This is pretty long-winded, so there's a Tl;Dr at the bottom if you're
lazy short on time.
Well, my board arrived a couple hours ago and I wanted to convey my impressions. This is the first mechanical keyboard I've purchased, but I gained a couple cumulative hours of experience on someone else's Rosewill RK-9100BR (the "BR" meaning that it has MX Brown switches). I'll talk about it before getting to the Ducky, so you know where I'm coming from. I didn't care for the Rosewill. The Browns are just too light and seemed gritty rather than tactile; the coating on the keys (it's a back-lit model) didn't feel right to me -- too dry, like a chalkboard, or matte black car primer that's been in the sun for two years without receiving its top coat; and the overall feel of typing on it was, for lack of a better term, "hollow," though I've read that this is a typical assessment of Browns made by those who are accustomed to rubber dome keyboards and is related to bottoming out on a plate-mounted switch. The minimal "dirty" tactile feedback, however, is something that I think would always make me crinkle my nose at the MX Browns. For light switches, Reds or Ergo-Clears would be a welcome alternative to the Browns' middle ground. That is, of course, if I could learn to type on the keys rather than attack them. I bottomed out constantly on the Rosewill, and strongly feel that some O-rings or Landing Pads would improve it immensely; but in the end, I think I'm just a heavy-handed typist in need of a switch that offers more resistance. I was delighted, then, to see this Ducky introduced with the MX Green switches, but apprehensive due to my general lack of experience.
My fears that the 80cN actuation threshold would be too much are now put to rest. When I die, I will be buried with this keyboard!
Regarding construction and materials, the board itself is remarkably sturdy. I could easily use this to bludgeon my neighbor's annoying yappy dog into a permanent silence, but I love animals (usually more than I love humans) and I don't want to have to clean blood and fur off my new computer peripheral. The texture on the touch surface of the PBT key caps is great -- just the right amount of friction to provide grip while still allowing fluid motion.
As for the switches and the typing experience, the transition from my previous keyboards to this one will be totally seamless and enjoyable. There won't be much of a learning curve; nothing to get used to. I'm already in love!
My previous keyboard experiences have been with (1) the generic standard-issue cheapie that came with this desktop PC; (2) a Logitech Wave which replaced that one and lasted a little over three years; and (3) a G-110 that was sitting in the Ducky's place this morning. I also have a Lenovo laptop, and although I really like the "crunchy" keyboard that Lenovo's are known for, I wanted more screen real estate and hooked up a 19" monitor to it... which then meant I'd also need a keyboard and mouse. Last year (before I "discovered" mechanical keyboards) I picked up a Logitech Illuminated keyboard. It has scissor keys and a very low profile, making it quite similar to a laptop keyboard, and typing on it is quite nice, but the key caps are made of really pathetic, flimsy plastic. "How flimsy and pathetic?" you ask. Ya know those SOLO brand cups you get beer in at a party? The ones that are red on the outside and white on the inside? The keys on the illuminated Logitech feel like that crap, but just a tiny bit thicker. And you don't even get any beer. Very disappointing considering the cost of the unit and the fact that the rest of the board is actually pretty nice. I was interested in MX Clears because of that board (and would probably love Light Greys) -- it has very pronounced tactile feedback and is fun to type on. My new Ducky, however, is superior to all of them, though this comes as no surprise.
The MX Green switches are in fact quite easy for me to actuate, but the difference between them and the MX Browns on the Rosewill I encountered previously is very, VERY noticeable! The Browns feel like they'd actuate in response to a hard stare, but these Green babies push back against my fingertips with a deliberate, springy pressure and provide very satisfying audible and tactile feedback. If I were writing up an advertisement for keyboards with MX Green switches, I'd use adjectives like "Tight, Smooth Action" "Crisp Response," "Snappy," "Precise," and
"Exquisitely Refined." Also, I can relate to what VesperSAINT mentioned in his review about the increased stiffness at the bottom of these switches. Upon reading that, I was afraid I might find them "muddy," as some people have reported regarding Clears, but I wouldn't use that term to describe Greens at all. After the audible click and tactile bump that denotes actuation of the switch, the resistance does increase dramatically, but does not become what I would ever call mushy or squishy. The range of resistance offered by the spring in the Green switch is easy to notice when I press a key very slowly: if I stop depressing the key immediately after it actuates and then begin to reduce the downward force I'm applying, the force with which the switch presses back is rather gentle; but if I continue pressing to the end of the key stroke (i.e., bottom out), the upward force applied to my fingertip by the switch is much greater, much more... urgent. Thus, MX Green switches are not suitable at all for games or applications that require the user to hold down a key(s), but the strong resistance might make double-tapping quite easy, though I don't think I'm qualified to assess hysteresis, nor can I find a force graph. The effect during rapid touch-typing, however, is that this essentially solves my problem with the lightness of the MX Browns. The extra resistance that occurs in the Green switches after the click-bump is the perfect signal to someone just starting out with mechanical keyboards after spending years on rubber domes that they are approaching the bottom of the down-stroke, and that it's time to ease off and move on to the next key. In time, the click-bump itself will be the transition signal, as it's meant to be. I still bottom out quite often, probably due to my lack of experience, but it isn't as jarring and noisy as it was with the Browns of the Rosewill; I'm more accurate and not as clumsy. It won't be long before I learn to type on this keyboard without bottoming out at all. At that point, I may find the lighter switches more tolerable, but I doubt I'll ever stop loving the
Green! (I may be new at GH, but I've been surfing the forums enough over the last week or two to recognize some of my own
kind here
)
The Ducky DK9008G2 Pro Limited Edition PBT with Cherry MX Green switches exudes presence & personality when I type on it; it
engages the user in a warm and welcoming way. It speaks to me. What does it say? "Don't just pound on me like a typical, bland
input device; like I'm some drugged-out, disinterested ****. That's not me! I want you to
interact with me. I'm a sprightly, 20-something nymphomaniac who eats Ecstasy like Skittles and I want your fingers ALL. OVER. ME!"
OK, maybe I've crossed into the territory of being a little too much of a fanboi. Sorry. I'll calm down in a couple days.
[/wall of text]
Tl;Dr -- If you're contemplating the purchase of a keyboard with MX Greens, stop thinking about it and get one now. You will not regret it! I especially recommend them to those who've exclusively used rubber domes in the past because you can bottom out on a board like this without getting the feeling that you're abusing it and injuring your own fingers. I also feel that MX Greens (or Light Greys) are great for newbs (like me) to learn how to
not bottom out any more. Spectacular for typing, but may be problematic for some games.
