OT: Mechanical Keyboards

[ihatepants]

A whisky forum I participate in includes a lot of guys who are geeks for mechanical keyboards. I ordered one on their suggestion and today is my first day with it. I'm torn a bit as to whether I like it or not. The size is just right, didn't need a full sized. But the height is a challenge and I am not used to it at all.

Do any of you guys use these boards? Any thoughts? I could get a pretty nice membrane keyboard for half what I paid for this one. I'm told I'll get used to it and love it, but I don't know if I can return it if I invest that time and don't.

This is one of my favorite hobbies right now. I've spent over $1000 on stuff for mechanical keyboards this month alone with a couple of $500 and $800 keyboards that I'm looking to get when they open up for sale later this month as well. That's without any switches or keycaps yet, either. Most keycap sets alone cost $130+ and then resell for $300+ nowadays because of how limited they are and how if you miss out on one the only way to get them is from a person who actually bought them when they were available.

If height is a problem for you, I'd definitely recommend a wrist wrest. But ideally you don't rest your wrists while typing at all since most workplace ergonomics recommendations say that the only time your wrists actually touch the table are when you're not actively typing. Alternatively you can get a different profile of keycap since every keycap profile has different shapes and heights. Cherry profile and DSA keycaps are the lowest profile ones and most keyboards sold as a set use OEM profile which is slightly taller.

@CL82 @Lefty2one and @jleves I think you guys are convincing me to stick with it. I think part of the challenge is it definitely requires a wrist rest and mine is full sized, which is annoying. Plus, I didn't get a cheap one. Got a Vortex Tab 75 with Cherry MX Clear switches. Figured if I did this right the first time I'd be good for a long time.

I'm home so noise isn't a big issue, except when I am multitasking on a zoom call. Have to mute my microphone or everyone knows I'm typing away. I didn't like the blues in the tester, these clears are like Browns with slightly more input resistance. I learned on an electric typewriter, but my HS typing teacher ended up giving me a D-.

Cherry MX switches used to be all the rage with the mech keyboard community years ago when they were pretty much the only company making them, but there's tons of better alternatives nowadays for whatever type of feel or sound you want.

 

[8893]

This is one of my favorite hobbies right now. I've spent over $1000 on stuff for mechanical keyboards this month alone with a couple of $500 and $800 keyboards that I'm looking to get when they open up for sale later this month as well. That's without any switches or keycaps yet, either. Most keycap sets alone cost $130+ and then resell for $300+ nowadays because of how limited they are and how if you miss out on one the only way to get them is from a person who actually bought them when they were available.

If height is a problem for you, I'd definitely recommend a wrist wrest. But ideally you don't rest your wrists while typing at all since most workplace ergonomics recommendations say that the only time your wrists actually touch the table are when you're not actively typing. Alternatively you can get a different profile of keycap since every keycap profile has different shapes and heights. Cherry profile and DSA keycaps are the lowest profile ones and most keyboards sold as a set use OEM profile which is slightly taller.

Cherry MX switches used to be all the rage with the mech keyboard community years ago when they were pretty much the only company making them, but there's tons of better alternatives nowadays for whatever type of feel or sound you want.

Oh, my.

Wow.

Who knew?

 

[ihatepants]

Alright, I'll bite: what is the advantage of a mechanical keyboard? These look like throwbacks to keyboards I had years ago.

It's all about the THOCC. But yes, as was pointed out a lot of people use keyboards every day and it's all about what looks and feels comfortable to them. I have multiple keyboards and mostly just have them on display, and have some that I prefer for gaming or to use as daily drivers. I'd say it's similar to how some people collect or enjoy sneakers, watches or bags/purses. The resale market on custom mech keyboards is just as crazy as they are for sneakers. For example, Keycult 1/65 boards are going for around $2500 right now when they originally cost $500.

For me, it's also a hobby. I buy custom machined cases made out of a variety of materials like polycarbonate or aluminum or acrylic and then a PCB and then I solder the mechanical keyboard switches into the PCB myself. Lots of the PCBs nowadays also support QMK which runs as the firmware and you can also program that yourself. After using Space Cadet Shift (where tapping shift ctrl or alt will do brackets () [] {} for you) I don't want to go back to a board I can't do that with, so I program that functionality into all my keyboards nowadays.

 

[mussels]

This is one of my favorite hobbies right now. I've spent over $1000 on stuff for mechanical keyboards this month alone with a couple of $500 and $800 keyboards that I'm looking to get when they open up for sale later this month as well. That's without any switches or keycaps yet, either. Most keycap sets alone cost $130+ and then resell for $300+ nowadays because of how limited they are and how if you miss out on one the only way to get them is from a person who actually bought them when they were available.

If height is a problem for you, I'd definitely recommend a wrist wrest. But ideally you don't rest your wrists while typing at all since most workplace ergonomics recommendations say that the only time your wrists actually touch the table are when you're not actively typing. Alternatively you can get a different profile of keycap since every keycap profile has different shapes and heights. Cherry profile and DSA keycaps are the lowest profile ones and most keyboards sold as a set use OEM profile which is slightly taller.

Cherry MX switches used to be all the rage with the mech keyboard community years ago when they were pretty much the only company making them, but there's tons of better alternatives nowadays for whatever type of feel or sound you want.

What is your favorite whiskey ?

 

[Chin Diesel]

Oh, my.

Wow.

Who knew?

No kidding. I'm on my fourth or fifth article on this topic and had to check in with my son to see what type of keyboard he uses on his gaming computer. His initial response was "The glowing kind?"
Then he sent me a pic and, with my newfound knowledge on the subject, could ascertain it has programmable RGB back lighting with blue style keys guaranteed for 50 million clicks.
EDIT: Also has a solid aluminum frame.

 

[ihatepants]

What is your favorite whiskey ?

Yamazaki 18, but it's become almost impossible to find any of the year aged Suntory whiskies nowadays.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Things I now know.

I like the sound of the Mx Cherry Red keys, I want a key depression distance of about 1.4 mm and I want a force of 45 cN or less. I want my key light on the touch, short travel distance and not a ton of auditory feedback.

 

[ihatepants]

Things I now know.

I like the sound of the Mx Cherry Red keys, I want a key depression distance of about 1.4 mm and I want a force of 45 cN or less. I want my key light on the touch, short travel distance and not a ton of auditory feedback.

If you like linear switches like the Cherry Reds, I'd recommend looking into the Novelkeys Silk Yellows, Novelkeys Creams, Gateron Red Inks or Gateron Red or Yellow. Gateron Yellows are nice and cheap and after lubing and filming them perform similarly to much more expensive switches.

 

[HuskyHawk]

Oh, my.

Wow.

Who knew?

I did, but only from my Whisky discord crew. It did come as a surprise when I discovered this.

 

[Chin Diesel]

If you like linear switches like the Cherry Reds, I'd recommend looking into the Novelkeys Silk Yellows, Novelkeys Creams, Gateron Red Inks or Gateron Red or Yellow. Gateron Yellows are nice and cheap and after lubing and filming them perform similarly to much more expensive switches.

I read about the linear switches and all of sudden that sounds boring. Seems like linear force ideologues would also drink White Claw. I was intrigued by parabolic switches only to find out Burroughs last made them using opto-electrical technology in the key.

I like the idea of an increasing force requirement which then hits a peak and has a decreasing force to finish the stroke.

Force - Deskthority wiki

deskthority.net

 

[HuskyHawk]

I read about the linear switches and all of sudden that sounds boring. Seems like linear force ideologues would also drink White Claw. I was intrigued by parabolic switches only to find out Burroughs last made them using opto-electrical technology in the key.

I like the idea of an increasing force requirement which then hits a peak and has a decreasing force to finish the stroke.

Force - Deskthority wiki

deskthority.net

Get a switch tester on eBay. That’s what I did. Ultimately decided I liked the clears a bit more than browns. Red is popular with gamers. Very fast. But I’m typing Word docs and emails. There are some optical switches out there.

I liked the new board better as the day went on. Only thought is I might have liked a lower profile. They do make low profile mechanicals.

 

[Chin Diesel]

Get a switch tester on eBay. That’s what I did. Ultimately decided I liked the clears a bit more than browns. Red is popular with gamers. Very fast. But I’m typing Word docs and emails. There are some optical switches out there.

I liked the new board better as the day went on. Only thought is I might have liked a lower profile. They do make low profile mechanicals.

Low profile like this one? Article is 2 years old but it seems as current as anything else out there.

Like the profile but would like to finger it myself. 12mm total height, 1.2 mm actuation distance, and a linear force of about 45 cN. It's taking me time to warm up to the idea of linear force switches. Not there yet.

Cherry MX Low Profile RGB: New switches for flat keyboards

For the past 30 years, Cherry has built almost unchanged keyboard blocks. At CES 2018, the Auerbach-based hardware manufacturer Cherry has shown new, 35-percent flatter switches. That will be used throughout the year in keyboards by Cherry itself

optocrypto.com

 

[HuskyHawk]

Low profile like this one? Article is 2 years old but it seems as current as anything else out there.

Like the profile but would like to finger it myself. 12mm total height, 1.2 mm actuation distance, and a linear force of about 45 cN. It's taking me time to warm up to the idea of linear force switches. Not there yet.

Cherry MX Low Profile RGB: New switches for flat keyboards

For the past 30 years, Cherry has built almost unchanged keyboard blocks. At CES 2018, the Auerbach-based hardware manufacturer Cherry has shown new, 35-percent flatter switches. That will be used throughout the year in keyboards by Cherry itself

optocrypto.com

That's one example. There are few others, including with optical switches. Suggest you get a sampler.

Those are very light, fast switches. My Cherry MX Clears have a heavier force at 65g vs the 45 of the Browns, and a total travel of 4mm. They are tactile, so activate 2mm short of that 4mm. Basically about like the Blues, minus the click sound.