Could this be the BEST backlit TKL ever released.......

[terran5992]

It looks like a great keyboard, but will there be demand for a TKL that costs $150?

If you guys make a TKL with cherry rgb and proper media keys I will be all over that board.

yep, they have their strength, the exclusive RGB switch, the alu top-plate design, the scrolling volume control,... but the keycaps and layout ruined it all

The RGB is not even released yet

[Canious]

Seems legit, the key caps tho... dang

[bazh]

It looks like a great keyboard, but will there be demand for a TKL that costs $150?

If you guys make a TKL with cherry rgb and proper media keys I will be all over that board.

yep, they have their strength, the exclusive RGB switch, the alu top-plate design, the scrolling volume control,... but the keycaps and layout ruined it all

The RGB is not even released yet

yep, next year as I remember right

[ricercar]

MaxKeyboard has a 20% off special until Dec 26
enter the following promotional code
MKCHRISTMAS2013



http://www.maxkeyboard.com/index.php?dispatch=promotions.list

[tbc]

I'm not sure why geekhackers always insist on every keyboard being the same....

Cherry font
Doubleshot
No usb
No backlight  (this one baffles me more than quantum physics)

We have Korean customs here that are FARRRRR superior to anything a company will ever produce.  Ever. you will never see 7 lbs aluminum cases in popular numbers on retail shelves; or on shelves at all actually.

Or your know. Something reasonably priced like a filco with a custom keycap set.

What benefit do we get if corsair listens to the suggestions here and makes an exact copy of a filco?

It really feels like the only thing that goes on in these threads with reps is us telling them to make limitededitions with GMK keysets because we can't make MOQ on our own.  I'm not saying that's wrong of us to ask, but maybe we should just give up pretending that's not our primary motivator?

EDIT:

But really, please switch to a normal bottom row and give us better TKLs.

I'm not sure why nobody has capitalized on the 'tkl for closer mouse and faster gaming' or something corny like that.

[terran5992]

MaxKeyboard has a 20% off special until Dec 26
enter the following promotional code
MKCHRISTMAS2013



http://www.maxkeyboard.com/index.php?dispatch=promotions.list

umm wrong section?

[Photoelectric]

I'm not sure why geekhackers always insist on every keyboard being the same....

Cherry font
Doubleshot
No usb
No backlight  (this one baffles me more than quantum physics)

I have no idea where you are pulling this generalization from--lots of people here like backlit keyboard options, myself included.  Even in this thread people brought up RGB LEDs as being a positive.  What's wrong with doubleshots?..  Or other durable good looking caps, such as thick dye sub PBT?  The no USB part is personal preference.

[Findecanor]

Don't forget the USB hub. You could knock a few dollars off there too. If you must insist on one at least make it USB3.

I read somewhere that if one device in the chain is only "full-speed", then the entire chain is restricted to being "full-speed" anyway and supporting USB 3.0 would not win you anything. I have not read up enough on the USB protocol to verify this, though...

However, they could have done like some other keyboards and embedded USB cables inside a thick cable, where one is only USB 3.0 passthrough to the hub. The cable would have been thick and there would have been two USB plugs at the host's end.

Also most TKLs are 14". The Blackbird is 14.75". Why?

The borders are thicker. That is probably for the ambient light that shines out through the transparent sides. There must be space for the light from the LEDs to disperse and diffuse.

[Findecanor]

Cherry font

It's not the font, it's the keycaps that the legends are on. The font needs to be Cherry's only for adapter kits and replica kits.

Doubleshot

Durability. We see this in vintage keyboards that have wear. Those that have fared best were those that had doubleshot-moulded or dye-sublimated keys.

Most keycaps for backlighting are not very durable and the opaque part of the keycap wears off, letting more light shine through. Also, the surface counting does not feel good enough for the connoisseurs...
The exception are those that are double-shot moulded (like Max Keyboards', Deck's Francium and Hassium).

No usb

I think those who are die-hard PS/2 fans are in a very small minority.
There is the conception that PS/2 has lower latency than USB, but in reality, if a USB keyboard was not cheaply made and the controller firmware was not written by a chimp, then it would be just as fast as PS/2 for all intents and purposes.
There are some bad USB drivers out there though, and for those systems, PS/2 might be a better choice.

No backlight  (this one baffles me more than quantum physics)

Other qualities of the keycaps are more important than backlight. If you can type without looking, then you often won't need legends at all.

[BucklingSpring]

wonder if they use the same company as deck is using for theirs?

The Max' design is quite different than Deck's keycaps... I think they come from different places.

To bad the Max was not available few weeks ago. I would of got the TKL from Max and the full size from Deck instead of one Hassium and one Francium.

[ricercar]

Merry Christmas to me. Decided to try the Maxkeyboard TKL "Blackbird" with Brown MX and red backlight. First impressions are that it's nice and solid, no sense of wiggle or give or PCB flex as I type, unlike many boards. I like typing on it. I like the weight, and the lines, the aesthetics, are pleasing. The backlight is not too bright, even in the highest setting, yet backlighting is visible in a sunlit room:



Cons: The backlight controls are far more customizable than I'll ever need; overly complex IMHO. I had to RTFM just to turn them on without pulsing.  And the legends on the key caps, UG! The shifted legends on the number row are too close to the numerals. The characters are like stencils, with D and O for example showing hairlines supporting the center fill. The key with zero on it looks like three parenthesis ()). TG3/Deck backlit key caps have much better design, even with the atrocious Deck font...

I may do a full review later after I've used it for a while.

[AJCarrington]

I picked one of these up over Christmas as well...absolutely love it. Only thing I would do to change/improve would be to get a red switch version.

[Coreda]

Is there a list somewhere of TKL boards with backlighting?

Wish there was a wiki with pictures, info, availability, etc of all these boards. Being able to compare them all in one spot is what I need.

[Canious]

Hmm that is a pretty hard toss up... between ducky or this at the price range

[laffindude]

wonder if they use the same company as deck is using for theirs?

The Max' design is quite different than Deck's keycaps... I think they come from different places.

To bad the Max was not available few weeks ago. I would of got the TKL from Max and the full size from Deck instead of one Hassium and one Francium.

I already mentioned who made this in a previous thread.

[MKULTRA]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

[bazh]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

yep, Cherry stab

[Linkbane]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

Backlit = Cherry in all cases so far.

[Photoelectric]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

Backlit = Cherry in all cases so far.

Except with WASD Code.  It uses some sort of modified Costar stabilizers to work with LEDs.

[bazh]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

Backlit = Cherry in all cases so far.

Check the MaxKeyboard NightHawk

[Linkbane]

Wow a normal layout.  That is nice.  What kind of stabs?  Cherry I presume?

Backlit = Cherry in all cases so far.

Except with WASD Code.  It uses some sort of modified Costar stabilizers to work with LEDs.

Interesting, I didn't know. By the way, I've never had a costar board personally, but how does one make normal keycaps fit onto them?

[tbc]

those white peg things.

you have to hook the bar on one side, then hook the bar on the other side, and THEN press down onto the switch itself.

whereas on cherry stabs, you just line up the 3 strms and press down.

[Linkbane]

those white peg things.

you have to hook the bar on one side, then hook the bar on the other side, and THEN press down onto the switch itself.

whereas on cherry stabs, you just line up the 3 stems and press down.

Thank you kindly. Never knew how those things worked.

[rowdy]

those white peg things.

you have to hook the bar on one side, then hook the bar on the other side, and THEN press down onto the switch itself.

whereas on cherry stabs, you just line up the 3 stems and press down.

Thank you kindly. Never knew how those things worked.

And in case you find yourself having to put the inserted into a keycap, they are not symmetrical, and the bit that stick out should point towards the top of the keyboard, where the function keys are.

[Linkbane]

And in case you find yourself having to put the inserted into a keycap, they are not symmetrical, and the bit that stick out should point towards the top of the keyboard, where the function keys are.

Ah, thanks rowdy. By the way, do you know where I might get some?

[rowdy]

And in case you find yourself having to put the inserted into a keycap, they are not symmetrical, and the bit that stick out should point towards the top of the keyboard, where the function keys are.

Ah, thanks rowdy. By the way, do you know where I might get some?

http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/products/keyboard-parts/cherry-mx-keycap-stabilizer-insert-2pcs.html#ad-image-0

[Linkbane]

And in case you find yourself having to put the inserted into a keycap, they are not symmetrical, and the bit that stick out should point towards the top of the keyboard, where the function keys are.

Ah, thanks rowdy. By the way, do you know where I might get some?

http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/products/keyboard-parts/cherry-mx-keycap-stabilizer-insert-2pcs.html#ad-image-0

Oooh, cool. Thanks for the help!

[TheSoulhunter]

I've never used the USB-hubs on any of my keyboards, never really seen the need to be honest

I'd actually want one or two because i'm too lazy to go to the computer and plug it in, the board's right there

What could you have to plug?

flash drive, extra mouse, numpad,

Extra mouse?

sometimes you need to plug in another mouse for various reasons and that's really handy

Why do you need more than one mouse at a time?

I have connected two mice all the time...
- G9 at high DPI for GUI/OS use (the scroll-wheel left/right-click is sooo nice for switching tabs)
- Deathadder at low DPI for gaming (perfect shape, consistent sensor and good "dumbed down" design)

[ygohome]

My dad's Max Blackbird (brown switches) arrived today.    I've only used it myself for about 10 minutes.    I wont be typing a review just yet since I've not had much time to spend with it.   But first impressions are good.  No real big complaints.  Feels very comfortable to type.

I'm new to mechanical keyboards.   My only other mechanical keyboard is a Corsair k70, which I got just a couple weeks ago.   That said, the build quality of the blackbird is excellent as far as I can tell.  I don't have any issues with the blackbird in regards to build quality.   
 


Cons are a bit subjective, so here are a few "observances":
 
-Some letters, number, symbols, etc that have a closed loop (such as O, 0, p, a, B, 9,...) they have tiny line traces connecting the closed loops.  So the number 0 kindof looks like ().  Sorry if I'm not making sense.  Please check the attached photos.   I'm not sure why they did the font that way, but it may have to do with the process they use for the double shot molds.  Still looks really nice to me though.  If my dad comes asking me where the 0 key is I'm going to laugh.
 
-The rear legs do not have rubber feet.  It doesn't affect my dad as he is not a heavy handed typer, and definitely does not game.  In the short time I used it (10 minutes) it didn't slide on me either.  But the keyboard may slide a little if you are in an intense game battle.   A possible solution would be to fold the legs down (easy solution!), or brush/dab a little bit of liquid electrical tape onto the base of the feet and let that dry.   That will give the feet the rubber grip on the desk.  I don't think my dad will need that though.
 
-The caps-lock LED light.  It is directly above the HOME key and below the SCROLL LOCK key.  The LEDs placement hides it behind the HOME key and mostly hidden from view when sitting away from the keyboard in a normal typing position.   I know that doesn't sound like a big deal, but it is to my dad.  He likes/needs to see when his CAPs key is enabled.   Dad says it will be fine though.
 
- Backlight Sleep Mode.  You can set it to 5 - 15 - 30 minutes before entering sleep mode... or just leave it lit all the time without sleeping, which is how we have it set.  To wake from sleep mode though requires pressing FN+INSERT.  It would be nice if it would wake simply by typing anything instead of having to press the specific key combo.  Not a big deal though.
 
 
Pros:
 
The Pros are obvious.  Looks good, feels good, quality appears to be top notch.   You can see that the keys have a nice little texture to them.  Also, Space bar actuates from the ends as well as it does when hitting it dead center.  What else can I say?  The USB hub is handy for my dad's quickbook backups to thumb drive.

[berserkfan]

I'm not sure why geekhackers always insist on every keyboard being the same....

EDIT:

But really, please switch to a normal bottom row and give us better TKLs.

This is one of the simplest requests to practically all non-standard keyboard makers. It is my great hope that they all change to just 1-3 standard bottom row layouts across the entire industry. That would make things much easier for us.

[FoxWolf1]

I'm not sure why geekhackers always insist on every keyboard being the same....

EDIT:

But really, please switch to a normal bottom row and give us better TKLs.

This is one of the simplest requests to practically all non-standard keyboard makers. It is my great hope that they all change to just 1-3 standard bottom row layouts across the entire industry. That would make things much easier for us.

Am I the only person who actually likes to see keyboards experimenting with non-standard key sizes?

My view is that, so long as keycaps are strong enough that they don't actually break, and you're not looking to change the profiles of the keys, the ability to replace them falls into the category of "form" rather than "function". Lettering wearing off, keycaps becoming shiny, etc. are just matters of appearance, and so I assign these problems relatively low importance compared to attributes that might affect the performance of the keyboard at some task or tasks. Not zero importance; I mean sure, replacing worn keycaps and customizing appearance is nice and all, I guess. But innovation with regards to layouts at least has the potential to produce functional benefits, so I think that it should be encouraged, even if that's not good for the aesthetic stuff.

[ChronoBodi]

That's interesting that you say that, James, because Corsair mice went for close to $100 (before inevitably sales and discounts make them cheaper with time).  So if you can sell a mouse for that much, can you not sell a keyboard + wrist rest for $150 nominal price (likely less on sales)?  If you advertise it as being durable (mechanical + better quality keycaps), have full backlight + unusual side backlight that gamers might like + wrist rest, then it's going to appeal to people.  A 3000MHz RAM is truly niche because of how little noticeable difference it makes in performance.  Peripherals get a lot of use, so aesthetics as well as quality/tactile experience are more important there and people might be willing to pay more.

+1

iirc corsair boards cost 100+ which is outside of the range of a lot of people who don't know truely how good mechs are

Yea, my first mech keyboard was a Corsair k60, you can imagine how that went. All was bliss til i touched the function keys and l knew i got ripped off. I don't care what their reasoning is, i got a mech to be all mech,  not to feel crap rubber mushy keys again.

Annnnnd i got a CM Storm Quickfire XT brown, much better..... then i noticed Clears and i'm getting a Clear switch Keycool 108. How the hell i get into keyboards in the first place.... i dunno.

[gh_pp]

looks pretty legit to me, better than the ducky shine 

http://www.maxkeyboard.com/max-keyboard-blackbird-tenkeyless-tkl-cherry-mx-backlit-mechanical-keyboard.html

[katushkin]

Hmmm.

I like the caps and the backlighting customisation, but I don't think I would be able to justify that price.

Why not get a KC 87 instead? Backlights (admittedly just with brightness control), PBT caps, and a choice of five switches. Available in white or black, and under or around $100.

*shrug*

[MissMurd3r84]

Hmmm.

I like the caps and the backlighting customisation, but I don't think I would be able to justify that price.

Why not get a KC 87 instead? Backlights (admittedly just with brightness control), PBT caps, and a choice of five switches. Available in white or black, and under or around $100.

*shrug*

The KC had backlight and PBT caps? 
The MAX keyboard has a lot of customisation options and I dare say is better build quality than KC. In the end, comes down to personal preference.