deskthority

amigastar23 wrote: 19 Aug 2024, 00:31

thefarside wrote: 08 May 2024, 14:25 Looks like blue alps! I have the same discoloration in the stems as you do:
IMG_0264.jpeg

They look rather like Monterey Alps Switches to me.

Monterey switches have a perfectly rectangular stem and it's quite thinner in comparison. Those are SKCM Blue.

Need a spare M0115 case if anyone has parts lying around. I'll also settle for a bad condition one (missing caps, whatever) as long as the case is intact and not all busted up. Thanks!

I have a Unitek K-156 and it also has this issue. I see it sometimes on other boards as well, but it's very strong on the Unitek. It seems to mostly be with PCB mount variants, but that may also just be a frequency thing. Very odd phenomenon, and I'm not much of a chemist to guess what's going on ...

Yeah, that's what threw me off too. Not the first time I've gotten burned. At least I have another box to store a genuinely good keyboard in hehe :D

The board I got was totally different from the one in the pic. Different caps altogether (the ones in the pic looked like Alps caps to me, these just ...

Sorry for the long pause, a follow-up: Not mechanical. Oh well, it's from 1992-1993 or so and uses BTC domes, no slider. Didn't even know BTC did a cheap design like this as early as they did!

They feel pretty much exactly like the membrane version BTC dome with slider. Board FCC number is LAKBTC ...

Any information on this? I once had a keyboard branded as Reveal, but I kinda knew it was an NMB from the start. This one looks quite a bit different, definitely seems to be mechanical as it states it uses a spring on the back (as well as N-key rollover)
Unless, of course, they want to call a rubber ...

you're looking for something like a magicforce. they're cheap, switches are better than rubber, small and keycap set compatible

do not bother with vintage as much as anyone pressures you to, clearly all you need is something along the lines of cherry mx

honestly, paying that much for a blue alps keyboard is realistic even in today's standards if you find the right person. that's about what they *should* cost

they're not even rare switches, they're just extremely easy to overprice. "old computer stuff" that isn't ibm or apple is viewed as non collectible and is usually just thrown away, but some sellers on ebay have realized that blue alps are """rare""" so the price went up a lot since around 2014 or so ...

to be fair, they are at least smooth!...but they still feel and especially sound awful!

got what appears to be some old unitek keyboard with highly inconsistent mx blues, board itself is in decent condition, nothing terribly wrong with it or anything. about three quarters of the switches don't click, they just make a hollow rattly noise if any noise at all :?

are all vintage cherry ...

got a chance to take some pics
older model feels better but mostly due to condition

Polecat wrote: 15 Jan 2019, 04:30 Could you pop a couple caps and provide the mold numbers on the upper right corner of your switches on the two versions? And also note whether the upper housings are branded or unbranded?

sure thing, i'll go take some pics

interesting... good to know it is getting power. and yes make sure to make sure you're plugging the boards in when the computer is powered off, most ps/2 ports don't support hot swapping

a multimeter would surely help narrow down the problem. highly recommend just grabbing one for a low price as ...

sometimes it's something as stupid as the keyboard cable being unplugged from the PCB internally, i've had a g80-11900 do that to me once

if it's not working with the converteers and you don't have an old computer with native PS/2 support built into the motherboard itself, you might want to look for damaged traces, loose soldering, or failed capacitors. a multimeter would be really helpful for this, assuming you have one. if not, i ...

both use pine, i've yet to come across bamboo white alps. indeed, i remember trying pine switchtops on an at101w and it made the switches sound a bit better, bamboo alps have way more of this loud *tack* noise on the upstroke. not the end of the world, but the subtle upstroke dampening is something ...

also would like to note that for some reason two of my omnikeys sound different despite both being omnikey 101s with short switchplate white alps

alps are heavily reliant on chassis, definitely. never had the grace of trying skcm blue, but i have many skcm white boards and all of them sound different. the omnikeys sound the best, ofc, but all of them have their own interesting little quirks that give them character.

i just picked up a z150 ...

Still fuller than the skeleton of sound that is Cherry MX.

I tend to hate the rubber domes that have a really dry, frictiony feel to them, and that awful creaky flex thing with the top plastic plate that they use. The latter is the worst, to me. For this reason, I really like BTC dome with slider because they don't have that feel at all. But if I had to ...

technically not even an enter key but just.. why

does this thread also apply for SMK alps mount?

I AM IN LOVE WITH THEM

That is a beautiful board indeed! I recently scored an AEK II in very good condition with salmon alps and I am in love with the damned thing.

those caps look yellowed too so I'd say probably not space invaders

I doubt really anybody types "properly" without some kind of strange quirk as to how they do it. Though this has probably already been said...

pantera - vulgar display of power
electric wizard - dopethrone

It's so ugly that I almost want it. Sorta.

Looks like it has a proprietary connector. I'm not sure how you'd convert that without spending way more than the keypad itself.