to me mkb is really about personal preferences, so it's better to try them out and check out the specs first before purchase.

k70 is my main keyboard at home. the main reason that i use it a lot is because of its dedicated media keys and win-key lock. it's a full-sized, but i actually prefer tkl. i like red switches (the brown switches in my ninja was a mistake :/); and i put double o-rings to make it quieter. the typing feel is nice to me.

i am going to get corsair k63 later. it's a simple tkl with red switches, plain backlit, media keys and win-key lock.

have checked ss.m800's specs (particularly, Actuation and Reset Depth: 1.5mm), similar ones should be mx speed switches (like corsair k70/k65 rapidfire; 1.2mm).

again, go try first and see if you like it.

edit: maybe i will check this out also hehe

This post has been edited by horns: Mar 23 2017, 01:59 PM

go try corsair's rapid. maybe that's what you're looking for.

like everything else, it's really a matter of preference. like others said, just get what you like most.

good news, http://forum.corsair.com/v3/showpost.php?p...4&postcount=257

alternatively, you can get corsair's non-standard bottom rows from taobao (pbt; translucent; affordable) some nice sellers even matches everything for you for a small fee. (a full set with non-standard replacements)

i definitely agree with this one about keycaps. corsair's keycaps are of the lowest quality, compared to stock from keyboards that i have. (its paint is so damn thin!)

just replace them with entry-level blacklit pbt keycaps and be done with it. (except for the bottom row, of course; that one is actually easy at taobao)

after using it for a while, imo ikbc f87 is really a good buy. the overall build quality is not bad. its pbt double-shot key caps are of very good quality. (not as thick as the usual vortex's; more like tai-hao's)

hopefully mf87 will come here soon.

yeah that :/ it's too bad if that's the case. it's such a nice board imo.

vortex keycaps are thick, hence the low light penetration, and perhaps contributing to louder typing sound.

i like ikbc keycaps. (blacklit or not) already bought few sets to replace the ones on some of my boards (not really nice looking, but i like the feels when typing on them)


This post has been edited by horns: Jun 7 2017, 04:41 AM

for wasd replacement key set, this one is ok. (Backlit PBT WASD Set)

for k70 replacement, your friend can opt for ikbc f-series (already with pbt double-shot keycaps), or coolermaster masterkeys pro (abs keycaps).

this one is really ok. (Backlit PBT WASD Set)

sweet

after using pbt, you're very likely to find more pbt key caps later haha

This post has been edited by horns: Jun 8 2017, 06:34 PM

ok

yeah there is. however a universal dust cover will not fit the non-standard bottom row of corsair keyboards.

i just use the hard plastic cover that comes with my keyboard.

sure; just get those backlighting-compatible/backlit-transluscent doubleshot pbt, like this one, https://www.massdrop.com/buy/vortex-backlit...shot-keycap-set

be sure to check out position of led on your keyboard (north, south, etc), so that they match legends of the keycaps. i didn't check so previously i got the wrong one, http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/pro...shot-black.html (the leds of my keyboard are at north/top, but the number row of this set has legends distributed top and bottom. since the keycaps are thick, the numbers are not shown nicely, i just got to see symbols only for number row hahaha)

yours might be ok

the price range vary, depending on your expectations and fault tolerance. for very cheap ones, their legends are really something (i don't think you wanna see those on your keyboard), and most of the times they kind of have qc issues. for those with middle range pricing (around myr 50 to 99), they are of good quality, but with various levels of 'defects' here and there. for (near) perfect quality ones, usually they start from myr 150. for enthusiast class (for collections), well, i skip them.

note that the price range above is simply based on a brief survey at taobao. tbh, if you wanna have a good set, it's better to check out other places also. doubleshot pbt is really very durable. you can swap them from keyboards to keyboards for many generations. imo it's better to get a perfect quality ones.

locally i only know ultimate.zone (a lot of good stuff; but better call them for stock status), and garage sales here.

This post has been edited by horns: Jun 9 2017, 12:47 PM

this is personal preference but for backlit mkbs you should try out the following:
1. ikbc f87 - backlit (rgb); cherry mx; minimalist; standard 87-key keyboard layout (no weird bottom row); comes with doubleshot pbt key caps. (with fixed cable).
2. cm masterkeys pro s - backlit (rgb); cherry mx; minimalist; standard 87-key layout (no weird bottom row); abs key caps. (with detachable micro-usb cable).

both have on-board controls of led effects.

to me corsair strafe is ok. to me the two have obvious advantages over corsair strafe because of their standard bottom rows.

for key cap replacements, it's very rare to find a complete key cap set that fits everything for keyboards that have non-standard rows. you might end up getting supplement key caps like me for my k70.rgb (all keys are just plain backlit-compatible black; not all have uniform backlit effects because i'm using two different sets). my aim is just to replace everything from abs to doubleshot pbt, so i'm fine with such an arrangement.

again, these are just my personal preference. it's still better for you to try them out one by one first.

also, corsair's stock key caps are abs.

i think you should try out other brands/models. even if it's the same switch, implementations are somehow different from brand to brand. (the feels are different at least to me; this always happens to me when i used one for some time then switch to others)

for switches, you might wanna use light and linear switches only, if you're still in open office work space. (e.g. red, pink, or maybe heavier black; use of o-rings might help)

ok

hopefully there will be a tkl version with cherry mx pink later. corsair k68 is my type of keyboard (sometimes i belanja my boards drinks) however i think corsair use wrong legends for number row of this model. the led is on the north, so the bottom legends of number row will be relatively dim (maybe ok for thin abs key caps, but not thicker pbt). i still have a set of double-shot pbt key caps that have all legends on the north for number row, which includes custom bottom rows.

i still prefer k63 or k65. i really wanna try pink.

practical innovations are always welcome lol

for instance, more and more budget mkbs that allow hot-swaps of switches are populating the market. i think it's a good feature if done right, allowing us who do not know a thing about soldering to play with different switches, without buying a lot of boards. (in theory)

btw holtites at taobao are almost double the price of those at winkeyless.kr.

it's totally worth it (i mean that cm novatouch tkl); it has different but nice and smooth typing feels; and you can swap keycaps with cherry-mx compatible ones.