Buying first keyboard?

[Ted3582]

I'm new to the gaming peripherals world, and am looking for advice/opinions on what more experienced users think is a good keyboard.

I recently purchased my first gaming peripheral, the Logitech G305, and it's so much better than any mouse I've used before. I thought afterwards, since the mouse upgrade was such a game-changer, why not go and see if a gaming keyboard will better my typing experience?

 

Budget: I'm willing to spend the money if it's worth the money. For instance, RGB looks cool, but I can do without it, seeing as how it's not a necessity.

Switch: From the research I've done, I think it would be best for me to go for the Cherry MX Blue (clicky), as I'm typing 95% of the time I'm using a keyboard. I've never used a mechanical keyboard before, so please correct me if I am wrong.

Brand: No preference. As long as they are good!

 

Thank you!

[Ominous]

Anne Pro 2 with Kailh Box Whites.   Great price for and RGB, Bluetooth and 60% board.

 

If you don't want something that fancy, I recommend a board from Leopold, Ducky or Filco.

[Ted3582]

6 minutes ago, Ethan_ said:

Anne Pro 2 with Kailh Box Whites.   Great price for and RGB, Bluetooth and 60% board.

 

If you don't want something that fancy, I recommend a board from Leopold, Ducky or Filco.

Is there a 65% or tenkey (I think this is the proper term for the keyboards without the keypad?) version of the Anne Pro? 60% keyboards are nice, but I really do like my arrow keys.

[geo3]

4 hours ago, failedsummoner said:

Is there a 65% or tenkey (I think this is the proper term for the keyboards without the keypad?) version of the Anne Pro? 60% keyboards are nice, but I really do like my arrow keys.

TADA68

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-low-profile-case-tada68-keyboard

 

TOFU65 (keycaps not included)

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-tofu65-mechanical-keyboards

 

KBD67

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-kbd67-mechanical-keyboard

 

 

5 hours ago, failedsummoner said:

I think it would be best for me to go for the Cherry MX Blue (clicky), as I'm typing 95% of the time I'm using a keyboard.

 

There is zero correlation between the activity you do and the type of switch you should get.  It's down to personal preference. If you like clicky switches I suggest the far superior click bar style switches like Kailh Box over the awful click jacket design like Cherry Blues have. Click jacket sound and feel rattly, thin and plasticy. Click bars have a cleaner thicker and more substantial sound and feel.

[dizmo]

No amount of online research is going to tell you which switch type you want. You have to buy one of those testers and test them out for yourself, otherwise you're going to end up wasting a lot of money.

[Ted3582]

2 hours ago, geo3 said:

TADA68

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-low-profile-case-tada68-keyboard

 

TOFU65 (keycaps not included)

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-tofu65-mechanical-keyboards

 

KBD67

https://kbdfans.com/collections/fully-assembled-keyboard/products/fully-assembled-kbd67-mechanical-keyboard

Would you say these are better than the Duckies or other mainstream keyboard manufacturers? I haven't heard about these keyboards before, so I'm quite curious about their quality.

Quote

There is zero correlation between the activity you do and the type of switch you should get.  It's down to personal preference. If you like clicky switches I suggest the far superior click bar style switches like Kailh Box over the awful click jacket design like Cherry Blues have. Click jacket sound and feel rattly, thin and plasticy. Click bars have a cleaner thicker and more substantial sound and feel.

Oh, I was under the impression that Cherries were the top of the line when it came to mechanical keyboard switches. Looking at Kailh Box switches, it says that they're legal clones of the Cherry switches. Are the Kailh Box switches much better in your opinion?

 

Quote

No amount of online research is going to tell you which switch type you want. You have to buy one of those testers and test them out for yourself, otherwise you're going to end up wasting a lot of money.

That's a fair statement and sounds like a smart thing to do. I'll see if I can head out to a Best Buy and test some switches out.

[Ominous]

1 minute ago, failedsummoner said:

Would you say these are better than the Duckies or other mainstream keyboard manufacturers? I haven't heard about these keyboards before, so I'm quite curious about their quality.

Oh, I was under the impression that Cherries were the top of the line when it came to mechanical keyboard switches. Looking at Kailh Box switches, it says that they're legal clones of the Cherry switches. Are the Kailh Box switches much better in your opinion?

 

That's a fair statement and sounds like a smart thing to do. I'll see if I can head out to a Best Buy and test some switches out.

KBDFans are very high quality and do in some places beat Ducky.

 

Cherries are sort of lower mid-tier.  They're the industry go to but you can get much better, the Kailh Box switches for example (they're better than cherry in almost every way).

 

Yes, we highly recommend that you try before you buy.

[geo3]

9 minutes ago, failedsummoner said:

Would you say these are better than the Duckies or other mainstream keyboard manufacturers? I haven't heard about these keyboards before, so I'm quite curious about their quality.

Vastly superior. These are enthusiast grade keyboards.

 

9 minutes ago, failedsummoner said:

Oh, I was under the impression that Cherries were the top of the line when it came to mechanical keyboard switches. Looking at Kailh Box switches, it says that they're legal clones of the Cherry switches. Are the Kailh Box switches much better in your opinion?

No. At one point Cherry was considered good. But that was years ago. Their "clones" have caught up and surpassed them in many regards, while they have remained basically the same.

And technically the Kailh Box switches are not even a clone. They have the same footprint and keycap compatibility, but internally they are completely different.