Mechanical keyboards

[Wries]

Lately exchanged one of my scissor switches keyboards with one from Corsair with Cherry MX Red switches. I ended up liking it more than I expected. Even though I considered the previous keyboard to be of respectable quality the mechanical one makes the impression of using somewhat of a "true instrument" rather than just a keyboard.

I'm glad though that I found one without most of the visual bullcrap that seems to be all the rage Also MX blue is still the devil.

[potis]

There is no actual performance gain, all the advertisement is a gimmick.

What they do actually provide:

Better key press, for whoever enjoys it, its different for every person, as example Brown/Black switches for me, others prefer the more lighter ones.

You can usually press any combination of keys up to 6? In most cases without an issue, compared to the membrane ones, and to be able to press that many and randomly on a membrane you gonna end up paying as much as a mechanical.

[Low Hanging Fruit]

Do they make a difference? Yes. But such a small one that unless you're so bleeding top edge in the world, aka professional gamer, it won't make a huge difference to you. Like using the same baseball glove the pros use won't win you the gold glove but you likely do better than if you used the 5 dollar Walmart special. I would estimate 99% of how you do is honestly determined by your skill and attention span.

When it comes to keyboards go with comfort first. That will impact you more than any response time. I love mechanical brown switches for a keyboard. But that's just me.

[sosleapy]

Its all preferance. I dont like mechanical cuz they are too damn loud and i especially dislike streamers that use the mech keyboard with open mic all you hear is click click click click click and is rather annoying to my hears. My stepson just got a mech keyboard and yeah it nice to feel but i cant get over the loudness. drives me nuts!! and there is no real advantage and he claims the only reason he bought it was because he likes the way it rests with his hands.

[ls-]

It's a matter of preference. Mechanical keyboard won't magically boost your performance.

But you should try different types of keyboards and switches before you actually buy new keyboard, ofc if you're planning to buy one. I, for instance, prefer membrane keyboards

[Tharkkun]

There's also the matter that you can't press 3+ keys at once on normal keyboards.

That is 100% not true. The only difference is the feeling you get from using the keyboard. Some people prefer the keys that spring back versus the current mesh like keyboards we've used for the last 15 years.

[Dug]

They feel more responsive but I don't know if they actually are and if so by how much. Regardless ingame you're locked behind GCD so button spam is button spam, there's no way to increase your output past what the game allows.

I love mechanical keyboards though they feel amazing to type on but if you're not a fan of loud clacking noises I wouldn't recommend them because they can be pretty annoying before you get used to them. I believe you can buy things to put underneath the keys that suppress the sound a bit but you're still going to have that click clack. Personally I love it

[Polygons]

I got one a couple years ago and sort of regretted it at first, because it was hard to get used to the cherry MX switches. Now I'm used to the way it feels and glad I bought one. I like how solid it feels compared to a normal keyboard, and it's addicting to type on. Once you get used to it, it's worth it I would say. It's probably not going to make you play better though.

[Deleted]

I have a mechanical keyboard too, but mostly for professional use (programming).
It feels nice in gaming too, but I honestly won't say its a need to perform equally among the topmost players in WoW. A better ISP who gets you a better latency may even be more impactful.

[Thelyron]

You know there are multiple types of switches and with the right ones a mechanical keyboard is no louder than a membrane setup right?

No i actually didn't know that, thanks for that bit of info. All the ones i tried were too loud, so i just assumed that's the way it is.

But isn't there also the point that you have to switch out a mechanical keyboard after a while (note: quite a while) because the mechanic "dies" after half a million hits or so? Or is that again outdated knowledge on my part?

I personally have been using the same membrane keyboard for the past 5 years or so, and i still love it.

[Grishnaar]

That is 100% not true. The only difference is the feeling you get from using the keyboard. Some people prefer the keys that spring back versus the current mesh like keyboards we've used for the last 15 years.

That's why I wrote this when someone else corrected me:


"Sorry, I guess my lack of keyboard knowledge shows xD

I thought by mechanical, people meant like everything, including the 3+ keys part (is it anti ghosting or something like that? crap, can't remember)"

[caervek]

Arent mechanical keyboards normal? Even my first pc came with mechanical keyboard in 90's.... still working fine.

You're right, however in order to offer lower prices by cutting costs many 90's companies started shipping trash keyboards instead. It wasn't a problem as any serious gamer/typist just used stuck with a mech board, however after PC gaming took off post Y2K many newer users didn't know the difference until a few years ago when various "gaming" companies realised they could rinse big profits out of it so started pushing it.

[melodramocracy]

There's also the matter that you can't press 3+ keys at once on normal keyboards.

Interesting, I learn something new every day.

I'm old enough to recall the old IBM mechanical keyboards, which were a PS/2 connection, and built like absolute tanks. Time to look into a new one.

[caervek]

Loved the old buckling spring IBM keyboards.

The late 80's/early 90's Amstrad keyboards were funny, membrane keys actuated by springs. Like, make up your mind do you want to save money or not? :P

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I'm old enough to recall the old IBM mechanical keyboards, which were a PS/2 connection, and built like absolute tanks. Time to look into a new one.

Sadly IIRC the model M went out of production before the Windows/Option keys were added

[cuafpr]

You should also grab a pair of these yellow gaming glasses, I'm sure they help you too.. what are they called again... Gunnar-glasses, yaa damn right, they are The Expendables glasses /s

For gaming, mechanical keyboards are freaking useless, seriously. It's all in your head.
I could see them being more comfortable if you really type and type and type the whole day, but for gaming? Naw~~
(and no, pressing ~4-5 keys for 3-4h a day doesn't even come close to typing)

They are loud as fuck too, if you are one of these "I can't use push to talk for *insert stupid reason here*" people, please don't get one .

Gunnars are amazing as fuck 20/15 vision and was on 12 night shifts reading PC text / exchange server work... i got a pair as a deal of the day for like 50.00 best money ever. I didn't notice the eye strain before really, but with them its just a 1,000 times better. Before the other 5 people on shift got them and loved them for the same reason. I use them now in my 8hr job. I don't use them for gaming much though just reading / text based work... though looooong gaming sessions at night with lights off i may put them on.

[caervek]

That is 100% not true.

Actually it is 100% true. He never said that all mechanical boards have NKRO, he said that only mech boards have NKRO.

[Blackmist]

Mechanical keyboards are like Crossfit or veganism. They exist solely to let you feel smug and superior to others for very little reason.

That's why they're loud, so when you're talking on Discord, everyone will know you're part of the Mechanical Keyboard Master Race.

[caervek]

Ctrl+esc is the same as a windows key.

Indeed but serious agro, you can get replica IBM Model M boards with Windows keys built under licence which are just as good.

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That's why they're loud

Mechanical keyboards are no louder than membrane ones unless you buy one of the switch types that click so typists know they have actuated (irrelevant for gamers who usually bottom out anyway).

I.E My Cherry G80 with MX blues clicks, my Dell AT102W with black ALPS is no noisier than the boards that come with an ACER.

[callipygoustp]

Quality of keyboard > keyboard key spacing > keyboard design (ergo vs non-ergo, small keys vs large keys, etc)

I've got three machines running at home :
1. My primary machine : gaming/dev machine, win7, Razer BlackWidow Mechanical Gaming Keyboard
2. My media server : win7, Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite
3. MacBook Pro (work machine) : OS X 10, Apple Wired Keyboard with Numeric Keypad, and the built in laptop keyboard.

Reading this post got me wondering how much my typing speed differs across the 4 keyboards so I did a couple typing tests on each keyboard to see how much if any difference there was in my typing speed or accuracy. I used TypingTest.com for the experiment.

Laptop keyboard: I hate small keyboards.
82wpm, 97% accuracy
86wpm, 99% accuracy

Apple Wired Keyboard with Numeric Keypad
96wpm, 100% accuracy
98wpm, 100% accuracy

Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite - some of the keys stick and there is some "ghosting" on this one.
85 wpm, 97% accuracy
85 wpm, 99% accuracy

Razer BlackWidow Mechanical Gaming Keyboard
104 wpm, 100% accuracy.
109 wpm, 100% accuracy.

I'm not surprised that my best time was recorded on the Razer keyboard. I spend most of my time, play and work, on this keyboard. I love the key layout and I love the tactile sensation and because it's mechanical there is no ghosting when gaming.

I am a bit surprised that my typing speed was slower on the mac keyboard than it was on the mechanical. I feel as comfortable on the mac keyboard as I do on the mechanical.

The Microsoft keyboard is old and funky. The keys stick and when I used to use it for gaming there was a significant amount of ghosting. I'm actually surprised my accuracy was as high as it was on that keyboard.

Laptop keyboard... its small, it sucks, I hate laptop keyboards.

For gaming, I did experience issues with key ghosting which is one of the reasons I moved to a mechanical keyboard. The other reason was that at a job I worked at years ago I was given a mechanical keyboard and fell in love with it. So, for primary use, I've used a mechanical keyboard for as long as I can remember. But, really, as others have mentioned, I do believe it does come down to personal preference.

[Deleted]

Just bought a Logitech G810 Orion and I'm pretty happy with it. Loving the ability to assign any color on any button.