I believe ADB was one of last new technologies created by Woz while at Apple. Like most of his great creations, it was born out of his own desire for a simple and effective external bus.
hey chyros! i've fallen in love with this keyboard to the point where i got one 2 years ago. I'm now preparing a presentation for my AEK M0115 for one of my university courses. referring to this video for the tidbits of information that I desperately need. Thank you once again for providing cool info like this!
Great review as usual. I see that many of the older Alps are quite bassier than later counterparts. In your opinion, which tactile switch is the bassiest and heavier sounding and where one may encounter them?
I'd say the sound differences between different 1st generation Alps switches is considerably smaller than the difference that the case and chassis make. Plastic amplifies the switch sound more, metal the clicker.
I’m used to this being called a Saratoga keyboard. Apple called it that internally because it was the size of the USS Saratoga, an aircraft carrier. I’m sure it didn’t hurt that Cupertino is adjacent to a city called Saratoga. The extended keyboard II was called ‘the wave’ or simply ‘wave’ because of the s-shape of the top of the case. ADB could also be used to turn on your computer. PS/2 couldn’t do that either. The key in the upper right with the triangle on it is the to power key. S-video cables are near identical but the keying ‘tooth’ on the cable protrudes out on an S-video cable and inward on ADB. With some effort you can jam an S-video cable in your ADB socket and it works electrically.
0:40 The M0116 Apple Keyboard vs. M0115 AEK is probably *the* archetypal extended-versus-compact-KB face-off. IIRC the AEK's original reason for being was compatibility with IBM PC software, and it contained keys that were still basically unused on native Mac software. The M0116 didn't tend to come with the all-in-one Mac SEs just because it was cheaper, but also because both keyboard and computer hewed closer to the original Mac recipe, while both the modular Mac II and the AEK were more PC-like, and more PC-friendly. (An AEK also looks faintly ridiculous in front of a Mac SE, but that's not unrelated.) So the M0116 is the original defiantly unextended keyboard, the first of all those compact desktop keyboards aimed at people who are consciously turning away from Model M-based layouts. Steve Jobs certainly knew which side he was on: www.macrumors.com/2011/10/06/steve-jurvetson-on-steve-jobs/ 3:04 ADB is really more like USB 0 than an Apple counterpart to the PS/2 connector. Not only could it daisy-chain, it could support (slow) modems: tidbits.com/1991/09/23/teleport-capabilities/ . However, most ADB Macs came with two ADB ports, not unlike PS/2 machines (though of course either port could take any ADB device). So you generally didn't have to daisy-chain keyboard and mouse, and in fact I think most people usually didn't. (Speaking of mice, the lovely original ADB Mouse www.macworld.com/article/2909635/when-mice-had-balls-remembering-the-apple-desktop-bus-mouse.html had a redesign around 1993 www.applerescueofdenver.com/products-page/keyboards-mice-joysticks-macintosh/apple-desktop-bus-mouse-ii-adb/ to help it match the garbageness of 1994's M2980 AppleDesign Keyboard.)
The dots on the D and K keys are exactly where they belong; that's where they used to be on electric typewriters, because a touch typist would place their hands just above the keys and the middle fingers, typically the longest, just brush the D and K keys on a QWERTY keyboard. The idea of putting the dots on the F and J keys is bizarre and, I think, something Microsoft came up with.
i guess im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a trick to log back into an instagram account..? I somehow lost the account password. I would appreciate any tricks you can give me
@Reid Harvey Thanks for your reply. I got to the site thru google and Im waiting for the hacking stuff now. Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
I inherited this keyboard (M0115) from my grandfather recently. He was a doctor doing research, so they used old computers at the university even dating back to when they were the size of entire rooms. Mine has a serial number around 400 000, so I think they might be orange alps. Anyway, the switches are absolute heaven to type on.
Can't you do a video where you try to gather all your knowledge of keyboards and try to build the perfect one for you? Taking combinations from existing designs, switches etc and maybe something new :)
Last I heard the Model MF got canceled because the organizer had some real life problems come up. Unfortunate because that sounds like the ultimate keyboard.
Just acquired my AEK II with Blue Alps- it's crazy cool to type on and it definitely is a totally different experience than my Black Inks, Box Jades or even Boba U4T's!
Great review. I have three of these (and a few M0116es), and use one as my daily driver (the others are spares). Un-yellowing them is in fact quite easy; the keycaps themselves need no work apart from the space bar, and I've successfully used hydrogen peroxide based hairdresser's cream to return them back to their original condition. Some have reported re-yellowing, but the one that I have out in the open is still fine after three or so years. Periodic cleaning is important, though.
Later PS/2 ports depending on the motherboard chipset allowed you to use mice and keyboards on either port-sometimes even 2 at once. So far with that I've got working that's motherboards base on the Intel 440LX, 440BX and 440ZX 100MHz chipsets.
Nice!! but I would retrobright those boards ASAP to get as much of the yellow out as I could because I noticed of the boards had a chip on the side of the case, and that's from the yellowing making the plastic brittle sadly.
Yellowing doesn't bother me unless it's very splotchy. In those cases it makes the keyboard look diseased imo. Fortunately these Apple boards yellow really evenly.
The first keyboard I used to experimentally retrobrighted (a broken AEK2) went a bit wrong, but the resulting camouflage-y effect was in fact quite nice.
I agree with Andrew. ABS sounds deeper than PBT, and thin caps amplify the sound more than thick ones. Thin AS doubleshots are a spectacular combination with Alps switches.
Wait, bassier is usually better, non? In my (very limited) experience, ABS sounds higher pitched, not lower, and I'd have thought thick PBT would impart a lower, perhaps muffled tone. I can see that if you like the switch sound to be as loud as possible you might want ABS, but it seems to run contrary to the oft-voiced PBT vs ABS preference among keyboard aficionados.
Did you ever do a video on the regular, non-extended Apple Keyboard II? I found one of these the other day at an estate sale. The switches are kind of bad and feel like rubber domes but it would be interesting to see nonetheless.
I found one at the recycling centre at some point, but I only took the latching switch off, which I didn't have yet. They ARE rubber dome boards, actually. More or less.
on computer chronicles from when the mac ii was being shown off, the rep kept gleefully talking up the ways it was unlike previous macs - it's in its own box, not integrated into the monitor.. it's got a proper full size keyboard.. it's got slots finally.. etc, etc. and the host went "looks like the era of steve jobs is finally over - maybe now they can get a foothold in business". it's kind of amazing to see in hindsight. pre mac-ii the macs only really got a space at the desktop publishing section of the office, with everyone else in the building on IBMs, with quite a few "cross-talk" networking products being sold to this end... apparently the mac ii [according to chronicles' news sections] did make quite a headway with GUI word processors and spreadsheets, but then when windows became good enough it just got that market right back with the far cheaper upgrade machines. but yeah, love this keyboard. love the sticking caps lock. love the extra F-row keys. the chunky esc. the biiig gap between alphanumeric and F-rows... unfortunately i don't have one, haha. i do have a NTC KB-6151 though. which has older style white alps in, though i think some of them need a clean and a lubricate, it had been stored somewhat outside (roofed but not really protected) for at least a few decades. simplified alps and their clones are all well and good but man, the complex ones are some. thing. else! also: even the powerpc notebooks from ~2004, which used only USB on the outside, used ADB internally for the keyboard and trackpad, because it's really the same module of the original, black powerbook G3, which predated the imac which began the usb-only period. keep it up, man.
Im having a question in regards to these dampened switches. These rubber dampers how stable are they over the past ~30 years ? I know from vintage cars that rubber parts are often a problem. They are not stable over decades and get hard or even falling apart.
Try getting hold of a Griffin iMate ADB>USB converter. There are still a fair number of those around, although they can get pricey. The translucent green ones seem to be a bit better than the translucent white ones. On those, I've seen the signal light pass out a couple of times. But generally they don't break.
Hi Chyros! I bought an AEK from eBay, but found out the number "3" from the number row was defective. When I press it, some times it won't register, and when it does it prints "33" on the screen. It's very annoying since I find the keyboard fantastic. Any idea on how to fix the issue? :(
Your switch appears to suffer from chattering issues and bad contacts. Probably the switchplate needs a clean or a replacement. I'd blow through the switchplate thoroughly a few times with some compressed air. If that doesn't adequately resolve the issue, solder in a new switchplate. If you don't have replacements, use one from a key you never use, such as pause/break or something.
Thanks Chyros! I have already tried disassembling the switch and cleaning the switchplate with compressed air. That improved the "key not registering" problem. The chattering, however, remains. Time for soldering, I think. I've never done it, though, so I first need to learn. Thank you for the advise!
Contact cleaner and a cotton swab is your friend. Rubbing alcohol and acetone can serve as a replacement. It sounds like there's some corrosion on the switch plate to me.
Hmm that interesting...I just looked at my ASK and it has salmon ALPS switches. For shits I also checked a MacAlly keyboard I had here and it has clicky white ALPS.
Is there anyway to remove the legends from these keycaps without damaging the texture? I really like the feel of the keycaps on the AEKII board but I can't deal with the home key dots on D and K. I tried switching just the keycaps around to have the dots in the proper location, but too often I had to rethink something when I did need to look down at the board for some reason. If I could just make all the keycaps blank like I have on my other boards then that wouldn't be an issue as there would be no legends to look at and get confused with.
I think the only way to remove the legends is to sand them down. Dyesub is sunk into the material, but not super deeply. Doubleshot legends will stay even if you sand them down.
That's unfortunate. Sanding them down would ruin the textured feel of the keycaps. I heard sandblasting might work too but I'm not sure if that would also ruin the feel. So sad as they really feel nice and the board itself feels great.
I've done extensive comparisons between keycaps with regards to switch sounds, and thin ABS actually sounds extremely good on Alps switches. Still, I'm convinced that even with the same keycaps and the same keyboard, MX browns would sound shite compared to Alps switches. Love them or hate them, few people disagree they have some of the best switch sounds ever! ;)
7 лет назад+1
You could have fooled me those were clicky switches.
the thing is that the AEK 2 can come with salmon the copyright date on the back gives it away if it is a US made 1989 it is salmon early 1990's can be salmons but most are cream dampened i mean I bought a poor cond AEK with oranges cleaned them and swapped the top housings for salmon and now they are good for 35$ it was dirt cheap and I can put the old top housings on the salmon and sell the salmon for more than I paid for those XD
Basically does not sound any different from my Dell keyboard known using Alps keys. Other than customisation to Apple software requirements, overall i don't sense much 'superiority' of this Apple keyboard over those from Dell or IBM ?? On the contrary, the physical quality does not appear too impressive...so much yellowing from the 'pure white' it used to be ?! I recall using the compact keyboard from the 1st generation Apple Macintosh...that i find it to be among if not the best Apple keyboard instead ? The feel was 'roundish flat' upon hitting the full depth of travel with reassuring 'tak' sound, not being spongy or vague. Overall not up to the same standards as IBM's but nevertheless is of a standard i could 'live with' perhaps preferable to the Alps type.
You probably refer to the Mac 128/FatMac/Plus' keyboard. Technically interesting, but shockingly horrible to type on for any length of time. The AEK is incomparably better that that abomination. The AEK yellows, true, but otherwise build quality is pretty epic.
All time favorite keyboard; I use this converter: drakware.com/product/ADB2USB The homing dots are annoying; however that is the only con for this keyboard.
mx brown sounds much better than salmon alps in my opinion, alps in general sounds hollow (almost like lacking something and "plasticky"). mx browns on the other hand sound like the hitting of ceramics, I guess the keycaps play a large part in that as well.
when you get a new headphones and a person with gods voice uploads a new video.
Starfire true
With captions on it says “applause” during the typing test! Comes to show that these switches sound amazing!
I believe ADB was one of last new technologies created by Woz while at Apple. Like most of his great creations, it was born out of his own desire for a simple and effective external bus.
I've always liked the oblique lettering on these old Apple keyboards. Also like the lowercase legends.
Automatic captions interpreted the keyboard sounds at 6:15 as [Applause].
Sounds about right.
Yeah :))))
I just bought one of these used, and your review makes me even more excited for it to arrive now.
me too, but mine looks very well used so might not be quite so awesome, at least without cleaning
hey chyros! i've fallen in love with this keyboard to the point where i got one 2 years ago. I'm now preparing a presentation for my AEK M0115 for one of my university courses. referring to this video for the tidbits of information that I desperately need. Thank you once again for providing cool info like this!
Great review as usual. I see that many of the older Alps are quite bassier than later counterparts. In your opinion, which tactile switch is the bassiest and heavier sounding and where one may encounter them?
I'd say the sound differences between different 1st generation Alps switches is considerably smaller than the difference that the case and chassis make. Plastic amplifies the switch sound more, metal the clicker.
The sound of those switches really hits a perfect note for me
I finally found a German AEK on eBay and what can I say - you did not promise too much. It is an outstanding keyboard, even better than its successor.
5:12 i have a M0115 with orange alps but the serial number is 622373 so this assumption may not be true
I’m used to this being called a Saratoga keyboard. Apple called it that internally because it was the size of the USS Saratoga, an aircraft carrier. I’m sure it didn’t hurt that Cupertino is adjacent to a city called Saratoga. The extended keyboard II was called ‘the wave’ or simply ‘wave’ because of the s-shape of the top of the case.
ADB could also be used to turn on your computer. PS/2 couldn’t do that either. The key in the upper right with the triangle on it is the to power key.
S-video cables are near identical but the keying ‘tooth’ on the cable protrudes out on an S-video cable and inward on ADB. With some effort you can jam an S-video cable in your ADB socket and it works electrically.
0:40 The M0116 Apple Keyboard vs. M0115 AEK is probably *the* archetypal extended-versus-compact-KB face-off. IIRC the AEK's original reason for being was compatibility with IBM PC software, and it contained keys that were still basically unused on native Mac software. The M0116 didn't tend to come with the all-in-one Mac SEs just because it was cheaper, but also because both keyboard and computer hewed closer to the original Mac recipe, while both the modular Mac II and the AEK were more PC-like, and more PC-friendly. (An AEK also looks faintly ridiculous in front of a Mac SE, but that's not unrelated.) So the M0116 is the original defiantly unextended keyboard, the first of all those compact desktop keyboards aimed at people who are consciously turning away from Model M-based layouts. Steve Jobs certainly knew which side he was on: www.macrumors.com/2011/10/06/steve-jurvetson-on-steve-jobs/
3:04 ADB is really more like USB 0 than an Apple counterpart to the PS/2 connector. Not only could it daisy-chain, it could support (slow) modems: tidbits.com/1991/09/23/teleport-capabilities/ . However, most ADB Macs came with two ADB ports, not unlike PS/2 machines (though of course either port could take any ADB device). So you generally didn't have to daisy-chain keyboard and mouse, and in fact I think most people usually didn't.
(Speaking of mice, the lovely original ADB Mouse www.macworld.com/article/2909635/when-mice-had-balls-remembering-the-apple-desktop-bus-mouse.html had a redesign around 1993 www.applerescueofdenver.com/products-page/keyboards-mice-joysticks-macintosh/apple-desktop-bus-mouse-ii-adb/ to help it match the garbageness of 1994's M2980 AppleDesign Keyboard.)
@5:20 I have Orange Alps with SN 709XXX!
Has a very nice and solid sound.
The dots on the D and K keys are exactly where they belong; that's where they used to be on electric typewriters, because a touch typist would place their hands just above the keys and the middle fingers, typically the longest, just brush the D and K keys on a QWERTY keyboard. The idea of putting the dots on the F and J keys is bizarre and, I think, something Microsoft came up with.
i guess im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a trick to log back into an instagram account..?
I somehow lost the account password. I would appreciate any tricks you can give me
@Dakari Kellen Instablaster =)
@Reid Harvey Thanks for your reply. I got to the site thru google and Im waiting for the hacking stuff now.
Looks like it's gonna take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
@Reid Harvey It worked and I actually got access to my account again. Im so happy:D
Thank you so much you saved my ass :D
@Dakari Kellen glad I could help xD
I inherited this keyboard (M0115) from my grandfather recently. He was a doctor doing research, so they used old computers at the university even dating back to when they were the size of entire rooms. Mine has a serial number around 400 000, so I think they might be orange alps.
Anyway, the switches are absolute heaven to type on.
It's so cute! 😍 I do use a MacBook Pro- this would be WAY better than the keyboard that comes with it lol
I've been waiting for this one. :)
I really want to try one of these. That sound is lovely.
Those Apple homing dots right in the middle of the key drive me nuts though.
The converter had a switch in it.. am I missing out on an inside joke?
Can't you do a video where you try to gather all your knowledge of keyboards and try to build the perfect one for you? Taking combinations from existing designs, switches etc and maybe something new :)
Hmmm, interesting idea. I might do that at some point. No guarantees though.
Too easy. Just take a model M, put the model F switches in and change the wiring layout to enable a 6KRO for gaming. :D
There is actually project to do that, called the Model MF. It won project of the year award. That's FAR from trivial though :p .
Not really literally building one, thats quite a large feat! But some sort of mockup design
Last I heard the Model MF got canceled because the organizer had some real life problems come up. Unfortunate because that sounds like the ultimate keyboard.
Just acquired my AEK II with Blue Alps- it's crazy cool to type on and it definitely is a totally different experience than my Black Inks, Box Jades or even Boba U4T's!
Great review. I have three of these (and a few M0116es), and use one as my daily driver (the others are spares). Un-yellowing them is in fact quite easy; the keycaps themselves need no work apart from the space bar, and I've successfully used hydrogen peroxide based hairdresser's cream to return them back to their original condition. Some have reported re-yellowing, but the one that I have out in the open is still fine after three or so years. Periodic cleaning is important, though.
Can you please upload your videos in 60fps_ would be preatty neat
Awesome again. Nice work :)
Later PS/2 ports depending on the motherboard chipset allowed you to use mice and keyboards on either port-sometimes even 2 at once. So far with that I've got working that's motherboards base on the Intel 440LX, 440BX and 440ZX 100MHz chipsets.
Nice!! but I would retrobright those boards ASAP to get as much of the yellow out as I could because I noticed of the boards had a chip on the side of the case, and that's from the yellowing making the plastic brittle sadly.
I tend to not retrobright my keyboards unless they are inherently coloured and the yellow would clash with them. So far I haven't Retrobrighted any.
Yellowing doesn't bother me unless it's very splotchy. In those cases it makes the keyboard look diseased imo.
Fortunately these Apple boards yellow really evenly.
The first keyboard I used to experimentally retrobrighted (a broken AEK2) went a bit wrong, but the resulting camouflage-y effect was in fact quite nice.
Why is there a random switch inside the converter?
once you notice the random white pixels in the video, you can't unsee them
I have a crush on the IIc's keycaps, but yeah, those salmon Alps sound amazing. How much of that do you think is owed to the thick PBT keycaps?
I think if anything the keycaps hurt the sound. Alps sound best with thinner ABS imo.
I agree with Andrew. ABS sounds deeper than PBT, and thin caps amplify the sound more than thick ones. Thin AS doubleshots are a spectacular combination with Alps switches.
Good to know. So, are PBTs preferable on MX switches because of their higher, less enjoyable pitch?
Thicker caps do suit MX better, I'd say, yes. ABS still sounds bassier on MX.
Wait, bassier is usually better, non? In my (very limited) experience, ABS sounds higher pitched, not lower, and I'd have thought thick PBT would impart a lower, perhaps muffled tone. I can see that if you like the switch sound to be as loud as possible you might want ABS, but it seems to run contrary to the oft-voiced PBT vs ABS preference among keyboard aficionados.
Not sure if I like the new opener yet or not.
Did you ever do a video on the regular, non-extended Apple Keyboard II? I found one of these the other day at an estate sale. The switches are kind of bad and feel like rubber domes but it would be interesting to see nonetheless.
I found one at the recycling centre at some point, but I only took the latching switch off, which I didn't have yet. They ARE rubber dome boards, actually. More or less.
I wish rib switch keyboards would come out.
What is it with keyboards being called "Model M" ^^
Grumskiz Pretty sure the M on this board just stands for "Model"
Yes, the M in 'Model M' stands for membrane. The 'M' in many other product names stands for 'model'.
noice
2:40, what is that supposed to be?
King's Day in the Netherlands. Everybody wears orange, the national colour, on that occasion.
Where can i get a converter like you have? I would like to use my old Apple-Keyboard on today computers.
on computer chronicles from when the mac ii was being shown off, the rep kept gleefully talking up the ways it was unlike previous macs - it's in its own box, not integrated into the monitor.. it's got a proper full size keyboard.. it's got slots finally.. etc, etc. and the host went "looks like the era of steve jobs is finally over - maybe now they can get a foothold in business". it's kind of amazing to see in hindsight.
pre mac-ii the macs only really got a space at the desktop publishing section of the office, with everyone else in the building on IBMs, with quite a few "cross-talk" networking products being sold to this end... apparently the mac ii [according to chronicles' news sections] did make quite a headway with GUI word processors and spreadsheets, but then when windows became good enough it just got that market right back with the far cheaper upgrade machines.
but yeah, love this keyboard. love the sticking caps lock. love the extra F-row keys. the chunky esc. the biiig gap between alphanumeric and F-rows... unfortunately i don't have one, haha.
i do have a NTC KB-6151 though. which has older style white alps in, though i think some of them need a clean and a lubricate, it had been stored somewhat outside (roofed but not really protected) for at least a few decades. simplified alps and their clones are all well and good but man, the complex ones are some. thing. else!
also: even the powerpc notebooks from ~2004, which used only USB on the outside, used ADB internally for the keyboard and trackpad, because it's really the same module of the original, black powerbook G3, which predated the imac which began the usb-only period.
keep it up, man.
Is this mechanical or membrane
Im having a question in regards to these dampened switches. These rubber dampers how stable are they over the past ~30 years ? I know from vintage cars that rubber parts are often a problem. They are not stable over decades and get hard or even falling apart.
+Chyrosan22 Any chance I could have a converter made for me as well?
Try getting hold of a Griffin iMate ADB>USB converter. There are still a fair number of those around, although they can get pricey. The translucent green ones seem to be a bit better than the translucent white ones. On those, I've seen the signal light pass out a couple of times. But generally they don't break.
Thanks for the review. Which brand do you recommend if I were to buy a M0116 for my mac pro usb?
Just bought one! Friend of mine is gonna jerry-rig a lil adapter for it. It'll replace my G19
Seller promised AEKI, showed AEKI, delivered AEKII. Aye fuck
Hi Chyros! I bought an AEK from eBay, but found out the number "3" from the number row was defective. When I press it, some times it won't register, and when it does it prints "33" on the screen. It's very annoying since I find the keyboard fantastic. Any idea on how to fix the issue? :(
Your switch appears to suffer from chattering issues and bad contacts. Probably the switchplate needs a clean or a replacement. I'd blow through the switchplate thoroughly a few times with some compressed air. If that doesn't adequately resolve the issue, solder in a new switchplate. If you don't have replacements, use one from a key you never use, such as pause/break or something.
Thanks Chyros! I have already tried disassembling the switch and cleaning the switchplate with compressed air. That improved the "key not registering" problem. The chattering, however, remains. Time for soldering, I think. I've never done it, though, so I first need to learn.
Thank you for the advise!
Contact cleaner and a cotton swab is your friend. Rubbing alcohol and acetone can serve as a replacement. It sounds like there's some corrosion on the switch plate to me.
Oirland to be sure to be sure oil have a cuppla points of the liffywater, innit
make an old keyboard gaming approved. pls
Hmm that interesting...I just looked at my ASK and it has salmon ALPS switches.
For shits I also checked a MacAlly keyboard I had here and it has clicky white ALPS.
IMO the best keyboard Apple ever made is the M0110, but these are still pretty nice.
2:40 - i hereby officially name your apple standard keyboard 'wilhelmina' : )))))))))
Is there anyway to remove the legends from these keycaps without damaging the texture? I really like the feel of the keycaps on the AEKII board but I can't deal with the home key dots on D and K. I tried switching just the keycaps around to have the dots in the proper location, but too often I had to rethink something when I did need to look down at the board for some reason. If I could just make all the keycaps blank like I have on my other boards then that wouldn't be an issue as there would be no legends to look at and get confused with.
I think the only way to remove the legends is to sand them down. Dyesub is sunk into the material, but not super deeply. Doubleshot legends will stay even if you sand them down.
That's unfortunate. Sanding them down would ruin the textured feel of the keycaps. I heard sandblasting might work too but I'm not sure if that would also ruin the feel. So sad as they really feel nice and the board itself feels great.
You could just grind off the bumps. It might help some.
Hits space bar with index fingre. V Cool.
Can you review the new Razer Huntsman Elite lmao
Noice indeed.
hey does anyone know which cable is correct for this Apple M0115? is it 590-0361-B or 590-0152-A
Matias makes keyboards based on clones of ALPS switches because ALPS stopped making them years ago.
beauty
how to connect this keyboard to PC ?
Buy the USB wombat www.bigmessowires.com/usb-wombat/
Dont think that browns comparison is fair. The sound comes mostly from the surrounding structure and the keycaps. Thin abs vs thick pbt. Hmmmmmmm
I've done extensive comparisons between keycaps with regards to switch sounds, and thin ABS actually sounds extremely good on Alps switches. Still, I'm convinced that even with the same keycaps and the same keyboard, MX browns would sound shite compared to Alps switches. Love them or hate them, few people disagree they have some of the best switch sounds ever! ;)
You could have fooled me those were clicky switches.
At the end there is a comparion with clickified switches, they sound quite different.
God
the thing is that the AEK 2 can come with salmon the copyright date on the back gives it away if it is a US made 1989 it is salmon early 1990's can be salmons but most are cream dampened i mean I bought a poor cond AEK with oranges cleaned them and swapped the top housings for salmon and now they are good for 35$ it was dirt cheap and I can put the old top housings on the salmon and sell the salmon for more than I paid for those XD
I think salmon alps are the best ones.
Reported for porn. ;-)
Basically does not sound any different from my Dell keyboard known using Alps keys.
Other than customisation to Apple software requirements, overall i don't sense much 'superiority' of this Apple keyboard over those from Dell or IBM ??
On the contrary, the physical quality does not appear too impressive...so much yellowing from the 'pure white' it used to be ?!
I recall using the compact keyboard from the 1st generation Apple Macintosh...that i find it to be among if not the best Apple keyboard instead ?
The feel was 'roundish flat' upon hitting the full depth of travel with reassuring 'tak' sound, not being spongy or vague.
Overall not up to the same standards as IBM's but nevertheless is of a standard i could 'live with' perhaps preferable to the Alps type.
You probably refer to the Mac 128/FatMac/Plus' keyboard. Technically interesting, but shockingly horrible to type on for any length of time. The AEK is incomparably better that that abomination. The AEK yellows, true, but otherwise build quality is pretty epic.
All time favorite keyboard; I use this converter: drakware.com/product/ADB2USB The homing dots are annoying; however that is the only con for this keyboard.
wp.
FRIST111111111111111111
Fristiiiiii?
So in other words, Steve Jobs was a mistake.
The only good products ever from Apple. Why did they have to change.
Probably because Apple didn't make these :p .
+Chyrosran22 [Citation Needed]
Learn to type dude...
Oh, that's an easy word, I'm sure I can do that one :p .
577th
third!!!
mx brown sounds much better than salmon alps in my opinion, alps in general sounds hollow (almost like lacking something and "plasticky"). mx browns on the other hand sound like the hitting of ceramics, I guess the keycaps play a large part in that as well.
E W deaf