I recently got into the hobby, and have a Keychron Q6 (100%) that I’ve changed the switches and keycaps on.
For my next board, I was wanting to try something a bit smaller (TKL) and I have 2-3 extra sets of switches as well as 2-3 sets of keycaps, so I think I just need a barebones board.
I know keychron is decent, but I’m sure there’s better brands out there. I don’t mind splurging a bit on price if the quality is really good, and I prefer to have a volume knob. Does anyone have any recommendations? :)
Maybe something like the Monsgeek M1 would suit you?
That looks perfect, thanks! I forgot to mention I wanted side LED’s and that hits the mark as well.
Edit: Nvm, no side LEDs XD
If you want side LEDs then I’d go with the GMMK Pro
I’ve seen that one, and it looks great, but I’ve heard a few YouTubers say it’s kinda meh. I guess maybe I’ll need to give it a try myself. What are some premium keyboard brands? I’m so used to Corsair and Razr that I don’t know much about the custom mechanical keyboard world.
A lot of the “premium” stuff is only available through group buys. Which sucks. I have a few friends that have the GMMK Pro and they both seem to like it. I haven’t personally used one though. KBD Fans has some instock stuff. You can also check websites like Thoc Stock and Shopmech.
I think this will sound super dumb, but I bought the Q3 barebones last year (ISO+knob). It’s a wonderful keyboard, as you’ll surely know from your experience with the Q6.
A little later on, I bought the Q0 and positioned it to the left of my Q3. I love having a numpad, and I have a bit more space for mouse movement on the right hand side. Small but surprisingly helpful bonus, I can hit the enter button super easily with my left pinkie.
to get back to the topic, I’ve heard really cool things about wooting boards. You can do some really neat things with their optical switches, though I’m wary of being ‘locked into’ that sort of thing.
I don’t know if they support QMK but you can remap using a web based util (though VIA also runs on Chromium browsers iirc). I’m tempted to check them out.
