I use the sidewinder x6 because you can remove the keypad.

get a noppoo choc mini

cm quickfire rapid w/ switch of your choice. I have reds.

I'm a fan of Leopold if you don't mind spending a little more for better construction quality (over CM Quickfire).

http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=leopold,tenkeyless

Most typical keys for gaming are MX Brown and MX Red.

i keep hearing you guys talk about the different switches for the quickfire keyboards.
can someone explain them or link?

thanks!

http://www.overclock.net/t/491752/mechanical-keyboard-guide

And idk, dude asked for a keyboard with similar feel, don't think any mech kb can provide the same feeling as a rubber dome one, also they're noisy and may be bad if you share your room with other ppl. Sidewinder x6 was a good suggestion since you can turn it into a 'tenkeyless' by not attaching the numpad.

Both are quality boards, but the CM Storm actually has better build quality. Sans keycaps, the CM Storm is from the same OEM as filco.

I guess you could argue that the Leopold's cherry stabilizers are more durable than the CM storm's Costar stabilizers - but then you'd be saying that Leopold has better build quality than filco (which it doesn't). Most people seem to prefer the crispness of the Costars anyway.

That said, if you're looking for a TKL mechanical board, Leopold is great - and is probably the best choice if you're concerned about aesthetics (the CM storm has logos and crap all over it) and don't want to spend 160 on a filco.

You should probably hit up the GH boards if you haven't already - there are a lot of very knowledgeable keyboard freaks over there, and many reviews of almost every mechanical board on the market. There's also a lot of write ups on switches, stabilizers, and all the crap you need/want to know.

You have one? Your opinion please

Price range?
Mechanical or rubber dome?

I have a steelseries 6gv2. it's pretty cheap for a mechanical kb and it's not bad. the numbers rub off after a while (esp. wasd etc.) but who doesnt know their keys anyway

I have one, brown switches, keys are noisier than my other keyboards (Ducky, Ducky Shine, Razer Blackwidow), POM keycaps feels better than ABS tho. Saves some nice space, but I avoid using because it doesn't have backlight.

< 100$
either

Most people are going to suggest mechanical. Your price range is fine for the lower-range mechs. Look at boards from rosewill or leopold. Try to avoid the gaming brands, blackwidow, 7g, that one from zowie, and more.

even the rosewill boards are a bit expensive. You cant get a good mechanical board for cheap. I do agree with staying away from most of the "gaming" ones. That razer blackwidow is complete shit. I currently have a CM Storm Trigger (browns), and even tho its a "gaming" brand its actually quite good. If you are looking for a small mech board look into the CM Storm Quickfire Rapid

Filco doesn't have better build quality than Leopold and certainly CM doesn't.

Check this post(http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=15310.msg295883#msg295883) from this thread 'Filco or Leopold'?(http://geekhack.org/index.php?topic=15310.0).

Get this one (with Black switches) http://www.elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=leopold,tenkeyless&pid=fc200rlab or get this one (with red switches) http://www.elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=leopold,tenkeyless&pid=fc200rrab.

Don't waste your money on anything else.

Whats the difference between black and red? I don't see any visible difference.

Black ones have a higher activation force needed IIRC.

I want an otaku keyboard, because ive heard really good things about them
http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=leopold,tenkeyless&pid=fc200rtabn

If you are going for pure small size keyboards the deck82 is about as small as youll find, but it isnt cheap
http://www.deckkeyboards.com/product_info.php?products_id=30

Right now I havea black widow, but its pretty large but im pretty sure theyre making a small tournament version of the keyboard without macro keys and a numpad

The only benefit to Otaku-style keyboards is that they look sexy as fawk.

Source: I have an Otaku Leopold.

I like filco ninja keycaps
http://www.amazon.com/Filco-Majestouch-2-Keyboard-FKBN104M-EFB2/dp/B004Z0XR2O/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top

Which one is more standard? (if either fit that description)

I've never owned a mechanical keyboard so I wouldn't know.

I don't really know how to compare black and red switches to my current rubber keyboard. I have to press the keys moderately hard, but it doesn't seem on either extreme of the spectrum I'm imagining.

Blacks are more common, but a lot of people say that Reds are best for playing FPSes because of how you need to press the WASD keys.

I got a linear force but it wasnt worth the money. Get a linear touch or a cheaper mech from another seller.

It seems that a lot of threads/posts on there say different things, but either way it's all semantics.

Leopold is awesome, and I've never had any problems with mine. You can't go wrong buying one.

http://www.amazon.com/Filco-Majestouch-2-Tenkeyless-FKBN87ML-EMU2/dp/B005J9378O/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1351282286&sr=8-4&keywords=filco+majestouch+tenkeyless

thats the tenkeyless, i have this one

http://www.amazon.com/Filco-Majestouch-2-Switch-FKBN104MRL-EB2/dp/B007VAFWN2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1351282422&sr=8-1&keywords=filco+majestouch-2

highly recommend!

Well since this thread is already open I'll post here instead of creating a new one :>
I'm searching for a new mechanical keyboard too but since I live in germany I'll need to find one on an eu site. The only ones that come in mind are the steelseries 7G and the razer black widow. Are those any good? If not: Does anyone who's living in europe knows a good one?

I stopped using geekhack a while ago because of how often they were hacked. www.deskthority.net is where I go to now if I have any questions concerning keyboards.

I've heard a lot of bad things about CM's construction quality (everything but the keys). I think if I didn't want to get a tenkeyless board then I would go back to Das Keyboard. Great brand and the price is reasonable for what you are getting.

I'd say blacks are closer (than reds) to the rubber dome in terms of effort required to press the keys.