Author Topic: Need some advice for choosing a keyboard (Read 10126 times)

liorde · « **on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 06:16:43 »

Hello all,

I would like to use some expert's advice here in order to help me choose my next keyboard.
Please here me out...:-)
I am a programmer. I became tired of the cheap plasticy 100gr weight keybaords a long time ago.
So, I brought my old & trusty Model M to work. My co-workers did not like that, not one bit. (remind you of someone...? Joker from Dark Knight)
So that was a no-no for the Model M. I went and bought the ABS M1 keyboard. I like the key layout very much, the keyboard does not weigh anough for my taste, and the keys are still a bit noisy for some of my cubicle friends...

What are my options? I have tried my old USA made, SGI keyboard, using white ALPS switches, it is silent enough but I do not know what happened to it. The keys are not responsive like they used to be. It can take a few attempts before I can actually register a keystroke...They became stiff...

I was looking at elitekeyboards web site, for a new keyboard. I have talked to their sales person they told me that what I need is a LINEAR Filco or a TOPRE which is the most silent keyboard.

I am open to suggestions from the forum users (any suggestion, just not rubber dome again...), please advise what to do.

Thank-you for reading..!!!

ch_123 · « **Reply #1 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 06:33:18 »

If silence is a must, either brown Cherry switches or Topres are what you need. However, you said that the Alps don't weigh enough. Both the brown Cherrys and Topres are very soft switches (they're about 45g, whereas the Model M would be 65-70g) so you're going to have to learn to deal with light keys if you want a quiet mechanical board. Oddly enough, I would have recommended the ABS M1 as a reasonably good compromise between noise and firm key feel.

Incidentally, I don't think you'd want a linear (black Cherry) Filco. These are switches that lack any tactile 'bump' when you press them, and are also very stiff. They're good for gaming, but not pleasant for typing on. I've never used them, but I've used stiff linear boards from the 1970s and didn't like them (soft of the soft ones were actually passable though, but Filco doesn't sell soft linear switches)

timw4mail · « **Reply #2 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 06:55:01 »

Well, the only other switch type I can think of is the white Cherry Switches. These have the stiffness of the black switches, with the tactility of the browns. If you can find a keyboard with these, you'd probably like them.

ch_123 · « **Reply #3 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:03:01 »

I think the whites are for spacebars only. Their resistance is actually 20g higher than that of a Black. At around 80g, they would be unpleasantly stiff. Unless you mean the clear switches, which are like the brown switches, except with resistance between that of a blue and a black. They are quite hard to find however.

timw4mail · « **Reply #4 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:06:14 »

Quote from: ch_123;103715

I think the whites are for spacebars only. Their resistance is actually 20g higher than that of a Black. At around 80g, they would be unpleasantly stiff. Unless you mean the clear switches, which are like the brown switches, except with resistance between that of a blue and a black. They are quite hard to find however.

Clear/white, When I pulled the keycap off of one of these boards, it was white. Deck has them (on their tactile boards), otherwise I'm not sure.

Unless iRocks has a model with them, which I'm not sure of.

ch_123 · « **Reply #5 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:22:30 »

Well, there are white switches and then there are clear switches, so you need to distinguish between them. Again, if they're only 55g, would they be enough for someone who thinks Alps are too light?

@OP: When you said the ABS M1 was too light, did you mean that they keys were too easy to press, or that there wasnt enough feedback from them?

keyb_gr · « **Reply #6 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:23:30 »

Quote from: ch_123;103712

Incidentally, I don't think you'd want a linear (black Cherry) Filco. These are switches that lack any tactile 'bump' when you press them, and are also very stiff.

I'd say they're OK. Not spectacular, but certainly usable and nicer than Cherry MY or (pre-worn) Acer key modules. Plus it's almost impossible to wear them out (they only become smoother and a little softer eventually). Force rises from about 40 to 80 cN, with a nominal activation point of 60 cN.

Clears are my alternative to Model Ms for noise-sensitive places. They're not much louder than blacks but tactile. Not a bad option if you find blues or browns too light.

Concerning the SGI board, I'd try giving it a good workout. The switches may come back to life then. I'd guess there is some oxide layer on the contact surfaces that wants to be worn off.

liorde · « **Reply #7 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:30:52 »

Thank-you for the prompt relies ..!

When I said the M1 is not heavy enough, I meant that the keyboard itslef is not that heavy. Not the keys, they are OK for me.
I like the keyboard weight of the Model M and the SGI.
The White Alps on the SGI became stiff, meaning that when I really get going on the typing, if I hit a key not exactly on the middle,
which happens a lot, it actually does not go down. I must hit the key in the middle for it to go down and register...
Do you have to oil these switches?? I guess they became dirty or something.

I do not know what all these Cherry switches are, brown, blue, white...? Where do I obtain them...?
What are the switches on the ABS M1?

Oh, I am looking for a full keybaord, not the shortened one like HHKB and such...

Thanks again !

ch_123 · « **Reply #8 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:38:40 »

The ABS M1 use Black Alps switches. If you like them, you'd probably like the Dell AT101W (EDIT: Wait, you have an SGI version. The Dell ones are somewhat louder, but they're easier to find in brand new condition) which use older Alps switches which are considered to be of higher quality. The Dell is probably of the same weight category, however, you can forget about finding something quiet that weighs as much as a Model M. A Dell weighs about 1.2Kg, whereas a Model M weighs either 2 or 2.2Kg, depending on the exact model number.

Cherry switches are the ones used in the Filco keyboards sold by Elitekeyboards. Basically -

Tactile - Brown Cherry
Linear - Black Cherry
Tactile Click - Blue Cherry

Again, none are going to weigh as much as a Model M, but they feel very sturdy for their small size. If you want a hefty keyboard, the Model F is the way to go, but your co-workers will NOT be impressed

sggsix · « **Reply #9 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:41:10 »

Quote from: liorde;103720

Thank-you for the prompt relies ..!

When I said the M1 is not heavy enough, I meant that the keyboard itslef is not that heavy. Not the keys, they are OK for me.
I like the keyboard weight of the Model M and the SGI.
The White Alps on the SGI became stiff, meaning that when I really get going on the typing, if I hit a key not exactly on the middle,
which happens a lot, it actually does not go down. I must hit the key in the middle for it to go down and register...
Do you have to oil these switches?? I guess they became dirty or something.

I do not know what all these Cherry switches are, brown, blue, white...? Where do I obtain them...?
What are the switches on the ABS M1?

Oh, I am looking for a full keybaord, not the shortened one like HHKB and such...

Thanks again !

Realforce 101 is spectacular if you got about 250$ to spend. It has the soft touch as described earlier (topres), is a full keyboard, and very thick and heavy. I consider it even heavier than Model M.

ch_123 · « **Reply #10 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:44:23 »

Theyre definitely not as heavy as a Model M. Probably just feel really sturdy relative to their size.

liorde · « **Reply #11 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:45:26 »

Quote from: keyb_gr;103719

Concerning the SGI board, I'd try giving it a good workout. The switches may come back to life then. I'd guess there is some oxide layer on the contact surfaces that wants to be worn off.

Hi,
What do you mean a good workout? Just take off the front cover and start pressing them many times and cleaning them? Clean them with what? This can get pretty tedious.

Is anyone here using the Topre full size keyboard? How are they like, in sound? How heavy is the keyboard itself? It is pricy indeed but I rather buy 1 good keyboard than 3 or 4 middle quality keyboards.

Thank-you !

Manyak · « **Reply #12 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:48:22 »

I think you'd be happy with a Filco, they have a bit of extra heft than the M1.

As for the switches, these are how they are:
Blue: Sharp Tactile, Clicky, medium weight
Brown: Soft Tactile, light weight
Black: Linear, stiff
White: Same as Brown but with the stiffer spring of the Black

IMO Blues feel the best because the tactile bump is crisp like the Model M's. But since you need to keep the noise down go with either Browns or Whites, depending if you want the keys stiff or light.

You can find Whites on the Deck Tactile Legend, and browns on the Filco Majestouch FKBN104M/EB. Both those boards are heavier than the M1 for sure.

1cewolf · « **Reply #13 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:51:12 »

I'm going to go out on a limb here and recommend looking into the Keytronic Designer P2 keyboard mentioned in this thread.

Although it's a rubber dome keyboard (heresy!) it seems to get very favorable feedback. I believe it was compared in feel to the Topre and in weight to the Cherry Blues. It evidently has a much higher actuation point than normal for rubber dome keyboards and has significantly more tactile feedback than the Cherry Blues. You can find this keyboard for $35 shipped at Buy.com, which is a pretty good deal considering it has a lifetime warranty and its keys are rated to withstand 30 million keystrokes. I think I'm actually going to pick one up for myself.

I can't speak from personal experience on the Designer P2, but I will tell you that I have an original Microsoft Natural Keyboard which was made by Keytronic and I actually like it better than the Black Alps in the Dell AT101w or ABS M1. It has good feedback and it's much quieter.

sggsix · « **Reply #14 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:52:33 »

Quote from: liorde;103725

Hi,
What do you mean a good workout? Just take off the front cover and start pressing them many times and cleaning them? Clean them with what? This can get pretty tedious.

Is anyone here using the Topre full size keyboard? How are they like, in sound? How heavy is the keyboard itself? It is pricy indeed but I rather buy 1 good keyboard than 3 or 4 middle quality keyboards.

Thank-you !

Yea, I own the Realforce 101 (topre). I have 2 youtube videos of me typing on it. It is a phenomenol board man. It is like a full size HHKB Pro 2.

My avatar is a snapshot of it.

keyb_gr · « **Reply #15 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 07:54:01 »

Quote from: liorde;103720

The White Alps on the SGI became stiff, meaning that when I really get going on the typing, if I hit a key not exactly on the middle,
which happens a lot, it actually does not go down. I must hit the key in the middle for it to go down and register...
Do you have to oil these switches?? I guess they became dirty or something.

Normally these switches do not need to be greased, but one could try some teflon grease here. I'm not too fluent in Alps switch anatomy though, so let's wait for what the gurus say.

Quote

I do not know what all these Cherry switches are, brown, blue, white...? Where do I obtain them...?
What are the switches on the ABS M1?

Head straight to the wiki, it's all covered in there.

huha · « **Reply #16 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 08:02:12 »

I don't quite see the point in buying another keyboard. You like the ABS M1, which you already have, but the actual case is too lightweight. That's fine. Buy some steel bars, open it up and glue them somewhere, done.

If you're a Model M lover, you might also like white Alps (but they're louder than blacks) or green MX. MX greens aren't available in any standard keyboard, you you'll have to modify a blue MX one, which will be expensive if there's no cheap supply of black MX modules (you can get them for really cheap here in Germany) and still not as satisfying as a Model M. Don't know about clears, though.

If it's just the weight of the actual assembly bothering you, try weighting it down. I did the same with my G80-3000 and it feels much nicer now. Also modded it to greens, but that's another story.

I haven't tried a Topre yet, but I guess I wouldn't like it. I recommend against getting MX browns, as they're just too light for an M-ingrained typist. You'll most likely bottom these out hard every single time.

-huha

ch_123 · « **Reply #17 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 08:05:08 »

Quote

Is anyone here using the Topre full size keyboard? How are they like, in sound? How heavy is the keyboard itself? It is pricy indeed but I rather buy 1 good keyboard than 3 or 4 middle quality keyboards

According to Elitekeyboards, they're 1.4Kg. As for sounds, if you to the keyboard audio clips section, you should find some clips (at least of the 87U, which is the numpad version, which should sound the same)

Quote

The White Alps on the SGI became stiff, meaning that when I really get going on the typing, if I hit a key not exactly on the middle,
which happens a lot, it actually does not go down. I must hit the key in the middle for it to go down and register...
Do you have to oil these switches?? I guess they became dirty or something.

First off they're not white, theyre black ones with little dampeners on the bottom to kill some of the sound and so that they fell smoother. Problem with Alps switches is that they seem particularly susceptible to aging. You could try disassembling the switches and seeing if there's any dirt in them, but in reality they're quite well sealed so I doubt that's the problem, I think the keyboard is just worn out.

Quote

I haven't tried a Topre yet, but I guess I wouldn't like it. I recommend against getting MX browns, as they're just too light for an M-ingrained typist. You'll most likely bottom these out hard every single time.

Same with the Topres as far as I can tell. That said, alot of people who started out on Model Ms (like myself) find that they actually prefer lower resistance switches when they try them.

timw4mail · « **Reply #18 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 08:08:33 »

Quote from: huha;103731

I don't quite see the point in buying another keyboard. You like the ABS M1, which you already have, but the actual case is too lightweight. That's fine. Buy some steel bars, open it up and glue them somewhere, done.

If you're a Model M lover, you might also like white Alps (but they're louder than blacks) or green MX. MX greens aren't available in any standard keyboard, you you'll have to modify a blue MX one, which will be expensive if there's no cheap supply of black MX modules (you can get them for really cheap here in Germany) and still not as satisfying as a Model M. Don't know about clears, though.

If it's just the weight of the actual assembly bothering you, try weighting it down. I did the same with my G80-3000 and it feels much nicer now. Also modded it to greens, but that's another story.

I haven't tried a Topre yet, but I guess I wouldn't like it. I recommend against getting MX browns, as they're just too light for an M-ingrained typist. You'll most likely bottom these out hard every single time.

-huha

Come to think of it, I think that the blues are too light...so browns even more so.

ch_123 · « **Reply #19 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 08:18:31 »

Blues are pretty ideal for me in terms of resistance. I doubt I'd want anything lighter though. That said, I'm still tempted to get me a HHKB one of these days

Manyak · « **Reply #20 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 11:57:58 »

Quote from: timw4mail;103734

Come to think of it, I think that the blues are too light...so browns even more so.

I used to not be able to use anything lighter than an M. I used to think that if the switches are suited to me it would come naturally, but that's not really the case (at least it wasn't for me). Then one day I realized you gotta kind of force yourself to type lightly. Just type slowly and concentrate on how hard you are hitting the keys, and as you gain the muscle memory you'll naturally end up typing at your normal speed without bottoming out.

liorde · « **Reply #21 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 12:27:37 »

Thank-you all for the replies.
You were very helpful.
If and when I decide what to buy/do I will give you a note here.

Thank-you :-)

timw4mail · « **Reply #22 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 12:50:31 »

Quote from: Manyak;103794

I used to not be able to use anything lighter than an M. I used to think that if the switches are suited to me it would come naturally, but that's not really the case (at least it wasn't for me). Then one day I realized you gotta kind of force yourself to type lightly. Just type slowly and concentrate on how hard you are hitting the keys, and as you gain the muscle memory you'll naturally end up typing at your normal speed without bottoming out.

Well its not just the activation force, its the spring-back, the blue switches don't have as much, you know? I'm curious to see how the Cherry black or ML switches will feel in that keyboard I just got.

patrickgeekhack · « **Reply #23 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 13:46:40 »

Quote from: ch_123;103722

The Dell ones are somewhat louder, but they're easier to find in brand new condition.

I find the ABS to be louder than the Dell actually.

itlnstln · « **Reply #24 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 14:07:07 »

Quote from: patrickgeekhack;103828

I find the ABS to be louder than the Dell actually.

Seconded. The ABS has a different sound, too. It has more of a thock than a clack, but I do find it a bit louder than the Dell.

patrickgeekhack · « **Reply #25 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 14:48:29 »

I'm just curious, you said that the ABS is not as heavy as the Model M. Well, for one, I don't think the ABS is very light either. It's way heavier than my Cherry. Second, why does the weight matter so much? You may have a perfect reason, but for me the weight does not matter since all the keyboard does all day is sit on my desk while I type. A light or heavy keyboard just not matter to me.

timw4mail · « **Reply #26 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 14:50:28 »

Quote from: patrickgeekhack;103845

I'm just curious, you said that the ABS is not as heavy as the Model M. Well, for one, I don't think the ABS is very light either. It's way heavier than my Cherry. Second, why does the weight matter so much? You may have a perfect reason, but for me the weight does not matter since all the keyboard does all day is sit on my desk while I type. A light or heavy keyboard just not matter to me.

Sometimes, if you have a really heavy keystroke, the weight of the keyboard could make a big difference in how much the keyboard shifts around when one is typing.

This may be the concern, but that's just a guess.

itlnstln · « **Reply #27 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 14:57:42 »

I have found that the rubber feet on the the bottom of the 'board makes a bigger difference than the weight of the 'board. I push around the Costar 'boards a lot less than my Ms. The Ms just have little rubber "nipples" where the Costar 'boards have large rubber pads. I still like to use non-slip shelf liner under my keyboards from time-to-time, as well.

itlnstln · « **Reply #28 on:** Wed, 22 July 2009, 16:28:01 »

Quote from: ripster;103862

My M4 doesn't have nipples. Just nubs and these:

Sorry. I was referring to the 1391401s. The other M variants may have something else.

Oh, and "nipples" = "nubs."

liorde · « **Reply #29 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 01:23:14 »

Quote from: patrickgeekhack;103845

I'm just curious, you said that the ABS is not as heavy as the Model M. Well, for one, I don't think the ABS is very light either. It's way heavier than my Cherry. Second, why does the weight matter so much? You may have a perfect reason, but for me the weight does not matter since all the keyboard does all day is sit on my desk while I type. A light or heavy keyboard just not matter to me.

The heavy keyboards sit very well on the desktop, table, wherever else I put them. I like hefty keboards, what can I say. When I was a student back in 1996-1999 I had a Model M at home. Back then that was the only keybaord I knew. When I started working no more model M's were around, only MS and Logitech's simple keyboards...
Also, I think it is a matter of feel. I like the feel of the heavy plastic rather than the 250 grams of cheap "made in china" stuff like we have today. Of course with **no disrespect** whatsoever to China made products.

Thank-you.

keyb_gr · « **Reply #30 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 03:47:07 »

Quote from: liorde;103906

The heavy keyboards sit very well on the desktop, table, wherever else I put them.

Cherry managed the same on comparatively flyweight boards (G80s weigh little over 1 kg or so). Just a matter of having the right kind of feet.

huha · « **Reply #31 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 06:39:51 »

Well, ... no.
Weight can't be replaced by anything other than even more weight, so if you want a heavy keyboard, you'll have to add something heavy to it. The Model M is heavy due to the absolutely over-the-top steel plate (even computer cases use thinner steel), but something like this is simply not required with PCB-mounted (or even plate-mounted) mechanical switches. Your only option will be to add something heavy (platinum, gold, tungsten, uranium, tantalum, mercury (though this is not recommended for obvious reasons), lead, silver, copper etc.--steel/iron is actually not THAT dense, but it's readily available and cheaper than other options, so you might want to go for that) for the sake of weighting it down.

-huha

ch_123 · « **Reply #32 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 09:09:22 »

Quote from: huha;103925

uranium

Yep, throw some depleted Uranium into your keyboard and all your light-ness related woes will go away.

Useless fact: Some large planes like the Boeing 747 have DU inserts placed around the plane to balance out the weight of the plane. This of course means, that if the plane crashes, the people on the ground have a pretty nasty Hazmat mess to deal with in addition to all the other problems associated with a plane crash.

o2dazone · « **Reply #33 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 09:43:42 »

Deck has nothing on my deleted uranium keyboard!

huha · « **Reply #34 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 10:00:46 »

It's not like you couldn't buy Uranium (amazon.com link). It's a perfectly legal element for you to possess.
Depleted uranium is relatively harmless when used as a counterweight; it's usually plated and won't break that easily. As long as you don't eat or breathe it, you'll be safe.

As a sidenode, Cherry's G80-3000 models have large voids under each row, so they're quite predestined to be filled with lots and lots of steel. You could even just pour cement in all of them, I think this would already suffice.

-huha

itlnstln · « **Reply #35 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 10:18:46 »

Quote

My Brown Cherry board for example is considerably louder than your typical office issue Logitech, Dell or Microsoft.

My brown Cherry Filco isn't quite that loud, but I actually use mine in a office with the office-issue Dells, so I really don't hear my Filco in isolation. My brown Cherry G80 is actually quieter than the Dell 'boards around here.

MsKeyboard · « **Reply #36 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 11:49:48 »

We could actually start doing a "reverse Ripster" mod, and start gluing silver dollars to the bottom of our boards to provide correct weighting.

Not only would this serve to hold the board down on the desk surface, but would also increase the value of the boards appreciably.

Just a thought!

lal · « **Reply #37 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 12:48:13 »

Quote from: huha;103731

I don't quite see the point in buying another keyboard. [...]

-huha

:ban:

itlnstln · « **Reply #38 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 13:00:53 »

Quote from: ripster;103957

Could be the Filco Brown Cherries are louder because of that whole metal vs PCB plate mounting.

This would be the case. The shock absorbtion of the PCB kills a lot of the noise.

liorde · « **Reply #39 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 14:51:24 »

Quote from: ripster;103957

Depends on the OP's office setup but if the ABS was too loud for his officemates they may be picky!

You are pretty much correct on that my friend. My co-workers are picky indeed.
I found out that little dosses of ABS typing is not very much noticed, so this way I will gradually raise the dosage time, until I will work the full 9 or 10 hours with it, and not hear one bad word about it... :-)
It will work I am sure.
Nevertheless, I am intersted in an additional keyboard, just for the fun of having another nice gadget at hand. I can't belive I am talking like this about a keyboard...:redface:
Is there anywhere that sells a Cherry G80-3000 ? I saw an image of a keyboard like this posted by one of the users here... very nice and this is an understatement.
Can these be bought today?

Thanks.

itlnstln · « **Reply #40 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 14:54:58 »

You can get a brown Cherry G80 from Datacal.com. I forgot where the blue Cherry is sold, though (there are several POS retailers that carry them, though).

o2dazone · « **Reply #41 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 15:03:08 »

GeminiComputers sells a g80 with blue cherries

edit: I guess they don't anymore

keyb_gr · « **Reply #42 on:** Thu, 23 July 2009, 15:08:16 »

For pictures of a current production G80-3000 as made in Germany, look here. A Czech-made sample would have a slightly different case and construction, actually that's the old one. Back in the olden days they used to apply some glue on the edges to keep the board from flexing, something that basically one can also do for oneself (it would have to be some lighter glue though, it's only supposed to hold things in place and not make opening the board a pain).

itlnstln · « **Reply #43 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 07:39:14 »

When I bought my Cherry brown G80, the Director of Sales (a very nice young lady, I might add) said they didn't have many left; about 14. That was in March, I think, but it appears that they have some in stock. They are a custom 'board, so when they run out, it takes quite a while for them to come back in stock (something like 4 months, or so). All I can say is that I highly recommend the brown Cherry G80. Either it or the Filco (and I am sure the i-Rocks) are fantastic 'boards.

patrickgeekhack · « **Reply #44 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 08:23:41 »

Quote from: itlnstln;104070

When I bought my Cherry brown G80, the Director of Sales (a very nice young lady, I might add) said they didn't have many left; about 14.

I talked to her before I got my second G80 with blue cherries. A very nice lady indeed. Unfortunately, the shipping to Canada made buying from DataCal not worth it for me. She also said that DataCal was going to receive more in July or August, so maybe check with them?

patrickgeekhack · « **Reply #45 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 08:24:41 »

Quote from: o2dazone;104005

GeminiComputers sells a g80 with blue cherries

edit: I guess they don't anymore

You can call them and custom order the keyboard. This was what I did for my second G80-3000 with blue Cherries.

o2dazone · « **Reply #46 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 08:53:05 »

Good to know ^^

liorde · « **Reply #47 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 09:32:26 »

Hi again,

So assuming I choose the G80-3000, does it come with various switches?
My family lives in Florida if it makes any difference,
Please remind me about the switches:
Brown = ?
Blue = ?
Black = ?

Thank-you all, you are very courteous and helpful !

itlnstln · « **Reply #48 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 09:55:47 »

Brown = Light (45g), tactile, no click

Blue = Light (55g), tactile, click

Black = Heavy (80g at max), linear, no click

You can get the G80-3000 with blues or browns pretty easily. I am unaware of a black version readily available in the US, though. If you are mainly a typist (i.e. don't game much), I wouldn't recommentd the blacks, anyway; the other two are much better for typing. If you do a little of both, I would recommend the browns as the clicking from the blues might be distracting while playing a game. If you are a hardcore gamer and don't type much, I would get the blacks, then. You can get blacks fairly cheaply in the MX-11900 (A/K/A G80-11900), but Steelseries and Deck make nice keyboards with Cherry blacks and they have N-Key rollover (or 6-key with USB) which the 11900 does not have. The Steelseries and Deck keyboards do come at a price, though (> $100).

itlnstln · « **Reply #49 on:** Fri, 24 July 2009, 11:38:02 »

Quote from: ripster;104087

If it's a female just tell her your screenname is the "Italian Stallion" - automatic 10% discount. (JK about that last part.... I think)

It worked for me. You have to order from the nice lady at DataCal, though, but they only carry the Cherry brown 'board.

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Author Topic: Need some advice for choosing a keyboard (Read 10126 times)