stock caps.

Quote from: tp4tissue on Sat, 10 August 2013, 13:37:09

When you grow up from staring at bright led lights,  we all went through this,  step into an Ergodox, the keyboard of dreams.

The constant Ergodox spam needs to stop... Seriously, we don't care.

Title: Re: Ducky Shine III questions- My First Mechanical Keyboard
Post by: mazessj on Sun, 11 August 2013, 15:54:03

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 09:08:32

Hi, I just got a Ducky Shine 3 Keyboard with blue switches. It is really nice. Very high quality. This is my first mechanical keyboard and I have a couple of questions though:

1) The key profile(top of key area) feels smaller than a normal keyboard. Also, the key area(top of key) feels slippery smooth. Kinda hard to get used to this. Are all mechanical keyboards like this?
2) I use my keyboard mostly for programming and writing emails. There is alot of travel area for pressing a key down. Would a brown switch be significantly better....less travel time for pressing a key down..... for this?

Quote from: dman777 on Sat, 10 August 2013, 12:38:00

What about these keys caps?
http://www.vendio.com/stores/E-sports-Gaming-equipments/item/pbt-key-caps/kbc-104-kbc-semi-transparent-k/lid=19160792
Would they have the PBT plastic so they would be non slippery?
Would they have a low profile?

Also, I'm not sure if mechanical keyboards may even be for me. I love the click feel though.  Would it be realistic to have a mechanical keyboard where the key profile/travel distance would be close(doesn't have to be exactly the as low) to a laptop keyboard?

The keytops might be a little smaller than what you're used to, but I think they're pretty standard. The smooth feel is pretty common, I think, but some stock keycaps have a bit more texture. The Max Keyboards Nighthawk (formerly iOne, QPad, etc.) for example has keys that have what seems like a slight rubbery coating to them. However, the size of some of these keys is non-standard and won't fit a Ducky. You'll probably have to look for a custom keycap set for your Ducky, or consider a different keyboard.

As for travel, you might find O-rings or landing pads helpful in reducing key travel slightly (note: landing pads are not ideal for backlit keyboards), however, it sounds like you want something really low profile, like Cherry ML or some other switch type, but your options will be limited. As you said, mechanical keyboards might not even be for you.

I'll just say that any new keyboard will feel different and you will be ultrasensitive to the differences and things that you might perceive as negatives. Give the keyboard a couple weeks (if you can) and see if you grow to like it. Then decide what you really don't like about it and look into your options. There's a lot of helpful advice available on these forums.