I had switches and keycaps but kept going through case after case without landing on just the right sound for the office. I pulled the trigger when this dropped with the added foam and I am not disappointed. Sound is really great and quiet with my MX Browns (hand lubed). Now, just have to get one for home.
I bought the black case and I am loving it. This thing is loaded right out of the box. There was no need to mod it because I couldn't do any better than what is included stock. There is case foam, there is foam on the back of the PCB, so no need to add any sound dampening to the case (case is thin anyway, so not a lot of room) and no need to do a tape mod because the foam on the back of the PCB does the trick just fine. I normally add switch pad foam stickers to the top of the pcb, but no need for that because they included a sheet for that and it works great. Annnnd no need for plate foam, cause guess what... that's included too. If you are looking for a 65% case and don't feel like spending time modding and you like your switches to show, then this is the case you need to get. It sounds great. And if you prefer to mod it, then I'm sure that's fine too. I added some budget KTT Sea Salt Lemon linear switches and Durok plate-mount stabs (barebones doesn't come with stabs) with some double-shot ABS caps and it sounds great. I plan on getting some better switches, but I went with the sea salts because I had them and they matched the color scheme I'm going for with this one. But dang, it sounds great so I can only imagine what some inks or even milky yellows would sound like. But anyway, I am really enjoying this board and have already had a couple of people at my office tell me my board sounds good, so yeah. I plan to buy another in the silver colorway. Oh, and I almost forgot to mention another feature that is just fantastic which is dual usb c ports, one on the left and one on the right. Makes it so easy to connect anywhere you use it, and one of the ports you can use as a hub for anything that can be powered over USB 2.0. The details make this board sing. I've had trouble with changing RGB using just the hotkeys, but the software is fine.
This is my first mechanical keyboard. I went with this one bc it was a new refresh of the ALT and I was in the market to get one, and I knew of Drop from the days of Massdrop. I have really enjoyed using it so far. It's compact, which I prefer. Assembling switches and stabilizers was simple and easy. I like the movable magnetic feet on the bottom, though I have not changed their position and do not plan to. The USB-C ports on the back left and right are nice, easy to plug the keyboard in/out.
I get the impression, after a little more time reading how others feel and talking with friends, that there are other great alternatives to the ALT V2 and Drop. I do not have much to compare mine to, but the process of building up from the barebones state was quite satisfying and enjoyable, albeit simple. Now I have this fantastic keyboard to type on. The initial investment is a little steep but I have no real doubts this will hold me down for a long while. We shall see, I've only had it about 1 month thus far. I marked the "Feel" of the kb as stiff, if I understood this correctly (not sure I did) it is referring to the build of the device. There is no flex to it – it's got a solid feel and the metal casing is convincing enough for me. After getting a switch sampler pack, I went with the Drop Holy Panda x Clear switches.
As of right now, however, the online customizer that Drop provides, as well as the Keyboard Configurator software they provide, do not exactly work. I spent a while customizing using the online customizer, only for the exported file type to not be flash-ready, because the Keyboard Configurator expects a different file type for flashing. The software provides limited customization abilities, and it's not as good as Drop's online tool. This could be a shortcoming that is a result of user-error rather than some goofy inconsistency – if it is me or if/when it is addressed, I'll update my review. Outside of this small gripe I would say I am 5 stars satisfied!
Here are a few random photos (rear-view of keyboard, can see usb-c ports & bottom-view of kb, can see removable magnetic feet), I will add some to the photos section too!
cofoHey there, glad you liked building your ALT. Regarding flashing / customization, we did make a post here talking more about it.
It sounds like you were trying to use the online configurator to customize your ALT, that doesn't work. The online configurator is for V1 keyboards only while V2 keyboards use the configurator application.
i bought it for the LED. got addicted to how convenient and light it is, and how the magnetic feet can prop up from the top or bottom (personally i put it at the bottom). LOVE that it comes with ALL the foam. the colour options are sad BUT i am SUPER stoked that there are other colours to buy (tho really expensive). Hvae not been able to go back to my previous keyboard.
the top frame has a middle reinforcement beam that interferes with screwing stabilizer, you'll need to file the stabilizer down slightly with a nail file, easy trick, and then this case is perfect.