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PS/2 (not usb) mechanical keyboard

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I'm looking for a mechanical keyboard but I want it to be PS/2; not that USB that has a free PS/2 converter in the box. 

 

Do you have any recommendations? 

I went on newegg in the keyboard section looking for mechanical keyboard with ps/2 and found This. In the specs it says Ps/2 but in the product page is says USB ps/2 converter. 

 

I now went to the gaming keyboard section and... I don't want to spend all day checking every mechanical switch so I started with the PS/2 filter. Doing so brought me straight Here. That keyboard doesn't specify anything other than PS/2 and gaming. It doesn't say if it's USB to ps/2 nor if it is mechanical. 

 

Thanks for any help! 

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ebay is your best bet. you wont find any gamery keyboards if you want mechanical PS/2 but there are loads of still good looking old boards from the 80's and 90's that are mechanical and have a PS/2 connector

I spent $2500 on building my PC and all i do with it is play no games atm & watch anime at 1080p(finally) watch YT and write essays...  nothing, it just sits there collecting dust...

Builds:

The Toaster Project! Northern Bee!

 

The original LAN PC build log! (Old, dead and replaced by The Toaster Project & 5.0)

Spoiler

"Here is some advice that might have gotten lost somewhere along the way in your life. 

 

#1. Treat others as you would like to be treated.

#2. It's best to keep your mouth shut; and appear to be stupid, rather than open it and remove all doubt.

#3. There is nothing "wrong" with being wrong. Learning from a mistake can be more valuable than not making one in the first place.

 

Follow these simple rules in life, and I promise you, things magically get easier. " - MageTank 31-10-2016

 

 

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2 minutes ago, Bananasplit_00 said:

ebay is your best bet. you wont find any gamery keyboards if you want mechanical PS/2 but there are loads of still good looking old boards from the 80's and 90's that are mechanical and have a PS/2 connector

Are the 80s and 90s keyboards good still? 

I don't need a "gamer" mechanical keyboard, I mostly program and play some games but not super into the "gamer look" though if it's what's available then it's fine with me. 

 

3 minutes ago, kerradeph said:

Out of curiosity, why do you need to have a direct PS/2 connection?

I just think it'd be nicer to have. It's like "why do you need a 240 hz monitor with a resolution way better than you can see?" 

Also I heard PS/2 is the only way to get N-Key Rollover. 

Besides those, I have a lot of flash drives, and USB devices. It'd be nicer to free up at least 1 USB port so I'm not plugging in USB hubs all the time. 

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1 minute ago, fpo said:

Are the 80s and 90s keyboards good still? 

I don't need a "gamer" mechanical keyboard, I mostly program and play some games but not super into the "gamer look" though if it's what's available then it's fine with me. 

 

I just think it'd be nicer to have. It's like "why do you need a 240 hz monitor with a resolution way better than you can see?" 

Also I heard PS/2 is the only way to get N-Key Rollover. 

Besides those, I have a lot of flash drives, and USB devices. It'd be nicer to free up at least 1 USB port so I'm not plugging in USB hubs all the time. 

yes, most of them are still good. keyboards were build like tanks back then and most are still in working condition. as for the N-key rollover thats not true at all, lots of USB keyboards have full N-key rollover

I spent $2500 on building my PC and all i do with it is play no games atm & watch anime at 1080p(finally) watch YT and write essays...  nothing, it just sits there collecting dust...

Builds:

The Toaster Project! Northern Bee!

 

The original LAN PC build log! (Old, dead and replaced by The Toaster Project & 5.0)

Spoiler

"Here is some advice that might have gotten lost somewhere along the way in your life. 

 

#1. Treat others as you would like to be treated.

#2. It's best to keep your mouth shut; and appear to be stupid, rather than open it and remove all doubt.

#3. There is nothing "wrong" with being wrong. Learning from a mistake can be more valuable than not making one in the first place.

 

Follow these simple rules in life, and I promise you, things magically get easier. " - MageTank 31-10-2016

 

 

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10 minutes ago, fpo said:

Are the 80s and 90s keyboards good still? 

I don't need a "gamer" mechanical keyboard, I mostly program and play some games but not super into the "gamer look" though if it's what's available then it's fine with me. 

 

I just think it'd be nicer to have. It's like "why do you need a 240 hz monitor with a resolution way better than you can see?" 

Also I heard PS/2 is the only way to get N-Key Rollover. 

Besides those, I have a lot of flash drives, and USB devices. It'd be nicer to free up at least 1 USB port so I'm not plugging in USB hubs all the time. 

Nowadays USB can have N-Key rollover, it's very common on most more premium gaming keyboards.

Mechanical PS/2 boards are not really on the market anymore. When PS/2 connectors became the standard, membrane keyboard were a thing and a lot cheaper to make, so most older mechanical boards use a different connector and modern mechanical board use USB, maybe with an adapter.

"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, Bananasplit_00 said:

yes, most of them are still good. keyboards were build like tanks back then and most are still in working condition. as for the N-key rollover thats not true at all, lots of USB keyboards have full N-key rollover

Cool! I'll check some out maybe. Any brands you recommend?

 

i read an article on Tom's hardware (lost the link) and they said that N-Key rollover wasn't possible on USB and other things along those lines. I wasn't sure if maybe USB would "bottleneck" the PS/2 adaptor. 

 

10 minutes ago, aidanapple said:

What about the SteelSeries 7G Gaming Keyboard? Will it work?

It's close but in the description it says that it has a USB to PS/2 converter. I was wondering if there was anything that was natively PS/2. 

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1 minute ago, fpo said:

Cool! I'll check some out maybe. Any brands you recommend?

 

i read an article on Tom's hardware (lost the link) and they said that N-Key rollover wasn't possible on USB and other things along those lines. I wasn't sure if maybe USB would "bottleneck" the PS/2 adaptor. 

 

It's close but in the description it says that it has a USB to PS/2 converter. I was wondering if there was anything that was natively PS/2. 

id check out this YT chanel for some reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD0y51PJfvkZNe3y3FR5riw

I spent $2500 on building my PC and all i do with it is play no games atm & watch anime at 1080p(finally) watch YT and write essays...  nothing, it just sits there collecting dust...

Builds:

The Toaster Project! Northern Bee!

 

The original LAN PC build log! (Old, dead and replaced by The Toaster Project & 5.0)

Spoiler

"Here is some advice that might have gotten lost somewhere along the way in your life. 

 

#1. Treat others as you would like to be treated.

#2. It's best to keep your mouth shut; and appear to be stupid, rather than open it and remove all doubt.

#3. There is nothing "wrong" with being wrong. Learning from a mistake can be more valuable than not making one in the first place.

 

Follow these simple rules in life, and I promise you, things magically get easier. " - MageTank 31-10-2016

 

 

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4 minutes ago, Minibois said:

Nowadays USB can have N-Key rollover, it's very common on most more premium gaming keyboards.

Mechanical PS/2 boards are not really on the market anymore. When PS/2 connectors became the standard, membrane keyboard were a thing and a lot cheaper to make, so most older mechanical boards use a different connector and modern mechanical board use USB, maybe with an adapter.

I remember Linus doing ads a lot talking about USB boards with nkey rollover. Is that because of the Keyboard's processor or memory inside? (I don't know how the keyboard's conputer works if it has one) 

 

is therr any specific reason why ps/2 mechanical boards aren't popular anymore? 

 

What was the different connector that old mechanical keyboards used? 

 

Do you need the ps2 adaptor to get that n key rollover? Or USB 3? 

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5 minutes ago, Bananasplit_00 said:

id check out this YT chanel for some reviews: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCD0y51PJfvkZNe3y3FR5riw

Thanks! His channel looks really interesting as he really seems to only do vintage keyboards. Cool like lazy game reviews. 

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7 minutes ago, fpo said:

Thanks! His channel looks really interesting as he really seems to only do vintage keyboards. Cool like lazy game reviews. 

found him when looking for a beem spring keyboard(never got one in the end) but he is really cool, love his content

I spent $2500 on building my PC and all i do with it is play no games atm & watch anime at 1080p(finally) watch YT and write essays...  nothing, it just sits there collecting dust...

Builds:

The Toaster Project! Northern Bee!

 

The original LAN PC build log! (Old, dead and replaced by The Toaster Project & 5.0)

Spoiler

"Here is some advice that might have gotten lost somewhere along the way in your life. 

 

#1. Treat others as you would like to be treated.

#2. It's best to keep your mouth shut; and appear to be stupid, rather than open it and remove all doubt.

#3. There is nothing "wrong" with being wrong. Learning from a mistake can be more valuable than not making one in the first place.

 

Follow these simple rules in life, and I promise you, things magically get easier. " - MageTank 31-10-2016

 

 

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1 minute ago, fpo said:

I remember Linus doing ads a lot talking about USB boards with nkey rollover. Is that because of the Keyboard's processor or memory inside? (I don't know how the keyboard's conputer works if it has one) 

 

is therr any specific reason why ps/2 mechanical boards aren't popular anymore? 

 

What was the different connector that old mechanical keyboards used? 

 

Do you need the ps2 adaptor to get that n key rollover? Or USB 3? 

As far as I know, USB used to didn't have any kind of rollover, because of the way USB sends away data. It could  only send over so many things, before having to 'break' the code, so it can't send too many things at the same time over USB.

 

The reason why PS/2 is not as popular anymore is because of multiple reason, IMO these are the two most important ones:

- USB is more universal, PS/2 is a whole lot less convenient on smaller devices

- PS/2 has no hotswapping, so if you wanted to plug in a different keyboard, you would have to shut down your PC, plug it in and than start it up again.

 

I was thinking about the DIN connector, but looking at a couple keyboard online it seemed like I was confused with the timing of the PS/2 plug and membrane keyboards. There are still many old mechanical PS/2 keyboard, like the Dell AT101W (or Dell Bigfoot). These are around 30 USD, but expect to clean them up before use though.

 

It can do it via USB 2.0 or 3.0, of course via an PS/2 adapter too, but it's not necessary.

"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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1 minute ago, fpo said:

@Minibois wow, okay. Very informative! Thank you. 

 

What changed now then that all the sudden USB can handle N-Key rollover? 

The USB controllers were better able to send over the information to the PC, as far as I know.

I can't find any definitive evidence on this, but I believe N key rollover on USB has only been around for about 4 years or so. 

"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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2 minutes ago, Minibois said:

The USB controllers were better able to send over the information to the PC, as far as I know.

I can't find any definitive evidence on this, but I believe N key rollover on USB has only been around for about 4 years or so. 

I'll have to look this up and learn how it works. Thanks for the information! 

 

In my everyday use I have a membrane keyboard that doesn't even have a company marking on it haha. It's good enough, but if I'm going to upgrade I might as well go overkill. 

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