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New Beam Spring Keyboards

modelfkeyboards.com

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Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#81

Post by Blackthorn »

TwoFerMaggie wrote: post #73
jmspring wrote: post #39

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The keyboards look janky. Why buy this over something like Das Keyboard which has mechanical keys as well and is cheaper?

MX switches are the entry point of the "mechanical keys". You can go into way too many rabbit holes beyond consumer brands like Das Keyboard. There are topre capacitive switches (HHKB, Realforce etc) , buckling spring switches like the ones in this post (& older IBM model M, Unicomp), Alps switches (older mac keyboards, matias), and an endless selection of MX compatible customized switches. All with different tactili…

It's a real shame that the world standardized on MX and ALPS has been left in the dust.

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#84

Post by nsxwolf »

ndiddy wrote: post #27

Note that Ellipse/modelfkeyboards is notorious in the keyboard community for poor quality control and support. The keyboards often come misaligned or damaged in shipping, and it's up to you to fix them. I'm not sure about their beam spring keyboards, but their Model F keyboards come without keycaps installed, meaning that the keys haven't even been tested to actuate properly before the keyboard is shipped. If you hav…

I suppose you have to look at it as this person is just unwilling or unable to operate in a different way at this price point, and if you want a new beam spring keyboard, right now there is no competitor.

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#85

Post by ndiddy »

ndiddy wrote: post #27

Note that Ellipse/modelfkeyboards is notorious in the keyboard community for poor quality control and support. The keyboards often come misaligned or damaged in shipping, and it's up to you to fix them. I'm not sure about their beam spring keyboards, but their Model F keyboards come without keycaps installed, meaning that the keys haven't even been tested to actuate properly before the keyboard is shipped. If you hav…

At about the same time ModelFKeyboards posted his comment here, somebody created a new account on that wiki, then removed much of the negative information on the page and replaced it with similar wording to the comment (including deleting a scan of the warranty policy for "DMCA reasons"). This was what the page looked like at the time I made my comment: https://consumerrights.wiki/index.php?title=Model_F_Labs&old... . If it was him, this would violate the wiki's conflict of interest policy: https://consumerrights.wiki/w/Consumer_Rights_Wiki:Conflict_... .

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#86

Post by MengerSponge »

moepstar wrote: post #53
MengerSponge wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Totem and bad wings are gorgeous, but I'm here to thock. I'm actually a Topre purist.

I could probably $searchengine this, but not being into keyboards: none of that made any sense to me :D

https://youtu.be/-C-eYnqeBuk?si=18nyv86uYKu74gi0&t=242

It's a weird hybrid keyswitch that isn't widely used because it's expensive. It has a distinctive sound and a fantastic feel.

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#87

Post by ndiddy »

ModelFKeyboards wrote: post #49

Hello, project coordinator here. If you haven’t been following the project recently, I am happy to report that more than 7,000 Brand New Model F and Beam Spring keyboards have shipped since 2019, and the very first Round 2 classic style Beam Spring B104 keyboards started shipping this month, as noted here. If you want to see current comments about the project, please do check out the recent user feedback on the curre…

Thank you for posting your side of the story. This is the first time I've ever posted anything publicly about modelfkeyboards. If you're dealing with some sort of targeted harassment campaign, that's obviously horrible. My sources for information are assisting my brother getting his keyboard he bought from you up and running, and talking with people I trust online.

At least at the time my brother bought his keyboard, the warranty policy was "1 year duration only covering manufacturing defects, buyer pays for all shipping, if any labor is required it will be billed at $50/hour". I think that even you realize this is unusually harsh, as the warranty policy isn't publicly available anywhere on your site prior to placing an order. There's just a mention buried in the terms of conditions that you will provide a copy of the warranty upon request.

From the people I've talked to, the impression I get is that the QC has gotten worse over time, not better. The newer models being larger and having more keys means that they need more adjustment to work properly. You can get a board where the keys on the middle click properly but the keys near the edges don't, and you have to mess with the mounting pressure and springs to get everything working.

In general I don't like pushing the philosophy of "these keyboards are for enthusiasts who like tinkering" as a way to spin avoiding QC and offloading the adjustment and testing process onto customers. I appreciate the idea of making a keyboard that's user-serviceable, but if it's not a kit, it should at the very least be working when it arrives.

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#89

Post by ndiddy »

Blackthorn wrote: post #81
TwoFerMaggie wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

MX switches are the entry point of the "mechanical keys". You can go into way too many rabbit holes beyond consumer brands like Das Keyboard. There are topre capacitive switches (HHKB, Realforce etc) , buckling spring switches like the ones in this post (& older IBM model M, Unicomp), Alps switches (older mac keyboards, matias), and an endless selection of MX compatible customized switches. All with different tactili…

It's a real shame that the world standardized on MX and ALPS has been left in the dust.

I think it's because ALPS stopped making keyswitches when rubber domes completely took over the market in the early 2000s, and Cherry kept making MX switches. When the mechanical keyboard market started back up in the early 2010s, Cherry was there and ALPS wasn't. I agree it's a shame. I think we've seen clicky switches become a niche and most of the market switch to linear switches mainly because MX style clicky switches are fundamentally incapable of feeling as tactile or having as deep of a click as ALPS style switches due to how they're shaped and how the components are arranged internally. I don't blame everybody for preferring linear if "clicky" means "high pitched plasticky sound and a barely perceptible bump in the middle of the key travel". At least Matias still makes modern ALPS style switches, they're one of the best clicky options available today.

Re: New Beam Spring Keyboards

#90

Post by sleepybrett »

ModelFKeyboards wrote: post #63
sleepybrett wrote: post #8

I have his model-f, and while i like it setting it up to flash firmware to it was a bitch and a half and his docs read like a 4th grader wrote it. He should invest some money in cleaning up that side of his business.

The manual was redone recently - folks tell me now that they were new to these keyboards but were able to easily follow along the manual to set up their keyboard.

Well I should revisit then, I was pretty early in the process but the docs initial provided were utter dogshit. Would have been nice if you had sent out even an email to your customers to let them know.
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