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Replacing Keycaps on Keyboard

Ted3582
By Ted3582
in Peripherals
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Two days ago, I bought the HyperX Alloy FPS Mechanical Gaming Keyboard with Cherry MX Blue switches as a sort of "entry level" mechanical keyboard to play around with.

 

I would like to replace the keycaps on this keyboard to PBT keycaps, but am not sure where to get them outside of the usual Razer/HyperX brands.

 

Where would I be able to find some good quality, simple keycaps that will last a long time but won't drill a hole in my bank account? Are the Razer keycaps a good choice?

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Posted (edited)

HyperX uses standard bottom row, so your options are pretty wide, you can get caps of aliexpress for very cheap, how much you want to spend? If you like how HyperX caps look you can get those, they are very decent. Razer ones are good too.

When looking for caps on aliexpress just make sure they are pbt doubleshot caps and you are good to go. If you want to spend more/or want less "mainstream" looking caps there are other places like kbdfans and similar, but those will cost more than 40 bucks most of the time, on aliexpress you can get very decent caps for ~ 20 usd, I have 3 sets, they are very good.

Edited by noxdeouroboros
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Posted (edited)
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Money wise, I would have to say I'm loathe to spend any amount over $50 US. I'll save the super expensive, premium keycap purchase to when I get enough experience to buy a high-quality board in the future.

 

I took a look at the HyperX "Pudding" keycaps and I can't say I'm a fan of that style. I rarely use backlighting on my keyboards (RGB is overrated and I like my room very bright). I can't really justify the "translucent" look other than if you value the lighting effects of the keyboard.

 

Razer sounds like a good option, but from what I've heard from the community about Razer products in general, I don't know if I would trust their quality. They certainly look nice, and if someone tells me otherwise, Razer's keycaps look perfect.

 

I would like standard black or white keycaps that don't try to be flashy and unique, if possible. Something simple and effective. I suppose I would also need to invest into a decent keycap puller?

Edited by Censors
Added Razer keycap portion
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6 minutes ago, Censors said:

I took a look at the HyperX "Pudding" keycaps and I can't say I'm a fan of that style.

Not a fan myself.

 

6 minutes ago, Censors said:

. I suppose I would also need to invest into a decent keycap puller?

Don't buy anything too expensive, cheap ones also work very well, just get a wire one, not plastic. They cost few bucks, no need to go crazy. Look around here : https://kbdfans.com/collections/keycaps or here https://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_list&c=40 if you won't find anything you like I could recommend white doubleshot pbt caps I have from Aliexpress. Oh, if you don't use lighting, doubleshots are not necessary.

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16 minutes ago, Censors said:

Razer sounds like a good option, but from what I've heard from the community about Razer products in general, I don't know if I would trust their quality. They certainly look nice, and if someone tells me otherwise, Razer's keycaps look perfect.

I don't have them personally, but afaik they are good.

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36 minutes ago, noxdeouroboros said:

Razer ones are good too.

26 minutes ago, Censors said:

Razer sounds like a good option, but from what I've heard from the community about Razer products in general, I don't know if I would trust their quality. They certainly look nice, and if someone tells me otherwise, Razer's keycaps look perfect.

Razer uses a non-standard bottom row, HyperX has a standard bottom row.

The Razer keycap set bottom row will not fit on a HyperX board.

 

EDIT: The Razer set also includes a standard bottom row, so will fit most boards, including the HyperX.

 

I recommend wasdkeyboard.com or kbdfans.com for keycaps.

Chinese marketplace websites like Banggood, Aliexpress and Taobao can have decent stuff too, if you make sure it's actually PBT caps you're getting.

Edited by minibois
Corrected my mistakes.

"We're all in this together, might as well be friends" Tom, Toonami.

 

mini eLiXiVy: my open source 65% mechanical PCB, a build log, PCB anatomy and discussing open source licenses: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1366493-elixivy-a-65-mechanical-keyboard-build-log-pcb-anatomy-and-how-i-open-sourced-this-project/

 

mini_cardboard: a 4% keyboard build log and how keyboards work: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1328547-mini_cardboard-a-4-keyboard-build-log-and-how-keyboards-work/

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Just now, minibois said:

The Razer keycap set bottom row will not fit on a HyperX board.

 

You are right, thank you for correcting me. I kinda was talking about quality and forgot about this stuff.

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1 minute ago, minibois said:

Razer uses a non-standard bottom row, HyperX has a standard bottom row.

 

From their website, it says they also include the standard bottom row as well. Is this not true anymore?

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Just now, Censors said:

From their website, it says they also include the standard bottom row as well. Is this not true anymore?

Oh yea their site does mention that for the PBT set. I didn't know they did this, sorry for the previous message!

"We're all in this together, might as well be friends" Tom, Toonami.

 

mini eLiXiVy: my open source 65% mechanical PCB, a build log, PCB anatomy and discussing open source licenses: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1366493-elixivy-a-65-mechanical-keyboard-build-log-pcb-anatomy-and-how-i-open-sourced-this-project/

 

mini_cardboard: a 4% keyboard build log and how keyboards work: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1328547-mini_cardboard-a-4-keyboard-build-log-and-how-keyboards-work/

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All good, I just wanted to make sure. I'm pretty new to this, definitely could have been my misunderstanding.

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Are you looking for a different keycap profile? Like GMK/Cherry/OEM/DSA. They all feel very different under your fingers.Pretty sure there's a chart somewhere but I can't find it.

As a wise master once said, 

Put as much effort into your question as you would expect a stranger to add to their answer!

 

Desktop: AMD Ryzen 5 3800XT | Gigabyte X570 Aorus Ultra | Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB 4000Mhz CL18 | MSI RX 5700 XT Gaming X | Two WD Black SN750 1TB NVMe SSD | Corsair AX850 Titanium | Fractal Design Define 7 White, Solid

 

Laptop: Apple Macbook Pro 16 | i9 9980H | 16 GB RAM |  1TB SSD | AppleCare+ | Space Grey

Peripherals: RAMA U-80 Lake | Logitech MX Master 3 | Kanto YU2 White + Beyerdynamic DT 177X GO 

Displays: LG GX 55"| Acer XB273K | Dell Ultrasharp U2720Q | LG 32UN650-W 

 

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11 minutes ago, minibois said:

Chinese marketplace websites like Banggood, Aliexpress and Taobao can have decent stuff too, if you make sure it's actually PBT caps you're getting.

This is the primary concern I have when I see China-based websites. I'll make sure to be careful.

 

KBDFans stuff always looks amazing, oh man are these expensive compared to the others, though! I do love the Korean keyset... are the quality of these really that much higher than say, these keycaps valued at $39? 

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1 minute ago, TeeKayTK said:

Are you looking for a different keycap profile? Like GMK/Cherry/OEM/DSA. They all feel very different under your fingers.Pretty sure there's a chart somewhere but I can't find it.

Not all profiles fit his keyboard, I would stick with cherry or oem. Here's the chart :

Fbfi8ZGiOEslobRzXb-BOMoEy2aye3z_LNuAxqcI

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1 minute ago, noxdeouroboros said:

Not all profiles fit his keyboard, I would stick with cherry or oem. Here's the chart :

 

I wanna try Tai-Hao caps, but they're so expensive :(

As a wise master once said, 

Put as much effort into your question as you would expect a stranger to add to their answer!

 

Desktop: AMD Ryzen 5 3800XT | Gigabyte X570 Aorus Ultra | Corsair Vengeance LPX 32 GB 4000Mhz CL18 | MSI RX 5700 XT Gaming X | Two WD Black SN750 1TB NVMe SSD | Corsair AX850 Titanium | Fractal Design Define 7 White, Solid

 

Laptop: Apple Macbook Pro 16 | i9 9980H | 16 GB RAM |  1TB SSD | AppleCare+ | Space Grey

Peripherals: RAMA U-80 Lake | Logitech MX Master 3 | Kanto YU2 White + Beyerdynamic DT 177X GO 

Displays: LG GX 55"| Acer XB273K | Dell Ultrasharp U2720Q | LG 32UN650-W 

 

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Posted (edited)
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7 minutes ago, TeeKayTK said:

Are you looking for a different keycap profile? Like GMK/Cherry/OEM/DSA. They all feel very different under your fingers.Pretty sure there's a chart somewhere but I can't find it.

I'm not exactly sure yet, I'm mainly looking to explore my options, see what I like/dislike. I made the mistake of starting with Romer-G switches (regretted that one) so I'm trying to go back to the basics to see what I really like in a keyboard before spending hundreds on a premium board or potentially building my own.

 

I know Cherry isn't the "best" when it comes to switches, but I wanted to see what the "original" felt like before branching out to Kailh/Omron/Gateron switches.

 

HyperX was nicely discounted at $50 this Christmas, so I picked it up to use it as a sort of "test" board. The only keycap types I've used so far are cheap ABS plastic, not to mention the basic office keyboard keycaps.

Edited by Censors
Added Cherry section
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9 minutes ago, Censors said:

KBDFans stuff always looks amazing, oh man are these expensive compared to the others, though! I do love the Korean keyset... are the quality of these really that much higher than say, these keycaps valued at $39? 

Not by much, you pay for the uniqueness. Those kbdfans caps are not made for lighting btw, the light won't shine through them.

Edited by noxdeouroboros
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7 minutes ago, Censors said:

This is the primary concern I have when I see China-based websites. I'll make sure to be careful.

 

KBDFans stuff always looks amazing, oh man are these expensive compared to the others, though! I do love the Korean keyset... are the quality of these really that much higher than say, these keycaps valued at $39? 

The quality will likely be similar, the KBDFans set just comes with more caps (for the different layouts, like ANSI vs ISO) and is a different sort of style.

"We're all in this together, might as well be friends" Tom, Toonami.

 

mini eLiXiVy: my open source 65% mechanical PCB, a build log, PCB anatomy and discussing open source licenses: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1366493-elixivy-a-65-mechanical-keyboard-build-log-pcb-anatomy-and-how-i-open-sourced-this-project/

 

mini_cardboard: a 4% keyboard build log and how keyboards work: https://linustechtips.com/topic/1328547-mini_cardboard-a-4-keyboard-build-log-and-how-keyboards-work/

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9 minutes ago, noxdeouroboros said:

Not by much, you pay for the uniqueness. Those caps are not made for lighting, the light won't shine through them.

I'll save being unique for later then. The decision for now will be between the $39 keycaps and the Razer keycaps. I didn't know where to purchase high quality keycaps before today, so I learned something new!

 

PBT keycaps last a long time, right? So if I settle on a certain keycap, I can just swap them over to a different keyboard when I purchase an upgrade as long as they are compatible?

 

Keyboard backlighting is the lowest priority for me anyway, I have lights in my room, and a window. Keyboard backlighting hurts my eyes for some peculiar reason, I can't really stand it.

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17 minutes ago, Censors said:

PBT keycaps last a long time, right? So if I settle on a certain keycap, I can just swap them over to a different keyboard when I purchase an upgrade as long as they are compatible?

Yes, you can swap them on other compatible boards if you like. They don't yellow or shine also. Just to be completely clear, they can start to shine, but that's not common, and starts way way later then with abs caps. Most of the time they last very long.  Just make sure they are PBT.

Edited by noxdeouroboros
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