Going Mechanical!

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azeem40

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Hey TH! I am looking for a good Mechanical gaming keyboard. I want one that has a comfortable wrist rest and anti-ghosting + macro keys. My budget for this is now $105. So far, these are the keyboards I have decided to consider:

Another thing, whatever keyboard you recommend should be available at a store for me to test out before buying online. The ones near me are Microcenter, Best Buy, and Sears.

Thanks everyone!
 
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casualcolors

casualcolors

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The Das Keyboards are the best on that list, by far. They don't have the LED backlighting that you want though. Aside from the Das, the Sidewinder X4 is the only other keyboard on that list that is any good. It has a sensible price and is reliable, with the features you want. It also has pretty good anti-ghosting properties. Better than the other membrane keyboards on your list.

I'm not sure how LED's necessarily help with gaming at night unless you look at your keyboard while you play, but that just seems strange to me. You seem to really want them though, so the Sidewinder X4 is the way to go, and saves you some money as well.

If you decide that you do want a mechanical keyboard, but you also really need backlighting, do not get sucked into the razer blackwidow ultimate. It is literally a junker. Look instead at the Deck Legend and their other backlit products here: http://www.deckkeyboards.com/

Their prices will inch beyond your 105 dollar budget though.
 
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psychodegu

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I have the sidewinder x4, bought it for the 11 at once key presses, anti ghosting, and backlight. I haven't used the macros yet, but from what i have seen easy to use. Kinda wish I got the x6 though, because then I could swap between typing and mouse use easier with the number key pad removed or moved to the laft side of the keyboard.
 
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Dessirris

Dessirris

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What problems did you have with the Black Widow? I've had mine for well over a year, at this point, and I've never had a problem with it, and I absolutely love it. It's crisp, responsive, and I absolutely love the sound of the mechanical keys, and the macro system works just fine. The only complaint I can think of that I've had is that the appearance of the glossy body shows dust a lot more, and seems to attract it like crazy, but performance-wise, I have never had an issue.
 
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casualcolors

casualcolors

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The glossy body is a little rough with the led backlighting but that isn't what I consider a problem or defect. The problem I did have with the blackwidow was that it was poorly constructed. The keypresses were not uniform across the board. If you pressed the far left or far right side of a button like space or shift, it felt muddy and was hard to actually get it to actuate. This isn't a trait of cherry blue switches. I own a Das Keyboard now with the same switches and each key on the board feels uniformly tactile no matter where you try to depress the button.

Also the keycaps were cheaply done in razer's noslip coating instead of proper laser etching. This wouldn't be a problem with some logitech piece of junk that had an expected lifetime of like 2 years, but mechanical kb's lifespans can be measured in decades on well-built models. After that kind of time, every single key on the blackwidow ultimate is going to be a clear blue-backlit eyesore.

The price of it is also absurd. It incurs a 50 dollar markup for the inclusion of LED backlighting. At the 120-130 dollar range you're getting into Das Keyboard/Filco/WASDkeyboard/Ducky/Deck Keyboard territory. You'd damned well better have similar build quality, which the razer does not.

Also the blackwidow has 2 key rollover. That is worse than the standard for membrane usb keyboards which average 6 key rollover, let alone most mechanicals with a ps2 adapter at full nkro.

It's basically a '71 pinto with a spoiler on it. More "gamer" tagged gear that is built shoddily to get gamer money. Nothing more.

If you have one and you like it though, that's not to say run out and buy a different keyboard. It's just acknowledging that there are better options at that price range for the sake of someone who is looking to purchase now. This is all more than likely moot since these keyboards fall beyond 105 dollars which is the OP's price limit.
 
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skaz

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I recommend Leopold or Filco. No need for back lit keyboard. You won't be looking at your keyboard much while gaming anyways. The leopold's can be had for close to your budget. The switch will be up to you.
 
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Gothams Finest

Gothams Finest

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Out of the boards you listed only the Sidewinder X4 and the G510 have the features you want.

However because of your budget I would recommend buying a mechanical keyboard.

The most important thing to do before buying a mech board is to find out which keyswitch is for you. (Cherry Blues, Cherry Browns, Cherry Blacks or Cherry Reds)
 
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storm slider

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If your looking for a keyboard or mouse, visit the Logitech website and check out there products. There products are reliable and stable. And they also have what your looking for, I just forgot the name.
 
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Gothams Finest

Gothams Finest

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Do NOT spend $105 on some cheaply made Logitech board, or any other rubber dome membrane keyboard for that matter.

If you buy a rubber dome keyboard just buy the Sidewinder X4 for around $40. Spending any more than that on a rubber dome board is a waste of money.

For $105 you can get a decent mechanical keyboard.
 
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skaz

skaz

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steelseries has decent mechanical keyboards. I wasn't a big fan of the cherry blacks though at the time. Not sure if they ever released other switches. I like the leopold browns and I know the filco brand is highly liked amongst mechanical keyboard users.
 
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azeem40

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I really liked the idea of the Mech steelseries keyboard, but it seems I should have checked up on the company.

Thanks skaz, will have a read, but I took a sneak peek of overclock.net's guide on mech keyboards and it looks very complicated.

More keyboard suggestions are welcome! I will consider mech keyboards, so post those too. Thanks everyone. I didn't expect so many responses! :)
 
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skaz

skaz

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No problem. The main part your going to want to focus on first is the "Common key switches" part. This will help you determine what kind of switch you want to go with if you do indeed decide to go with a mechanical keyboard.
 
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