Mechanical Keyboard with separate Volume Control?

[enhorning]

I am wanting to upgrade from my old G15 keyboard to a mechanical one. I do a lot of both gaming and typing, so from reading around, my impression is that Cherry MX Brown switches would be best for me. (Though I am a bit worried about the noise levels... are there any good mechanical keyboards for typing / gaming that do something to reduce noise levels?) Alternatively, people seem to praise the Topre keyboards, but I've not found much straight up comparison as far as feel and sound goes compared with the various Cherry MX models... which one of them would a Topre switch be most similar to?

I have great trouble finding a good mechanical keyboard that has a separate volume control on the keyboard, and ability to lock the Windows key, which are two important features for me (especially the volume control!)... the keyboards that claim volume control as a feature often fit it in by doubling up functionality on the F-keys.

If only the Corsair Vengeance K90 had been available with Cherry MX Brown switches, then that would have seemed like an excellent option for me... but it uses the MX Red switches, which are not very good for extended typing according to most opinions I've read.

Any suggestions on what to look at? Preferably available from European retailers...

[alaricljs]

Gigabyte Osmium it has MX reds, but has everything else you mentioned... wheel for the volume, and Winkey lockout.

[IvanIvanovich]

There is also the very ugly (well in my view) Azio Levetron 588U... which I am pretty sure comes in different switch option. As for reds, I use them as my primary keyboard and type on them all day long. They are my favorite by far. I find the light smooth action quite pleasant for extended use.

[FoxWolf1]

Maybe the new Matias Quiet Pro would be right for you? It has dedicated volume keys, silencing, and a tactile switch (good for typing). All it's missing is the windows lock.



Azio Levetron Mech5 has a volume control knob, windows lock, and many other features, but MX Black switches rather than brown.

Unfortunately, most "high-feature" keyboards tend to be gamer-oriented, which usually means MX Black or Red.

[kinruan]

Plu and keycool are the ones u are looking for. Both can lock win and have Fn+F to control media

[xenon_chris]

Had a test drive on a Gigabyte Osmium, very nice - loved the volume wheel, didn't get one due to the large size of the thing.

[dorkvader]

CMstorm QFR. Volume control, winkey locking, browns, etc.
There is NOTHING WRONG with using the F# keys for this. It's what F-keys are meant for.

If you want to go larger, buy a cherry G80-8113. With cherry tools, you can add volume control, turn off winkey, etc. You have a whole row of keys for this above the F# row that you can use for volume, etc.

[enhorning]

Maybe the new Matias Quiet Pro would be right for you? It has dedicated volume keys, silencing, and a tactile switch (good for typing). All it's missing is the windows lock.

That looks beautiful.  Seems UK / Nordic versions aren't available yet... and I couldn't find reviews of the keyboard either.  But so far, this looks like my best choice.

Does the silencing work reasonably well? 

How does a Nordic keyboard layout differ from a Swedish / Finnish one?  (I live in the UK currently, but am from Sweden, and will probably move back there in the future.)  Not that it's a big deal... as long as the shape / number of keys correspond, I can set either layout in the OS, I guess.  (I must admit, there is something very appealing about the Das Keyboard Ultimate... the cleanness of how it looks.)

[Matias]

Maybe the new Matias Quiet Pro would be right for you? It has dedicated volume keys, silencing, and a tactile switch (good for typing). All it's missing is the windows lock.

That looks beautiful.  Seems UK / Nordic versions aren't available yet... and I couldn't find reviews of the keyboard either.  But so far, this looks like my best choice.

Does the silencing work reasonably well?

You'll find reviews on the GH vendor forum...

http://geekhack.org/index.php?board=103.0

How does a Nordic keyboard layout differ from a Swedish / Finnish one?  (I live in the UK currently, but am from Sweden, and will probably move back there in the future.)

The Keyboard Company in the UK is arranging the Nordic layout.  I'm sure they'd be open to feedback...

http://www.keyboardco.com/keyboard_search.asp?SR=matias%20quiet%20pro&UI=matias.ca

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I'm sure there are plenty of ways to lock the Windows key. AutoHotkey is one, and once you have that you won't look back.

I don't lock the Windows key, I bind additional shortcuts to it :-)

[alaricljs]

Typically AHK can't lock the Win key in the apps that people find they want that situation (games that use directInput or whatever the current API is).  On the other hand, I haven't run into a game that freaks out on Winkey input in quite some time.

[xenon_chris]

Typically AHK can't lock the Win key in the apps that people find they want that situation (games that use directInput or whatever the current API is).  On the other hand, I haven't run into a game that freaks out on Winkey input in quite some time.

Eye quite a few games now seem to ignore it on their own behalf, always good for those that don't however.

Or Perhaps I should just learn to not mash the lower quadrant of my keyboard when I'm panicked

[dorkvader]

Typically AHK can't lock the Win key in the apps that people find they want that situation (games that use directInput or whatever the current API is).  On the other hand, I haven't run into a game that freaks out on Winkey input in quite some time.

Can't you just disable it with cherry tools?

[alaricljs]

Wouldn't that require a Cherry board that supports it?  I'm not familiar with what Cherry Tools is capable of.

[sordna]

This Shogun tenkeyless keyboard seems to have dedicated volume control keys:

http://www.amazon.com/Shogun-Bros-Portable-Mechanical-Keyboard/dp/B008TN8A5M
http://www.amazon.com/Shogun-Portable-Mechanical-Gaming-Keyboard/dp/B008I21E8Y

It comes with cherry reds or blacks though. By the way, if you haven't tried the various cherry switches, don't rule out the linear ones. All I do on my keyboards is type, and I much prefer reds and even blacks over browns.

[enhorning]

This Shogun tenkeyless:

Unfortunately, I do need the number pad, both for typing (windows alt-codes) and gaming.

It comes with cherry reds or blacks though. By the way, if you haven't tried the various cherry switches, don't rule out the linear ones.

Yeah, I wish there was an easy way to actually try out various keyboards without buying them... as it is, feels as if I have to make a guess as to what would be good for me and hope for luck.

[daerid]

Why not just get something like a Griffin Owermate for volume control?