Keyboard Advice

[Paladone]

Hey, guys

The other day I tripped and spilt a whole glass of juice over my keyboard (razer blackwidow ultimate) and monitor. Luckily both survived, however, half of the keys on the keyboard get stuck and are very hard to push down. I was wondering if anyone could recommend a good keyboard for me to buy? I want a durable, mechanical keyboard. My budget is about $150. So far i've been thinking about this one; http://ple.com.au/ViewItem.aspx?InventoryItemID=611220&CategoryID=269 . I would like to buy my keyboard from this store; http://www.ple.com.au

Thanks a lot

 

[SaltyFish]

Have you considered opening your keyboard and cleaning it?

That Ducky looks nice for a no-frills keyboard. The Corsair K70 is due out soon, so that might also be an option if you're willing to wait a bit. It's pretty much the K60, but with backlighting and full mechanical keys (the K60 uses rubber dome for lesser used keys).

 

[sneekypeet]

I would get something other than red switches personally, unless you like soft mechanical switches with little feel to them.

 

[Paladone]

I keyboards which have keys that require little effort to push. I light the light feeling. I believe the blackwidow ultimate that I have is blue which I like.

 

[BiggieShady]

I would get something other than red switches personally, unless you like soft mechanical switches with little feel to them.

Reds are quite good if you like to bottom out key presses when typing like me, to let everyone know I'm up to something

 

[sneekypeet]

Reds are quite good if you like to bottom out key presses when typing like me, to let everyone know I'm up to something

you don't have to bottom out if the switch clicks for you halfway through the press

I keyboards which have keys that require little effort to push. I light the light feeling. I believe the blackwidow ultimate that I have is blue which I like.

if you like light switches, reds are the softest, so likely not a bad choice.

 

[BiggieShady]

you don't have to bottom out if the switch clicks for you halfway through the press

Have you ever typed on reds without bottoming out? It's not a question of have to, want to or need to ... you just do because they are so light. And I like it.

I know you are talking about blues, browns and greens. To each their own.

 

[Aquinus]

What do you mainly use your computer for? That will influence what kind of switches you might want on your new fancy mechanical keyboard that you're going to be buying.

If you game a lot, the black and reds seem to be the winners, however I hear that they're not as nice to type on compared to the browns or blues.

A lot of people say that brown switches are a good inbetween for typing and gaming.

If you type more than you game, you might be in the same boat that I was in. I ended up getting a Rosewill RK-9100. I was skeptical because it was Rosewill, but in all honestly, it's a very solid (and kind of heavy,) keyboard. It's got blue switches so it has a bit of a click when you press the keys but they go down like butter.

So all in all, what do you do with your computer because that should influence what kind of switches you will want. Keep in mind you're spending over 100 dollars on a keyboard so you want to make sure you get something that you're really going to like.

Edit: If you're at all interested. I took pictures of the unboxing of my keyboard that I recently got if that is of any interest to you.
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2874246&postcount=6090

 

[Paladone]

What do you mainly use your computer for? That will influence what kind of switches you might want on your new fancy mechanical keyboard that you're going to be buying.

If you game a lot, the black and reds seem to be the winners, however I hear that they're not as nice to type on compared to the browns or blues.

A lot of people say that brown switches are a good inbetween for typing and gaming.

If you type more than you game, you might be in the same boat that I was in. I ended up getting a Rosewill RK-9100. I was skeptical because it was Rosewill, but in all honestly, it's a very solid (and kind of heavy,) keyboard. It's got blue switches so it has a bit of a click when you press the keys but they go down like butter.

So all in all, what do you do with your computer because that should influence what kind of switches you will want. Keep in mind you're spending over 100 dollars on a keyboard so you want to make sure you get something that you're really going to like.

Edit: If you're at all interested. I took pictures of the unboxing of my keyboard that I recently got if that is of any interest to you.
http://www.techpowerup.com/forums/showpost.php?p=2874246&postcount=6090

I use my PC primarily for gaming, however, I do occasionally use it for school work.

 

[Ikaruga]

It doesn't really matter as long as it has Cherry MX switches. Go for black if you play a lot of high end competitive FPS games (they might be more tiresome to use, but they also return faster), and go for reds for general gaming/everyday use (some also prefer browns or whites, but I only tried those for a few days, so can't really tell) .

I found Filco to be quite good quality (also expensive tho), but I guess all of the other brands are just as good as long as they have Cherry switches inside.

 

[Aquinus]

(some also prefer browns or whites, but I only tried those for a few days, so can't really tell) .

Really? There is a pretty big difference between the red/black, brown, and blue as far as how the switch itself works. I've never used the whites but it sounds like they're more like the blues then anything else. I would say brown would be a good middle ground unless you really want that smooth feel. I like having the tactile and click to know when the switch goes off. Personally I like knowing that I don't have to push the key all the way down to active it. Half of the time I don't bottom out the keys when I'm typing and it's harder to do that with the reds and blacks.

 

[Ikaruga]

Really? There is a pretty big difference between the red/black, brown, and blue as far as how the switch itself works. I've never used the whites but it sounds like they're more like the blues then anything else. I would say brown would be a good middle ground unless you really want that smooth feel. I like having the tactile and click to know when the switch goes off. Personally I like knowing that I don't have to push the key all the way down to active it. Half of the time I don't bottom out the keys when I'm typing and it's harder to do that with the reds and blacks.

I won't start judging mice or keyboards based only on a few days of experience. I would need more time to draw accurate conclusions (in my standards) which I could tell to others. They are obviously feel different ofc, but that's not enough for me. It's just how I like to do things, don't make too much out of it.

 

[de.das.dude]

run over keyboard. there may be holes for water outlet (since its probably spill proof)
take WD-40, attach the straw and spray it in those holes. be careful not to spray too much. also you must be 200% sure that the holes are for water exit and not something else.

i did this to my keyboard after i spilled tea and it works fine now. however mine is a cheap Logitech K200... so keep that in mind.

 

[m1dg3t]

I was in the same boat as you recently and lucked out on a deal for a ThermalTake (i know, i know ) MEKA G1 for $50 after rebate! You may want to keep an eye out for deals on ThermalTake as they are releasing a bunch of new boards so i think they are trying to clear out old stock?

I have only used rubber dome boards the last 15yrs or so, so the switch (pun intended ) was a MASSIVE improvement! I wanted a small size board, very minimalist in design, with USB & AUDIO and not too $$$.

I really wanted the CoolerMaster Quickfire Rapid but they lacked the onboard USB/AUDIO and the bigger brother were too $$$ for me Otherwise, i would have picked one up!

This unit has the MX Cherry "Black" switches and they are just awesome! So smooth and direct, i just wish they were a tad heavier as i tend to press/hold the key too much, i guess this is because i still am to used to using rubber domes? I tried Blues, Reds & Browns but the Blacks were most suited to me. I found the Blues/Browns to be somewhat "grainy" in their operation, the Blues more so than the Browns, so i focused more on the linear style switches AKA Red/Black. I personally didn't like the Reds as i found them too soft so i settled with the Blacks and couldn't be happier!

Here is some info regarding switch types/operation http://www.keyboardco.com/blog/index.php/2012/12/an-introduction-to-cherry-mx-mechanical-switches/

What ever you decide, i HIGHLY reccomend getting into a store and trying out the various KBs & switches for yourself as peoples tastes/prefferences vary greatly

 

[Aquinus]

I found the Blues/Browns to be somewhat "grainy" in their operation, the Blues more so than the Browns, so i focused more on the linear style switches AKA Red/Black.

What do you mean by grainy? Do you mean the keys not being smooth or are you referring to the click and tactile feedback on the switches as opposed to the movement of the key itself?

 

[m1dg3t]

What do you mean by grainy? Do you mean the keys not being smooth or are you referring to the click and tactile feedback on the switches as opposed to the movement of the key itself?

You answered your own question The tactile switches are not for me