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Favorite Mechanical keyboard switch?
CalmOceans
Member UncommonPosts: 2,437
in Hardware
Which mechanical keyboard switch is your favorite and why?
Comments
Many have, a key is like $1 and a tryout set is like $4, with rings it's $8. You can buy them everywhere.
http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/wasd-sampler-kit.html
I'm in the market for a mechanical board and I have done some research but was wondering, are the switch types replaceable on all keyboards? I was leaning towards Browns, I've read they are more versatile for both gaming and typing....but I havnt really found a board I like asthetically that uses them.
I love the way the Blackwidow looks but they use blues or red if I'm not mistaken, and I prefer the blue led backlit ones, hate the green backlight....but I've heard terrible things about their quality control.
The logitech 710 has the switches I'm leaning toward, but I hate the way it looks...especially because of the added orange color on the macro keys, backlight is white.
The Ducky boards are nice, but they seem featureless with a really high price, and I cant seem to find the in stock.
I dont mean to hijack the thread, but any thoughts about which you guys enjoy?
Razer BlackWidow Ultimate - Brown switch type
http://www.pcworld.com/article/242037/mechanical_keyboard_faq_pick_the_right_switch.html
Never used one where you can't replace the keys.
The browns are nice, but they are clicky like the blues, the reds and blacks aren't clicky which means you can mash them easier. Depends if you want the click feedback or not.
As for brands, the logitech is probably nice but I haven't used it.
Coolermaster, leopard and rosewill are nice if you want a good keyboard that can't cost too much.
Logitech and Razer are somewhere in between for price.
If you have the money to spend more, Das Keyboard and Filco are the best you can buy, but they're also like $140, while the others are like $60 - $80.
I have tried coolermaster, leopard and Das Keyboard so far, so I'm interested in other opinions.
These are pretty cool. I didn't know they existed.
And...+1 to you for pwning Quizz
Holy Cr@poli. I have been looking for a site where it's easy to order Cherry keyboard pieces. It's a year or so later than I would have liked, but thanks for posting it.
:-)
** edit **
If you have any other sites, posting them would be pretty awesome. Just sayin'.
I can not remember winning or losing a single debate on the internet.
There's a huge difference between being able to try a few keys and being able to try a full keyboard. And there's a huge difference between being able to buy a sampler kit and actually having done so.
Just a matter of replacing the switch, that's why they're sold as individual and full sets. Every Cherry keyboard, most mini keyboards, Poker keyboard, the WASD keyboard, KBT keyboards, you can all change out the switches. It will cost you like $20 (can get them from taiwan super cheap) for the switches and you can reuse the caps.
The logitech and rosewill and razers are probably not replacable, I never tried to do that, but many mechanical keyboards allow you to change the switch.
Here is a guide: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIQ9-HNwTEA
KBT Race is a good example of this, there are probably thousands of switch combinations and many cap colors available.
I owned the Razer Blackwidow Ultimate with Cherry Blues and while I found it to be a very nice keyboard the loud clack of the Blues combined with the fact I frequently game at night after the kids have gone to bed meant it had to go. I replaced it with a Ducky Shine II 10keyless with Cherry Browns and I can say I've never been happier with keyboard in my entire life. If you are into having a keyboard you can rebind every key on then these keyboards probably aren't for you. However if you just want a quality mechanical keyboard with backlighting that happens to be very sturdy I highly recommend you consider the cost of a Ducky or Das.
If you are curious as to why I went with a 10keyless keyboard it's because I personally have no use for the numpad and having a smaller desktop foot print on my keyboard makes gaming with my G600 and G13 MUCH easier. These two devices are also the reason for not needing any sort of macro keys on the keyboard itself.
This is where I ordered mine but it appears the holiday season has killed their stock.
http://tigerimports.net/sunshop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=12174
Whoops put blue instead of brown.
Also no mention of the Rubber Dome design? Some companies do the rubber dome differently then others so you get a different feel to them.
I would agree that the OP should probably change the title to favorite Cherry switch as there are options out there aside from Cherry switches for mechanical keyboards. Although most of them cost significantly more money. Such as the Topre, Alps and buckling springs switches.
http://www.overclock.net/t/491752/mechanical-keyboard-guide
Some additional reading on the various types of keyboard switches available for those who are interested. I did a LOT of research prior to buying my Ducky to be sure I knew what I was getting into for the price.
http://www.ergocanada.com/ergo/keyboards/mechanical_vs_membrane_keyswitches.html
If you are a typing "elitist" I would suggest trying to find the very old IBM Model "M" keyboards. They are no longer produced so it will be used but you can think of those things as the "Sherman Tank" of keyboards both in weight and durability. Probably not the best gaming keyboard but for someone who types more often than they game they are often considered "THE" keyboard.