As a person normally deeply critical of the Drop in-house keyboard lineup, this video was incredibly insightful and helped me understand how my own personal preferences developed. Before this video, I believed the Drop in-house lineup of boards were all deeply flawed due to their north facing LED switch orientation and 3-pin design. Currently, if a new board features either one of these, I personally consider it an instant dealbreaker. However, the main perceived faults of this board lie within serval basic assumptions that some enthusiasts make about the expression of the keyboard hobby. Let’s walk through this scenario, starting with the Drop Alt with stock Halo switches. The board may be problematic: -If you plan on regularly upgrading switches to 5-pin and own (or plan on owning) another board that requires the stability of the extra 2 pins. -If you purchase GMK or other similar Cherry profile keycaps-AND if you are irritated by the sound/feel of interference. Another consideration is the existence of switches that don’t seem to suffer from interference issues with Cherry profile regardless of LED orientation, such as the Holy Pandas, which can be considered a direct upgrade from the Halo Trues. Furthermore, as seen in the video, this board does not inhibit other enthusiast modifications such as lubing switches and tuning stabilizers. My personal experience may not represent everyone else’s, but incremental modding and upgrades were the KEY, to me appreciating this hobby. I started with small things like adding grease to stabilizers, to case foam, to lubing switches on hotswappable boards, to entire customs. My current favorite board is a custom I built from various parts. However, an argument can be made that my board was also built upon the past keyboards I owned, all of which most definitely would not pass the scrutiny tests of this community. My tastes, preferences, and appreciation for quality are a result of experiencing imperfection. I am increasingly unsettled by the community’s gatekeeping behavior surrounding the Drop keyboards, which are often gateway keyboards for thousands of people into this hobby. Returning to video, I think this remains a beautiful keyboard that is completely understandable once context is provided. It’s unilaterally an upgrade from that g*mer keyboard Josh was using before. I hope he enjoys his upgrade.
I think drop's offerings are starting to show their age at the price point, moreover if you're coming from areas of the world that have access to cheaper keyboards (ie: east asia). They were relevant back then, but honestly I look at people criticizing drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands to be just... criticizing. Sometimes it does cross over to being gatekeeping, but their source of frustration js the same: Drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands. They do have the capital to design a better keyboard, or even improve on some things that the community asked for (better stabs) but they didn't do it. Although it *can* be a decent keyboard with incremental upgrades (I'm using an Idobao ID80, so I know that incremental upgrades is important because that keyboard is pretty bad, but it's the only choice at that price point). For how much it's priced at, they could have given better features out of the box. It's quite frustrating to see it because of how much influence they have on the beginner market since they're Drop, yet they don't make keyboards that offers a better feature set for beginners, but hey, preference.
@@12345678946513 Thank you for the input, I agree with lots of the points you raised. However, "Drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands" is more complicated than the common belief that Drop doesn't care about its customers. Drop's lineup is comprised of many north facing LED oriented keyboards, which is a downside for enthusiasts who are more likely to use high end GMK and cherry sets on their keyboards. However, Drop sells numerous variants of their in-house Skylight series of shine-through north facing legend keycaps. I'm stereotyping when I say this, but gamers tend to like RGB, and RGB backlight shines best through shine through keycaps like the north facing Skylight series. I'm assuming their Skylight keycaps have a relatively high profit margin due to production scale, so there is some logic to keeping north facing LED keyboards and north facing shine through keycaps in their lineup. Also, Drop sells their Holy Pandas, which has no interference with Cherry profile. If you were to build the most costly configuration for a keyboard on Drop, using their most expensive keyboard, keycaps, and switches, it would be a completely functional, and dare I say, gratifying build. The target market audience for the Drop lineup might ultimately not be the same community that is most educated and passionate about optimizing enthusiast keyboards. This returns to my beliefs that this Drop makes gateway keyboards, bridging the gap between kitsch gamer keyboards and enthusiast boards. Their priority has probably always been the gamer over the enthusiast. That's why all these enthusiasts, who probably made the "community demands" you mention, are left unresponded to. We don't often see criticisms of the Razer Blackwidow for bad compatibility with GMK keycaps or bad stock stabilizers. However, the Drop stock stabs get far more attention. It may feel frustrating that we were so close to having an easily accessible, large-scale manufactured, decent looking, entry level enthusiast board, but if we look at it from the perspective of a gamer gearhead, the Drop board is far more reasonable a purchase. I currently don't have a defense for why Drop hasn't added two additional pins to the PCBs for 5pin support. I assume that, just like everything else, it comes down to the money involved in designing a new PCB and introducing it into the manufacturing line and supply chain. However, gamers are probably not flavor-of-the-week switch swappers, and probably will not lose sleep if they are forced to clip switches. Drop could make a wonderful hotswappable enthusiast keyboard, but their current plan appears to be working quite well, as they've sold tens of thousands of these imperfect keyboards. I do speculate that Drop may be producing a board for hobby enthusiasts, based on some of the decisions they made for the Carina, but we will have to wait and see. Once again, thank you for sharing! I also use the ID80! Far from perfect, but its a better fit for me than any of the Drop keyboards personally.
I purchased this keyboard for testing switches and different lubes. I also wanted to learn how to do things properly before purchasing a soldering kit and investing lots of money into the hobby. As a starter board, I am extremely happy. I see what people are saying when it comes to some things, but the fact that the typing experience is such an improvement for me, these issues seem quite minor in retrospect.
Looks and sounds great! Sadly, none of my friends are into keyboards. So I'm gonna be all alone modding my mk ;-; Btw: I found some keycaps I like and will fit 65%! Hi Josh!
@@FourStringL0B0 i get that hobby and totally would invest but there are such few options for german iso layout and having qwerty instead of qwertz is a bit confusing though the confusion might settle if you use the keyboard nonstop. i´ve bought an aukey keyboard at amazon black friday day for 55€ and for that money i can´t say bad things about it
@@gangstaelegantproductions2780 ... I'm not saying that $500 is nothing for me or something like that. I'm just saying that the custom keybords are indeed really expensive. There are a few I saw on RUclips which cost $2000+. So this is just their actual price, and $500 is the price not of a top custom keyboard, but only of a decent one. It's sad but true
The GMK samurai set is imo the best looking japanese hirigana keycap set out there right now. I love that we finally have some more colors than black and white
@@valentinstern4684 sorry I never got the notification so for example the e on the board is actually the i and the s is actually the u the 5 is actually the e so it’s not very correct but it is still nice to look at
@@ryuujigoku6710 it’s because it’s a different layout when typing with Japanese hiragana keycaps. It’s not the traditional QWERTY just swapped with Japanese characters, it’s the tradition Japanese hiragana
That board will not have cherry profile interference. Halo stems have long center poles and thus bottom out higher. That's probably why you weren't bothered by it.
Hey guys! If you liked this video and want to participate in my weekly streams for 2021, make sure you join the channel!! ruclips.net/channel/UCXlDgfWY2JbsYEam2m68Hywjoin Also! ✔️ Join my discord! discord.gg/eEK2JEWur2
Solid video my dude! When you're working with budget options we all gotta realize how often we have to make compromises somewhere. North facing switches happen and in that case, if it is an issue then use something other than cherry profile keycaps! I personally would rather never use plate mount stabs again but unfortunately, all 3 of my boards have them lol I think it's all too easy in this community to be disappointed that I didn't spend +$800 to have a top-tier board with no objective flaws but the reality is that we should be able to be happy with even our GK61 builds. This is a hobby for a reason. I'm doing this to have fun and itch the scratch that I have for creating, not to impress elitist attitudes. The relevant keyboard creators generally do a great job at not spouting any elitism, something that forums aren't so great at doing. The man's drop alt looks fantastic! Just built my roommate a keyboard with gmk samurai as well
Hi Josh! Am a fan of the build, wouldn't buy the drop alt personally though. Great video as always, really like the look of those new "information cards"!
I am more of a gamer than anything else, and decided that I wanted to do some mods to my Drop ALT low profile. I lubed and filmed my Kailh Silver, added a KBD fans foam module and some EVA foam, lubed, clipped, and band-aid modded the PCB. I love this board now. I know that a lot of keyboard enthusiasts hate it for not being 5 pin, the expensive price, and integrated plate, but I love it (and I am not the type of guy that spends $600 on a keyboard).
Technicality is the key to building this board and to correct its flaws. However, I believe that the stabs and the higher price tag is what's deterring potential customer/s from purchasing this keeb. I know that NK65 entry or alu, RAMA, KBDfans, etc. have similar or potentially lower offerings that many enthusiasts, snobs and newcomers to this hobby prefer. I've built this board with Holy Pandas (filmed and lubed with slight oil application to the springs), GMK red samurai (like yours) with no clearance issues, modded the stabs (OG stabs), added a sound dampening foam underneath to eradicate the hollow sound and this board shines. I know in the keyboard community having a flex build is what sets you apart from the rest and it's the same as any other hobby (I collect shoes and watches) so Yeah, I very well damn know! but to the budget conscious newbie who wants to explore the rabbit hole and not want to wait months to a year for a "hyped" group buy then this keyboard in my opinion is what I'd compare to as an Omega watch or a BMW car - functional, good looking, machining is top notch with added flare and pizazz yet effective as a daily driver.
Yeah I built a 65% from KBDfans and it has three 1u keys to the right of the space bar instead of two 1.25u so I had to use some keycaps from another set as placeholders basically lol. My keyboard has keys from 3 different sets lol so it's not the best-looking in terms of style but it's mostly GMK Samurai so I still love it :)
There are two band-aid mods! The one you show here, and another placing the cloth tape on the PCB where the sliders bottom-out. In conjunction with spacing washers to encourage bottoming-out of the stab sliders after clipping, the PCB band-aid mod can give stabs a very premium feel. Those same spacing washers can side-step the GMK / North-facing interference issue. Every vendor should stock them!
For me budget is less than $100. I feel like there is a lot you can do with $100 even tho there is so much stuff way overpriced in the custom mechanical keyboard market.
The very nature of building a custom keyboard is absent of budget. Most people who build them don't even use them for their intended function. Which is to type. It's purely an aesthetic choice. Therefor, the first thing to be cut out of any budget. Let alone a $200 one.
I've always wanted know how the gmk samurai looked on the drop alt because I have it, and finally I've seen it in this video , thank you! btw great vid
Keyboard enthusiasts are crazy 200 is not a budge keyboard the only time ive clicked on a video about a budget keyboard and it was remotely cheap was a video about keychron (i ordered a C2)
Hi Hipyo!! Just wanna thank you for introducing your bandaid mod method!! I tried the usual one where you stick the bandaid on the pcb itself (to remedy my cheap stabilizers 😭) and it kinda worked,,, But once I also sticked another small bandaid piece between the plate and stabs, it felt and sounded amazing!!
ok im watching this video, hearing that he spends 350$ on this built, next thing i hear is that "it is not perfect by any means" what more do you have to do to get an actual good board??
this is a typing test with the Razer blackwidow V3 TKL, i wish i knew more about keyboards before making my purchase after watching this video.... One day ill get a keyboard like this !! Great video
Meh. 3 pin, north facing LED, horrible stabs, overpriced. If you do enough mods it’s pretty good but if he got, for example, nk65 entry edition, it would’ve been better
We can include terms like baby shark and pewdiepie to really broaden the audience and then spice it up with some among us and Minecraft crossed with the hit new youtube sensation that is rust on the OTV server featuring twitch funny moments from jackscepticeye. I also have to mention music, asmr and markiplier that are all important terms here on youtube. Let us not forget of course the makeup and fashion community by referencing shane dawson and james charles. Now whilst this is COMPLETE GIBBERISH to most an algorithm is able to pick out the specific key terms in this post and promote it accordingly. So lets support the Kpop stans by mentioning bts and lofi hip hop. We can even talk about some other big channels like mrbeast and dantdm. For some reason in 2020 some of the most searched tags are game of thrones and avengers endgame... Let us of course not forget the most important things of the year like dunke peppa pig and roblox! Time for all the top current searches Among Us - online game, new song 2020, pop smoke and techno gamerz and tubbo smp! Time For todays new aditions in SEO too: Thanos, fifa, joe biden, inauguration, Tommy, sidemen, mod, update, rt game, yogscast, the spiffing brit, game, predator, fortnite update, fortnite predator, boss!
Im gonna be teaching my friend how to make a keyboard while having a lot of fun along the way, (awkward huge silent gap) (continues like nothing happened) we're gonna be lubing---
question from a newbie: Why use thicker lube in the stabilizers? There are metal components in switches (springs, clickbars), so it can't be due to the materials used. Is it for sound dampening purposes, or does the thicker lube provide some form of support to the stabs?
Hi Josh! I've actually considered checking out the ALT Edit: Only reason I was considering getting one is just because I like the look of the ALT HP, most likely would have just made a display board with it
I'm planning on getting a GMMK Pro post launch with Gateron Black Inks. It's going to be my first build, and I'm not looking forward to lubing and filming up all the switches. Luckily the stabs are pre-lubed screw-ins.
@@HipyoTech Oooh thanks, then id80 it is will build it with gateron milky yellows, do you think switch films would to much to the sound of the switch or should I just lube them?
Hey Hipyo, I subscribed a few days ago and have been enjoying the videos a lot. Just wondering, if you build the keyboards professionally, I mean take my order and $$$ and build one for me? :) Do let me know, I am stuck with HyperX Alloy Elite and the sound/experience is horrible, tried G915 MX Brown, bad sound consistency! overall I really want "Tock" in my life :)
As a person normally deeply critical of the Drop in-house keyboard lineup, this video was incredibly insightful and helped me understand how my own personal preferences developed.
Before this video, I believed the Drop in-house lineup of boards were all deeply flawed due to their north facing LED switch orientation and 3-pin design. Currently, if a new board features either one of these, I personally consider it an instant dealbreaker.
However, the main perceived faults of this board lie within serval basic assumptions that some enthusiasts make about the expression of the keyboard hobby. Let’s walk through this scenario, starting with the Drop Alt with stock Halo switches.
The board may be problematic:
-If you plan on regularly upgrading switches to 5-pin and own (or plan on owning) another board that requires the stability of the extra 2 pins.
-If you purchase GMK or other similar Cherry profile keycaps-AND if you are irritated by the sound/feel of interference.
Another consideration is the existence of switches that don’t seem to suffer from interference issues with Cherry profile regardless of LED orientation, such as the Holy Pandas, which can be considered a direct upgrade from the Halo Trues. Furthermore, as seen in the video, this board does not inhibit other enthusiast modifications such as lubing switches and tuning stabilizers.
My personal experience may not represent everyone else’s, but incremental modding and upgrades were the KEY, to me appreciating this hobby. I started with small things like adding grease to stabilizers, to case foam, to lubing switches on hotswappable boards, to entire customs. My current favorite board is a custom I built from various parts. However, an argument can be made that my board was also built upon the past keyboards I owned, all of which most definitely would not pass the scrutiny tests of this community. My tastes, preferences, and appreciation for quality are a result of experiencing imperfection.
I am increasingly unsettled by the community’s gatekeeping behavior surrounding the Drop keyboards, which are often gateway keyboards for thousands of people into this hobby.
Returning to video, I think this remains a beautiful keyboard that is completely understandable once context is provided. It’s unilaterally an upgrade from that g*mer keyboard Josh was using before. I hope he enjoys his upgrade.
Eloquently stated Thanks E1!
I think drop's offerings are starting to show their age at the price point, moreover if you're coming from areas of the world that have access to cheaper keyboards (ie: east asia). They were relevant back then, but honestly I look at people criticizing drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands to be just... criticizing. Sometimes it does cross over to being gatekeeping, but their source of frustration js the same: Drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands. They do have the capital to design a better keyboard, or even improve on some things that the community asked for (better stabs) but they didn't do it. Although it *can* be a decent keyboard with incremental upgrades (I'm using an Idobao ID80, so I know that incremental upgrades is important because that keyboard is pretty bad, but it's the only choice at that price point). For how much it's priced at, they could have given better features out of the box. It's quite frustrating to see it because of how much influence they have on the beginner market since they're Drop, yet they don't make keyboards that offers a better feature set for beginners, but hey, preference.
@@12345678946513 Thank you for the input, I agree with lots of the points you raised. However, "Drop's refusal to keep up with current community demands" is more complicated than the common belief that Drop doesn't care about its customers.
Drop's lineup is comprised of many north facing LED oriented keyboards, which is a downside for enthusiasts who are more likely to use high end GMK and cherry sets on their keyboards. However, Drop sells numerous variants of their in-house Skylight series of shine-through north facing legend keycaps. I'm stereotyping when I say this, but gamers tend to like RGB, and RGB backlight shines best through shine through keycaps like the north facing Skylight series. I'm assuming their Skylight keycaps have a relatively high profit margin due to production scale, so there is some logic to keeping north facing LED keyboards and north facing shine through keycaps in their lineup. Also, Drop sells their Holy Pandas, which has no interference with Cherry profile. If you were to build the most costly configuration for a keyboard on Drop, using their most expensive keyboard, keycaps, and switches, it would be a completely functional, and dare I say, gratifying build.
The target market audience for the Drop lineup might ultimately not be the same community that is most educated and passionate about optimizing enthusiast keyboards. This returns to my beliefs that this Drop makes gateway keyboards, bridging the gap between kitsch gamer keyboards and enthusiast boards. Their priority has probably always been the gamer over the enthusiast. That's why all these enthusiasts, who probably made the "community demands" you mention, are left unresponded to. We don't often see criticisms of the Razer Blackwidow for bad compatibility with GMK keycaps or bad stock stabilizers. However, the Drop stock stabs get far more attention. It may feel frustrating that we were so close to having an easily accessible, large-scale manufactured, decent looking, entry level enthusiast board, but if we look at it from the perspective of a gamer gearhead, the Drop board is far more reasonable a purchase.
I currently don't have a defense for why Drop hasn't added two additional pins to the PCBs for 5pin support. I assume that, just like everything else, it comes down to the money involved in designing a new PCB and introducing it into the manufacturing line and supply chain. However, gamers are probably not flavor-of-the-week switch swappers, and probably will not lose sleep if they are forced to clip switches.
Drop could make a wonderful hotswappable enthusiast keyboard, but their current plan appears to be working quite well, as they've sold tens of thousands of these imperfect keyboards. I do speculate that Drop may be producing a board for hobby enthusiasts, based on some of the decisions they made for the Carina, but we will have to wait and see.
Once again, thank you for sharing! I also use the ID80! Far from perfect, but its a better fit for me than any of the Drop keyboards personally.
The problem I have with Drop Alt besides the north-facing LED's, is that even with foam in my drop alt it'll still have an echo
I purchased this keyboard for testing switches and different lubes. I also wanted to learn how to do things properly before purchasing a soldering kit and investing lots of money into the hobby. As a starter board, I am extremely happy. I see what people are saying when it comes to some things, but the fact that the typing experience is such an improvement for me, these issues seem quite minor in retrospect.
Hipyo: "Do a soundtest of your own in the comments"
me: ok
keyboard: click clack click clack click clack click clack
🦛🦛
ruclips.net/video/_Y1fHMB0Dis/видео.html
@@rosa1848 stfu
@@authormc8907 shut
@@rosa1848 ok and?
Looks and sounds great!
Sadly, none of my friends are into keyboards. So I'm gonna be all alone modding my mk ;-;
Btw: I found some keycaps I like and will fit 65%!
Hi Josh!
I'm right there with you. I'm the only person in my immediate group of friends who is into keyboards.
@@FourStringL0B0 same big sad sad
@@FourStringL0B0 i get that hobby and totally would invest but there are such few options for german iso layout and having qwerty instead of qwertz is a bit confusing though the confusion might settle if you use the keyboard nonstop. i´ve bought an aukey keyboard at amazon black friday day for 55€ and for that money i can´t say bad things about it
0:40
"We originally started with a relatively small budget, of around $200"
Me: oh so im poor, nice
hipyo rock climbing vid when??
Its about 1 330 in my currency.
*AND YOU CALL IT BUDGET?!*
when your voice is smoother than the switches
but not hid voice crack.
@@emilyan414 you explained the topping out sound of all JWK switches
Smoothest line I’ve heard all day.
Istg i can sleep while listening to this guys voice. Its too good.
Him: relatively small budget $200
Me: relatively small budget $10
Edit: wooooahhhhh 700+ likes
300th like
@@undefined06855 316
magicforce 68 outemu brown, my best keyboard ever. i used to have a cherry g80 with blue switches.
Actual!
There is nothing "budget" about this -> clickbait
"replacing the stabilizers"
*removes the hovering mouse from the dislike button*
Love how he says a small budget of around $200 🤡
Welcome to the world of custom keybords, where everything below $500 may be considered budget
@@dmytrotsvyntarnyi799 my bank acc felt this comment
@@dmytrotsvyntarnyi799 yall got serious problems 🤡🤡
@@gangstaelegantproductions2780 ... I'm not saying that $500 is nothing for me or something like that. I'm just saying that the custom keybords are indeed really expensive. There are a few I saw on RUclips which cost $2000+. So this is just their actual price, and $500 is the price not of a top custom keyboard, but only of a decent one.
It's sad but true
@@dmytrotsvyntarnyi799 as a car enthusiast you get used to it
Hipyo: "I built my best friend a BUDGET keyboard!"
The budget: $350 USD
A budget keyboard is three hundred and fifty US dollars????
ikr, that was really disappointing -_-
@@Patata.yeeeeey it should be like 100
That's a fat clickbait indeed. Budget for a custom mech should be around 100, not more than 150
mine is literally 60 bucks also budget should be like 100 bucks
@@EarscrapperOfficial budget usually is 250 max
The GMK samurai set is imo the best looking japanese hirigana keycap set out there right now. I love that we finally have some more colors than black and white
its sad that the characters dont match the actual meaning
@@ryuujigoku6710 how so? Genuinely curious, since I just ordered a set. (prob never gonna use the sublegends anyway)
@@valentinstern4684 sorry I never got the notification so for example the e on the board is actually the i and the s is actually the u the 5 is actually the e so it’s not very correct but it is still nice to look at
@@ryuujigoku6710 it’s because it’s a different layout when typing with Japanese hiragana keycaps. It’s not the traditional QWERTY just swapped with Japanese characters, it’s the tradition Japanese hiragana
@@anas100x I know it’s in hiragana but the letters don’t line up
I was like "Oh nice, a budget video" then I heard 300 bucks and was "oh well" xD but atm I´m happy with my G815 I got for 120€ :D
dont but custom keyboards,
they are prebuilt keyboards but more expensive
I became friends with the wrong people lmao. No but this is great that you did this for your friend!
That board will not have cherry profile interference. Halo stems have long center poles and thus bottom out higher. That's probably why you weren't bothered by it.
watching this video made me feel like i had a friend teach me about lubing and all that stuff. good job!!
Great to hear!
@Ocherous we are your friends :)
@@broodjekaas820 broodje pannekoek
@@dem1seCS die heb ik nog niet eerder gehoord
Same cardinal, same...
hippyo: we're gonna have some fun along the way
also hippyo: we're gonna be *lubing some switches*
Hey guys! If you liked this video and want to participate in my weekly streams for 2021, make sure you join the channel!! ruclips.net/channel/UCXlDgfWY2JbsYEam2m68Hywjoin
Also! ✔️ Join my discord! discord.gg/eEK2JEWur2
Me: *looks at the thumbnail and sees GMK Red Samurai*
Also me: *Budget? Yeah right lol.*
Solid video my dude! When you're working with budget options we all gotta realize how often we have to make compromises somewhere. North facing switches happen and in that case, if it is an issue then use something other than cherry profile keycaps! I personally would rather never use plate mount stabs again but unfortunately, all 3 of my boards have them lol
I think it's all too easy in this community to be disappointed that I didn't spend +$800 to have a top-tier board with no objective flaws but the reality is that we should be able to be happy with even our GK61 builds. This is a hobby for a reason. I'm doing this to have fun and itch the scratch that I have for creating, not to impress elitist attitudes. The relevant keyboard creators generally do a great job at not spouting any elitism, something that forums aren't so great at doing. The man's drop alt looks fantastic! Just built my roommate a keyboard with gmk samurai as well
Very well said! Thanks for the comment!
Hi Josh!
Am a fan of the build, wouldn't buy the drop alt personally though.
Great video as always, really like the look of those new "information cards"!
youre telling me he never cleaned his razer keyboard.. oof
This makes me more excited for when my keyboard and supplies come in. Can't wait to go through the same build experience, great video
Have fun!
I am more of a gamer than anything else, and decided that I wanted to do some mods to my Drop ALT low profile. I lubed and filmed my Kailh Silver, added a KBD fans foam module and some EVA foam, lubed, clipped, and band-aid modded the PCB. I love this board now. I know that a lot of keyboard enthusiasts hate it for not being 5 pin, the expensive price, and integrated plate, but I love it (and I am not the type of guy that spends $600 on a keyboard).
To me personally, the GMK Samurai is my favorite good-looking keyset of all of them.
the gmk samurai disgusts me
why
Technicality is the key to building this board and to correct its flaws. However, I believe that the stabs and the higher price tag is what's deterring potential customer/s from purchasing this keeb.
I know that NK65 entry or alu, RAMA, KBDfans, etc. have similar or potentially lower offerings that many enthusiasts, snobs and newcomers to this hobby prefer. I've built this board with Holy Pandas (filmed and lubed with slight oil application to the springs), GMK red samurai (like yours) with no clearance issues, modded the stabs (OG stabs), added a sound dampening foam underneath to eradicate the hollow sound and this board shines.
I know in the keyboard community having a flex build is what sets you apart from the rest and it's the same as any other hobby (I collect shoes and watches) so Yeah, I very well damn know! but to the budget conscious newbie who wants to explore the rabbit hole and not want to wait months to a year for a "hyped" group buy then this keyboard in my opinion is what I'd compare to as an Omega watch or a BMW car - functional, good looking, machining is top notch with added flare and pizazz yet effective as a daily driver.
Well said
Underrated channel.
Absolute god tier commentary and filming skills.
Thanks!!
this video is simply amazing. the entire video going indepth of each process, the items, the time, was executed perfectly. keep up the great work
I got this randomly in my recommended and I'm not complaining
Wow your friend is lucky to have you as a friend
Lol I'm also getting my friend Josh a mechanical keyboard with those same keycaps I went with a tkc portico whenever it gets here with gat cap yellows
Good choice tbh
The gmk samurai kit on drop does not support all 65 percent keyboards. Would've been a nice fact to include in the video.
Yeah I built a 65% from KBDfans and it has three 1u keys to the right of the space bar instead of two 1.25u so I had to use some keycaps from another set as placeholders basically lol. My keyboard has keys from 3 different sets lol so it's not the best-looking in terms of style but it's mostly GMK Samurai so I still love it :)
@@JRskatrPvP i really wish they would include at least a couple more keys to support other layouts. It would look so great with my tofu65.
@@Brian-ln1sz Agreed!
Now I remember why I am subbed to you. Currently purging old channels from by sub box for less notifs, you are staying!
Thank you
'budget'
Its not
Wish i had a best friend like you lmao
I really like that build especially with that GMK Samurai keycap set! Also what type program is that, it looks really cool?
have You found that program?
5:52 the voice crack of a man trying not to piss himself laughing
You're friend sounds like he's being help at gun point the whole time
There are two band-aid mods! The one you show here, and another placing the cloth tape on the PCB where the sliders bottom-out. In conjunction with spacing washers to encourage bottoming-out of the stab sliders after clipping, the PCB band-aid mod can give stabs a very premium feel. Those same spacing washers can side-step the GMK / North-facing interference issue. Every vendor should stock them!
For me budget is less than $100. I feel like there is a lot you can do with $100 even tho there is so much stuff way overpriced in the custom mechanical keyboard market.
Those key caps looked nice and I was thinking bout getting them till I saw the 100$ it cost for key caps 🤷🏼♂️
The very nature of building a custom keyboard is absent of budget.
Most people who build them don't even use them for their intended function. Which is to type. It's purely an aesthetic choice.
Therefor, the first thing to be cut out of any budget. Let alone a $200 one.
I really don’t like 65% keyboards but this one is actually fire
Bro hi! I'm really low on budget and I really need a keyboard. My HyperX alloy fps core is kinda nasty-sounding. Pleaseeee...
budget keyboard for 350$... dude don't you think that if your keyboard is more expensive then a VR, it is not budget at this point?
I've always wanted know how the gmk samurai looked on the drop alt because I have it, and finally I've seen it in this video , thank you! btw great vid
Keyboard enthusiasts are crazy 200 is not a budge keyboard the only time ive clicked on a video about a budget keyboard and it was remotely cheap was a video about keychron (i ordered a C2)
Hi Hipyo!! Just wanna thank you for introducing your bandaid mod method!! I tried the usual one where you stick the bandaid on the pcb itself (to remedy my cheap stabilizers 😭) and it kinda worked,,, But once I also sticked another small bandaid piece between the plate and stabs, it felt and sounded amazing!!
what keyboard do u have?
@@dng7997 Rakk Ilis PBT! It's a budget (42 usd) mechanical keyboard from the Philippines
"budget" is extremely generous lmao, aint no budget keyboards with GMK keycap sets
I saw your Reddit comment and commented ily and I still love this was the fastest sub ever 👍
ok im watching this video, hearing that he spends 350$ on this built, next thing i hear is that "it is not perfect by any means" what more do you have to do to get an actual good board??
damn i need a best friend like that lmao
build me a cheap but compact simple green and white keyboard pls.
reason I don't have a keyboard -_-
You should have got him the burgandy case instead of the black case to match the gmk set
The black was on sale but yes I agree
this is a typing test with the Razer blackwidow V3 TKL, i wish i knew more about keyboards before making my purchase after watching this video.... One day ill get a keyboard like this !! Great video
loving the energy in this haha. eeh
i loved that part where he said
*ehh*
same
Hi Josh! Great video, got me hyped for when all my keyboard stuff arrives to build my first one. You just gained another sub :)
Thanks so much! Join the discord if you need some help!
How tf is $300 a budget build u can legit get a brand new Nintendo switch at that price like wut
That right index finger is working hard lol
Hipyo: Budget Keyboard
Also Hipyo: $350
Very good build ! Love the colors of the key caps, and it's overall sound is amazing :)
I love this layout but I really need the F keys for the games I play....
Hi Josh!
tbh i cant believe keycaps are more than 100 dollars D:
Drop alt (hp) is amazing. Cant beat quality for the price. Don't get the hate.
Meh. 3 pin, north facing LED, horrible stabs, overpriced. If you do enough mods it’s pretty good but if he got, for example, nk65 entry edition, it would’ve been better
Also, GMK on north facing leds = interference 😬
@@Instinct0425 I cover it in the vid, its not the biggest deal, but important to some!
We can include terms like baby shark and pewdiepie to really broaden the audience and then spice it up with some among us and Minecraft crossed with the hit new youtube sensation that is rust on the OTV server featuring twitch funny moments from jackscepticeye. I also have to mention music, asmr and markiplier that are all important terms here on youtube. Let us not forget of course the makeup and fashion community by referencing shane dawson and james charles. Now whilst this is COMPLETE GIBBERISH to most an algorithm is able to pick out the specific key terms in this post and promote it accordingly. So lets support the Kpop stans by mentioning bts and lofi hip hop. We can even talk about some other big channels like mrbeast and dantdm. For some reason in 2020 some of the most searched tags are game of thrones and avengers endgame... Let us of course not forget the most important things of the year like dunke peppa pig and roblox! Time for all the top current searches Among Us - online game, new song 2020, pop smoke and techno gamerz and tubbo smp! Time For todays new aditions in SEO too: Thanos, fifa, joe biden, inauguration, Tommy, sidemen, mod, update, rt game, yogscast, the spiffing brit, game, predator, fortnite update, fortnite predator, boss!
Thank you Larry, very cool!
Great vid as always
Glad you enjoyed!
I'm your friend. I swear. Can you build me a keyboard?
This is so good!! I love it 😂
Thanks!!
i dont think 350 , not even 200 is budget for a keyboard .
Im gonna be teaching my friend how to make a keyboard while having a lot of fun along the way, (awkward huge silent gap) (continues like nothing happened) we're gonna be lubing---
question from a newbie: Why use thicker lube in the stabilizers? There are metal components in switches (springs, clickbars), so it can't be due to the materials used. Is it for sound dampening purposes, or does the thicker lube provide some form of support to the stabs?
It's just to reduce as much rattle as possible generally the thicker the lube the better but you can over do it *GMMK pro*
just bought these keycaps and put them on my ducky, so nice
*small* budget = $200 bruh
My friend would have called me retarded and sold it 😂
I misheard the beginning as, "no friend of mine will go without aids"
Dude samurais are like 90$ 😭
Keeb youtubers are so rich that they consuder 350 dollar a budget
Really interesting video, the GMK Samurai for $90's seems like a steal!
Thanks for watching
Hi Josh!
I've actually considered checking out the ALT
Edit: Only reason I was considering getting one is just because I like the look of the ALT HP, most likely would have just made a display board with it
Personally I wouldn't use this Case or set of keycaps, I assume this is a drop sponsorship. not a bad board but not worth the money to parts
Nope not sponsored! Just curious, what would you build out for around $300?
I'm planning on getting a GMMK Pro post launch with Gateron Black Inks. It's going to be my first build, and I'm not looking forward to lubing and filming up all the switches. Luckily the stabs are pre-lubed screw-ins.
Budget Keyboard with Red Samurai keycaps that cost $100 alone 🤔
Clones are 40 lol
imagine he spills water on it lol (totally not what I did)
me watching this video while i play on a laptop.....
Hipyo: Says budget friendly
Also Hipyo the key caps cost 100$
Are you guys climbers? That looks like climbing finger tape.
Yeah!!!
Can.. I be .. your friend???????
Can i be your friend?
Another option to avoid interference is to use cherry profile keycaps with
Great point!
Then they sound thin
I thought he said no friend of mine isnt gonna have aids
lmao
Imagine thinking going from a full size to a 60% is an upgrade. Hipsters and their 60/65% boards have RUINED the enthusiast keyboard market...
i like having room to move my mouse and full sized kinda look funky
@@telluride_skier_gold947 I don't grasp the appeal of 60/65% boards when 75% boards are a thing. Why give up so much needed basic functionality..?
Would you recommend the Drop ALT over the ID80v2? I've been debating over these two boards for my first custom build some time this year
Prices are a bit different factoring in full builds, but I prefer a 75% layout so I skew twords the id80v2
@@HipyoTech Oooh thanks, then id80 it is will build it with gateron milky yellows, do you think switch films would to much to the sound of the switch or should I just lube them?
Definitely go for the ID80v2. Can’t go wrong with it.
This shit went smoother than the jfk assassination
Hey Hipyo, I subscribed a few days ago and have been enjoying the videos a lot. Just wondering, if you build the keyboards professionally, I mean take my order and $$$ and build one for me? :) Do let me know, I am stuck with HyperX Alloy Elite and the sound/experience is horrible, tried G915 MX Brown, bad sound consistency! overall I really want "Tock" in my life :)
this sound the same as my 50$ board !
Bộ keycap này đệp quá nhìn giống với red and blue của akko
That keyboard costs more than my 144 hz g sync monitor haha
Is it aoc
What a nice video! I learned a lot. Definitely I'll buy from yours links. Thanks for this video man!