Thoughts on a Mechanical Keyboard?

[Ian]

I've currently got a Logitech G11 keyboard, but I'm considering getting a new mechanical keyboard when I upgrade my PC in a few days time.

There seems to be quite a bit of buzz around mechanical keyboards - but I've not used once since the clacky 80's ones. Are mechanical gaming keyboards really that good? I've had a few people mention they upgraded to one and won't be going back to a cheaper keyboard.

I've been looking at something like the Corsair K90, but it seems pretty expensive for a keyboard!

 

[muckshifter]

ah, I loved my Cherry keyboard, sad when it finely died ... gaming? dunno, let me go look what Cherry have.

 

[Ian]

The one I was looking at used "Cherry - Red" keys, which are supposed to be very light to the touch .

 

[V_R]

This is something that i've been wondering too.... They seems to be the new must have, but i'm not sure i can part with my G19.....

I would be looking to the Corsair range too if i were to get one, or maybe one of the Razer's.

The only thing that puts me off is that they just look quite bland, i love the screen on the G19 and actually use it all the time. not sure i could do without it now.....

 

[Ian]

Well, the K90 is ordered - so I'll report back here once I've given it a whirl! I went for the 3570K and a 240GB SSD, so it should be one hefty upgrade on my currently system. Still using the same GTX 560 graphics card though, as it's working fine for my needs .

 

[V_R]

Oooh! Nice upgrades!

 

[Ian]

The K90 and new PC components arrived today, but all is not well. PC built no problem, but when I plugged the keyboard in to go into the BIOS and set the boot order, nothing happens... In fact, no keys work during the POST stage.

It turns out that this is a known problem with the keyboard and some motherboards. I've tried all ports, but no dice. It works on my other PC once it's booted in to Windows, but that's not much use! There's a big thread on the Corsair forums with many other people facing the same problem .

Looks like I'll have to return this one to Scan, so I hope their RMA process is good. So far, I've been very impressed with them.

 

[V_R]

Oh, thats not so good..... Hope the refund all goes well Ian.

 

[Becky]

... on the upside Ian can now either get the same one that I got (Tt eSports Meka G1) or the one up from it. IMO it has a much nicer feel when typing

 

[floppybootstomp]

Interesting, I was seriously thinking about getting the Corsair K60/M60 fps keyboard/mouse combo but I'm wary now. Which motherboard did you try and use it with Ian? I currently have an Asus P8X68-V Pro with an i7 2600K.

I'm not happy with my current keyboards, have a cheapie Saitek Eclipse II which is actually OK but lots of the keyboard insignia paint has worn away from the keys.

My main one is the Razer Lycosa which is ok but the lighting display seems to have a mind of it's own sometimes on boot. I've had it for 10 months now but fancy something a bit chunkier hence my considering the Corsair. Having said that, I can live with the Razer, just me wanting a change, maybe, and the Razer would replace the Saitek anyway.

As for Scan, I've stopped using them. They will RMA ok but they didn't offer to pay the £12.50 postage when I had to return a faulty Corsair 2.1 speaker system to them. The speakers only cost £45.00 as well. When I asked for postage they gave me a fiver so that was the end of me buying from Scan.

Just my opinion but I would recommend E-Buyer, I've used nobody else for computer parts for 18 months or so now. Good luck with your rma.

 

[Ian]

I heard back from Scan today, and the customer service guy acknowledged that it was a known issue as his colleague had the same problem with an Asus Z77 board. It only occured to me about your RMA issues with Scan as I had a browse of the retailers forum last night - I hope this one works out ok.

I'm using the Intel DZ77GA-70K motherboard (same PC as Bex, more or less) and I suspect that quite a few motherboards will have the same problem with the K90. I don't know if the K60 has the same problem, but I'd do a lot of googling beforehand if you are thinking about that one. I'm not actually fond of the feel of the Cherry Red keys now that I've tried Becky's TT Meka G1 (Cherry Black), so I don't feel too bad about the keyboard not working. I'll probably go for something else in the TT eSports range, as it felt good to type on - but it is lacking in the looks department.

 

[floppybootstomp]

Is This Becky's keyboard?

I quite like the look of it if it is, plain and functional. I notice though that the keys aren't backlit, I do like illuminated keys.

How are the keys marked? I ask as the Saitek keys were just white paint of some sort on each key and they wore away. I'd hate to spend 85 quid on a keyboard and see the insignia fading away after 9 months or so. Your views?

 

[Ian]

That's the one - although there is this one for just a few quid more:

http://www.kustompcs.co.uk/acatalog/info_30049.html

That's the one that I'm looking at getting as a replacement. From what I can tell, it's very similar but has some backlighting and macro keys. Plus, it's got two proper Windows keys - the Meka G1 only has one on the right hand side and I was hitting the "Fn" key by mistake when I tried it.

Bex has used the keyboard much more than me, so I'll leave the rest of the comments up to her - but from what I can tell it looks pretty decent.

 

[Ian]

I'm also considering this one as a replacement, but it's a chunk of change extra - not sure if it's worth it for a keyboard!

http://www.scan.co.uk/products/cool...l-gaming-keyboard-cherry-switch-backlit-black

 

[Becky]

It is indeed pad printing on the keys rather than etching... the whole thing feels so well-built and solid, it would be disappointing if such a crucial part isn't durable. Only time will tell I guess.

It's worth noting that the G-Unit only features selective backlit keys - eg arrows, WASD etc.

 

[floppybootstomp]

I think that has to be the one for me Ian. If the keys are backlit then there will be no paint to wear away.

But... currently Kustom PC's are out of stock, so I shall wait. OCUK have it in stock but at £100 compared to Kustom PC's £88 and probably OCUK will charge more for postage.

Thanks for the link.

I have always found Kustom PC's to be an excellent supplier, btw, but they always used to be more expensive than their competitors. Perhaps not any more, juding by that keyboard pricing.

PS: Thanks for comment Becky - noted. It's likely any paint used is hard wearing anyway.

 

[Ian]

OK, I've got the TT MEKA G-UNIT ordered and it should be here on Monday. Ordered it at 12PM and had a DPD tracking number at 2:20 PM . RMA was sent back today too (should arrive on Weds), so I'll update on how their returns process is.

 

[floppybootstomp]

It's worth noting that the G-Unit only features selective backlit keys - eg arrows, WASD etc.

I've given that lots of thought and I really do like illuminated keys so I've crossed that one off my list. I e-mailed Kustom PC's and they will have it back in stock on Wednesday. Whether it will still be £88 or not I don't know.

I feel I've looked at every single mechanical keyboard there is and it's finally come down to a choice between these two:

Mionix Zibal 60

Razer Black Widow

Only possible disadvantage with the Razer is that it doesn't have Cherry keys, the mechanical keys are it's own make, which may not be an issue.

Of the two I prefer the Mionix but Kustom PC's are out of stock atm.

I also need a 3Tb HDD for my media machine as my current 2Tb (1.81Tb) HDD only has 108Gb left on it.

E-Buyer have a Seagate 3Tb HDD on offer atm for £112 and they have the Razer keyboard in stock as well.

Kustom PC's list the Seagate HDD at £119 but just like the Mionix keyboard, it's out of stock atm.

Kustom PC's HDD and keyboard are both more expensive than my choices at E-Buyer and KPC's will charge me postage whereas postage at E-Buyer is free.

What to do, what to do?

 

[Becky]

I read good stuff about the Black Widow when I was looking into the MEKA G1. The most useful resource I found was actually YouTube! Might be worth a look

 

[floppybootstomp]

I studied everything about the Razer and the Mionix, watched all the videos and it was a very hard decision to make but the Mionix just made it ahead for me so I'm typing on it right now.

It's just about everything I want in a keyboard: Mechanical keys, sturdy, plain, illuminated, functional and no frills. No drivers needed either.

I've played some CoD4 online and some more Max Payne 3 and it is better than my Razer Lycosa which it replaced. Typing's ok as well although as I don't often do typing for a lengthy periods I don't know whether I'd find the mechanical keys tiring on the hands or not.

The only people who had it in stock at the same price as Kustom PC's were Scan so I bit the bullet and bought it from Scan. That went against the grain a bit but I do get free postage at Scan and DPD are a good courier, it arrived here at 10:15 after I received a text message and e-mail around 09:00 telling me it would arrive between 10:07 & 11:07.

The Razer Lycosa is now on my bedroom AMD machine where it is a nice improvement on the Saitek Eclipse it replaced.