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Author Topic: CM QuickFire or KBT Race?  (Read 3204 times)

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Offline gorky

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 14:06:57 »
Hello,

almost a year on GH and still not having any mechanical keyboard - this must finally change! But I need your advice...

I can pay up to 100€ (~135$) inc. shipping to EU. I do not need numpad and LEDs under keys, but I think I need F-keys and I am used to PgUp/PgDown, so I have excluded KBT Pure. I mostly write text, and only sometimes play WoT.

My types are:
- CM QuickFire (seems like I can get it for 115$ shipped)
- KBT Race (~135$ shipped)
Any other types? Any advices?

Thanks in advance :)
« Last Edit: Sun, 01 April 2012, 15:07:15 by gorky »
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Offline thegunner100

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #1 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 18:15:43 »
I'd say the Quickfire for the reasons mentioned above, and for a more standard layout that you can buy keycap sets for.
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Offline Exort

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #2 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 18:22:52 »
Quote from: dante;563827
between those two I'd go for the CM QuickFire.  I was window shopping at Microcenter today and was surprised that they had one.  I quite like the rubber coating and while the font on the keys may be somewhat offensive had a good feel to them.

Either Filco is way over priced or we'll start seeing QC issues pop up in the coming months with the CM.  Amazing quality for the price.

It is done by the same manufacturer,costar, therefore I assume not.
I think Filco is just overpriced, too.
Also income Ripster bashing us for say this in 5, 4, 3...

Edit: Typed this on a Filco tenkeyless blue.
« Last Edit: Sun, 01 April 2012, 18:27:52 by Exort »
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Offline NYC

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #3 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 20:42:13 »
quickfire seems really nice, about to get it myself with reds
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Offline mkawa

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #4 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 22:07:41 »
unless you want a slightly smaller board with backlighting, go for the QF
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Offline tp4tissue

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #5 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 22:17:01 »
Quote from: NYC;564004
quickfire seems really nice, about to get it myself with reds

Have u tried the reds before?  the lack of tactility really cuts into accuracy for some people. buy the k60 off amazon, or something, and return it if you dont' like reds.
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #6 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 23:55:29 »
I am going to a Microcenter for the first time in the morning and intend to look at keyboards.  Spent some time looking up reviews of their mechanicals (in stock in Denver) and comparing to reviews here.  Might be my only chance to type on any Cherry MX other than a Razer for years as nothing else seems to be sold in MS.

It looked like the Quickfire might be a perfect starter for me, so perhaps for as well.  At present I have an old off brand buckling spring and a Rosewill scissor switch. ...but typing this on a tablet, hah.  Intend to test everything though to get a feel for different types of switches.

The only other in stock that I saw with good reviews was the Thermaltake MEKA.
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Offline metafour

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #7 on: Sun, 01 April 2012, 23:58:26 »
Quote from: CheddarTrek;564263
I am going to a Microcenter for the first time in the morning and intend to look at keyboards.  Spent some time looking up reviews of their mechanicals (in stock in Denver) and comparing to reviews here.  Might be my only chance to type on any Cherry MX other than a Razer for years as nothing else seems to be sold in MS.

It looked like the Quickfire might be a perfect starter for me, so perhaps for as well.  At present I have an old off brand buckling spring and a Rosewill scissor switch. ...but typing this on a tablet, hah.  Intend to test everything though to get a feel for different types of switches.

The only other in stock that I saw with good reviews was the Thermaltake MEKA.

Oh man, too bad I just bought them all from that store earlier today.
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #8 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:01:22 »
I will find you and ...acquire one.   ;)

Haha, but yeah, wanted something fairly cheap that I could try first rather than buying a kind of switch never used.
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Offline metafour

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #9 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:03:21 »
I've got Blacks and Reds but I imagine they have those there for you to try.
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #10 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:14:16 »
Hope so!  I do casual gaming but more typing, so I am hoping I will find something. Guessing I will like blues, reds, or browns.   If I do not buy tomorrow at least I will have a feel for the kind of switch I want when I buy used here, haha.
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Offline metafour

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #11 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:15:59 »
If you decide you want a Red switch board I have a Leopold Tenkeyless that was my first board I could part with. I'm North of Denver.
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #12 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:21:16 »
Flight leaves at four, will get to Microcenter around eleven or twelve, hah.  Not a lot of time!  Been skiing in Summit County, only in Denver for airport or I would take you up on that.  Thanks. :)
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Offline metafour

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #13 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:23:30 »
Nice! I was up at Breck for the beginning of the week. Injured my back doing a switch 180 off a little kicker in the middle of a run on Peak 10. Last run of the vacation. Hopefully not my last run of this season though.
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #14 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:27:18 »
Ouch!  Hope you recover in time to ski more.  I split time between Breck and Copper... Some kind of competition there at Copper today for kids.  Saw a boy who could not have been more than ten carrying around a giant check for three thousand.  Fun times.
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Offline kolinahr

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #15 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:37:16 »
Is the Quickfire a standard layout? I.e. could I put an 87-cap set on it without problems?
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Offline mkawa

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #16 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:38:15 »
yep
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Offline kolinahr

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #17 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:42:33 »
Thanks mate - I am looking for a tenkeyless to put that Exocet groupbuy on (I know it's a fair way off still). I'm looking at this and a leopold tenkeyless.
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Offline mkawa

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #18 on: Mon, 02 April 2012, 00:45:15 »
cream cheeseeeee
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Offline CheddarTrek

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #19 on: Tue, 03 April 2012, 00:25:31 »
Huh, weird -- took me a bit to get back to this thread.  For some reason the "latest posts" link on my Profile page wasn't bringing anything I posted in here up, just some stuff from December.

At any rate -- Microcenter wasn't quite what I expected.  I was expecting there to be keyboards set out for people to play with/test.  As it was I felt like I was doing something wrong by opening the boxes to type on the keyboards, plus I was mostly sitting on the ground with the keyboard/box in my lap trying to get a feel for how it typed.

I tested Blues, Blacks, and Reds.  I liked the Red best for typing (I think), and typing is more important to me than gaming proficiency.  I didn't like the required "click" that the blues gave, and the blacks seemed like they'd be a bit rougher for extended typing sessions.

I still want to try Browns though (& Clears/Whites, or whatever they are).

Also the CM Quickfire was my favorite board of the ones I saw, by far, despite having Blue switches (they didn't have the Red in stock that I could find, and I don't think Browns are available easily in the US?).

Thanks for the comments guys!

...now, to go read up on how most people compare Browns to Reds...
« Last Edit: Tue, 03 April 2012, 00:32:18 by CheddarTrek »
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Offline mkawa

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #20 on: Tue, 03 April 2012, 02:04:53 »
that is kind of weird. just buy something dude.
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Offline xquisit

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #21 on: Tue, 03 April 2012, 15:05:26 »
I, too, had to open up boxes at the store (FRYs)... Well, they opened it for me.  Furthermore, I tried the same exact keys as you did & left with the thought of wanting to try browns & clears.  I thought black would be a pain to type on, and reds were missing something (In addition, I was worried about mis-clicks). Finally, I tried blues and liked te tactile feedback and noise; My only concerns, using it in public places and wondering if browns were for me or not (I heard they are more "light," but I was afraid of the "gritty" feeling people talked about).  Lastly, my two choices for a first mechanical keyboard were the same as yourself.  I didn't want the logos of the quickfire (I believe, I was going for cherry mx reds with this board), but I did like the budget aspect (along with the mediocre quality comments from owners).  I decided to double my budget, and buy a cherry mx blue RACE (with blue LEDs) along with 40a o-rings & a RACE specific white key set. I can't wait to receive it!
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Offline mkawa

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CM QuickFire or KBT Race?
« Reply #22 on: Tue, 03 April 2012, 15:45:52 »
the problem is really that you can't tell how you feel about anything so tactile without using it for a while. imo the best plan for these things is to find something that seems tolerable and feels right "on paper" and just buy it, use it for a while, and move on if you end up wanting something else.

i mean, even if you did decide on an "optimal switch" at the store, and it worked really well for you for a few months, it's possible your typing workload could change after then (eg, more or less gaming) anyway: carpe diem and so on!
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