Interesting how Hamaji missed the whole PE foam/Owlabs hype era (I'm not even sure if he knows about the Jelly Epoch lol), and also missed the rise of budget boards like the QK/Zoom series
@@kaminoeugene Wouldn't say he missed the pe foam era, he was around when it was in its peak, its just that he always build with most of the foams anyways and back in the group buy era even though alot of boards were already using PE foam the boards that he bought and tried never included it.
its not bad, but now that youre back to custom keyboards i think the BIGGEST thing that changed since a couple years ago is the new keyboards these days are SIGNIFICANTLY better than they used to be at a fraction of the price. really this year alone has been huge for the hobby. we have 100 dollar keyboards now that completely blew away what anyone thought could be done in that price bracket (as a base, we all know if you buy a 100 dollar keyboard its still gonna end up at least 200 if not more with shipping, switches, and keycaps lmao). we had things like the Neo65, and Cycle7. The Cycle7 in particular was a huge game changer because that board only a few years ago would have easily been more expensive than the one you reviewed in this video lol. but it went for i think around 140 dollars. The Neo65 goes for 100-120 dollars itself, and while not as good, has a gummy O ring mount and still would have been triple that if made years ago. then if you dont mind having a plastic case(these days plastic cases can sometimes sound BETTER than aluminum if you reeaaally like deep thocky keyboards), and horrible shitty software, theres tons of amazon/ali express chinese boards that also sound better than the one you reviewed in this video with just a bit of modding, and sometimes even while stock(altho obviously things like the tape mod will still make it sound even better). boards like the Womier 75(which is actually full aluminum) on amazon, or the GMK65 on ali express. The Womier is around 90 dollars FULLY BUILT, and the GMK65 is anywhere from 25-40 dollars barebones. as for stabilizers, durock V2s are still great, we have new ones like TX clip ons and the Staebies (screw on), but theyre pricey and availability can be tricky, and a durock v2 properly modded can still sound just as good. the new price for premium in my opinion comes in at 200 dollars bare bones, anything more than that is not worth getting. Boards like the ZOOM series come to mind, being beautiful and wonderful sounding boards, and pretty much the cream of the crop when it comes to quality and sound. but as i said before, you can make that 30 dollar ali express board sound just as good with some modding(and spending another 80-120 dollars on good switches and keycaps), so at that point the only benefit the zoom boards have over others is the materials, style, looks, and software. Me personally, I like the middleground of buying boards like the Neo65, Cycle7, or maybe Sense75(at the 100 dollar discounted price, not worth it for base price), over any other board, because while the womier and GMK can be just as good for half or less the price, the Neo/Cycle have Via support(which prolly is the biggest, if not only reason) generally better build quality and aesthetics for longevity, and are the future of customs, whereas the chinese cheap boards arent really. Also, avoid flex cuts if you can unless youre getting something like the cycle7 (which has these rubber plug thingies it came with that allowed the flexibility of a flex cut while not sacrificing the sound quality at all) they kill sound quality completely, making the tape mod MANDATORY, no longer just a mod that improves the board. in conclusion to this massive comment that prolly isnt worth reading unless youre as hopelessly obsessed with keyboards like myself, welcome back to keyboards :) the hobby has a very bright future and is more affordable and accessible than ever before and only gets better each month :)
This year has been incredible for keyboards. I remember getting my Tiger Lite for $130, which was considered an excellent entry, had a plastic case. Now $130 will get you a super premium feeling aluminum board. These days nobody should be spending as much money on a keyboard as was spent in this video- it's just not necessary anymore.
durocks have fallen to the wayside already when it comes to stabs quality, nowadays TX, staebies and owlabs stabs will do the job with minimal additional tuning required. Good to see you back in the rabbit hole hamini :D
What would you recommend as the easiest to install screw in stabs? Ive been out of the game the last two years haha so I feel your comment is speaking to me directly
@@esseyhabte306 hmm nowadays all the commonly available stabs by vendors will do fine. Do note that TX stabs don't screw in but are a type called clip in which work exactly the same
Welcome back! Your videos are always a delight, and I'm thrilled to see more from you. Sending cheers all the way from Brazil! Your Mode 80 video holds a special place for me-it's what got me started on this wonderful hobby. Thank you for the inspiration!
The reason the board sounded super thin was cus it was designed during the flex cut craze. I think by now designers know better than to include flex cuts in their boards because its a sure fire way to reduce the sound richness of a keyboard.
@@hamajineoBro how much did you miss in the last 2 years to not know that 💀 You definitely gotta catch up with a LOT of things in the hobby but glad you're back Btw don't always listen to others saying that Durocks suck. It's true that TX and staebies were/are in hype (because they are better stock and many say that you don't have to mod them that much) but it's known that these have its own issues like being really inconsistent for some people (and of course the limited availability, especially Staebies). There is a reason that many enthusiasts who have been in the hobby for so long like Alexotos are most comfortable using Durocks and even Cherry clip-ins. If you have the right things (like dielectric grease or XHT-BDZ) and know what you're doing, these are absolutely consist and good.
@@kaminoeugene thats honestly super true about the stabs. The staebies are super tight on the keycaps and TX when they are good they are flawless but when they tick you cant fix the tick at all unless you drown it in lube, and TX with heavy lubing always feels super sluggish. I've always found Holee modded durock to be super consistent every time.
There is this stabilised called knight stabs by swag keys. I think it has built in silicone pads and has been the only set I ve been able to tune perfectly consistently
Poking the holes of the PCB is fine for Solder PCBs, but for Hotswap, you should definitely not poke it with tweezers as you risk popping out a socket. 😅
videography and humor is still on point. get TX stabs next time. u may need to de-virginize the wire clip in spot else they tend to be too tight and sluggish at the start. at least for TX AP stabs. Dat GMK collection tho... and welcome back!
bro i saw ur ig u are still one of my favourite keyboard youtubers if u see a content, just go for it, i like how the pace of ur videos, how chill it is but if u don't, pls don't force urself to make stupid keyboard contents.🎉😂😂❤
You can always get a lube syringe so you don’t have to take the board apart and brush them. Makes the tuning process soooo easy. Also if you ever wanna get rid of your GMK rainy day, I’d buy it off you. That set so hard to find aftermarket nowdays lol
Wuuut, lol bro's back but the hobby's been going in the opposite direction. Company's been racing to the bottom. Gat V2 stabs are great. My go-to for screw-in but you should try tx stabs, no mods necessary just don't overlube : )
