Aces High Bulletin Board
General Forums => Hardware and Software => Topic started by: Gman on December 15, 2011, 12:26:23 AM
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(http://drh1.img.digitalriver.com/DRHM/Storefront/Company/razerusa/images/product/gallery/razer-blackwidow-ultimate-gallery1.jpg)
I just received this as an early xmas present from the wife. I've wanted to try a mechanical keyboard for quite a while now, and she went out and bought the best one, which happened to be on for 33% off at memoryexpress (our big mailorder place in western Canada).
In a word or two: It's effing amazing. The difference in the accuracy of the keystrokes compared to a normal gaming keyboard isn't describable in words, you just have to try it to believe it. It's so precise it feels like going from a large pair of garden scissors to the accurate little ones on a swiss army knife if you were cutting something tiny.
They keys do make a bit of a loud click/snicky sound, but you quickly get used to that. There is a quickmode button to turn off your windows key while gaming, and 5 macro keys on the left side that you can program to do pretty much anything, any windows command or keystroke you want, but that's about it for extra type features - it lacks the 2000 functions of say a Logitech Gwhatever keyboard, but has it where it counts for performance. It's VERY heavy, and made of very high quality materials, and yet very simple and elegant. It has 3 lighting levels, again very simple, and one USB and 2 sound plug ports on the right side. The software for it is on Razer's website, they didn't include a CD, which is something that doesn't really stress me that much, as I always end up losing the microsoft mous-ish type driver CD's anyhow, or they are already out of date when you open them up nowadays anyhow.
They make a cheaper version of this keyboard for about 70 dollars which lacks the background lighting, this one was 100 after the 30 dollars off, but I've seen them go for around 110 in the USA.
You wouldn't think it to be a big seller, and it isn't so far, but the company put 3 years of R and D into this thing apparently, and it shows, is it has only the things a gamer really needs, and performs like a cat on fire. I bet it's improved my typing accuracy and speed by a factor of 2 as well. Considering you use your keyboard more than any other thing other than arguably your mouse, it should be something you invest some money into. Mark my words, 5 years from now nearly EVERY high performance or "gaming" branded keyboard will be using a mechanical type of system over the old membrane type. If you get a chance in a store (best buy carries them in the USA), absolutely give one a go, you won't be sorry you tried it. Next to the saitek combat peds, this is the best thing I've added to my PC setup since I've been using one.
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(http://drh1.img.digitalriver.com/DRHM/Storefront/Company/razerusa/images/product/gallery/razer-blackwidow-ultimate-gallery1.jpg)
I just received this as an early xmas present from the wife. I've wanted to try a mechanical keyboard for quite a while now, and she went out and bought the best one, which happened to be on for 33% off at memoryexpress (our big mailorder place in western Canada).
In a word or two: It's effing amazing. The difference in the accuracy of the keystrokes compared to a normal gaming keyboard isn't describable in words, you just have to try it to believe it. It's so precise it feels like going from a large pair of garden scissors to the accurate little ones on a swiss army knife if you were cutting something tiny.
They keys do make a bit of a loud click/snicky sound, but you quickly get used to that. There is a quickmode button to turn off your windows key while gaming, and 5 macro keys on the left side that you can program to do pretty much anything, any windows command or keystroke you want, but that's about it for extra type features - it lacks the 2000 functions of say a Logitech Gwhatever keyboard, but has it where it counts for performance. It's VERY heavy, and made of very high quality materials, and yet very simple and elegant. It has 3 lighting levels, again very simple, and one USB and 2 sound plug ports on the right side. The software for it is on Razer's website, they didn't include a CD, which is something that doesn't really stress me that much, as I always end up losing the microsoft mous-ish type driver CD's anyhow, or they are already out of date when you open them up nowadays anyhow.
They make a cheaper version of this keyboard for about 70 dollars which lacks the background lighting, this one was 100 after the 30 dollars off, but I've seen them go for around 110 in the USA.
You wouldn't think it to be a big seller, and it isn't so far, but the company put 3 years of R and D into this thing apparently, and it shows, is it has only the things a gamer really needs, and performs like a cat on fire. I bet it's improved my typing accuracy and speed by a factor of 2 as well. Considering you use your keyboard more than any other thing other than arguably your mouse, it should be something you invest some money into. Mark my words, 5 years from now nearly EVERY high performance or "gaming" branded keyboard will be using a mechanical type of system over the old membrane type. If you get a chance in a store (best buy carries them in the USA), absolutely give one a go, you won't be sorry you tried it. Next to the saitek combat peds, this is the best thing I've added to my PC setup since I've been using one.
I know what you talk about. For years I've been dreaming about running into an old IBM keyboard. Back in the day most keyboards were mechanical and they were a dream to type with. I hate the current plastic bubble keys.
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I know what you talk about. For years I've been dreaming about running into an old IBM keyboard. Back in the day most keyboards were mechanical and they were a dream to type with. I hate the current plastic bubble keys.
I was just thinking about those old circa 1990 mechanical boards that came with the Xt8088 and early 286 systems I had. From what I remember the keys felt even better than this new one, or maybe it's just the fond memory I have of them.
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Upon further investigation locally, there is a LOT of old little computer stores in the sleepy little town where my folks live. A friend on facebook just read my review there and said a guy has a crate of old 91-95 IBM "M" mechanical keyboards, at a shop called "E-Lite" computers at Canadian Forces Base Moose Jaw, and was selling them for 5 - 10 dollars each, lol. My friend also said he's heard of them going for 2 bucks at garage sales and some of the really old PC repair places that are around the area. I'm going to be on the phone in the AM ASAP, and if I can any of them cheap I'll buy the whole works of them. This keyboard from Razer IS amazing and works better for our modern world, but for just plain typing, and EVEN for games, a 5 dollar mechanical will be hard to beat. I'd take one over ANY non mechanical wizbang Microcrap or Logifrog gaming keyboard.
If I do get a hold of some I might do a nice Aces High Stocking stuffer run, particularly if I can get em for a couple of bucks.
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What the heck is a mechanical keyboard?
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Mechanical keyboards
Every key on the Razer BlackWidow Stealth Edition has its own independent mechanical key switch mechanism, delivering crisp response and tactile feedback for a completely different feel with each key stroke.
Imagine every single key on the keyboard with the precision of a mouse click - no more pressing of keys without knowing for certain if they have been actuated. Precision clicking coupled with an optimized lighter key actuation force will redefine the way gamers play.
Standard keyboards
Membrane (standard) keyboards are by far the most commonly used with today's computers. They are designed so that all the keycaps are positioned above rubber domes, which in turn are above a plastic membrane that spreads over the entire keyboard.
(http://assets.razerzone.com/minisite/blackwidow/images/bws_what_are.jpg)
They easiest way for me to explain it is that each key feels almost as accurate as a mouse click when you press it. Each individual key has its own little mech system for working instead of being part of a keyboard wide membrane system. VERY accurate and precise, also very loud compared to a normal keyboard.
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Ahhhhh... sounds like a typewriter, huh? ;)
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Ahhhhh... sounds like a typewriter, huh? ;)
No it sounds like clackety clack, real loud. You can like double your typing speed with these suckers if you do 10-finger system like I do.
Once at work I ran into this dream keyboard. I just couldn't believe how fast I could type with it. If I knew then how special it was I would have stolen it and replaced it with a stock one :)
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I know what you talk about. For years I've been dreaming about running into an old IBM keyboard. Back in the day most keyboards were mechanical and they were a dream to type with. I hate the current plastic bubble keys.
HiTech has the old IBM AT Keyboard, and I have two of them at home. Those are the best keyboards I have ever used. A touch typists dream.
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HiTech has the old IBM AT Keyboard, and I have two of them at home. Those are the best keyboards I have ever used. A touch typists dream.
I'm just considering about getting myself a christmas present from ebay...
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I know I'm use to my keyboard (Normal ol 'Logitech one), but when I used that keyboard I saw no advantages. I used it when visiting Spinnich for a week so I got a bit of time in on it and just didn't notice a real difference besides sound (and the lack of coordination when gaming with it). Anytime i see Mechanical Board comparisons one of the main points is "Not having to press down as hard to register a press"...are people really that lazy or am I a heavy typist?
I have never had an issue with my keystrokes missing or not registering (save for the actual hardware issue of keys plain out not working). The noise and solidity (they didn't feel like they wiggled at all) of the keys were the only real difference I felt. Maybe I'm just too use to mine?
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I know I'm use to my keyboard (Normal ol 'Logitech one), but when I used that keyboard I saw no advantages. I used it when visiting Spinnich for a week so I got a bit of time in on it and just didn't notice a real difference besides sound (and the lack of coordination when gaming with it). Anytime i see Mechanical Board comparisons one of the main points is "Not having to press down as hard to register a press"...are people really that lazy or am I a heavy typist?
I have never had an issue with my keystrokes missing or not registering (save for the actual hardware issue of keys plain out not working). The noise and solidity (they didn't feel like they wiggled at all) of the keys were the only real difference I felt. Maybe I'm just too use to mine?
It is not about being lazy. It is about being fast. I worked with a guy who typed 135 words a minute. You cannot 'bang' that fast on a membrane keyboard. Membrane keyboards require a physical press to the stop to register. It can be subtle, but it is there. A high quality mechanical keyboard does not have to be pressed to the stop, hence the term "touch typing".
A good touch typist is very hard to hear, when they are working. You hear the mechanical switches, but no banging of the button stops.
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Maybe I would just need to try it again but I type as fast as my brain can keep up....not very fast in other words. :D
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I'm not surprised people that are into programming or webwork are using the old "m" AT keyboards. What Razer did I think was pretty much copy the system that IBM used with their old keyboards, added 5 macro buttons, a USB passthrough port, a heavy (like 3 pounds I bet) housing for all the above, and a nice little blue lightbulb to light it all up. It's a VERY close second as I stated earlier to the IBM keyboards in terms of performance. Again, I can't recommend it highly enough, and Skuzzy if you're ever in a best buy in the USA ask them to open one up if it isn't on display to try it out and post how it feels compared to the M AT IBM boards you're currently using. It'd be nice to see if you guys think it's as good as I do, before I go on the hunt for old IBM boards. Some clicky keyboard website claims to have stock on them, but they are more than the Razer boards are currently, so unless I can find a real good small town deal, I'll stick with this new one for now. Today is the first full day I've been typing with it, and I bet my errors have dropped down to almost nothing and my normal 45-50 wpm rate is back to 65 or higher like it was in high school on the electric typewriters we were taught on there. Lots of fun.
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school still has ,echanocal keyboards i believe. of course, theyre biting the dust in replacement for the new usb keyboards. used one a couple weeks and enjoyed it. may talk to tech teacher about stealing one of them...
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I said in another mechanical keyboard thread around the time I posted this one, that in a 4 or 5 years there would be as many if not more mechanical keyboard options than "non" mechanical ones. Pretty much has worked out that way, hundreds of different mechanical options out there now, every company + their dog are making some version of a mech keyboard.
Nobody has yet surpassed the original IBM "M" keyboard with the buckling spring key type. Unicomp bought the rights, but theirs still don't feel "quite" the same as the originals. I have a few of the original "M"s, in fact the "F" models are probably the best ever made IMO, yet are really lacking in keys and the numpad. I have 3 IBM "M", one "F", and one Unicomp in black.
I still like to game on a more modern one, and save the IBMs for when I'm writing or typing long letters and such only. The Razer was really the first commercial "gaming" mech keyboard which is why I got it back in 2011, but since then many, many others have been competing. Various Cherry and other proprietary key types out there.
I think I found the best of the best finally, after much searching and testing. Ducky from Taiwan IMO makes hands down the best new "gaming" mechanical, I picked up a Cherry Brown and a Cherry Blue version of their latest "Ducky Shine 5" boards. Incredible, I recommend them to anyone - the caps feel like porcelain, so smooth and solid, they are double shot injected, and the best key caps I've felt. The LEDs are the highest quality, each individual key has a very solid LED light, with a very good internal design which makes them the brightest I've seen. Very basic looks and simple, and around 160$ are among the higher priced boards, but you get what you pay for IMO.
Lots of reviews on YT, if you're looking for a new or better keyboard, if you can't find a sub 200 to 300$ IBM "M", and want a newer gamer style board, Ducky Shine 5 is the one for you.
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I still have three IBM type "M" keyboards in good repair. No Windows key. Love it.
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I'm just considering about getting myself a christmas present from ebay...
What can I have?
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Bit of a necro bump, but I've picked up a lot more mechanical keyboards in the last few years, and as predicted in the OP, every company + their dog's company is making them now. Making them in every varying type too, it's great. Logitech and Razer have invented their own switches, and there are several besides Cherry out there with varying costs and performance now too.
I know HT (others too as per the thread) are big users of the original IBM M, and the several I have are still my favorite, incredible how the "they don't make em like they used to" phrase still holds true many times, especially in the case of keyboards. Keyboards took a while to get the "sexyness" of other peripherals like gaming mice, LCDs, graphics cards, HOTAS, and everything else, but they did catch up. Considering we use the KB more than anything else, it should.
Ducky Shine 6 - I picked up a Ducky 5 in Brown and Blue last year, and grabbed a 6 in Cherry MX Brown this time around. I've gotten sick of Blues lately, and Brown is my new preferred type. Great KB for the money.
DasKeyboard - not a gaming keyboard, but a great desktop/typist KB, very happy with this one and I'll be keeping it.
Cooler Master Masterkey Pro Tenkeyless RGB - great home theater keyboard, it's small, and has great keycaps, nearly as good as the Ducky double shot injected keycaps.
Last one, I've been picking off mech KB I like when I see them on sale, and my first Gskill has been great, the 780 RGB in Cherry Brown for $100 USD. It has a metal top plate, decent, yet slowish software, a great wrist rest if you use them, and a metal rolling volume switch. Use it a a HTPC keyboard too, the side metal bars/handles make it easy to pick up and move around, and the USB passthrough works OK if I'm not using a wireless mouse in the HTPC room I have it in.
Lastly, the Unicomp IBM buckling spring clones are excellent, and have gone down in price, for $85 you can get a black IBM M "clone" with USB from these guys who bought the rights to the IBM buckling spring design. SO close to the originals, just not quite as perfect, but very close, and for the $, if you don't want RGB or gaming doodads, IMO the best keyboard available for the PC, period.
http://www.pckeyboard.com/page/product/UB40P4A
(http://www.pckeyboard.com/mm5/graphics/00000001/00UB40P4A-3_270x180.jpg)
Some cool options for keycaps out there, many vintage and steam punk type caps out there compatible with Cherry switches, I'm going to build a KB with these this fall some time.
https://www.amazon.com/Velocifire-Mechanical-Typewriter-Illuminated-Anti-ghosting/dp/B073GXFS7Q/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1505695635&sr=8-1-spons&keywords=typewriter+keycaps&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/Mechanical-Backlight-Steampunk-Typewriter-Qisan/dp/B0719KZTF3/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?ie=UTF8&qid=1505695635&sr=8-2-spons&keywords=typewriter+keycaps&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/E-Element-Injection-Typewriter-Mechanical-Keyboards/dp/B06Y2B926N/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1505695635&sr=8-5&keywords=typewriter+keycaps
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I bought a Razer Ultimate Blackwidow some time ago and like it just fine other than the fact the secondary characters (!@#$, etc,) are just painted on, not cut through so the back lighting would work. It is a bit frustrating when wanting a symbol or parenthesis and have to turn on a light to see the keys for them.
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Been using a daskeyboard, at home, for a few years now.
I have two changes I would like to see.
1) The key side to side play is more than I like. Large keys rock a little because of it.
2) The key lettering is painted on and is wearing thin on some of the keys. Would like to see the letters molded in.
Other than that, great feel, good tactile response. A really good touch typist keyboard.
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My Cherry Blue Das has a bit of wobble in the keys too, this is a really common complaint. I'm going to try some custom key caps on it, there are a bunch out there which fit Cherry MX switches, and see of that does anything as they may have tighter internal measurements where they attach to the switch I'm hoping. I ordered these rounded old school typewriter style keys that are double injected and highly rated. We'll see.
Picked up another IBM M (Lexmark model) that is 99% for 65$ on Ebay this week. For me they're still the best instrument for a lot of typing ever made.
I'm going to try one of the new analogue keyboards that have come out, one of the "Wooting One" models. They only make them in Tenkeyless form, something I'm not a huge fan of as I habitually use the keypad, plus gaming of course, it can really screw with you in some types of games not having it. I'm interested in seeing how the Flaretech switches work, and the Wooting comes with 2 full sets of Red and Blue keys.
Skuzzy - does HTC have any interest in the capability of these new analogue keyboards? Wooting is probably the first decent one I've seen, and they are keen to send out kits to developers from the info exchanges I've had and read, nobody better than HTC to create stuff with the analogue capabilities. Just throttle even would be interesting, increasing as you push a key further down, and that's just the first thing I could think of, and new ideas aren't my forte. After what you guys did with the Rift, Vive too, Wooting I'm certain would want your help. I do hope their 2.0 goes to a full size keyboard, and rumor has it they are offering that option next model.
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Corsiar mechanical keyboard is ok