Help me pick a mechanical keyboard

BassTek

Supreme [H]ardness
Joined
Jul 13, 2002
Messages
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I'm currently using a Saitek Eclipse from way back. It works well enough but I want to give mechanical keyboards a try. Not really sold on either TKL or Full but I think I am leaning towards TKL. Budget is under $200CAD, preferably around the $150CAD range though.

Wants:

Tenkeyless
FPS use mainly (R6 Siege/Battlefield)
Media buttons a plus
Budget under $200 CAD (cheaper is always better)
Cherry MX Red or Brown switches

Currently considering:

Cooler Master MasterKeys Pro S (leaning towards this model but it is pricey)
Corsair K63 (has media buttons which is a plus but Reddit says the quality sucks)
HyperX Alloy FPS or Elite (Not as many opinions on these models but they seem good)

Does anyone have opinions on these models or can you add any others I should be looking at? While typing this I just noticed the Hyper X is on sale at Newegg Canada so I may give that a try if nobody has bad things to say.
 
The Ducky looks good but it will be $35 to ship up to Canada. That puts it at 2x the price of the of the Hyper X and Masterkeys S and brings it more in line with the Masterkeys RGB once I factor in exchange rate.

I can't seem to find a competitive Ducky dealer up in Canada.
 
I can highly recommend Wooting One. And you can get it in North America too

https://www.wooting.nl/wootingone

I have been following it since its' conception and finally got mine a week ago, really happy.

Uh, that looks like it could be fairly awesome. I will be following that. I wonder if analog mechanical keyboards are going to be the new trend? I can see Logitech, Razer, Corsair, etc. jumping all over that bandwagon. I'd definitely be interested in trying one.
 
I've been following Wooting, too. I like what they're doing. If they release a board with an analog switch similar to Cherry Silver, I'll buy it.
 
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I use my mechanical for typing/coding, so I have MX brown version of the Corsair K70 (MX blue's click drives me insane, and I hate people that use them with open-mics). I wanted a TKL or 60% but those are hide to find with MX Brown without paying an Arm and a Leg. Meanwhile Microcenter had a Corsair-certified refurbished K70 Lux RGB w/ Mx browns for $99, couldn't justify spending $200+ for these speciality brands.
Meanwhile for gaming, while analog switches sounds seem nice, that really comes down to developer support. I also only game on my G13 Gameboard. I switch to using one when they came out and is was the best peripheral decision I made for gaming (ds4 a close second) seriously, per game profiles with the mouse, I use the joystick like a dpad, basically have a basic profile that mimics the gamepad control scheme (triggers are mouse buttons, 2 mouse thumb buttons equal XY @ thumb buttons on G13 equal BA, and joystick equals d-pad and I never have to move my hand or hunt for a control ever. MMO tab targeting basically sees it as a numpad with the joystick as movement. and any other combination you want. Now get me analog on that and I would be please as punch. Actual still waiting for Logitech/Razer to make a gameboard & mouse combo that as an alt mode the emulates a standard gamepad.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I found the Cooler Master Masterkeys Pro S for a decent price on Newegg Canada with a $30 rebate so I went with that. It doesn't have dedicated media keys but the FN mapped media keys are in a good spot so I think I can survive, and RGB is a nice plus.
 
Yeah was looking at the PBT keycaps myself if the Cooler Master keyboard offered a wrist rest would consider it.
 
Nice, didn't know Corsair did PBT double shot keycaps. I might get a set myself, thanks for the suggestion
Got my white set today. They look good, but my mech board is a Ducky so the front row won't match Corsair's bizarre sizes. Why the fuck does Corsair feel the need to make stupid sizes of their front row keys??? I'm still gonna try them out wherever the keys will fit.
 
Got my white set today. They look good, but my mech board is a Ducky so the front row won't match Corsair's bizarre sizes. Why the fuck does Corsair feel the need to make stupid sizes of their front row keys??? I'm still gonna try them out wherever the keys will fit.

Do they feel heavier different types of clicks? I would never pay that much for keycaps same price as a keyboard.
 
Do they feel heavier different types of clicks? I would never pay that much for keycaps same price as a keyboard.
They feel about the same as the original keycaps. The Corsair caps are a bit thicker, though. I like them. I hope other manufacturers start making boards with those new optical switches. If Corsair made one, I'd get it and put these caps on it.
 
It's hard to find PBT double-shot caps that are backlight compatible, let alone in ISO layout for me and even then the letters and symbols need to be at the top of the key, otherwise they don't light up nicely. So I'm expecting the corsair white tomorrow, will let you know how they fit on my Wooting

(P.S: sorry for the slight off topic derail gents)
 
I really like my Corsair K70. Backlighting is a must for me as my PC room is usually dimly lit. It's well made, nice feature set and the Red keys feel really good. I prefer Blues personally but Reds are really good for gaming.
 
It's hard to find PBT double-shot caps that are backlight compatible, let alone in ISO layout for me and even then the letters and symbols need to be at the top of the key, otherwise they don't light up nicely. So I'm expecting the corsair white tomorrow, will let you know how they fit on my Wooting

(P.S: sorry for the slight off topic derail gents)
Looking forward to your thoughts. I'm about to buy the Red version.
 
Looking forward to your thoughts. I'm about to buy the Red version.

Just returned from work and the keyset was already home, so i went ahead and installed the alphabet keys only. Overall this set from Corsair is very well built, appears of high quality and i like the feel of them. I highly recommend them.

As a side note they are only available in white and black, where did you see them in red ?
 
Just returned from work and the keyset was already home, so i went ahead and installed the alphabet keys only. Overall this set from Corsair is very well built, appears of high quality and i like the feel of them. I highly recommend them.

As a side note they are only available in white and black, where did you see them in red ?
Oh, I meant the red switch version of the Wooting keyboard. In fact, I just placed an order for it. I'll probably get a Vortex set of white keys because the Corsair keys won't work on the front row. I don't like mixing different fonts on my keyboard.
 
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Oh, I meant the red switch version of the Wooting keyboard. In fact, I just placed an order for it. I'll probably get a Vortex set of white keys because the Corsair keys won't work on the front row. I don't like mixing different fonts on my keyboard.

Sorry I misunderstood, i do have the red switches on mine too. As for the Corsair keyset you're right, the front row (CTRL, ALT, Space, etc ) don't fit the Wooting, different sizes. Problem is I can't find a PBT set that supports backlighting to get. If you find any please send me the link if you don't mind).

As for the Wooting, I'm sure you'll enjoy it, it's great.
 
Sorry I misunderstood, i do have the red switches on mine too. As for the Corsair keyset you're right, the front row (CTRL, ALT, Space, etc ) don't fit the Wooting, different sizes. Problem is I can't find a PBT set that supports backlighting to get. If you find any please send me the link if you don't mind).

As for the Wooting, I'm sure you'll enjoy it, it's great.
Here's the set of key caps i just bought. They're PBT, double shot and backlit.

iKBC x Vortex Backlit Double-Shot PBT Mechanical Keyboard Keycap Set, White Color https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072BZLYNY/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_gqiJAb4TN4Z44`

EDIT: My order already shipped. That was quick. Massdrop has the same set available, but it won't ship until mid-April, and it's more expensive with the additional shipping fee.
 
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Ebay also has PBT Backlit keycaps of various quality. I might take a chance on some once my keyboard arrives. Tai Hao also has some available as well but not in the color I want.
 
Just got my Wooting keyboard. Not a heavy as my Ducky One, but still feels very well-built. I'll post a pic and my thoughts after using it for a few hours.
 
Here's my new Wooting One!

lu093Fp.jpg


The illumination is bright and clean. I prefer solid blue to RGB ,though. The software is much better than Corsair's CUE, IMO. Switches feel good; kinda like Cherry Reds. My only complaint is the keys feel a bit more wobbly on the stems than those on my Ducky One (pictured above). I'm going to replace the key caps with a set of white PBT double shot caps from Amazon. I hope they add some stability to the keys.

EDIT: Nope, the PBT keys don't fix the excess wobble of the keys. This doesn't affect the keyboard's performance. It's just kind of annoying and feels like a QA issue. I'll use the keyboard through the weekend before deciding whether to keep it.
 
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Here's my new Wooting One!

The illumination is bright and clean. I prefer solid blue to RGB ,though. The software is much better than Corsair's CUE, IMO. Switches feel good; kinda like Cherry Reds. My only complaint is the keys feel a bit more wobbly on the stems than those on my Ducky One (pictured above). I'm going to replace the key caps with a set of white PBT double shot caps from Amazon. I hope they add some stability to the keys.

EDIT: Nope, the PBT keys don't fix the excess wobble of the keys. This doesn't affect the keyboard's performance. It's just kind of annoying and feels like a QA issue. I'll use the keyboard through the weekend before deciding whether to keep it.

It looks great, man. Have you tried any gaming on it yet? The only reason I'm interested in it is because of the analog switches; I'm not overly concerned with key wobble. Really interested to hear how the analog keys enhance gameplay. Going from on/off inputs to variable levels in between could be a game changer...no pun intended.
 
Hey man! Yeah, it's a great gaming keyboard. Feels like smoother Cherry Reds. The software is really good. You can set the key actuation from 1.5 to 3.6 mm. Changing colors is easy, too.

I'm not sure why the key wobble irks me. It's not that bad at all. Just a little detail thing me with me, I guess. ;)

A nice touch is the clear plastic keyboard cover that's included. I think all mech boards should have one to help keep dust and stuff away when you're not using it.
 
That's great to hear. I want to get one, just torn on which switch to get. I generally prefer Blues to Reds in terms of feel, but having a clicky key with analog movement might be a bit weird. Traditionally, the purpose of the tactile click is to let you know when the key actuates (and provide a satisfying typing feel). But I can see it possibly being a little bit awkward if you have a variable range of motion that gets registered. It would be like having a click when pressing your gas pedal halfway down to the floor or when turning your steering wheel to the left or right, lol.

Good to know that it comes with a cover, though - that helps take a little bit of sting off of the price, for sure.
 
So how does the wooting handle typing on the keys mapped to the controller input? From what I saw it essentially acts like a controller and keyboard in one, so what happens if I am playing a game with wasd mapped to controller sticks and then want to type something in chat with those keys?
 
So how does the wooting handle typing on the keys mapped to the controller input? From what I saw it essentially acts like a controller and keyboard in one, so what happens if I am playing a game with wasd mapped to controller sticks and then want to type something in chat with those keys?
I just had some experience with that. If you try to type while in any of the analog profiles, the mapped keys do not respond with letters. They act as controller keys. I thought there might have been a defect with my board until I realized what was happening. Looks like you need to be in digital profile for the keys to type correctly. If I'm wrong, someone please let us know.

D4uuXbt.png
 
My Masterkeys S finally arrived. Initial impressions are good, the only real issue is that the numbers on the number row don't light up very well. The symbols get most of the light from the LED and the numbers suffer because of it. Build quality is good, I had read some of these keyboards having loose space bars but the one on mine seems pretty solid.

cooler.jpg
 
My Masterkeys S finally arrived. Initial impressions are good, the only real issue is that the numbers on the number row don't light up very well. The symbols get most of the light from the LED and the numbers suffer because of it. Build quality is good, I had read some of these keyboards having loose space bars but the one on mine seems pretty solid.

View attachment 55839
I wonder if the analog tech in these boards would make it easier to do racing games for keyboard drivers like myself....also how loud is yours? would this thing be fried in a drink spilled in it?...I have spilled many drinks in my ancient saitek lighted keyboard and it always cleaned up no problem
 
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