The Best Gaming Keyboards?

[Rezident]

My trusty Saitek Eclipse II (my favourite keyboard) is dying and apparently they are no longer made. What do people think are the best Gaming Keyboards currently?

I know everyone has different needs, most keyboards seem to have loads of Macro buttons but personally I’ve never used Macros, are they just for MMO’s? I mainly play First Person games, can you use Macros in FPSs?

I Need:
Good backlights
Decent key rollover – e.g. at least SHIFT + A + W + SPACE
Durable, good build quality

For Gaming mainly but nice typing is of course a plus
Aesthetics are also important (Cyborg V7 has great functionality but looks appalling to me, sorry Cyborg)
Ideally, USB/Audio ports would also be great.

 

[Anomaly1964]

I have a new Gigabyte Aivia, has 5 macros keys I will be using when SW:TOR comes out...

Got it from newegg...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...+aivia&x=0&y=0

 

[melek-taus]

Steelseries Merc Stealth.

Nice backlight system wich is switchable to red, purple and blue.
A nice macros system which can be adjusted easily with the software.
The keyboard is very sturdy and of a good quality.

This keyboard works great for FPS games and MMO's as the special gaming side of the keyboard is very handy for character movement.

And the macros of this keyboard do indeed work for FPS games.
I press on one key to jump, crouch, knive etc in any order and even set the timing between the actions.

Overall this is a keyboard I highly recommend.

 

[Rezident]

I have a new Gigabyte Aivia, has 5 macros keys I will be using when SW:TOR comes out...

Got it from newegg...

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...+aivia&x=0&y=0

I didn't even know Gigabyte did keyboards, I'll check out the reviews, thanks.

 

[Anomaly1964]

I didn't even know Gigabyte did keyboards, I'll check out the reviews, thanks.

The reviews aren't great which I don't get...

Has a very SOLID feel to it...

Nice wrist attachment on keyboard for comfort...

Back-lit well...

Volume control and mute on keyboard...

TONS of macro programming...

 

[Rezident]

The reviews aren't great which I don't get...

Has a very SOLID feel to it...

Nice wrist attachment on keyboard for comfort...

Back-lit well...

Volume control and mute on keyboard...

TONS of macro programming...

Yeah it looks great apart from the small enter key. The yellow one looks amazing.

 

[Zargon]

I enjoy my sidewinder X4

 

[smackababy]

I made the switch to mechanical, and I can't go back. I love the feel. I currently have a Razer Black Mamba. It doesn't fit your requirements, but feels amazing.

 

[CurseTheSky]

I made the switch to mechanical, and I can't go back. I love the feel. I currently have a Razer Black Mamba. It doesn't fit your requirements, but feels amazing.

Razer Black Widow you mean?

I had a Black Widow Ultimate for about two weeks, but ended up returning it. It was a very good keyboard overall, but I couldn't get used to the key feel (and especially noise), coming from scissor (laptop-style) switches.

I'm back to using my DiNovo Edge for now, and will probably try one of these in the future: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823191007. I just wish it was backlit.

 

[bunnyfubbles]

Razer Black Widow you mean?

I had a Black Widow Ultimate for about two weeks, but ended up returning it. It was a very good keyboard overall, but I couldn't get used to the key feel (and especially noise), coming from scissor (laptop-style) switches.

I'm back to using my DiNovo Edge for now, and will probably try one of these in the future: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Produc...82E16823191007. I just wish it was backlit.

The Blackwidow uses Cherry MX Blue mechanical key switches, which are nothing like laptop switches

The Cherry Blue switches have a totally travel distance of 4mm, but the switch actuates at 2mm, at this distance you'll feel a tactile bump and shortly after hear an extra auditory click similar to what you'd hear from a mouse click

as with most all Cherry or other mechanical switches most of the noise comes from bottoming out the keys while typing as typical keyboards use rubber dome switches that pads most of that noise.

for instance the Cherry Black switches are linear (no extra bump or click at the 2mm actuation point) but can still be pretty noisy relative to rubber domes if you really go to town typing on them

Cherry Browns have the tactile bump but no extra click:

 

[finbarqs]

if you like the feel of your dinovo edge, then get the logitech backlit keyboard (wired) or the wireless K800 also by logitech that's backlit. I like the feel of my wired backlit, so it feels pretty good, and i can play sf4 without any buffer issues!

 

[Rezident]

OK I have read a lot of reviews, tried to get through at least three reviews for each board plus some user feedback.

Black Widow Ultimate does indeed look very good (and it's mechanical) but it just doesn't suit me as the F key clusters are too close together (F5/F9 quicksave/load, I like spaces there) and it has no NKRO (still fine for most gaming though) and it's pricey.

Lycosa is another fine option from Razer if the BWU is too expensive.

Logitech G19 is even more expensive (over €130 here!) has some awesome features and the best backlighting I've seen but there are some reported issues with the LCD display and it's huge and requires it's own power supply!

Gigabyte K8100 is a very interesting new offering and I wanted the yellow one, but alas they only do the plain black one with Euro key layout - red and yellow are US only . The programmable keys are also a little bit too far away from the normal keys but otherwise this is a very promising introduction from Gigabyte, the software looks excellent.

Cyborg V7 has variable backlights but I really don't like the design, it's a strange step backwards from the awesome Eclipse II IMHO.

Roccat Valo has some very impressive features and looks slick but the reviews and user experiences are shocking, seems to be serious issues there. Roccat has another board due out this year which sounds promising if they can sort the issues.

X4 looks the best budget board overall, very good features and a great price.

But I will be going with the Steelseries Merc Stealth. It does look weird and many don't like the unusual numberpad/arrow key cluster but I don't really use that. It has Red, Blue and Purple backlights (just like my Eclipse II), all the usual Macros (which I may start learning to use), two USB 2.0 ports (yay!) and mostly very positive feedback.

Thanks for the suggestions.

 

[melek-taus]

Good to hear you choose this keyboard.
You will not regret making this decision.

Al the options the other keyboards above have are also implemented into this keyboard.
But also do not forget it has audio jacks hehe.
Yeah it also has audio jacks.

When you start getting used to the game section of the keyboard you will notice how much easier this works for many games.
You will then never want anything else as this works so much smoother and faster.

I bought 2 of these just to be safe that one doesnt brake down.
Also still have the big brother Ideazon Merc and used to have the Ideazon Zboard (sold this one to buy the normal Merc:\).
Been using this layout for at least 4 years.

Have fun with it.

 

[Anomaly1964]

That is a cool looking keyboard, let us know how you like the GAMING keys on the left like that...

 

[gorcorps]

I just bought an Eclipse 2 from Amazon a couple weeks ago. It was sold by another store technically but "fulfilled by Amazon". If you really want to stick with it then you can.

 

[finbarqs]

razer tarantula?

 

[nvidiaintelftw]

Why not just get a DAS Keyboard

http://www.daskeyboard.com/

 

[finbarqs]

sheesh! That's expensive! That's like a down payment to the optimus maximus keyboard!

 

[Karstein]

razer tarantula?

My 2nd favorite keyboard - but it doesn't have backlit keys (apart from the macro buttons). They also seem to be pretty difficult to get these days due to the Lycosa/Anansi/Marauder/BlackWidow taking over. Incidentally, I use a Lycosa at work and don't like it as much as the Tarantula.

I have a SteelSeries 7G which I absolutely love, but again, it doesn't meet your requirement of backlit keys. It is built like an utter tank, though, and you can press tons of keys at once using PS/2.

 

[finbarqs]

backlit keys are awesome! I have the logitech Backlit wired keyboard... pretty damn good playing SF4!

 

[DirkGently1]

http://techreport.com/articles.x/16522

This is the only keyboard i will use. I've had one for many years and would not want any other! 'Gaming' keyboards are invariably cheap, nasty, plastic and gaudy overpriced rubbish. Brushed aluminium with diamond cut edges ftw.

 

[IndianScout]

my eclipse the paint was wearing off the keys, so I called mad catz and they sent me the new Eclipse III, while really not a dedicated gaming keyboard, I really like it a lot, they offered me the cyborg but I really didn't like the way it looked

 

[ghost recon88]

I to am in the market for a gaming keyboard, however I want one that doesn't click "clicky clicky" when you type on it. Basically the quietest gaming keyboard there is. Any ideas/suggestions?

 

[IndianScout]

eclipse are very quiet

 

[AdamK47]

I just replaced my Razer Lycosa with a Razer Black Widow Ultimate. Slowly getting use to it. The keyboard is heavier than the Lycosa despite it being smaller dimensionally. I game with headphones, so the clicking sounds don't bother me. There are 5 levels for the blue LED backlight. Off, low, medium, high, and then this weird strobe setting. The macro keys are nicely located, but I don't use them. The Black Widow Ultimate is a worthwhile upgrade from the Lycosa.