My Das Keyboard Ultimate Model S has arrived

[patrickgeekhack]

As promised, Metadot did send me one and I am using it right now. It may well become my favourite keyboard just because I like the sound of blue Cherries mounted on a plate more than blue Cherries mounted on PCB. I will take it to the office tomorrow and see what my colleagues say when they see that it has blank keys :-)

I found the keys to be a bit stiff but that was also what I found when I first got my G80-3000. After a while, the keys did not feel stiff anymore. The piano black finish may be bad for finger print, but I don't really touch the keyboard on the shiny surface since I don't rest my palms when typing.

I was very happy to see that all the keys feel the same unlike my previous unit which had a bad key.

In short, I like my Das. I know I have said this for each of my keyboards, but that's not untrue for I like each one of them. Each is "unique" and offers a unique experience. I will still use my Topre at home for now since I start my day usually at 4:00 am.

[patrickgeekhack]

One thing I have noticed is that when I am not bottoming out hard, the Das seems to be quieter than my G80-3000. My theory is that the Das is more compact and therefore offers less room for vibration sound to amplify.

[instantkamera]

I wish they would make a tenkeyless ...

[db_Iodine]

I picked up my first mechanical keyboard, the Das Ultimate Model S today. I'm also loving it so far, but I'm having a touch time trying to learn not bottoming out so hard. I quess my fingers will learn after a while..

[patrickgeekhack]

Welcome to Geekhack!

Don't worry too much about the bottoming out.  The goal is accurate and comfortable typing.

Yes, don't worry about this. Once you get to know a keyboard very well, and have typed on it for a long enough time, this will come on it's own.

[vicariouscheese]

I wish they would make a tenkeyless ...

me too!

i actually just bit the bullet and bought a daskeyboard ultimate silent.  i originally wanted filco tenkeyless otaku browns, but im getting the impression that they wont restock those for a while (if ever?)  

then i was considering the blackwidow because of the $80 price tag, but i didnt like the problems they pointed out in the blackwidow thread here, and if i went with razer i would hate to pass up on backlit, so i went with the das and got my sexy blank keys

i actually spray painted an old dell quietkeys (or something like that) to make it in the das style of glossy case/blank keys and it looked awesome... and then after i was done i found out none of the keys worked except for tab, h, and delete

[Senor_Cartmenez]

Heyyyy welcome to the Das S Ultimate club *g*

Picked up a good board there I think, have fun with it.

I also try to focus on not bottoming out so much but usually just end up hacking my board hard as usual. Just the way I type I guess. I will continue to try focus on not bottoming out but not to an extend where I feel uncomfortable. If it comes naturally to me after a while, fine. If not it's also fine. I can live with the clickidy clack

[wellington1869]

since I start my day usually at 4:00 am.

good god, man!  

congrats on the working das. I still like mine a lot. Love that piano finish. its classy. I always get compliments when people visit my room. its probably the nicest looking thing in my room actually.

[db_Iodine]

Welcome to Geekhack!

Don't worry too much about the bottoming out.  The goal is accurate and comfortable typing.  The not bottoming out as much part just sorta happens over time.

Thanks.

Well I think this keyboard is already far more comfortable than any other keyboard I've ever owned before. As someone already stated, a tenkeyless version would be awesome. I will probably order a tenkeyless filco with the same switches once Keyboard company starts selling the EU-layouts.

[vicariouscheese]

good god, man!  

congrats on the working das. I still like mine a lot. Love that piano finish. its classy. I always get compliments when people visit my room. its probably the nicest looking thing in my room actually.

haha they must wonder about your priorities....

[Moogle Stiltzkin]

Is your DAS using blanks ?? Is the G80 using blue switches as well ?

By the way gratz Patrick and Iodine.

[patrickgeekhack]

Heyyyy welcome to the Das S Ultimate club *g*

Picked up a good board there I think, have fun with it.

I also try to focus on not bottoming out so much but usually just end up hacking my board hard as usual. Just the way I type I guess. I will continue to try focus on not bottoming out but not to an extend where I feel uncomfortable. If it comes naturally to me after a while, fine. If not it's also fine. I can live with the clickidy clack

I think not bottoming out is like sleep and love. The harder you try, the less successful you'll be.

good god, man!  

congrats on the working das. I still like mine a lot. Love that piano finish. its classy. I always get compliments when people visit my room. its probably the nicest looking thing in my room actually.

Haha... I go to bed at 9:00 pm so that I can wake up early to study before heading to work. The good thing about studying at that time of the day (or night) is there that there's no distraction from my neighbour's lawn mower or my daughter wanting to play. It's nice to have a keyboard where all the keys work like they should and not having one that feels different from the rest, and being an outcast.

Thanks.

Well I think this keyboard is already far more comfortable than any other keyboard I've ever owned before. As someone already stated, a tenkeyless version would be awesome. I will probably order a tenkeyless filco with the same switches once Keyboard company starts selling the EU-layouts.

Personally, I find plate-mounted switches to feel nicer than PCB-mounted. That's just me, however.

Is your DAS using blanks ?? Is the G80 using blue switches as well ?

By the way gratz Patrick and Iodine.

Yes, my G80 has blue switches too. I like blue Cherry switches so much that I bought a second G80 when they were still available. So currently, I have three keyboards that have blue Cherry MX switches.

[patrickgeekhack]

I would like to say that I had very good service from Metadot. The contact person kept me up to date through the whole process.

So far, I have had good service from suppliers South of the border. Elitekeyboards replied to all my questions as well. Gemini.com custom ordered one G80-3000 because they were out of stock. Shipping was fast and cheap, and use their own custom broker.  Unicomp had fast shipping as well.

[db_Iodine]

I think not bottoming out is like sleep and love. The harder you try, the less successful you'll be.

Might be true. I'll try not to focus on it too much.

[Senor_Cartmenez]

I think not bottoming out is like sleep and love. The harder you try, the less successful you'll be.

That's deep ^^

And true on so many levels

[woody]

The goal is accurate and comfortable typing.

Indeed. You should Wiki this.
________
Ford Territory picture

[patrickgeekhack]

That's deep ^^

And true on so many levels

LOL. I should probably not included love into this. This is certainly true for sleep.

[Senor_Cartmenez]

nah man, love fits

unless we are talking about man love (not to be confused with guy love) here.

I always hated to admit it but "not trying too hard" (which is not to be confused with not trying at all) is exactly what I was missing.
Sounds crazy, but letting a woman think that you couldn't care less about her once in a while works magic.

[patrickgeekhack]

nah man, love fits

unless we are talking about man love (not to be confused with guy love) here.

I always hated to admit it but "not trying too hard" (which is not to be confused with not trying at all) is exactly what I was missing.
Sounds crazy, but letting a woman think that you couldn't care less about her once in a while works magic.

The trick as in many things is moderation :-)

[elservo]

Glad to hear you like your new purchase, Patrick!  I find that the cherry blues grow with you and get easier and easier to actuate without any bottoming out, although I still do it from time to time, not that I care.  Cherry keys land a lot more gently than Alps switches.

My Filco switches are nice and broken in now and it's very smooth.  I feel like the cherry browns would be awesome to me as well, though I'd miss the clatter.  The steel plate will occasionally cause the switch springs to resonate kinda like a Model M, but it doesn't bother me at all.  

It's all Topre and Cherry Blue for me, which is just plain awesome.  They complement each other nicely.

[keyb_gr]

Cherry keys land a lot more gently than Alps switches.

Which to some makes all the difference between the top and bottom of the personal popularity scale. It certainly does for me.

[patrickgeekhack]

Glad to hear you like your new purchase, Patrick!  I find that the cherry blues grow with you and get easier and easier to actuate without any bottoming out, although I still do it from time to time, not that I care.  Cherry keys land a lot more gently than Alps switches.

My Filco switches are nice and broken in now and it's very smooth.  I feel like the cherry browns would be awesome to me as well, though I'd miss the clatter.  The steel plate will occasionally cause the switch springs to resonate kinda like a Model M, but it doesn't bother me at all.  

It's all Topre and Cherry Blue for me, which is just plain awesome.  They complement each other nicely.

Thanks. It's true that the blue Cherry grows with you indeed. I, too, have noticed that the more you use a blue  Cherry keyboard, the easier it becomes to not bottom out heavily or should I say that you automatically start to bottom out lightly. The blue Cherry IS my favourite switch.

I have been used my Das for a week now, and I can say that I love it. The best part of my day is when I need to type long sentences and get into a rythm. The sound is like music to my ear. I like it so much that I was debating whether I should have taken it home with me for the weekend.