Click to view our Accessibility Statement or contact us with accessibility-related questions
RichardSmith
55
Sep 25, 2017
Man, I am so jealous of my future self right now. He will be so happy when he remembers he joined this drop the year earlier :)
LBassington
155
Sep 26, 2017
RichardSmithI feel the same way towards myself, but I need to make sure I order a barebones keyboard from WASD, or else I'll have pretty key caps but nothing to put them on. :p
LBassingtonHave you decided a key switch type for your WASD board?
LBassington
155
Sep 27, 2017
dvorcolNot yet. I'm going to budget out some cash to buy a switch tester in the future. What is your favorite?
LBassingtonI'm a big fan of browns (tactile but not clickey). I have a board with blues, and they are just too noisy for me. I have one with brown Kailh's, and they have started failing after only three years. I've started to wonder how I'd feel about linears, but I'd have to try a full keyboard for a while to know. I have a couple of testers, and while I can feel how each switch is on it's own, it just is not enough to give me the feeling of typing.
RichardSmith
55
Sep 27, 2017
dvorcolI have an AEK full of Orange alps in good condition, and a tkl kit that'll be here at some point, and I am in no hurry to start harvesting.
LBassington
155
Sep 27, 2017
dvorcolThat's a good point about testers. You really need to use the keyboard to get a fair sense. I think that's also why I'm taking my time to decide. I clearly have plenty of time lol. Sorry to hear about the brown Kailh switches. I still have much to learn.
RichardSmith
55
Sep 28, 2017
dvorcol@dvorcol I really like clears myself. If you find browns on the light side you should give those a go. If you think browns are the perfect weight, I encourage you to give zealios switches a try. I can't even type on my brown anymore due to the lackluster tactile feedback in comparison. Orange and salmon alps are even better, but require DIY jobs with supporting kits.
RichardSmithNow seems like not such a great time to be ordering Zealios, what with the Planck backorder situation. But they sound very interesting, I am intrigued & will give them a try in the future. Thanks for the advice!
RichardSmith
55
Oct 1, 2017
dvorcolPeople have been raving over the Outemu Ice Dark Purples, which are Outemu's version of the zealios switch, but I cannot personally endorse them.
RichardSmithThey appear to be relatively inexpensive, especially with white bottoms. And with hot-swap pins included, although the pins are Outemu only. I might just have to give them a try. Thanks!
RichardSmith
55
Oct 5, 2017
dvorcolYeah, the going rate seems to be $0.25-0.35 each. Pretty cheap. If you leave the hot swap sockets on the pins, it allows the switches to be pulled out without desoldering, but only outemu switches will go back in, unless you trim the width of the pins. I have already made a outemu board using boxed blues with the hot swap socket sleeves on the pins, and it is crazy convenient. It is no gimmick.
LBassingtonI know your key caps are still a few months out, but have you purchased a mechanical keyboard for them yet?
LBassington
155
Mar 14, 2018
dvorcol@dvorcol not yet. A buddy of mine has spare switches in a few colors that he said he'd let me try out. I have my eye on the v2 wasd keyboard. Any other suggestions? I should head over to Best Buy and try out some display keyboards. How are you?
LBassingtonMy Best Buy has only one mechanical keyboard these days, and it isn’t even on display anymore - just a few boxed on the shelf. And they are Logitech, so they don’t Accept MX keycaps anyway.
Oddly enough, Massdrop sells mechanical keyboards in their Tech section sometimes. I bought a Nixeus Moda Pro from there just before the holidays and it’s better than I expected for $50. And there is a drop open now for a Gigabyte Force K83 Cherry MX.
Are you typing in QWERTY, or a different layout? One of the nice things about the WASD boards is being able to throw a toggle switch to change to a few of the more common alternate layouts.
LBassingtonI’m doing well, thanks; in the middle of making my first custom keyboard. I hope to be done in time for the arrival of my SA Carbon set. Not that I’m hoping they are delayed a bit, but it wouldn’t make me too sad.
RichardSmith
55
Mar 14, 2018
dvorcolSMK87 in the Lambo 87 case, with SMK switches. Already planned out.
LBassington
155
Mar 15, 2018
dvorcol@dvorcol My Best Buy is probably like that too now I guess haha. My buddy brought various switches today, and naturally I fell in love with the blue, so that's settled. So good!
The Gigabyte keyboard is attractive! I'll be typing in QWERTY, anything else is too fancy for me lol.
Do you have any good sources for coiled cables? I think I'll just get an Amazon Basics micro-usb to usb-c.
Wow, good luck! Be sure to share images when you are done, I'm super curious to see what it will look like in the end.
LBassingtonWell, if you like blue switches this Gigabyte drop isn't for you - it has reds (linear, no click).
But someone in that drop's discussion commented that a "better" keyboard is available on Amazon, and it happens to have blues: https://www.amazon.com/Mechanical-Gaming-Keyboard-Cherry-Detachable/dp/B01N23BAFB
I cannot find the type of USB cable socket on either board. Be careful not to buy the wrong cable, both Mini & Micro USB are common. I'd wait until you have the board in hand before ordering a coiled cable. And I don't know anything about cable sources. If you just want black, Amazon is probably your best bet.
LBassington
155
Mar 15, 2018
dvorcol@dvorcol Wow the keyboard in your link looks really good. I'll definitely have to shop around in May when I place my order.
Thanks for the tip, I typically buy my cables from Amazon, my preferred brand is Anker, but Amazon Basics makes good cables as far as I've experienced. I needed a usb power hub so I could easily power a bunch of Raspberry Pis for work, so I ordered retractable cables. They probably won't last, but I am worried about desk clutter more than anything.
I think finding a coiled cable will be more about luck than anything else lol.
RichardSmith
55
Mar 19, 2018
dvorcolThat keyboard looks remarkably filco majestouch like. Is it a clone? That would give you quite a few customization options on the body.
LBassingtonI can vouch for the 104-key Nixeus Moda Pro, and Amazon is currently selling it with blue switches: https://www.amazon.com/Nixeus-Mechanical-Feedback-Keyboard-MK-104BL16/dp/B01DXVUDEA
Amazon's price is a bit more than Massdrop's was when I bought it. Massdrop will probably run it again.
If a TKL is enough, there is a drop open for the next 4 days with blues as an option: https://www.massdrop.com/buy/nixeus-moda-v2-mechanical-mechanical-keyboard?utm_source=linkshare&referer=AV5F4D
LBassington
155
Mar 20, 2018
dvorcolTHAT is incredibly tempting, but I prefer it without writing. That's one of the reasons why I wanted the WASD, there is no branding on it at all.
I wish I could safely remove that nexeus logo.
LBassingtonNot sure if there is an easy way to remove the logo without risking impact to the finish on the metal plate. The WASD board is anonymous and their switches are nice, but the case is plastic. The Nixeus is metal on all sides, just the four corners are plastic. And it isn't much bigger than the actual keycap area, if you favor a minimalist look. Plus, the Nixeus price is about half...
LBassington
155
May 7, 2018
dvorcol@dvorcol I just wanted to share that I took the plunge! I've joined the Massdrop for Cooler Master Masterkeys S. TKL model with Cherry MX blue switches, and it's more affordable than WASD, but just as anonymous. I do have my eye on Rama.works, but my wallet is fighting back at that dream. Thanks for all of your wonderful suggestions both pre and post drop.
LBassingtonI'm glad I was of help. Looks like you will receive keycaps and a keyboard within a couple weeks of each other. Hope everything is better than you expected!
PRODUCTS YOU MAY LIKE
Trending Posts in Mechanical Keyboards