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My use case is in the dark, with just a very low level glow. I really like it and miss it on my laptop. I know there is the whole don't look at the keyboard thing, but I mean, I type pretty loving well and have been doing for a lot of years/hours but I still end up angled from the keyboard or trying to do something that I want to make sure is correct and like the labels being available. I guess it just seems like a QOL enhancement to have shine-through legends, if I'm going to pay $50-90 for a special profile and go all out it just feels like backlight is the next step in niceness. I don't need RGB control, I mean I wouldn't turn it down if it was suddenly part of my keyboard but it's not my style anyway. I'm actually surprised there aren't more caps with fancy light spreading layers and such. Also, I would like to know why my code keyboard can't be configured or setup to shut off the backlight when the screen goes to sleep. It seems obvious. Maybe I can and I don't know how?
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Feb 25, 2018 11:18
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taqueso posted:Is there a reason there aren't more backlight compatible interesting keysets? They are available, but there are so many more that aren't. It seems like they would be popular since so many high end KBs have lights. This is my understanding from hanging out in keyboard nerd forums, I presume someone will correct me if I’m wrong: There are two main ways to make shine-through keycaps. Making the caps translucent, painting them black and leaving the legends unpainted is cheap but wears really poorly, so enthusiasts avoid it. The other way is double shot caps: cast the legends in translucent plastic and the outer housing of the cap in opaque plastic. This yields awesome results, but it’s much harder (read: more expensive) to do with PBT plastic than with ABS, especially in small lots. They’re more common on vintage keyboards, which were made by big companies at scale and/or as accessories to expensive products, but the priority there was usually legend clarity in well-lit environments, so they tend not to be shine-through. Double shot shine-through ABS sets are out there, but ABS gets shiny with wear and yellows in sunlight, so it’s a trade off. I could see people choosing fancy cap lighting over key durability, but so far they’ve gone the other way, settling for opaque keys that will last a long time. If someone figured out a better way to make double shot PBT caps, I expect backlit PBT would become the new standard (with a lot of secondary interest in opaque double shot PBT for legend sharpness). Meanwhile, there are some more affordable double shot PBT backlit caps being mass-produced (e.g., this set from Corsair), if that’s “interesting” enough for you. (Ugh, that font. Why do they do that to themselves?)
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Feb 25, 2018 17:17
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https://www.massdrop.com/buy/vortex-backlit-pbt-doubleshot-keycap-set
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Feb 25, 2018 23:19
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I don't really buy doubleshot costs being the issue, because a lot of the higher-end custom sets are doubleshot and even in cases where they offer multiple color choices translucent is almost never one of the options. I see it as mostly coming down to three major factors; one technical, one design, and one personal. The technical factor is that a lot of custom keysets use centered legends. Cherry-style switches, which are the de facto standard, don't get along with centered backlighting. The lighting is offset, which means you have to use offset legends for best performance, which also means that multi-legend keys like the number row look inconsistent unless you do a weird side-by-side design (like the ones teethgrinder linked). IIRC Romer-G switches were designed the way they are partially to support centered lighting and legends. The design factor is that translucent keys limit your options as a designer of a set. You lose the choice of the second color you'd otherwise have on a doubleshot key, now it's a moderate to dark gray when the lights are off and whatever color(s) the user decided on when the lights are on. That to a certain extent limits your choices for primary colors, because it at least needs to look good when off and when lit with a common color like white, red, or blue, and preferably should look good with as much of the spectrum as possible. The personal factor is that there's a bit of snobbery in some parts of the MK community, especially when you get in to the custom keycap subset of the community. A lot of the interest in backlight-compatible keys comes from the gamer side of the market. It's the same reason you see custom sets that offer full packs of custom-fit keys for an Ergodox but refuse to consider doing the five keys they'd need to support a "non-standard bottom row" for basically every mainstream mechanical keyboard. To a certain subset of the keyboard enthusiast community those of us running Corsairs or Razers are a lower class than those that had to solder their keyboard together after spending months gathering parts. I'm sure there's also a bit of chicken-and-egg in the equation too, but that's hard to quantify. wolrah fucked around with this message at 00:24 on Feb 26, 2018 |
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Feb 26, 2018 00:22
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It comes down to ABS vs PBT and if it isn’t PBT it is trash.
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Feb 26, 2018 00:53
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I used to agree, but I've had no trouble with the "Massdrop x K Bares Miami Dolch DSA Keycap Set" which is in ABS. I've had them a while and they haven't smoothed out or gotten shiny like the typical ABS stuff I've had. https://www.massdrop.com/buy/38395
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Feb 26, 2018 01:34
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Holy poo poo I didn't realise how high the profile is on these Maxkey SAs. This is going to be different.
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Feb 26, 2018 01:59
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HEY NONG MAN posted:It comes down to ABS vs PBT and if it isn’t PBT it is trash. I like GMK better than anything else on the market.
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Feb 26, 2018 02:15
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Why aren't the more XDA keycaps out there? I loving hate dsa.
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Feb 26, 2018 02:19
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Well I'm pleased with these suckers. Like they're made for Green switches.
teethgrinder fucked around with this message at 04:31 on Feb 26, 2018 |
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Feb 26, 2018 02:29
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HEY NONG MAN posted:It comes down to ABS vs PBT and if it isn’t PBT it is trash. Hell no. The bad rep of ABS is because of the cheap keycaps that mainstream and Chinese boards use to save on costs. Proper ABS keycaps from GMK and SP are great.
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Feb 26, 2018 04:23
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POM caps are the best but you guys probably haven't heard of them, they're pretty obscure
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Feb 26, 2018 04:31
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Silicone gel keycaps are actually the best
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Feb 26, 2018 04:33
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My endgame caps are brushed titanium with diamond inlay legends. And an escape key shaped like a fidget spinner.
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Feb 26, 2018 05:29
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What's the point of that if you have garbage switches?
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Feb 26, 2018 05:40
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No switches. I don’t type, I have people for that.
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Feb 26, 2018 05:52
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Constellation I posted:Silicone gel keycaps are actually the best This legit sounds like a fantastic idea for my 
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Feb 26, 2018 07:25
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I've found some stuff on aliexpress I might check out, I have a bunch of listings to look through, but there is some promising stuff. There is a $10 white abs backlit set that I might try to rit dye.
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Feb 26, 2018 09:53
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this is the dumbest thing ever (here's a video of it in action too) I like my stupid dumb purchase
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Feb 26, 2018 19:59
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My PBT XDA Godspeed set is sent out on the day it’s supposed to. I guess the delays are really just an SP SA thing? If only DHLs tracking code would be in their system I could start obsessively F5ing.
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Feb 26, 2018 20:38
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HappyCapybaraFamily posted:this is the dumbest thing ever I'm sure someone out there bought 104 of these and I can't wait to see the Reddit post they make about it.
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Feb 26, 2018 21:00
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mewse posted:POM caps are the best but you guys probably haven't heard of them, they're pretty obscure I thought that this was what was used to get around the difficulty of doublshot PBT. The cap itself being PBT and the translucent legend being POM. Or, maybe that's just how Vortex does it? http://www.vortexgear.tw/vortex2_2.asp?kind=45&kind2=221&kind3=&kind4=1013
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Feb 27, 2018 03:04
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I checked the OP and didn't see anything about it, but I hope linking to SA Mart posts is kosher for this thread, where i'm moving a K-Type out of my inventory: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3850469 Apologies if it's not 
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Feb 27, 2018 05:59
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TWBalls posted:I thought that this was what was used to get around the difficulty of doublshot PBT. The cap itself being PBT and the translucent legend being POM. Or, maybe that's just how Vortex does it? It's also used to make whole keycaps, I have a Noppoo choc mini which has POM keycaps by default. They feel pretty good, maybe a little low friction, but they're fine to type on. Not really sure how they'll do over time but I don't use that keyboard heavily.
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Feb 27, 2018 07:40
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mad.radhu posted:I checked the OP and didn't see anything about it, but I hope linking to SA Mart posts is kosher for this thread, where i'm moving a K-Type out of my inventory: https://forums.somethingawful.com/showthread.php?threadid=3850469 As long as it's not against the rules of SH/SC I don't mind.
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Feb 27, 2018 09:41
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HappyCapybaraFamily posted:this is the dumbest thing ever I mean, it's incredibly dumb, but it's still somehow less tacky than most of the wacky monster-skullface-or-whatever custom 3D printed keycaps that so many nerds use as an ESC key
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Feb 27, 2018 15:57
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I had and idea and wanted to get an opinion. I recently finished a HTPC build and for shits & giggles was thinking of trying to track down a wireless, programmable number pad to use as remote for Kodi, Netflix and such. I've never made my own macros before, but after looking into it it doesn't seem terribly difficult for rudimentary controls. Is there hardware out there that this thread would recommend? Are there limitations that I'm not considering? I'm looking for something as turnkey as possible, but would be willing to pick up some soldering skills if absolutely need be. Dr. Benway fucked around with this message at 16:55 on Feb 27, 2018 |
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Feb 27, 2018 16:40
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Trustworthy posted:I mean, it's incredibly dumb, but it's still somehow less tacky than most of the wacky monster-skullface-or-whatever custom 3D printed keycaps that so many nerds use as an ESC key Agreed. I still like my dumb little spinner a lot more than any ludicrous Fugu (why is the world's ugliest artisan also the world's most expensive)
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Feb 27, 2018 17:17
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Rexxed posted:It's also used to make whole keycaps, I have a Noppoo choc mini which has POM keycaps by default. They feel pretty good, maybe a little low friction, but they're fine to type on. Not really sure how they'll do over time but I don't use that keyboard heavily. Neat. I'll have to see about getting a set to try.
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Feb 28, 2018 04:23
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HappyCapybaraFamily posted:Agreed. I still like my dumb little spinner a lot more than any ludicrous Fugu (why is the world's ugliest artisan also the world's most expensive) Regarding expense, I would like to point you towards sales of the rarer bro caps that eclipsed a grand per key, or the Keyforge/Booper auctions that eclipsed a few thousand each. People get crazy about artisans, man.
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Feb 28, 2018 06:22
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 You guys just don’t understand artisan culture.
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Feb 28, 2018 07:21
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That's a shitload of Massdrop.
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Feb 28, 2018 16:04
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So I have a CODE with clears at home. Right now I have some sets of the LED color changers but they can slip off and cause a key to be stuck. Additionally, having two cats that shed a poo poo ton, if I blow out my keyboard they get knocked off pretty easily as well. Any suggestions on either caps or something I can use to change the LED colors?
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Feb 28, 2018 16:35
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ColHannibal posted:You guys just don’t understand artisan culture. I've got that board with those black keycaps. What are your white keys? from another board? I like legible legends.
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Feb 28, 2018 16:36
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ColHannibal posted:
What board/caps and numpad is that? Also what USB cord. Basically, tell me what everything is. I really like it.
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Feb 28, 2018 16:51
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Artisan coiled cables are the funniest thing to me because it’s almost 100% a visual thing. The coil doesn’t actually behave like an industrially produced coiled cable.
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Feb 28, 2018 17:08
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This is my spergy setup: I need a carbon colored cable though! headcase fucked around with this message at 17:49 on Feb 28, 2018 |
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Feb 28, 2018 17:44
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ColHannibal posted:
I can understand buying a uniquely shaped keycap that looks cool ≥90% of artisan keycaps just don't look cool Deviantfish posted:Regarding expense, I would like to point you towards sales of the rarer bro caps that eclipsed a grand per key, or the Keyforge/Booper auctions that eclipsed a few thousand each. People get crazy about artisans, man. That's certainly expensive, but they are not nearly as ugly as Fugus, imo
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Feb 28, 2018 18:19
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HEY NONG MAN posted:Artisan coiled cables are the funniest thing to me because it’s almost 100% a visual thing. The coil doesn’t actually behave like an industrially produced coiled cable.  Paying a whole bunch of money for a heat shrink handmade cable that won't be as reliable as a cheap molded cable..
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Feb 28, 2018 18:31
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Thom P. Tiers posted:What board/caps and numpad is that? Also what USB cord. Basically, tell me what everything is. I really like it. Topre Realforce 55g uniform (black on black) White hhkb keys I swapped from my white hhkb Green singles (Realforce lime) I got from elite keyboards Ducky pocket Cable from mechcable.com Wrist rest is royal glam marble from mass drop
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Feb 28, 2018 20:46
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