Hi guys,

Looking to upgrade my cherry MX brown ikbc F104 - from like 6 years ago which is still working fine.

Can I get a recommendation for the barebones? preferabbly southpaw or full - numpad is necessary

As for the switches, thinking of getting glorious panda or boba u4, which kit is compatible?

Thanks

This post has been edited by eddydo: Feb 3 2021, 07:19 AM

Ayam noob here.
Got anything below rm100/200 for good typing(excel/word) keyboard? Hate RGB though.

hi. i like to try out mechanical keyboard for some light gaming. So many choices for budget mechanical keyboards online. Anyone using budget mechanical keyboards and can recommend? Or should I go abit higher and get the coolermaster ck530 v2?

tq in advance

This is very useful info to me. I cannot use light linears. Had to swap heavier springs on linears. For tactile, light or heavy is ok. This is so subjective that it makes this hobby both scary and interesting at the same time. It is much more wallet scary actually. Thank you for sharing.

no problem. personal preference dictates everything. although i try to describe stuff as objectively as possible, please always take them with a grain of salt.

recently, there is sudden influx of new spring types made available by existing and new vendors to allow us to have different sets of typing experience. however these changes in typing feel cannot be captured by videos, so first-hand experience is always important.

this is also why i look forward to meetups, as almost all of us do things differently, hence there are always variations between seemingly identical builds.

there are other layouts with numpad, like 1800, or nym96/melody96.

also, you always have the option of a separate numpad. with it, you will have more options than southpaw or full.

you can use any kit, as long as the pcb supports mx-style switches.

boards at that range usually don't offer good typing experience, unless you put efforts to make them better.

maybe you should start by stating your budget

Just bought a tecware ignite 3 in 1 bundle. So far... Good enuf.

ok

I purchased a cheap china-made blue-switch Mechanical keyboard for my workplace last year. The left shift turned out faulty after like a month followed by other keys. I definitely wouldn't recommend a cheap board if you can't DIY repair it like me

you get what you pay for.

there is another similar and funny trend that is happening in our community: buy good kits, but send them to random modders-wanna-be that do bad jobs, just because they are cheaper than experienced and responsible modders. what usually happened after that is: those modders screwed up, then owners went find and paid good modders to fix shits. it's a funny repeated cycle that happened many times, which can be made more efficient, by just sending the stuff to good modders in the first place.

a lot of people still don't get it: soldering/building/tuning is the single most important process to put stuff together, so that the boards can work nicely, according to individual preferences. one important note about good modders is that they are experienced, and will do qc before, during, and after the jobs are done. quality workmanship takes time, so there is no need to rush them. yes, they charge relatively expensive, because it's the fair effort cost for them to use their experience and time, making sure everything is good for your builds, not because they are famous.

so please, when time comes, at least pick a decent modder to help you with this. it's easy to get responsible modders for the jobs: there are identified modders with good skills who deliver good outcomes in mymkb fb page. please, help and save yourself from issues like brand new pcb with pads lifted; incomplete/bad solder joints, etc.

edit: besides good soldering/desoldering skills that minimize the risks of spoiling components on pcb, there are plenty of minor details during custom build/maintenance/repair processes that we very seldom talk about. (these are things that you will find out if you experienced and did it yourself) they are mostly situational and applied when necessary. experienced modders take care of these things.

i think it's important to put the above here as a general reference. i will shut up now.

This post has been edited by horns: Feb 4 2021, 02:17 PM

price point below rm300. so far i found to be in that category is

1) tecware Phantom Elite - almost all out of stock except Kailh speed bronze

2) Hyperx Alloy FPS Pro - only have Blue switch

3) coolermaster ck530 v2 - the silver keyboard surface is abit ....

I am more on casual gaming. Maybe Tecware Phantom L is good enough which is below rm200?

This post has been edited by holyghost: Feb 4 2021, 04:59 PM

of the three, tecware phantom elite should be better for you, because you can swap its stock switches with other 3-pin switches later.

if you are interested in testing different mx style switches later on with one board, then don't get tecware phantom L. they use low-profile key switches, with outemu sockets, which narrow down limited options even more.

when u have a kibod that is good for urself, this thing happens. type long long coz the feeling of typing is so good.

sugoiiiii !

you're damn right hahahahaha!

but on serious note, lots of key points and tips in ur wall of text. keep up the good reviews by u. i like reading them.

thanks; i'm glad

--

another small update about switch film vendors. note that this is an OPTIONAL item to minimize switch top wobbles, and change typing feel and sound. you CAN opt to not using it.

1. tx, https://txkeyboard.com/ (2 types of thickness, the usual 0.15mm and the new 0.125mm)
2. kebo, https://kebo.store/products/switch-films
3. deskey, https://deskeys.io/
4. thicc, https://maartenwut.com/product/thicc-films/
5. kelowna, https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=620073366941 (2 types; thickness: the double-layer HTV film is now 0.16mm (previously, 0.15mm); the previous MDI film is now EVA film, 0.3mm, similar to deskey's, but relatively cheaper)
6. kbdfans, https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=627414114157 (2 types; thickness: 0.15mm)
7. durock, https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=633069338401 (double-layer HTV film is 0.15mm; similar to kelowna's)
8. equalz, https://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=634032504499 (material: TPU, soft material like deskey's; thickness: 0.18mm)

in general, PC films are hard, hence producing crispier sound; HTV is slightly softer than PC; and finally, MDI films are the softest, hence producing dampened sound.

went to read on Kailh switch upon your suggestion. Speed bronze is clicky, i use pc more at night time so dont think clicky sound is appropriate. is other Tecware keyboard recommended? or go with Hyperx or coolermaster as in the list? Thanks in advance

btw, many seems to think Gateron is better than Kailh

This post has been edited by holyghost: Feb 5 2021, 09:57 AM

you can swap the switches out, and replace them with non-clicky ones, like 3-pin gateron. it's a simple process.

imo 'preference' is the much better word for 'better' in terms of switch choices.

tbh, it's really up to you to decide which one you're after. i suggested tecware phantom elite because i think you might try out other switch types later on, and you can do it right away, by getting some and put them on.

I've said it once and I'll say it again. This needs to be on the first page.

BTW, do you think it's worthwhile salvaging films? Moving between WFH and on-site every few days, I'm transporting my keeb a lot these days. The other day I dropped it and broke the left CTRL switch(one of the pins snapped, switch was slightly above plate when I opened it). I threw the switch in the trash, but I can probably find it back to go and get the TX film that was in it.

hahaha it's meant for the eyes of regulars here mainly.

imo if the condition is still ok (meaning there is only minor deformation), you can salvage and reuse it. just test it out after install to see if it still works as intended. for tx films, i do reuse them if they are still in ok-ish conditions, and the outcomes are still ok.