lets trade computers
im dying to see badlands with color

To clarify a few things from post #7:

1. Topre switches ARE mechanical switches. They are capacitive switches, but they are very much mechanical.

2. If noise is your concern, the type of Cherry MX switch does not matter more than "blue or not blue". Every Cherry MX switch that is not blue is just as loud as the rest. There are certain keyboards that are louder or quieter than others but this is largely based upon whether or not the keys are mounted to a plate or directly on the PCB.

There are quiet mechanical keyboards. They will cost you $200+ because they use Topre switches. Cherry MX-based boards that are advertised as "quiet" or "silent" almost exclusively use Cherry MX Brown switches. The switches are silent. If you type on a mechanical keyboard as it's intended, it will be silent. the problem is that 99.9% of people do not type this way and end up bottoming-out the keys.

Bottoming a key just means that you push the key until it stops moving instead of pushing it only until it actuates. What stops it from moving is the back of the keycap hitting the plate/PCB. This results in a moderate to loud 'clack'. There are only two ways to keep this from occurring. Either stop bottoming-out the keys, or get dampeners as thomas lansky has already pointed out. The problem with the o-rings/other dampeners is that they make the keys feel mushy. It'll always be a mechanical keyboard and the key repeatability and most other benefits will always be there, but you'll essentially lose the solid feel that you get with each undampened keypress. In addition to that, you also lose a certain amount of key travel. Since it prevents you from bottoming out, it shortens the distance that you can press the key before the key hits the dampener. To me, this just feels awkward.

I personally cannot stand using a mechanical with dampeners, but I know of several people who prefer to use them.

http://elitekeyboards.com/products.php?sub=access,slpads

These are the least offensive-feeling dampeners I've used. I would recommend the firm ones as they don't make your keys feel as mushy as the soft ones.

This video should give you a pretty good idea of the difference between dampened and undampened keys.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lFkl1Vet1eU

I do side with GoldenBrownBear on this... He should have definitely either received what he was promised or a full refund from ESEA. I don't think the difference should have come from Killing's pocket, though. ESEA is a profitable organization that pays Killing to do a job. Yes, he definitely made a mistake, and his organization should be responsible for cleaning it up to the customer's satisfaction, but it should not have come out of pocket for him.

These threads are so unbearably pointless.

It's freaking DM. It's nothing more or less than what DM has been in every other game. If you want to practice and get better, do it. Bitching about everything that kills you isn't going to make you better.

Scouts will shoot you in the back while you fight another player.
Demos will shoot you in the back while you fight another player.
Soldiers will shoot you in the back while you fight another player.
Scouts will exploit terrain to gain an advantage over you.
Soldiers will use height to gain an advantage over you.
Demos will use height to gain an advantage over you.
Scouts will use both weapons to kill you.
Soldiers will use both weapons to kill you.
Demos will use both weapons to kill you.
Snipers will shoot you in the back while you fight another player.
Snipers will abuse distance to gain an advantage over you.
Snipers will shoot you in the body.
etc

If you ban snipers, people will continue to bitch about demos using stickies.
If you ban/nerf stickies, people will continue to bitch about dumb weapons being allowed.
If you ban dumb weapons, people will continue to bitch about being shot while they're already fighting.

Face it: all of these things (except banned weapons) will happen during competitive games.

Again, it's freaking DM. Annoying shit is going to happen. Roll with it! Maybe you'll actually improve.

I've no doubt some of the components are the same. However, the PCB is different. The housing is different. The soldering is different. The stabilizers are different. The connector cable is different. Rosewill boards are noticeably lighter than Filco boards.

Filco and Rosewill boards are both made by Costar, who also makes Das and Ducky boards. Being produced in the same factory doesn't mean they're the same.

Please understand that I'm not trying to say Rosewill keyboards are garbage. When they're under $80, they're definitely a cost-effective way to get into mechanical keyboards.

I just don't like the feel of them compared to a Filco MJ2 or Leopold.

Earphones shouldn't be excluded here unless you absolutely hate them. Sennheiser IE8 IEMs have damn fine output and are actually very comfortable for extended periods of time. They might suit you better for an environment with other people.

They feel like crap compared to a Filco. I don't believe for a second that they're even remotely similar, much less identical.

I've always thought damage numbers were a terrible idea. Hit sounds were a nice addition but I've always felt that damage numbers eliminated an element of skill/mindgames. It used to be possible to feign your health and yield pretty good results, but that's mostly gone now.

Not really game-breaking, but I think the game would be better without them.

sigma is an uber-nerd.
see what I did there?

yo I'm pretty sure that every time any game freezes, it freezes on the last frame it was on

:d

At any rate, these types of issues are most frequently related to HD problems.

Blue switches are perfectly fine for gaming. Lots of people prefer them over blacks/reds/browns.

Nice catch, cinq. If indeed it is limited to 3-key rollover, it would be pretty terrible for gaming.

I'd say the biggest advantage is that you can actuate the switches easier than you can actuate rubber domes. The travel distance is typically shorter with a mechanical than a membrane keyboard. This just means you don't have to push the keys down as far to make them work, which translates into less finger fatigue.

Pros
Shorter travel distance
Travel distance and force required are very repeatable
Keys are more stable (try pushing the left corner of a spacebar on a membrane keyboard--many times it'll stick or fail to register)
Keycaps are typically much higher quality and less prone to degradation
Longer life expectancy

Cons
Typically substantially louder than membrane keyboards
Cost
Limited functionality (not many macros/other 'extra' features typically)

I'm sure more can be added to these lists, but this is just what comes to mind immediately.

For those of you who are at all interested in mechanical keyboards but aren't willing to pay the price, here's a good deal. Roughly $40 for a fullsize board with MX blues.

http://www.monoprice.com/products/product.asp?c_id=109&cp_id=10909&cs_id=1090901&p_id=9433&seq=1&format=2&cpncd=decdeals122&ref=cj

I haven't used one so I can't attest to the build quality. Monoprice's stuff is usually pretty decent but rarely spectacular.