Help on purchasing and avoiding buyers remorse

[AidenHero]

What are some excellent/endgame cases/pcb/plates? A lot of the higher end stuff looks absolutely fantastic, like the fjell and the upcoming iron165 but im wondering a variety of things.

How do i know if it'll be good, what are good price points for them, are there areas of price where going up will give me significant improvements, how valuable are certain things (like brass plates and gasket held plates) and where is the point of diminishing returns?

On that last one, I remember reading something like the kbd67 with a brass plate is a great price point and past that would probably be diminishing returns. Any help would be greatly appreciated, and im just mostly looking for advice on what to buy, whats likely to be a ripoff, how to assess quality and avoid buyers remorse

[HotRoderX]

This is all so subjective, and bottom line is this. Buying a "Custom" means buying something with zero warranty. Higher price doesn't always equate to a better quality product. There are lots of people who buy two PCB's and two plates. They will sometimes buy more then just that thought. The reason is so they have backup's if anything goes wrong. They also can switch key's if they want with out the hassle of de-soldering.

Perhaps not super popular but if you want a good solid keyboard with zero worries and a warranty. Then get something like a Leopold. There not flashy like the customs we see, but the risk is a lot lower and the value is greater.

Want something falashy then get one of the expensive "customs" but know they come with zero warranty and issues are not uncommon. I was part of a buy that went south and lost my money big time. I ended up getting a board that was incomplete and a runner that refused to make good. There are other buy's that have taken over a year +

[tp4tissue]

Try to really Imagine and Predict your experience ahead of buying.  How does it really impact your computer use. 

If it's just like new clothes or new sneakers,  maybe skip it, and buy a 2080 Ti instead.

[Leslieann]

Anything over about $200 is severely diminishing returns, even that is on the back side of the curve when you can get something good for a bit over half that.

As HotRoder said, if you are worried, do NOT buy a custom. I'm not saying customs are bad, there are even some Chinese customs who will work with you if there is an issue, but there's always the issue of distance and language. That's not even getting into the bad side of group buys, everyone should read through the GH60 thread before joining a group buy.

Here is what I always recommend, if this a shelf queen but what you want knowing it may not be great, if plan to plan to use it as your daily driver, buy from a well known brand. Want something a bit more, get a Filco, Tex or Vortex aluminum case, maybe a universal plate and some universal plate adapters and an aftermarket controller so you can program it.  If anything messes up parts are easy to get. There are a few keyboards compatible with those cases, you can even get an Alps board to fit.

[AidenHero]

Thanks for the replies, it really helps. You guys have definitely given me a lot to think about.