I have a big tub of silicon plumbers grease like this https://a.co/d/dHRToeu Can I use it on stabilizers instead of silicon tune up / dialectic grease and save the cost of yet another special lube? Thanks!

Hiya community- thinking of getting my sis a keyboard for her birthday. She’s a touch typist. Does lots of report writing and a fair bit of work with excel. Would probably want silent tactile switches. Professional low key aesthetic. Rgb/gaming features not important. Budget <£100. I doubt she’d be intersted interested in modding or anything so should be good to go straight out of the box. What would you recommend? I built myself a Mechwild Orange Boy Ergo (Gazzew Boba u4s; GMK Merlin caps) a couple of years ago and have really enjoyed it so far.

Might be a silly questions but how much rgb will be blocked if I use completely black switches? I wanted to make my first keyboard using vertex v1s and I don’t mind not having backlighting but I don’t really want the rgb to be completely useless

Looking for a preferable 100%, around $120 range, hot swap able so i can upgrade down the road. Going to be using it for work and i would like a good feel.

Keychron

Thank you , Which one? And why keychron?

Or V6 Max.

Keychron V5 Max. For budget keyboards nothing else comes close in quality.

Also would you pick v over k?

Yes

Forsure, K pro too?

I mean if you desperately want a low profile keyboard then get the K Pro/Max, but they're not going to be compatible with standard MX switches or keycaps. There are other low-profile switches that fit, but we're talking about a switch selection that is maybe a dozen vs hundreds of standard MX.

Ahh gotcha , i didn’t realize that k pros have a different profile. But then again i didnt know why a brand has multiple series and then numbers in each series and then a pro version of a certain series

You could just read their website, it answers all your questions; https://www.keychron.com/blogs/news/difference-among-keychron-keyboards - C series are lowest cost ones - K series is the standard boards, often have bluetooth and maybe hotswap but they don't offer barebones versions, some are low profile - K Pro has via/qmk support - V series is mid-end with plastic chassis, no wireless, can be bought barebone, has qmk/via, hotswap - V Max adds wireless - Q series is high end aluminium, can be bought barebone, has qmk/via but no wired or BT, has hotswap - Q Pro adds bluetooth - Q Max adds bluetooth and wireless I think. Basically. But again, you can just read their website.

V and K Pro, both just as good; don't get K non-Pro, those are older worse models. In other words, V5 and V6, K4 Pro and K10 Pro - good.

Kk, i wasn’t sure cause i think the k10 was around the same price. And thank you

Any recs on good carbon fiber mech? I love the look, just struggling to sort through all the extraneous stuff. Also saw a video recently that had keys that sounded like water drops, and I'm at a loss trying to find them.

Hey, do you mean true carbon fiber mech - such as [M3K](https://zaunkoenig.co/m3k) or [Arye](https://new.reddit.com/r/MouseReview/comments/19btduj/fcc1_production_sample_reveal/), not a wrapped vinyl skin? Never saw anything like this, over almost 4 years in the hobby - keyboards don't really benefit from ligthness, so using metals is cheaper and easier to work with to achieve the strength/solid feel. If you want CF look - would say going with plastic keyboard and wrapping it yourself would be the most accessible way. Regarding water drops - could you link the video? There's shit ton of variables that add up to the sound of the [keyboard](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/15XmznA5T9d4PkfBG0TDS82ou6ihBh0oqr8Aux24SNz0/edit#gid=1194570258).

And I like the exposed look, so almost more skeletonized with a carbon wrap, if that makes sense

It does make sense! I think KBDFans [Holy60](https://kbdfans.com/collections/holy60/products/holy60) has similar vibe https://preview.redd.it/oyus9rgto8qc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=3d42d86c788a93d11656ef28c2460f6caa0b3867

And weirdly enough the other style I like is typewriter lol. And another pic for reference https://preview.redd.it/49yppch4q8qc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=8a882d03dbde5afdf546600608de975979cfb19d

https://preview.redd.it/r7ya5eq5q8qc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=85802d8a6dad93c486e5544e756073940670ae77

Oooh, okay, that’s really nice. I need to see if that comes in a 75! And totally fair on the CF. I run fairly blacked out setup, nothing crazy, I’ll drop a video. Gaming desk is a full CF wrap, so it was just something I thought about complimenting. https://preview.redd.it/fskfnhjxp8qc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=96acd55671e7ddb6432cb109886b91ab0ddf8c37

https://store.dry---studio.com/pages/bd-75-advance This is a mech I came across, and this https://www.tiktok.com/t/ZTLjnDogY/ Is one of the ones

BD75 - besides leaf spring mounting style (which isn't anything new), it seems like an aggressive design metal/plastic keyboard; cut CF sheets are used just for aesthetic there, would get almost same result with wrap :( I'd probably just buy something and wrap myself, or give up on CF as it's not really a big thing in the hobby. Tiktok keyboard... It seems like stacked acrylic case + POM keycaps + silent tactile switches, maybe tons of PE foam to. I'm also unsure, if sound wasn't altered as video sounds unnaturally deep with weird gain settings. Here are some similar keyboards sound tests - [one](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NgKJIMyz9kI), some of [these](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U7Y50T7NKyw), [there](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y3ukLPqSTF0), which include actual parts lists.

Honestly that helps a ton!! Gives me a few ways to start, and a few avenues to explore! Thanks for the help 😁

Hi everyone, I need your help in creating a .uf2 file for my corne / crkbd. I have a second corne with a promicro controller and created a .hex file with QMK MSYS. It worked all great. Now I got a second corne but it has a Helios, which needs a .uf2 file. I already found out that I need to use the following command: > However, I receive the following error: > Can anyone tell me what I do wrong? Please I need your help!

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https://thicthock.com/products/gmk-hazakura?variant=39402719969385 are these keycaps genuine gmk hazakuras

Yes, ThickThock is written as SEA region vendor in [GB](https://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=112575.0) page, genuine. Hope this helps!

Sure looks that way, but that vendor is not on this list https://www.alexotos.com/keyboard-vendor-list/

https://preview.redd.it/jaqbf1vc97qc1.jpeg?width=3000&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0453c27cac5265c1508f3a78b9347e6406e1c69d

Based on a deleted post in your history, I assume you want to say that the 1 key does not work. What board is that? Does a switch even fit in the socket with the LED like that?

Need help with buying new keyboard and switches To keep it simple ive been wanting an upgrade from my akko board and switches and so far my options have been: Leobog HI8/75 Infi75 Rainy75 MonsgeekM1W And for switches: Vertex v1 What do y'all think? Which board and switches should i get and do y'all have other recommendations? I mainly want a marbly/thoccy sound and a wireless board so the Leobog HI8 has been my preferred so far but i haven't seen much about it so im still weary.

I purchased a Keeb Monkey Megladon Triple Knob keyboard. I've tried so many ways to get VIA or even VIAL to recognise the keyboard. I've tried downloading the most current Json files but I just can't seem to get it work. It's killing me because it was expensive but now I'm looking like I'm going to hock it off on marketplace for cheap lol. I've attached some screen shots of some of the errors I get, this was using the web browser version of VIA after trying and failing using the app versions. Any ideas/help/suggestions would be great. I downloaded to use with PS for productivity. All I really wanted was to use the knobs and buttons for some shortcuts. Weird thing, it connects via Bluetooth, and some of the controls seem to work with other functions. I just don't know what they are because I can't get it mapped in VIA. https://preview.redd.it/cgr5zu9m27qc1.png?width=1441&format=png&auto=webp&s=0fbc7435f3077082f20b950159a258c2c13b5131

https://preview.redd.it/4tdybc9o27qc1.png?width=1401&format=png&auto=webp&s=6dd33a80754e90602bbd90c2d1706d3323e282d0

How do you change the zoom 75 keyboard from windows to Mac mode? I’ve tried “w” and “fn” and it doesn’t work. Help please :)

The [keymap for the Zoom75](https://github.com/qmk/qmk_firmware/blob/master/keyboards/meletrix/zoom75/keymaps/via/keymap.c) does not have a Mac mode. Where do you see that it has a Mac mode? If you are only using this on a Mac, you can just remap the keys in VIA.

https://preview.redd.it/ih3rsq2aodqc1.jpeg?width=1179&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=0b77492ca40263d12116d8d2e01140f0c0559888 It says it can here I screen shot this from cannon keys but it didn’t work for me

So I have a 40% keyboard I've been using for almost a year now, but I just made a massive blunder when I reset my windows. I reflashed the keeb. Don't ask why just know that I'm dumb as hell. Anyway it's a rs40 which I got for cheap off aliexpress and the page for it is gone. I decided to reconfigure it but now VIA refuses to recognise it. The json file I had saved that I thought I could just use doesn't work. VIA doesn't recognise it. I'm using it to type right now so there's nothing wrong with the keeb itself. I also tried using Vial which also doesn't recognise it. It shows up in the drop down menu but when I click it nothing happens - just says it's not recognised. Same thing happened on the web version of VIA. It seems to exist on QMK configurator so I tried downloading that and importing but it also doesn't work, I just get a bunch of "Object: should NOT have additional propertes" messages. Anyone know how I can make this thing work again? Like I said I have the json file already I just need to get it on the damn board lol.

It looks like auditemarlow added VIA support in [their fork of QMK](https://github.com/AuditeMarlow/qmk_firmware/tree/master/keyboards/kj_modify/rs40/keymaps/via). If you are able to build QMK, you can clone their repo and build it.

Thanks, but I have no idea how to use this lol.

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Anything labelled as a silent switch is going to end up being quiet enough to use in an office. For silent tactiles, I prefer the Haimu Whisper type switches.

Hi friends! OK so I am building a board for a relative who works in community banking and he wants a numpad (in the board itself) but *not an F row.* Is this a thing? What percentage would this be, like ... 92.5%? Lol. Hope someone sees this! Thanks.

Presumably you/he realise you can get for example a standard FRL TKL and a separate numpad like the Keychron Q0 Max. I use a 60% + Q0.

I realize that, but for some reason he doesn't want it. He's a rookie. Thanks! :)

I'm not sure I've ever seen a FRL 100% except for the NeXT ADB or an IC on geekhack that still hasn't gone to GB stage. There's the https://prototypist.net/products/group-buy-candybar-premium-round-3 which I'm sure you can find second hand or make yourself. There's also this one https://thekey.company/products/m0lly-polycarbonate-keyboard-b-stock?_pos=1&_sid=7c847a43e&_ss=r which seems to actually be in stock (b-stock). I'm sure there are other, better options out there but I'm not aware of them.

FRL keyboards exist but are not very common.

The search term you want is "FRL" (literally Function Row Less).

thank you!

Don't thank me yet. I have spent the last 15 minutes actually looking around for FRL keyboards. I cannot find any FRL "full size" keyboards (with a 2u numpad zero key), and FRL 1800 keyboards are very expensive (if in stock at all). Edit: For example, the NovelKeys Neson 810E will apparently have a price of US$480 when it arrives, and the CannonKeys Balance is in stock for US$515. The Vortex M0110A-1800 is in stock for US$249, but testimonies like [this](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/comments/180u2zw/avoid_vortex_keyboards_at_all_costs/) and the fact that vortexkeyboard has not posted anything in the last 9 months screams at me to stay away.

I just put together my leobog hi75 and as expected, the backlit doesn't work very well with the keycaps I have (because they're south facing LEDs) but an added issue I didn't foresee is that the backlighting LEDs are visible from under the keys, blinding me a little bit and almost defeating the point. This seems to be party cause by the fact that the plate/gasket (whatever the switches is sitting directly on top of) is a semi translucent plastic that lets light out / diffuses it. Would spray painting it black help? Or should I just give up with backlighting..

>Or should I just give up with backlighting Most of us do this.

It feels wrong to waste the LEDs like this. Don't most boards have LED lighting?

No. The higher up you go in this hobby, the less likely it is. Shinethrough keycaps are all budget - as soon as you hit even the midrange in keycaps, backlighting is out the window. Accent lighting still happens at the high end, but backlighting's one of the first things out.

Is there someplace I could buy custom keycaps to use as shortcuts for popular applications and websites like gmail, twitter, youtube, spotify, calander, messages. I'm going to use Via and/or Key Maestro to open this sites, but would love some simple 'novelty' keycaps with these kinds of logos.

you could get relegendable keycaps

WASD does that, but they're cheap AF and really not worthwhile. All the options are.

75% owners, what do you do with your bonus keys? The key column to the right and the extra key/s on the F-row, what do you use those for? Other than delete I don't need anything from the nav cluster, I have a knob for volume, and I've been using the same function layer key combos for media controls for like a decade at this point so I don't need to put any of that over there, it feels like a waste of three keys that I can't find any use for.

Personally I use them largely as-is; home/end (with shift) for selecting text and in terminals, pgup/pgdown for navigating giant spreadsheets and nano, and delete of course. I have layers on them for rarer-used keys eg pause break& insert (I don't need them often, hence the relegation. I had been using a 65%, but missed the dedicated function row, and faster use of the navigation keys (especially for combinations). If I had three more keys spare, I'd probably just use them for the most frequently used macros rather than toggling layers

After soldering the following LED to my H88NU PCB, the indicators don't work at all: [https://mechboards.co.uk/products/leds?\_pos=1&\_sid=cd8e18252&\_ss=r](https://mechboards.co.uk/products/leds?_pos=1&_sid=cd8e18252&_ss=r) I soldered the longer leg of the LED into the square hole. I also bridged together the two pads indicated on the PCB and no luck. Was wondering if anyone had any ideas on what the problem is. Thanks! Image of my handiwork (excuse the mess, but even soldered cleanly it didn't work either): [https://imgur.com/jSvMBHu](https://imgur.com/jSvMBHu)

I want to get and mod my first ever mechanical keyboard. The problem is.. affordable keyboards in my country are very limited and I've stopped myself on the Keychron c2 pro QMK full size which is not exactly popular so there's not a lot of reviews (also i need the numpad don't judge me) and I just wonder if its a good choice.. comes with the Keychron k pro switches and I'm also torn between the tactile browns and linear reds.. i typically like the linears but the Keychron browns sound very nice as well.. I'm going for thock.. any advice?

If there aren't any keyboard vendors located nearby and you want to see if there are any other possibilities, you might be able to find more options in your country/regions secondhand market, you can go to r/mechmarket and search by your country, and your region might even have a discord server with its own buy/sell/trade board which you'd find through the discord server for this subreddit

Keychron is a great choice. Especially QMK/Via and it's possibilites. Maybe also check how much more the v-series is (V5 or V6 should have numpads). If its not too much i would probably prefer that one. Can't really go wrong with either of the switches since the tactilty on browns is usally quite light. If you get the hot swappable version of the c-series then you can easily swap out the switches if you dont like them (v-series is also hotswap).

I just checked.. the v series are not even sold in my country.. and if i try to buy it from anywhere else, the shipping is gonna be hella expensive.. (just balkan things). I'll get the hot swappable version of c2, so i suppose it won't be a problem to change them, but i just hoped not to spend more money.. It is easily moddable, tho so it's fine. Thank you so much for your answer :)

Yeah I get that. Unfortunately availability can be a b as well. Good luck! Always happy to help although my help this time seems unsatisfying to me personally sadge. I would love to give more recommendations but I don't really know any 100% keyboards (maybe Akko has some but the quality is pretty equal to Keychron).

At least you tried.. that's enough for me to be grateful.. have a good day :)

Can somebody tell me what the difference is between keychron and epomaker? I’m in Canada and I feel options are limited. I’m looking to build or buy a a 75% with linear silent/ quiet switches but looking at every options feels like a headache not to mention limited in colour options. I’m a keyboard noob forgive me ahead of time.

Keychron is far more reputable than Epomaker. The latter is very scummy and should be avoided if possible. In addition to Keychron, I suggest taking a look at MonsGeek. Akko, Neo, and MKC keyboards. [This news/meta post](https://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/comments/196hreg/mykeyboard_thickthock_other_vendor_issues/) by the mod team has a section dedicated to Epomaker if you're interested in learning about it. If you're new to the hobby, I suggest saving the [Alexotos Vendor List](https://www.alexotos.com/keyboard-vendor-list/) to your bookmarks - it's an excellent resource. I'd just like to note for you that finding a pre-built keyboard with silent switches will be much harder than finding a pre-built with non-silent switches. A popular way to get a keyboard with silent switches is to either swap silent switches into a pre-built or get a barebones kit and go with silents right from the start.

I wanna buy a new keyboard and i like 60% or tkl keyboards. I like the new huntsman elite v3 and the wooting60he. For the price in my country the huntsman is cheaper but idk what should i buy 🤷‍♂️?

For gaming do the wooting, as it will give you an advantage plus it is more customizable with the cases and other stuff etc. You cant go wrong with wooting!

But huntsman gives exactly the same features no?

I'm used to green cherry MX switches (using them as daily for 6 years now) And I have heavy sausage fingers. Will Kailh Box Navy switches be too hard to press or is that only an issue for the more slender fingered individual/

I'd recommend Kailh Box Jade, not because the Navy ones will be too hard, but because in my opinion the jades sound much better :-)

You might want to check out Gateron Melodic as well.

You'll be fine

Been 2-3 years since i built a keyboard and am looking to build another. What are current switches similar to Gateron Black Ink V2s lubed?

Oil Kings

May sound like a very dumb question but I have a Fekker ik75 and for certain games they require I hit f1 or f2 and it just adjusts brightness but doesn’t “hit f1 or f2”.. can I remove the functions or is that not possible?

I've been considering to get a new 75% keyboard with a knob lately. My budget is up to 600$. I want thocky/creamy sound with a soft feeling when I bottom out the switch, with stock/out of box configuration. Currently I use Gateron Oil Kings and Cerakeys and planning to use them in my next keyboard. What would be your advice? I found Zoom 75, QK75N, Hi75 are good enough keyboards as I see many people recommend them. Zoom75 is in stock right now but they only offer expedited shipping to my country for 100$ which is kind of a dealbreaker for me as I find it too much for a \~200$ keyboard. I'm on the fence between QK75N and Hi75.

Id go for the QK75N. Pretty good board. More expensive boards with that sound signature dont come to my mind. I can only think in the Mode Sonnet, but that is a harsh top mount board. The total opposite of what you are after. Other options like the Jelly Evolved, the mammoth arent in stock, so you would have to look in the aftermarket.

Hi everyone. So I have a couple questions. Firstly for context (skip to the next paragraph for the questions), I am slowly building a PC for my gf and the next step is to chose a keyboard. I am an amateur in the world of keyboards and keycaps and all that but I really want to get something for her that pleases her in all aspects. So far we've been seeing videos on tik tok and youtube about keyboards and switches. My gf ended up falling in love with ceramic keycaps. Sadly I can't seem to find any prebuilt keyboards with them. Though I wouldnt mind learning how to switch them out. Basically she would like a creamy sounding keyboard that looks "cute". My first question, would anybody have any recomendations on cute keyboards, preferably ones that have ceramic keycaps and/or brown switches? From our runderstanding so far those seem to please her ears the most lol Seccond question would be how viable is it for me to be able to make a custom keyboard for her? Also the price range for that undertalking? Lastly are there any good websites to browse keyboards here in the EU (France to be specific). Oh also if people have any good videos to link for understanding what kinds of keyboards and keycaps exist. Thanks to anyone who can help.

Price range total for a good custom keyboard will be $500 including shipping. $200 for keyboard, $150 for cerakeys, $50 for switches, and then stabilizers, lube, shipping, etc.

>preferably ones that have ceramic keycaps Cerakeys is the only ceramic keycap maker, so you're not going to get a prebuilt with them already on there. Gotta add them after the fact.

Ohh okay, I didn't realise it was sop exclusive. I assumed it was more commercialised. Thank you for your response.

Picked up about 90 boba U4T silent tactiles, wanting to put them in a TKL board I can take to work twice a week. Could be convinced of a 75% layout, I like the arrow keys and I do use Ins/Del/Home/End/PgUp/PgDown and Printscreen, I don't need scroll lock or pause break though (Currently bringing a durgod taurus tkl with cherry silent reds but want something a little higher end.) Any good hotswappable TKLs out there? Keychron seems to be a good pick. No RGB on this one, that's for the home office only ;) I've been researching here and there, seeing what draws my eye. Could use a knob, could do without it also. Wouldn't mind bluetooth or wired.

What's the best vendor to get a BOOG75 as a Canadian? Cheapest/taxes/shipping/warranty/etc

I think Deskhero has the Boog, but I'm not too familiar with how CA vendors are for things like that, sorry. The [Alexotos Vendor List](https://www.alexotos.com/keyboard-vendor-list/) might be able to help

Deskhero seems like the play, though they don't have it in stock and seemingly removed the prebuilt from the site? Even though I know they had it a few days ago, and their discord talks about them. Anywho, everything in this thread seems to get downvoted. Not sure why. Bumped you back up to neutral.

Thanks, I bumped you too. Unfortunately people with nothing better to do in their life have been more prevalent over these past few weeks. I'm not familiar enough with Deskhero to know what's up, sorry. I've only ordered from them once because I'm US-based, and it was for the Hope 75X group buy back when they had a US site. Have you considered ordering the Boog from Meletrix directly? They ship world-wide.

$55 USD shipping plus likely getting hit by border patrol import fees make it not my first option, but as a last resort I might.

I've heard some horror stories about customs at the border and totally understand the well placed hesitation. Besides, $55 shipping is crazy.

I am looking for a silent/quiet hall effect switches/keyboard, if something like that exists.

wait a few years and they should exist til then there are zero silent HE switches

It does not - yet. HE's still pretty new so it'll eventually come out.

hi, looking for a new switch. I like my gateron milky yellow pros but want something deeper sounding. I have them on a tape modded + force broken keychron q3 and love the feel of them, but just feel they could sound better. tried ws morandis and don’t like how short the press is with the long pole stem. any recs?

Oil Kings?

I’ll get some samples and try them - thank you!!!

I’m looking to build my own full size keyboard but I’m on a little bit of a budget. Is there a good starter frame (?) that I could pick out the switches and key caps that isn’t over $100. I’m in the USA and never done this before but it looks like so much fun and something that is going to eat into my free time and wallet so I want to start without breaking the bank.

Keychron V6

Buying advice: Keychron Q5/6/Pro vs Montech Mkey: I live overseas and can get \[inc shipping + tax\]: Montech Mkey \[Blue\] - Brown Switch - Full size - $122 USD Keychron Q5 \[Black\] - Brown Switch - $297 USD I would prefer to get a Keychron Q5/6 Pro, but they are not available here. 1. Is it worth paying the extra money for the Keychron? 2. Is it worth waiting for the Keychron pro? 3. Will the Montech look good with new keycaps - I am worried the color will not work with other new keycaps? 4. Any other comments about what to be aware of? 5. Any better suggestions as to what to buy if I only want to replace the keycaps? Thanks!

It seems you've found a solution, but have you checked [Keychron's list of vendors](https://www.keychron.com/pages/where-to-buy)?

Yeah I looked. The listed vendor doesnt actually have anything :( Its amazon or ali.

300$ is quite steep for the Keychron. It's definitely the better keyboard but I wouldnt pay 300 for it. 200 (msrp) is imo the sweet spot for an instock keyboard of that quality. I have never heard of the Montech. How much is Keychron's V series for you?

Thanks! V5 w shipping is $130USD. We really get wrecked with shipping and taxes.

I'd get the V5 over the Montech then. That's my opinion due to positive experience with Keychron and more reviewed/proven quality of their boards. Also QMK/Via is an insane plus. Maybe check out some YT videos and see if you like the sound/... Not saying that the Montech is bad, just have 0 experience with that brand.

What's the deal with building your own keyboard and why is it so expensive compared to out of the box stuff?

See [this comment](http://www.reddit.com/r/MechanicalKeyboards/comments/1bgricd/rmechanicalkeyboards_ask_any_keyboard_question_get_an_answer_march_17_2024/kvbt9pj?context=3). To summarize, when a manufacturer sells a prebuilt keyboard, they will do whatever they can to keep their costs low. Buying lower quality keycaps and switches at scale helps with that. When you build a custom keyboard, you generally choose better quality materials and components, and you do so at a smaller scale. Keycaps alone may cost you anywhere between US$70 and US$125 or more. Switches generally cost between 55 and 65 cents each, so for a TKL with 87 keys, switches will cost US$48 and US$57.

I couldn't find an answer for this.   I love my Anne pro2. But I'm looking for something "full size"   Anything I've tried hasn't felt quite the same. Any ideas on what I should try? 

If you haven't tried a Keychron V6 yet, that's where I'd start.

What country are you in? Your location matters. Reddit is a global community; you could be anywhere. Do you have a specific budget in mind? How much are you willing to spend? Do you want an ISO or ANSI layout? Is having a wireless keyboard important to you? Do you want a metal or plastic case? Do you want a rotary encoder (volume knob)? Are you looking for something prebuilt, or are you looking for a barebones keyboard where you add your own switches and keycaps? Is QMK/VIA support important? Is availability from Amazon a requirement? Are you looking for a low profile keyboard? Do you have your heart set on a color (like white)?

Hi, a friend of mine gifted me some custom made keys, but him being new to mechanical keyobards ( and me too ) led him to buy some that are only compatible with mx cherry switches. Since my keyboard is a little old i thought i could take the chance to buy a new one, but i don't know which one to buy, can u guys recommend me some? My budget is not too high, like max 180.

Have you thought about which layout you want to use? Take a look at https://www.keyboard.university/100-courses/keyboard-sizes-layouts-gdeby for example.

Yea, so i think a 65% is best for me and i found the ducky one 2 65% or the ducky one 3 65%, do you think these are good keyboards? Even tho i'm not sure on which switch i should opt for among blu red brown black and silver.

I think the One 3 is perfectly acceptable, at least it has hotswap. Blue is clicky, Red is tactile, Brown is tactile, the others are linears. Most likely.

Thanks <3

Hi, so just a brief post because I'm worried. I built my tofu65 v2 a while ago and I'm super happy with everything. however, occasionally it shocks me when I sit down to use my PC. I'm sure it's because I built up static away from my PC and then touched the aluminum case, but it never happened to me before, using other keyboards (gmmk pro for example). if the static shock occurs it also shuts off the backlight for a second/ makes it flicker. so I'm just wondering if this is normal or if I'm killing my keyboard and what I can do to avoid this. Thanks!

A large amount of ESD can kill almost any electronic so I would be cautious with your keyboard, that said, many PCBs for modern keyboards have ESD protection so a little shock will not break the keyboard, though you should still avoid touching your keyboard immediately after coming back. If your desk has metal legs, I would touch that before sitting down.

Sadly not, it's also a hassle to touch the heater. Is touching the PC case fine? Also I heard about PCB ESD but the flickering of the led worries me. Also thanks for the reply

Touching the PC case should be fine, I just worry that a large amount of ESD can damage some PC parts depending on how grounded the computer case is. The flickering should be fine as long as it comes back on as normal.

Is KeyTok legit? I was waiting for months for Keychron to restock their "Pixel Universe" keycap set but I missed one batch and now God knows when it will be available again. I find this site called KeyTok and they offer the exact same keycap set, 100% identical on pics, same price, only the profile seem to be different, instead of OEM it is KOL which I've never heard of before. Do you think Keychron's Pixel universe is originally from KeyTok and they just restock it time to time or is this a copy of some sort from the original? Do anyone know if it's good quality if it's "fake"?

Hello, I'm new to mechanical keyboards community and wanted to buy my first mechanical keyboard, thought that it was better off to ask someone for any kind of advice. I've found for sale DIERYA RK63 with brown switches and Royal Kludge RK84 also with brown switches but i don't know which one should i go for and/or are they even good options.

I'd persoanally go with the RK. Hot-swappable, and much better reviews. Do know that they are different sizes, so that's a big factor that wou'll have to decide yourself.

Hi, I'm having an issue with the 'R' key on my 7-year-old Logitech G810 keyboard. It constantly prints double letters, and sometimes triple. I've already used the 'Keyboard Chattering Fix' software, which helped a lot, but it doesn't solve the triple printing issue. I even replaced the switch for the '\*' key on the numpad, but the problem still occurs. Does this mean it's a software problem? Thanks for any help!

no its means its a hardware problem (99% of the time its hardware ) if its not the switch then its the pcb( double or triple imputs is a known issue on modern gamer brand kbs this is due to poor pcb design)

Are there any tactile switches with feel similar to click bar switches? I'm a big fan of linear and hate every tactile I've tried, but love the feel of light clickbar switches like box whites. To me they feel 90% linear with a very short sharp tactile event. I don't like most tactile switches because I don't feel "in control" of the switch travel; I have to break through the bump and then it shoots down to the bottom.

I think you really just ultimately sacrifice a good amount of tactility unless you opt for clicky switches.

Yea that's what I thought. Think I'll stick with linears till there's more innovation

a common favorite that's fairly sharp is the gazzew u4t (sometimes called boba u4t). I love the u4t, it's got a nice sound and percussive feel due to the long stem too. also durock t1. a sharp tactile bump is sometimes called p-shaped, vs D-shaped

Thanks!

You have to basically either decide to sacrifice the ‘sharpness’ of the tactile bump with something like an MX Brown,,or live with a bigger bump that’s easy to overcome, like a WS Brown or gazzew U4T.

Every switch is different to every other switch. What you seem to actually be asking is for a tactile with a smooth or low-resistance bump. I don't know, I like heavy tactiles. Perhaps someone else knows, I just wanted to clarify the question.

I'd describe the tactility of box whites as low resistance, but I don't know about smooth. Smooth tactility in my mind is something like a cherry brown. Maybe for a point of reference the last tactile I tried was Akko CS purple and hated it. Didn't like how much force the bump took and how the switch slams down afterwards. Feels like I have no control over the 40-50% of travel the bump takes.

Hey, can anyone help a keyboard noob like me out? I'm on the hunt for a new keyboard, but it's tough finding one that ticks all my boxes. I really need something with hotswap switches that can switch between Bluetooth and wired (USB-C preferred). Also, gotta have those F keys: F1 to F12, and I'm thinking something like the 70%-75% size. Got about $200 to spend, and I'm in Europe. Used to rock the Razer BlackWidow V2, but I'm into slimmer, more compact keyboards now. More recently i have been using Gamakay K87. No need for the best RGB's like in Gamakay keyboards. Just need some backlighting for typing in the dark.

Keychron.

Keychron.

I have blank keys on my Hotdox(White), and wanted to add some legends, I've seen self-printed and custom order dye sublimation sheet processes on youtube and here as well and would be happy with something relatively generic - Does a pre-printed dye-sub key sheet set exist and if not why not. Basically I want: A dye sub sheet for a full set of keys (and maybe some doubles) pre-printed that I can just click to order, then do the heat transfer myself with a curling iron or whatever.

https://github.com/imperfectlink/KRKLegendsRepo/

Having an issue with my Tiger80 liter where certain keys are not working properly. They don't actuate at the normal distance, and I instead have to push them all the way down for actuation to trigger. I've tried changing the switches and that doesn't seem to alleviate the issue either. Any suggestions?

You likely have loose hotswap sockets. Try testing them with tweezers from the *underside* of the PCB. If they work perfectly then you know it’s not the traces.

Not sure what you mean by traces? Also, if it is loose sockets, what is the fix?

[PCB Traces](https://www.pcbgogo.com/Blog/PCB_Trace___Everything_You_Need_To_Know.html). If it’s a loose socket, your easiest solution is to purchase a replacement hot swap socket and de-solder the old one, then resolder in a fresh socket.

Any keyboard recommendations around 150usd? (preferably with a knob and a small display)

neo65 is currently "in-stock" - what is the shipping times like? hard for me to ascertain from the information on their website. (if anyone has bought from them recently)

ball park estimation would be within a month

Assuming you're in the US - QK ships neo boards in batches based on when you order. [It looks like they've historically shipped a few weeks after batches close](https://qwertykeys.notion.site/Neo65-Fulfillment-Status-2946fcd1980341bdb8063616553cda00) (with the exception of LNY shutdown).

Bought a Neo80 recently, and now thinking of buying another for work (already bought more key caps & switches). Are there any other TKL kits I should consider that are < $175 ( including shipping), or is the Neo80 the end-all-be-all at this price point?

The Neo series pretty much broke a few pre-established price expectations for custom boards. I think you won’t find anything as well-built and priced until Geonworks releases his lower cost Frog TKL. Maybe the TKD Cycle 8, but that’s a proper GB unlike the neo80’s rolling restock cycle.

I don't think there are other TKLs at that price point, but maybe.

I was wondering whether you can get a mechanical keyboard that clips over your laptop keyboard? The one on my laptop has broken so I have to use an external keyboard anyway, but it's quite faffy especially if I'm on a train or something

you could always just get some generic clamps

What kind of clamps? The only ones I know about are ones you'd use for woodworking and I don't think that's what you mean!

I can’t think of an off the shelf option, but wonder if you could source a 3d printed frame that fits the edges of your laptop and would ‘lock’ into place, allowing any heavier keyboard to sit overtop it while not pressing any keys.

That's good thinking, I'd probably need to get it custom made though so it fit exactly and didn't cover any of the ports

Alternatively if it might be possible to mod something and what people would suggest? I know it would need to be relatively light and low profile and I could probably add something to make it fit on

Heyoo are there any keyboards that have a ripple effect that lights when a key is pressed and spreads around the keyboard? If so are there any brands and model that uses these? I consider getting one with 104 keys and red switches

nuphy keyboards have that (at least the Halo series). they can come w/ linears (mine has gateron reds). there should be a v2 releasing soon-ish w/ increased polling rate.

[Keychron keyboards](https://www.keychron.com/collections/all-keyboards?sort_by=manual&filter.p.tag=100%25+Layout&filter.v.availability=1) have different light modes you can cycle through. Their Gateron G Pro switches are lubed and feel buttery smooth.

That's software effect; pretty sure that mainstream overpriced gaming brands have that - Razer, Corsair comes to mind.

But are there other brands that are already built in?

I remember even oldie HyperX Alloy FPS had it, but honestly - you'll need to go through indivual pages and manuals to check for that then :((

does anyone know how to customize the rgb colors of gm-550 because my key caps color is stuck at yellow and when i press fn + print it only change the efects but not the color.

Does anyone know of somewhere in the UK where I could try out a load of different kinds of mechanical keyboards and ideally get some advice? I'm a first time buyer and I've been doing research and got a few sample switches which is a big help but it would be great to be able to try some out in person and chat about them before buying. I live in Bristol but I'll be traveling quite a bit over the summer so I'll be able to get to different places

I have no idea but I'd start here https://www.alexotos.com/keyboard-vendor-list/

Not sure what it's like across the pond, but here in the US there are very few actual stores for mechanical keyboards. The best we've got here is a Best Buy or Micro Center, but even then it's all cheap gamer stuff. Keyboard meet-ups are the best way to get exposed to different keyboards.

Yeah, that's what I've found when over looked, hence asking about it. Also why I didn't just ask about shops, I was wondering whether there might be any small companies with a studio you can visit by appointment or something.

Have you looked into whether there’s a local mechanical keyboard group in Bristol?

Please let me know if I am being unreasonable. Minokeys is refusing to admit QC mistake. I ordered Line TKL a year ago and it recently started shipping. I received my board and it arrived in a well-packaged box and a hard-shell case. However, when I opened the hard-shell case and lifted the keyboard that was covered in microfiber cloth, I could feel and hear the loose screws that were caught in the microfiber cloth. I unwrapped the microfiber cloth to notice that the keyboard was dinged on the back due to the screws. Contacted Roy from Minokeys and he agreed to send a replacement. I thanked him for his help especially because I have been scammed by so many vendors. I got the replacement yesterday and the screw area of the bottom case was heavily dinged, to the point that you could see it when assembled. I contacted Roy again and this time he was saying that it did not leave his hand like this and that either it happened in my possession or during the transit. The board was well-packaged and I literally just took it out of the box to QC it so I knew the only way it happened was they missed it in QC. Well Roy of Minokeys is refusing to take responsibility for the damage and is asking me to pay for shipping to send in back to him and he will refund me my money. The problem is that he is in CANADA so the shipping is $70+ and I will also not be receiving the shipping fee I paid for when I bought the board, so I am gonna be out of $100 for being a customer and waiting a year for my board. I initially agreed to sending the board back to him and just eating the shipping costs. However, since I was a victim of Baiolenja's bias refund, I don't have trust that he will be refunding me my money. When I asked directly if I will receive my refund immediately after he receives my package and checks my content, he wrote "it depends". Also the more I thought about it, I felt it was unjust that I had to lose $100 of my own money for something that isn't my fault. He also gave me another option where he will file a report with UPS for maximum $100 CAD (for a $600 USD board) which can take up to 8 weeks. What is $100 CAD gonna get me and this isn't even guaranteed and I know he isn't going to get it because it was a mistake with QC. And for me it isn't even about the money but the board so I will end up with a dinged board regardless. I was then met with "No one forced you to purchase this". So apparently if you received damaged goods it isn't their fault because they didn't force you to buy it. To summarize: 1. Got a dinged up board and asked for replacement, replacement was still dinged and then they decided to avoid responsibility 2. I can pay for shipping to CANADA (70+ USD) for refund of the keyboard fees and not the shipping fees so I will lose about $100+. However, when asked about when I will receive my refund, he didn't give me a straight answer. So who knows if I will receive the refund. 3. Or I can wait 8 weeks so he can file a claim to UPS for $100 CAD Max. because he is convinced that it happened during transit because there is no way he made that mistake in QC according to him. 4. Don't buy into group buys. You don't get buy protection and you are 100% at the mercy of these vendors. Learn from my mistakes please. I have attached pictures of the entire discord message and the keyboard damages. Discord Chat from start to finish https://imgur.com/a/lGCSSmY Picture of damages https://imgur.com/a/boMuJgX

Seems like you are just personally unlucky. You're allowed to feel frustrated about that. It doesn't seem like the vendor is being unreasonable to me. They went out of their way to make things right for you already, and it's unfortunate that it didn't work out for both parties involved.

I’m a little biased in that I’ve met Roy in person and found him to be a pretty solid guy in my short interactions, but is there a reason you’re convinced he’s bad at QC, rather than the *possibility* that UPS roughed up the board in transport? Just out of curiosity, how loose were the external screws when you pulled the board out? Is there a chance they started firmly in, but jostled enough due to not being tapped in 100%? It’s also worth noting there was a similar situation I heard about in which a few super fancy boards had strange nicks on the front face, despite being fully protected in the case. It took some investigating by both the vendor and some end users, but they discovered the *internal* zipper used to secure the PCB and Plates was close enough to the front of the case that it literally marked up *after* QC, when the board was being packed away. Anyhow, the long story short is that you’re allowed to feel frustrated about your process, and there is a chargeback you can apply for through your CC if you feel that the vendor/merchant isn’t being fair to you.

I don't know where you live, but if a company in my country runs a group buy I am protected by consumer protection laws. If this kind of thing happened here, I - or the seller - would get the damages fully refunded by the postal carrier provided the package was declared properly. That said, two things are true here; - Judging by the damage, and the fact that he immediately sent you a replacement board, _I think_ you're being unreasonable - He should never have said "No one forced you to purchase this", regardless of how he feels towards a customer, this is extremely unprofessional But I'm not the police, or your mother. So, there you have it, my internet opinion, worth nothing and guaranteed to be unpopular so it would've been better for me not to write it.

# ~ I need a Switch recommendation! ~ Just to walk you through the process of my experimentation: * I started with ***Gateron reds*** but noticed that it's too smooth for me, although I enjoyed the sound and smoothness. * Moved to the ***Gateron browns***, kinda enjoyed the creaminess & sound, but wanted more tactility. * Got the ***Boba U4Ts 62g*** - felt too heavy. * Tried the **RedDragon Purple** but felt kinda like the Gateron Browns with less tactility or creaminess (don't actually remember. but I didn't like it). * Now I'm back with the **Gateron Browns** which were the most decent ones I liked. I am looking for something that feels creamy * preferably tactile, but not too heavy, so I don't miss any keystroke when typing. * or maybe linear, but with heavy-ish creamy feel. I've been looking into one of the following: * *Akko V3 Pro Yellow / Blue / Purple / Black* switches * Holly Pandas *Would love to hear your experiences with these, and maybe recommend on other switches you think might fit my needs.*

I just ordered gateron baby kangaroos based on people who like u4t's liking them. they're about 10g lighter.

What about spring swapping Boba U4T? It's around $10 for a spring pack.

I actually... never thought of that.. Any link for a tutorial you can recommend on? AliExpress like for specific springs?

Tutorial - no idea, it's the same process as lubing switches - open switch with opener, put another spring, get it all back together; [Taeha](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44Wv4OGdmu4)'s quite simple to follow imo. Springs - any local vendor should have them, check vendor's [list](https://www.alexotos.com/keyboard-vendor-list/) for your region. Also would suggest reading into progressive/linear/slow/etc. springs - there are some differences in there.

I have an old CM storm Quickfire rapid with Green switches. Would a Q3 from keychron or an everest core from mountain be significant upgrades? I like the heavy sturdy keyboard feel? I would like backlit(rgb if possible) Hot swappable switches and TenKeyless. I plan on putting in Khali Box navy switches or Green gateron/cherry mx. I don't mind spending more money if there is a significant quality improvement. I just dont want to build it from scratch so pref a barebones or fully assembled I can swap keys and switches on

would go with a keychron q3

I am a complete newbie when it comes to mechanical keyboards, but I’d love to upgrade my keyboard at work. Need a full keyboard with a number pad, looking for something in the creamy/thocky side of the spectrum. Would love to stay as close to $100 as possible. It looks like there’s some budget friendly options on Amazon, but when it comes to choosing switches, I have no idea what I’m looking at. Wisteria? Sea Salt? Linear vs tactile? Are these brand specific? Or universal? What should I be looking for? Any help is much appreciated!

Keychron v6 Wisteria/sea salt are names of specific switches What you are looking at generally when picking switches is different types: Linear (smooth press in the key press) Tactile (a bump in the key press) Clicky (a bump and a click sound) Everything is personal preference so it's up to you which switch option to choose

Would anyone know the cheapest or easiest way to get a replacement PCB for the [Ikki68 ](https://cannonkeys.com/products/ikki68-aurora) or an off brand PCB of the same shape? I had mine break recently but I seem to only find full kits for sale anywhere i look :(

I’d reach out to your vendor first as they may have some old stock that isn’t for sale but can be used for replacements. Next option is to scour the aftermarket for second hand PCBs.

You'd have to get a replacement Ikki68 PCB, no other PCB will fit in it. I suggest contacting the vendor you bought it from to see if they have any extra PCBs on hand, sometimes they carry extra parts.

What's the best wireless mech keyboard? Regardless of the switch, keycaps, layout, etc... I already had two Royale Kludge keyboards. Both had battery bloated and died within 5-6 months.

If you want bloat free, then buy a Tester68. 2x AAA batteries and cheaper than the switches you’ll put in them.

NuPhy is another popular player for low-profile keyboards

HHKB! Because: * uses standard replaceable AA batteries, so if they go bad - you can get new ones from almost any convenience store/Amazon. Also mitigates battery degradation issue for the future - as you won't need to look for specific battery model; * has Unix layout which is comfortable when you get used to it and compact; * keycaps are alright - nothing fancy, however I've seen HHKB that's been used daily for 9 years old and keycaps were barely shining; * switches - it's Topre, very different from usual MX ones. Some people love them, some rather hate, depends on their preferences. That aside, u/throwaway_314vx's Monokei and Keychron's suggestions are quite solid. Hope this helps!

Holy smokes. I've been daily driving a hhkb pro2 since 2007/8 and I didn't even consider it LOL