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Does anyone have any advice on a first-timer mechanical keyboard?

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I am mainly looking for a 60% or a TKL and want to change the keycaps up a bit. I've looked into boards such as the Ducky One 2 Mini, Anne Pro 2, Ajazz AK33, or straight up building on of my own. I'd love to hear some of your guys thoughts and make the right decision for me! I know that I prefer linear switches if that helps or makes a difference. (I have used a loaner keyboard from my friend who has Cherry reds and also typed alot on another buddy of mine's Cherry blues) Any and all help is greatly appreciated! Also, if anyone has any really good links to some solid PBT keycaps, if that was included I won't be mad!

EDIT: keycap sentence
(Edited)
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dsullivan539
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Feb 21, 2019
If I were to re-build my first keyboard this is what I would order, assuming you are comfortable soldering the switches. Off Ali express order the following DZ60 PCB, Gatreon Black switches x70, Plastic GH60/DZ60 case (should be under $10), aluminum DZ60 plate and you could order some LEDs if you wanted to have per key backlighting. Then I would order a set of GMK screw in stablizers from 1up Keyboards and some super lube from Amazon to lube the stabilizers. For keycaps, well then it really comes down to what you think you like and what profile you like. The Tai Ho sets on Massdrop are good affordable sets that should cover all your bases, or you can look for a set of Maxkey SA or some cheap DSA sets from Aliexpress or even OEM/Cherry sets from china on Ali Express or Amazon. All in this should run you around $115 and you'll have a fantastic starter board.
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Feb 12, 2019
for ~80 bucks you can grab a coolermaster masterkeys s tkl, i can't recommend this board enough. imo probably the best bang-for-your-buck kb under a hundred bucks, possibly the best in any price-range very austere, solid kb, very thoughtful functions built in, and if you're lucky, you can find them on sale pretty frequently - i paid 55 bucks for mine at the very least, for this price you'd be buying some of the best pbt caps around - first pic is of one of the keycaps, in between two other keycaps so you can compare the thickness. they are some beefy big bois, for sure. you could think of it as spending ~70-80 bucks for a super quality keycap set, and getting an extra keyboard as a bonus :P this board has definitely become my favorite board, but for what it's worth i prefer a more austere and simple board as opposed to some of the more flashy options in that price range. i am thinking about picking up an anne pro 2 here soon myself - i'm hesitant about wireless boards but a friend has one and i'm beginning to come around, because my god, using the anne pro on my android's termux shell has been a serious gamechanger
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Gateron and Kailh both make great switches. I prefer them over Cherry. They're a cheaper alternative, the switch housing is less wobbly, and cherry reds are just scratchy. TaeKeyboards has good reviews on all the boards you listed. It's all about deciding and pulling the trigger now.
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