I want an illuminated mechanical keyboard but I'm overwhelmed.

[naisanza]

Keep in mind many mechanical keyboards unless also partially membrane will not have any of the modern keys for volume, mute, etc.

I like my logitech K800...it's got a good typing feel and one of the nicer membrance keyboards I have tried.

Oops. Meant to quote this one.

Unless it's a topre, because it's a hybrid, no membrane keyboard feels better than a mechanical. imo

 

[balane]

I've spent the day with my Rosewill illuminated Cherry MX Blue switch keyboard and I like it very much. The noise took a little getting used to but I actually kind of like it. I have no issues in games so far and typing is great on it. The keyboard is heavy, it weighs much more than I expected it to, must be the metal plate inside that the switches are attached to. The rubber pads on the feet are great and this thing feels like it's a part of my desk. The keyboard feels very well built and has a great, durable quality that is obvious. All in all I'm very happy with the Rosewill mechanical keyboard and I would have no issues buying another or recommending one. I would, some time, like to feel the brown switches but I have no regrets with the blues. So nice job Rosewill, seems like a good value.

 

[balane]

And I have a question. I see that the preferred keyboard connection is PS2. I do have a PS2 connector on my motherboard.

But the Rosewill keyboard comes only in USB flavor. Would it benefit me to use a USB to PS2 adapter on this keyboard?

PS/2 or USB?

PS/2 wins on three fronts: First, it supports full n-key rollover. Second, PS/2 keyboards aren't polled, but are completely interrupt based. And third, it is impossible for it to be delayed by the USB bus being used by other devices. There are two types of USB transfer modes - the interrupt transfer mode (USB polls keyboard, when key is sensed the USB controller sends the interrupt to the CPU), and the isochronous transfer mode, which reserves a certain amount of bandwidth for the keyboard with a guaranteed latency on the bus. Unfortunately, there are absolutely no keyboards made that use the latter, because special controllers would have to be used, thus making it cost prohibitive.

So if your keyboard supports both PS/2 and USB, and your PC has a PS/2 port, there's no reason not to use it.

 

[zokudu]

I know the nonilluminated Rosewill boards used the Costar controller that emulates a USB hub allowing for NKRO. The illuminated boards are no costar made so I have no clue if they support NKRO over USB.

 

[JamesV]

I've been searching like mad for a new mechanical, and I'm tempted to get the G710+.

I have a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate with blue switches, and love the feel of it, but it drives me crazy with issues like keys not registering, bad software, and occasional 'sticks' where a key will register 2-3 times for a while and then go back to normal.

Looked at boards like the K90, but I am not a fan of huge banks of macro banks; one bank (5 keys) is perfect, three banks just makes the keyboard unwieldy... same reason I don't want a Logitech 510 - too much fluff.

Ducky Shine looks interesting, and heard good things about them, but for the same price point, the G710+ is looking like the better option atm.

 

[Remobz]

I've been searching like mad for a new mechanical, and I'm tempted to get the G710+.

I have a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate with blue switches, and love the feel of it, but it drives me crazy with issues like keys not registering, bad software, and occasional 'sticks' where a key will register 2-3 times for a while and then go back to normal.

Looked at boards like the K90, but I am not a fan of huge banks of macro banks; one bank (5 keys) is perfect, three banks just makes the keyboard unwieldy... same reason I don't want a Logitech 510 - too much fluff.

Ducky Shine looks interesting, and heard good things about them, but for the same price point, the G710+ is looking like the better option atm.

I think I might go with the G710+ myself. Not the best choice but it will do for now.

 

[balane]

Let me know how you guys like the G710+ It seems like a great choice and it's nice to see one of the big names in peripherals go with something other than reds. I definitely love the tactile keys myself.

I would probably try the G710 with and without the O-Rings installed to see which I preferred, they come off easily. And the Logitech has great multimedia controls. I could live without the orange on it but that's minor. The white LED's are also great. I was extremely close to getting it but I'm totally happy with my Rosewill board too. Even though I got Blues I think the Browns are probably a better all around choice for most people. (The only difference is the clicky sound of the blues.)

I've had zero luck with Razer, two failed keyboards and one failed mouse, so I avoid them these days. Probably just my bad luck though.

 

[ronbo613]

I don't mean to derail this thread, but everyone here seems to know quite a bit about illuminated mechanical keyboards.
Could you suggest an illuminated mechanical keyboard for a non-gamer, just a guy who works a lot in a dark room?

 

[balane]

I think the Rosewill ones are great and if you can catch them on sale, a terrific value. I love mine so far. They are basic keyboards with no gaming features at all, just a bare bones illuminated mechanical keyboard that is solid and well built. You need to figure out what switches you want though. For just typing blues or browns will be a good choice. Both are tactile and the blues are clicky too.

I just ordered the $60 cherry blue mechanical (non-illuminated) from Monoprice for my garage computer. With a coupon code it was $58 shipped. I'll let you guys know how it is once I get my hands on it, should be Thursday.

 

[Pia]

I don't mean to derail this thread, but everyone here seems to know quite a bit about illuminated mechanical keyboards.
Could you suggest an illuminated mechanical keyboard for a non-gamer, just a guy who works a lot in a dark room?

The exact same thing I'd suggest for a random gamer.
http://mechanicalkeyboards.com/shop/index.php?l=product_detail&p=164

 

[destrekor]

I've been searching like mad for a new mechanical, and I'm tempted to get the G710+.

I have a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate with blue switches, and love the feel of it, but it drives me crazy with issues like keys not registering, bad software, and occasional 'sticks' where a key will register 2-3 times for a while and then go back to normal.

Looked at boards like the K90, but I am not a fan of huge banks of macro banks; one bank (5 keys) is perfect, three banks just makes the keyboard unwieldy... same reason I don't want a Logitech 510 - too much fluff.

Ducky Shine looks interesting, and heard good things about them, but for the same price point, the G710+ is looking like the better option atm.

To be fair, the standard Razer BWU model has some issues relating strictly to the use of blue switches (repeating keys occurs because the switch didn't return from actuation point - any mechanical switch, if left at the actuation point or below, will repeat until it's out of actuation). And the software most certainly did suck... have you updated to Razer Synapse 2.0? It is much improved.
Oh, and the standard BWU model has a bad key matrix underneath the switches. It's not terrible, but it doesn't provide a high KRO.
The Blackwidow Ultimate Stealth (aside from being the Brown switch as opposed to Blue) has better KRO. It has 6KRO, plus modifier keys. I think ultimately it can hit 9 or 10KRO if it's 6 standard plus modifiers (shift, ctrl, alt). Is it full NKRO? No - I don't think USB can even offer full NKRO. 6KRO imho is plenty for the majority of gamers, let alone anyone else. Gamers can definitely make use of 6KRO, so it's better than 3KRO (which the original BWU model offers, though it is higher for certain keys like the WASD cluster).
I noted a big difference between the two models (tried both), and am very satisfied with the BWU Stealth.

That said, if I was buying today, I'd probably get the G710+. Not entirely sure, because while Logitech continues to trick me into buying their fantastic hardware, their software tends to leave me less than satisfied. They are hit and miss with software - sometimes great, sometimes flaky, sometimes horrible. And it varies with each version - great, great, then buggy as hell. With the G35, audio quality dropped when it switched to the Logitech Gaming Software package. The older G35-specific releases had better audio, and that's what I've stuck too.
The LGS platform for other hardware tends to be good though. I wish they'd bring the G700 into the LGS fold (I may take that back if they ever do, or I may be satisfied with it ).

 

[balane]

The $56 Monoprice USB mechanical keyboard with Cherry MX Blue switches showed up today. With coupon code I got it for $58 delivered which is a nice price for a cherry keyboard.

When you think of the sparsity that the term Bare Bones might conjure up you need not think beyond this keyboard. It is bare bones in every sense of the word. It is the most basic keyboard you can imagine. It has no audio connections, it has no USB port of any type, it has no multimedia controls, it has no illuminated keys; Nothing but keys on a board.

But it does have the oh-so-familiar sensation of MX Blues that you'll feel right at home typing on it. When you're typing it feels like any other similarly switched keyboard you've typed on regardless of price. And that is why it exists and why you would be happy with it. You expect nothing beyond that and that's what you will receive. I can promise that you'll love it over any rubber dome keyboard no matter the price or feature set. That click, click, click just gets your juices going.

The keys are mounted to a metal plate inside, a black one, and the keyboard is heavier than a typical membrane board. The keycaps feel just fine, the housing body is shiny and does feel a little cheap although it looks OK. The fold out legs work fine too.

Now some people are going to complain about something; If you pick up the keyboard and hold it firmly at each end and then twist in opposite direction you are going to feel some flex in the plastic body, it might even creak a little when you do it. But seriously, who does this with your keyboards? It's like the old joke, "Doctor it hurts when I do this....." Doctor replies, "Well then, don't do that."

Just set this keyboard down, plug it in and start typing. Enjoy the sensation you're having for less than $60 and it will feel like a win.

I hope it holds up over time. I did take it apart and the keyboard looks decently constructed, I've definitely seen worse.

 

[bononos]

Why did you get a cherry blue if the sound is something you need to get used to? The browns have tactile feel without the clicks. For me the clicks are ok while working but a little annoying for gaming.

 

[balane]

I don't personally care about the clicks either way. I would have been happy with blues or browns but now that I have blues on my main computer I want them on my garage computer as well so each computer has a similar feeling, I use the same mouse on both as well. It just so happened the MX Blue switch Rosewill was on sale cheaper than the browns when I got mine so that's why I chose it. No regrets now, typing or gaming.

 

[Remobz]

I don't personally care about the clicks either way. I would have been happy with blues or browns but now that I have blues on my main computer I want them on my garage computer as well so each computer has a similar feeling, I use the same mouse on both as well. It just so happened the MX Blue switch Rosewill was on sale cheaper than the browns when I got mine so that's why I chose it. No regrets now, typing or gaming.

Exactly, clicks are of MINIMAL importance to me.

 

[naisanza]

I've decided to make the bump up to a mechanical keyboard. I really, really wanted to play with some in person but neither Best Buy or Frys has any in the stores for me to examine.

My budget is up to $150 or around there. I very much want it to be illuminated, I prefer white or blue but can also deal with red or green if need be.

I want a full size keyboard with the numerical keypad and function keys. Volume control would be nice. USB would be my first choice.

I play a lot of MMO's (GW2 currently.) and I also type often. I write a lot, very long technically oriented documents which are called Internal Controls. These can be dozens of pages long, even closing in on a hundred pages at times. I would say fast, mistake-free typing is my number one priority but MMO gaming is also important to me. (I move with the mouse, attack with the keyboard.)

I genuinely don't know what I want out of a mechanical keyboard, mostly I'm just interested in improving my keyboard interaction. I've only used cheaper membrane keyboards in my lifetime. I don't mind a clicking sound, in fact I think I may like it but could live without it if something else works better for me.

In the end I suppose I'm looking for the best all around switch. From my reading it seems like the MX Browns might be my best bet and then the blues just after that. Do you agree with that assessment? I've read a lot on mechanical keyboards but I guess I would like some personalized feedback from experienced users on my particular needs. (Which strike me as typical.)

Thanks for any help you can give.

I've tried Cherry Blacks, Browns, and Blues. I like the Blues the best. I have a new KBC Poker Cherry Blues coming in the next few days (SUPER EXCITED ). Before the Poker I used the KBT Pure Cherry Browns for two weeks. Even with the tactile feedback, the browns didn't feel as satisfying as the Blues. The audible feedback trumps having just a tactile feedback, and it's not that loud either. The Browns are fairly quiet, but definitely better than the Blacks (or Reds) because those are linear with no feedback at all.

The keyboard before the KBT Pure is my HHKB Pro 2 non-print, which I've used for 3 years and it's still my best board and main one I use. The HHKB are Topre keys, which have a low thudding sound.