Hello, geeks. I am in the market for a new keyboard, and I'm considering getting a mechanical one. I used to have a Saitek Cyborg keyboard. After five or so years, some of the keycaps have been sweated right off, and the snap has gone out of the rubber domes. A few days ago, I got a Microsoft SideWinder x6, and I liked it even less than the Cyborg. The key travel is much less than the Cyborg, it's similar to a notebook/laptop keyboard. Also, the angle to the desk is nearly flat, as it lacks feet, and I had the Cyborg up to the maximum before. Finally, the layout is subtly nonstandard...I keep ending up hitting S6/S12 macro key instead of Left Ctrl, and F1 instead of Esc. The things I like about it are the switchable numpad, which I like having on the left side because: a) My hands aren't all squished together when my hand is on the mouse and the other is on the numpad; b) The edge of the standard keyboard is much closer to the mouse; c) The way the desk and monitor are set up, it centers the board better to make typing more comfortable. I also like the big volume knob.
Now...the force and travel on the Cyborg is quite nice for me, the SideWinder's is too light. I'll admit, I'm a bit ham-fisted and am pretty heavy-handed with my typing. I did the nickel test as I've read here, and on various keys it took 12 nickels to actuate them, which is guess would be 60 grams.
I want to use this keyboard for gaming. My build has a GTX 570, 12GB of DDR3-1600, and an i7-950 at 4.0GHz, liquid cooled. So, it can crunch whatever I want to throw at it. However, I also run a game server, and need to do rapid typing in IM to the users to fix problems and such. English in college is coming up as well, and I will need to type essays.
This is making me think a Cherry MX Black is for me, being 60 grams and all. I sort of want a tactile switch though. I've heard using the Black described as pushing a firm sponge, which is a sensation I don't think I would enjoy. Being a rubber dome user all my life, I would certainly miss the confirming feeling of the dome collapsing/popping inside out. Still, with a mechanical switch with tactility, if I were to double-tap or float a key, I would be worried about the reset point of the switch, a non-issue for a rubber dome or non-tactile mechanical switch. I would consider the MX Brown, but it seems too light. The MX Clear looks good, but boards with them in it are virtually non-existent.
So, I was thinking of the AZIO Levetron Mech4. In my eyes it's everything the SideWinder should have been. Though, it uses the old style L-shaped Enter key and half-size Backspace, but nothing's perfect.
If there's any other suggestions around the $100 mark, go ahead and shoot.
