Author Topic: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!  (Read 1409 times)

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Offline techy1

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Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« on: Wed, 04 March 2015, 21:33:45 »
Hey guys I am looking for a mechanical keyboard that has around 87 keys. ANSI format. Must be mechanical. I currently have a Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth and I dont really like it. I am looking for something that has Blue Cherry MX Switches or maybe even green. Something that looks sleek and awesome. I have around 180 to spend. If they keyboard is cheaper than that if you could include a set of keycaps that it would look good with that would be awesome! Thank you all!
 :thumb:

Offline demik

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #1 on: Wed, 04 March 2015, 21:36:36 »
http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=keyed_up_labs,tenkeyless&pid=es87u_ce_sss_al

seriously, what you're looking for is the easiest thing to find.

dont be lazy bruh
No, he’s not around. How that sound to ya? Jot it down.

Offline techy1

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #2 on: Wed, 04 March 2015, 21:38:23 »
I am just asking for the opinions of others. I have a bunch in mind but cannot decide.

Offline brimborion

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #3 on: Wed, 04 March 2015, 22:11:31 »
Hey guys I am looking for a mechanical keyboard that has around 87 keys. ANSI format. Must be mechanical. I currently have a Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth and I dont really like it. I am looking for something that has Blue Cherry MX Switches or maybe even green. Something that looks sleek and awesome. I have around 180 to spend. If they keyboard is cheaper than that if you could include a set of keycaps that it would look good with that would be awesome! Thank you all!
 :thumb:

What are some examples of sleek and awesome to you?
Buckling Spring: 42H1292,  1391401, Unicomp Linux 101, Customizer 104 | Cherry Blue: Rosewill RK-9000, Das Keyboard S Pro | Cherry Black: Wyse/Link 840358-30| Rubber Dome: various Key Tronic, HHKB Lite, HHKB Lite 2, KB-8923, 71G4644 | Topre: Type Heaven | ALPS: Matias Mini Tactile Pro, 2xKBP V60

Offline slickmamba

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  • Location: SF
Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #4 on: Wed, 04 March 2015, 22:41:59 »
Hey guys I am looking for a mechanical keyboard that has around 87 keys. ANSI format. Must be mechanical. I currently have a Razer BlackWidow Ultimate Stealth and I dont really like it. I am looking for something that has Blue Cherry MX Switches or maybe even green. Something that looks sleek and awesome. I have around 180 to spend. If they keyboard is cheaper than that if you could include a set of keycaps that it would look good with that would be awesome! Thank you all!
 :thumb:

At that price you can afford any big name TKL, which would be the filcos, kuls, and duckys.  "Nice" keycaps really are your preference.
Hi :)

Offline Oobly

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #5 on: Thu, 05 March 2015, 01:33:01 »
"Something that looks sleek and awesome" is not necesarily going to be "good". The boards we'll recommend here will be recommended for their quality, value, durability, standard layouts (for keycap set compatibility) and typing feel.

That said, the WASD Code is a very good board with MX Greens (and it has backlighting). The KUL ES-87 as mentioned before by demik is about the best quality board you can get with Blues (there's also the Filco Majestouch 2 TKL, Ducky Shine3 TKL, etc.).

In terms of keycaps, both the WASD and KUL boards come with fairly standard ABS keycaps. If you want really good ones, do some research (http://deskthority.net/wiki/Keycap_construction) into what type of keycaps you really want and then browse the Classifieds, Group Buys and Interest Check threads, but this can be done any time after you've bought the board. Keycap profile, material and print type are personal taste, but we can give some information about each of these if you like.

Be aware that most of the top quality, highly regarded keycap sets are not backlit, meaning the legends will not let more light through than the rest of the keycap.

Heavier keycaps will tend to dampen higher frequency sounds more than light keycaps, so that is a factor, especially on "clicky" switches like Blues and Greens. Also different materials have different dampening properties, so POM dampens more than PBT and ABS, but the weight of the caps is a bigger factor. POM and PBT are more dense than ABS, so a PBT keycap of the same thickness as an ABS keycap will be heavier.

Then there are the looks of the keycaps, of course. There are many nice-looking sets that have been made, usually to some kind of theme: http://keypuller.com/
Buying more keycaps,
it really hacks my wallet,
but I must have them.

Offline moazzamk

  • Posts: 15
Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #6 on: Thu, 05 March 2015, 10:00:16 »
Massdrop has group buys for a bunch of great keyboards. http://massdrop.com

Offline techy1

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #7 on: Thu, 05 March 2015, 17:05:07 »
Thank you all for the help!  :thumb:

Offline Oobly

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Re: Need Help Finding Mechanical Keyboards!
« Reply #8 on: Fri, 06 March 2015, 02:01:18 »
Also thought I should mention the Leopold range. They are also absolutely top notch in terms of build quality, parts quality and functionality. They also come with much better stock keycaps than most others.

The FC750R comes with thick PBT keycaps and they've finally fixed the spacebar stem position problem, so aftermarket keycap sets fit.
Buying more keycaps,
it really hacks my wallet,
but I must have them.