Mechanical Keyboard Club!

[TheProfosist]

Finally built my v2 Preonic

 

 

 

comparison of my keycap options

 

 

 

 

heres what I did for the layout

 

 

[b emoji]

6 hours ago, TheProfosist said:

Finally built my v2 Preonic

 

 

 

comparison of my keycap options

 

 

 

 

heres what I did for the layout

 

 

Nice which switches? 

[geo3]

7 hours ago, b emoji said:

What zealio weight ? Any mods? 

65g. Lubed springs. Sound dampening material under the PCB, felt and silicone.  Also the paint job is custom. It used to be a hideous orange. So I sanded and painted it.

[TheProfosist]

12 hours ago, b emoji said:

Nice which switches? 

standard Clears with 62g springs which is my preferred switch

used some yellow stickers I had sitting around.

 

 

11 hours ago, James Evens said:

I noticed a problem with the  80 cn spring upgrade: after releasing the spacebar (when it tops out) there is low tone. Anybody a idea on how to fix it?

low tone like what kind? The most common sound people get on release of the switch is something called ping.

[b emoji]

5 hours ago, TheProfosist said:

standard Clears with 62g springs which is my preferred switch

used some yellow stickers I had sitting around

So basically ergo clears? Did you lube the switches? 

[geo3]

6 hours ago, James Evens said:

I don't think it is the  spring. I guess it is more the keycap of the spacebar resonating when it tops out as the other keys don't have this sound. 

From what you describe.That sounds completely normal. It's a larger key. Larger things resonate at deeper sounds. Can you make a video of it?

[Tonberry]

On 7/23/2019 at 12:34 AM, Ragnorok64 said:

What is that exactly?

Marshmallows

[Nowak]

Can we give some shoutouts to randomfrankp for this actually pretty nice build?
 

It's actually pretty clear he put a ton of research into this and even linked to several Taeha Types videos in the description. Like, damn.

[jiyeon]

15 minutes ago, Nowak said:

Can we give some shoutouts to randomfrankp for this actually pretty nice build?

It's actually pretty clear he put a ton of research into this and even linked to several Taeha Types videos in the description. Like, damn.

Can definitely applaud randomfrankp's interest grwoth in keyboards recently, it's clear he's a huge fan of Taeha Types and vice versa, Taeha Types was so gassed when Frank mentioned him.

 

Fun fact, randomfrankp switching out his Input Club K-Type's switches to Kailh Box Jades was the ultimate inspiration for me to go ahead and build a custom keyboard featuring Kailh Box Jades for myself.  It's one big circle of inspiration here.

[Nowak]

2 minutes ago, seoz said:

Can definitely applaud randomfrankp's interest grwoth in keyboards recently, it's clear he's a huge fan of Taeha Types and vice versa, Taeha Types was so gassed when Frank mentioned him.

 

Fun fact, randomfrankp switching out his Input Club K-Type's switches to Kailh Box Jades was the ultimate inspiration for me to go ahead and build a custom keyboard featuring Kailh Box Jades for myself.  It's one big circle of inspiration here.

I definitely want to try building a keyboard at some point, probably with Box Jades. Maybe a 60% to start before moving onto soldered builds like the DZ96.

[jiyeon]

Just now, Nowak said:

I definitely want to try building a keyboard at some point, probably with Box Jades. Maybe a 60% to start before moving onto soldered builds like the DZ96.

Would definitely recommend it, the feeling of contructing your own keyboard instead of conforming to the big brand's expensive pre-builts and making a build that is personal to you down to the switches is an awesome project.

 

Mine is a 60% with hot-swappable switch sockets for easy removal of switches, I'm actually getting NovelKeys Creams switches soon and will be removing my Kailh Box Jades in exchange for the Creams, the glorious perks of having a hot-swap is no soldering nor de-soldering is needed.

 

I call her Tokyo Sakura for she has unapologetically Japanese-style keycaps and a nice wooden base to signify nature and purity.

 

[Nowak]

Just now, seoz said:

Would definitely recommend it, the feeling of contructing your own keyboard instead of conforming to the big brand's expensive pre-builts and making a build that is personal to you down to the switches is an awesome project.

 

Mine is a 60% with hot-swappable switch sockets for easy removal of switches, I'm actually getting NovelKeys Creams switches soon and will be removing my Kailh Box Jades in exchange for the Creams, the glorious perks of having a hot-swap is no soldering nor de-soldering is needed.

 

I call her Tokyo Sakura for she has unapologetically Japanese-style keycaps and a nice wooden base to signify nature and purity.

 

tbh I want to go for a XD96 because I like the 96 key layout of my Kira but hate the firmware lmao I just wish there were more cap sets that natively supported 96 key layouts.

 

Also I typed DZ96 but was confusing it with the DZ60 oops

[b emoji]

6 hours ago, Nowak said:

bh I want to go for a XD96 because I like the 96 key layout of my Kira but hate the firmware lmao I just wish there were more cap sets that natively supported 96 key layouts.

 

Also I typed DZ96 but was confusing it with the DZ60 oops

Most good keycap sets should be compactible, GMK, MT3 and ePBT sets have excellent compatibility. Most keycap group buys will have non-standard kits you can pick up as well. 

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

Hi Mech club, I'm looking to build a split keyboard since the ergodox ez is pretty expensive. 

 

Where are yall ordering your pcbs from? Im buying everything else from aliexpress

[Dissitesuxba11s]

4 hours ago, Pohernori said:

Hi Mech club, I'm looking to build a split keyboard since the ergodox ez is pretty expensive. 

 

Where are yall ordering your pcbs from? Im buying everything else from aliexpress

You can look at making an Iris split ergo keyboard. You can get most of the parts from https://keeb.io/

[b emoji]

4 hours ago, Pohernori said:

Hi Mech club, I'm looking to build a split keyboard since the ergodox ez is pretty expensive. 

 

Where are yall ordering your pcbs from? Im buying everything else from aliexpress

You can always hand wire which will be cheaper but takes a lot longer. You can use amoeba mini pcbs to help with the hand wiring 

[Kinda Bottlenecked]

11 hours ago, Dissitesuxba11s said:

You can look at making an Iris split ergo keyboard. You can get most of the parts from https://keeb.io/

 

Thanks for the link, although the iris split looks pretty good, im looking at the helix/helidox pcbs. Gotta have those rgbs and the exposed controller is a pretty good aesthetic

 

12 hours ago, b emoji said:

You can always hand wire which will be cheaper but takes a lot longer. You can use amoeba mini pcbs to help with the hand wiring 

 

Oh wow... But I probably shouldn't do that for my first kb 

[alittlepeace]

[geo3]

@alittlepeace What does the knob do?

[alittlepeace]

22 hours ago, geo3 said:

@alittlepeace What does the knob do?

qmk programmable, right now it's set as pg up pg dn

[jiyeon]

On 8/12/2019 at 2:26 PM, alittlepeace said:

-snip-

How long did it take for you to get used to a split keyboard? What split is that by the way?

[Dissitesuxba11s]

6 hours ago, seoz said:

What split is that by the way?

Looks like an Iris split keyboard with an acrylic case.

[alittlepeace]

On 8/14/2019 at 7:27 AM, seoz said:

How long did it take for you to get used to a split keyboard? What split is that by the way?

Iris with custom cut plates and midlayers

It took me longer to get used to the fact that it's ortholinear, I was using a Quefrency before which is staggered 

Currently have a Corne on order

[Deaderpool]

So I have ended up purchasing a new keyboard and there doesn't seem to be a proper review of it on here yet. As such here are my thoughts after having the Corsair K63 wired TKL keyboard for 24 hours...

 

Firstly, I upgraded from a Roccat ISKU keyboard (it was paired with the KoneXTD mouse) which was old and tired and had developed a keyboard version of alzheimers. This is my first experience with Cherry MX switches which I have heard a bunch about over the last few years but not had the chance to experience before.

 

Onto the nitty gritty... First impressions out of the box was that it looked pretty nice and certainly as advertised. It is compact and despite being on the lower end of the price spectrum feels solid, secure and well built. Despite its small size it is actually surprisingly heavy (considerably weightier than my previous keyboard) which was a little surprise to me though I am sure the weight helps the 4 small rubber pads keep the keyboard in place. The keys themselves are a dream compared to my previous keyboard and I am sure adjusting to gaming and typing on this keyboard will be a pleasant experience once my niggles are sorted....

 

Speaking of niggles... I purchased this keyboard in a little bit of a hurry as I needed one quickly. It immediately became obvious that I would need to purchase a wrist rest due to the height of the keys from the top of the desk. I have been able to use it so far without a rest (it was much more comfortable even using household objects as a rest) but only for short sessions as even with my larger than average hands it quickly becomes quite uncomfortable. It would have been nice if there had been some kind of advice or even a mention of the rest on the product page itself rather than having to go hunting for it after the fact. Corsair have provided a place to clip in their rest on the keyboard and I would honestly prefer them to just include the rest in the box and bump the price up by the £7.70 and £4.95 shipping it costs to have it shipped to the UK from Amsterdam and not have to wait 5 days for it (assuming the 1st delivery attempt succeeds).

 

The second (very) minor niggle I noticed very quickly after getting it plugged in is that while the primary red backlight is very nice (and thats coming from someone who really does prefer blues as a rule), there is a significant difference in the strength of the light between the letters/numbers at the top of the key and the symbols below them. Having the back-light at max brightness does help with this a little but a minor niggle is a minor niggle.

 

My last niggle is a surprising one though... The media keys were placed incorrectly meaning that the volume mute and increase volume buttons have been reversed. Not quite sure how/why this has happened and I am waiting on a reply from CS to discover whether I can switch them myself (they are not Cherry MX switches) without damaging the keyboard or whether I need to return it for a replacement.

 

I am sure I will be quite happy with the keyboard once the niggles are sorted but those niggles have ensured that my first experience of Corsair hardware has been slightly disappointing and in a marketplace crowded with brands I will likely end up looking elsewhere (probably unfairly but those are the breaks) the next time I need to make a purchase. 

 

Edit: Also there was no keycap puller which given the fact they cost a few pence at most is a little meh

[jiyeon]

9 minutes ago, Deaderpool said:

I am sure I will be quite happy with the keyboard once the niggles are sorted but those niggles have ensured that my first experience of Corsair hardware has been slightly disappointing and in a marketplace crowded with brands I will likely end up looking elsewhere (probably unfairly but those are the breaks) the next time I need to make a purchase. 

You could have a go at making your own keyboard if you feel like you aren't getting the satisfaction you need out of the marketplace saturated with 'gaming' keyboards.

I've heard good things about SteelSeries and HyperX if you're tied into the gaming-oriented peripherals, otherwise Ducky and Leopold have some solid mechanical keyboards that you might want to consider as they use nice switches unlike the usual Cherry MX ones you'd find in the gaming-oriented keyboards.

 

I still remember the day my brother got his Corsair K95 and it still baffles to me to this day that the thing costs £180 from Amazon.

There was once a time where I was going to get a Corsair K70 RGB Mk.2 SE but the price was far too expensive for what I was willing to spend on the it despite all the features, and especially since the regular version costs 2/3 of what the white version comes in, at least on Amazon.

 

15 minutes ago, Deaderpool said:

Firstly, I upgraded from a Roccat ISKU keyboard (it was paired with the KoneXTD mouse) which was old and tired and had developed a keyboard version of alzheimers.

Interestingly I also formerly used a Rocket Isku keyboard, it was the FX version in white, it was one huge keyboard. My Roccat Isku was retired after the membranes just felt cheap and squishy. The Isku sure used some low-quality rubber domes.