Looking to finally breaking down and buying a mechanical keyboard. I've heard a lot of shit being thrown around regarding Razors keyboards despite not having any grips with my Naga after a year and half.
Looking for something under 150$.
Looking to finally breaking down and buying a mechanical keyboard. I've heard a lot of shit being thrown around regarding Razors keyboards despite not having any grips with my Naga after a year and half.
Looking for something under 150$.
http://www.daskeyboard.com/
I can't recommend these keyboards enough. I don't see the one I have on there anymore so it's likely been replaced by the one with the media buttons.
I'm pretty hard on my keyboards but what really made me a believer is when an entire bottle of mineral water was dumped into my keyboard. I dumped it out, took it apart, dried it, put it back together and it functions the same as the day I got it, this all happened in the span of 15-30 minutes. It's a very solid and durable keyboard and I wouldn't hesitate to buy another.
They also offer different colored switches if that is something that matters to you.
If you never used a mechanical keyboard before it's tough to say. It depends on what type of switches you want.
I have a Logitech G710+ which uses Cherry MX Brown.
Here is a vid showing the difference between the common ones.
Looking for reds.
I use a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate (cherry blues, I know you want red). Most people always talk poorly about Razer products, but I guess I must be lucky as well? Had my Naga and keyboard over a year now and about 6 months for my Orbweaver (also blue switches). I know they're coming or came out with a new ultimate black widow with RGB lighting, not sure if you can choose the switches in it but could take a look. Mine cost me $119 iirc. I've looked into DAS and Corsair as well, really can't go wrong.
So... I own three mechanicals now. My first keyboard was a custom Cherry MX Brown from WASD. I've had it about two years now, and I still love it like the day I got it. The great thing about browns is that there is a distinct feel once you hit the actuation point so once you type on it a while, you can avoid bottoming out on the keyboard. I like my WASD so much, I actually made a custom for a friend's wedding gift. It's a Cherry MX Red, and she loves it. Not a single problem from two keyboards there. They also have a nice braided cable with a PS/2 adapter for NKRO.
My next purchase (I say purchase for a reason) was the Das Keyboard 4 with Cherry MX Browns for work. I ordered this keyboard on June 13. There was a shortage of Brown switches or something, and then Das had production issues with the USB port of the keyboard which caused them to further delay. So in the mean time, I bought a Corsair Vengeance K70 which is (surprisingly) a nice keyboard. This keyboard comes with Cherry MX Reds and the keycaps are raised to make cleaning the keyboard much easier. Along with this, the faceplate is also aluminum which gives it a nice feel. However, I've found that I hate Cherry MX Reds simply because I like the tactile bump of a Brown. Anyways... Back to the Das. I finally received an email on August 7th telling me that my Das had shipped, and I was super excited. So I checked the tracking to find that the package had actually been delivered on the 29th so I was a little peeved. Oh well, finally got my keyboard right? After finally getting to sit down with my keyboard the next Monday, I found that my Backspace key actually gets stuck due to the switch rubbing against the casing on the return trip. Most of the time this does nothing but cause the key to sit a little lower, but on rare occasions it will cause the backspace to infinitely loop and delete until it gets unstuck. This has only happened to me twice in the two weeks I've been using it, but I fully intend to exchange the keyboard once work slows down and the brown keyboard comes back in stock. Rather not wait another two months for a keyboard.
TL;DR:
WASD V1
Pros
Solid build quality (most stable feeling keys)
NKRO (with a PS/2 adapter)
Custom keycaps if you choose to go this route
Braided cable (with gold plating)
Liked it so much I bought two (one for me and my friend)
Cons
No backlighting (not a concern for me)
No media keys
Doesn't make me breakfast
Corsair K70
Pros
Solid build quality (key caps are a little loose, but the raised key caps and aluminum faceplate is really nice)
NKRO (with 2 USB plugs)
Braided cable
Backlighting
Media keys
Cons
No custom key caps
Braided cable is THICK
Takes up 2 USB ports
Not a fan of the key caps (they're a smooth, almost chalky feeling)
Das Keyboard Professional 4
Pros
Super thin
The footbar is a ruler
NKRO (with one USB)
2 USB 3.0 ports on the keyboard
Media keys (enlarged volume knob, too)
Aluminum faceplate (after using this and the Corsair, I do wish the WASD had aluminum on it)
Cons
Medium build quality (larger keys make a rather loud noise due to the loose metal levers underneath, backspace occasionally gets stuck)
No custom key caps
Regular USB cable
No backlighting
Same for me.
I've got the old blue Blackwidow Ultimate. Still working like a beast to this day. Couple months ago I spent half a day watching Netflix and cleaning/washing the keyboard, key by key.
The only other recent mechanical keyboard I've played around with is the Corsairs K65 Vengeance and it's fine, but I prefer my blues over reds.
CM Quickfire Rapid is a great buy if you don't mind tenkeyless. The OEM who makes the board is Costar, who is one of the best (same one that Filco uses). $79-89 for their boards is a steal.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823129006
You'd have to make sure you got the Rapid though, because the Quickfire Pro for example uses a different OEM which I cannot vouch for.
Just go on the buyselltrade forum of geekhack and grab a filco with reds from there. Don't get a blackwidow.
I've had a deck legend, and still have two filcos (tenkeyless with blues and my full with reds).
I thought I NEEDED backlighting which is why I went with a Deck, found out I didn't, and now I use the ninja keys on my filco even. Wasd keyboards are probably your second best bet.
Ducky Shine 3!
http://www.duckychannel.com.tw/en/Shine_3_DK9008.html
Also Deck, filco and CM got nice KBs, i think when it comes to price the CM are cheapest of all those brands
CM storm. I've only owned 1 in my life, and it's my favorite of all the mechanicals i've ever had (~6+ different ones). Had to get rid of it because its tenkey less and I hoped I could do without, but couldn't.
Also, as was said before, do NOT touch Razer black widow. Had to return 2 different ones because of faulty keys within a month span. Almost wasn't able to the 2nd time.
So outta curiosity is there any real significant difference between reds and blues when it comes to gaming?
Blues are going to have a bump (and click) somewhere in between the resting position and the bottom of the key press. This allows you to type without bottoming out the key. However, when gaming, you're more than likely going to bottom out the keys regardless. Reds provide a nice linear press all the way to the bottom of the keyboard. So really the only difference is going to be audible and feel in the middle of the key. To give you an idea, here are some GIFs that show the motion of the switch.
I have the same KB. Does it randomly have keys get stuck? I dont mean the key being physically stuck down. I could be playing and my e or shift key could be randomly triggering non-stop after pressing it. I have to figure out which key is acting up and press it again for it to stop.
It could be the key getting physically stuck, hard to tell on a mech kb. Very annoying none the less. That is only problem I have with the kb, awesome otherwise.
Edit: I meant I have the Logitech G710+ when I said the same kb.
anyone ever try the logitech g710?
also how much do key sets cost? from what i've read it sounds like i'd want red keys but if i go with the g710 (i might be able to get for cheap) that one's gonna be brown.
I own a 710+ love every bit of it. Clicks loud, has gaming keys, media controls, and a usb port. Wish I learned to type better.
Never. Had it since this past xmas.
Don't remember but it is not quiet