Drop CTRL V2 Mechanical Keyboard PCBA

At the heart of our new CTRL V2 is an upgraded PCBA with a host of enthusiast enhancements. Now, for owners of older CTRL models, we’ve made it possible to complete a true heart transplant. Meet the Drop CTRL V2 Mechanical Keyboard PCBA: a second-generation set of electronics for your first-generation CTRL. Included in this new PCBA are a host of improvements, including 5-pin switch support, a new STM32 chipset with better QMK performance, a range of RGB LED upgrades, and our Keyboard Configurator for on-the-fly keymapping. Learn more about some of these improvements in the sections below—and give your old CTRL a new lease on life.

Like the original CTRL, the CTRL V2 is first and foremost an RGB keyboard. That’s why, like its predecessor, it features a PCBA with north-facing switch sockets: to shine the most light from its LEDs through its onboard switches and keycaps. But with the RGB LEDs on the CTRL V2’s PCBA there’s so much more to love. For starters, we’ve incorporated all QMK LED modes into V2’s PCBA—a major upgrade from the limited number of options available on the first-generation CTRL. With the addition of these modes, you can now adjust the hue and saturation of mono color and animation presets right on the keyboard, allowing for more flexibility without the need to flash new firmware and settings. Also now included in the PCBA is built-in EEPROM, which eliminates the need for EEPROM emulation. This means that it will keep its current lighting setting, even if it’s disconnected and reconnected to a separate device. Even better: this functionality happens out of the box—no extra setup required.

Alongside the lighting, nearly all of the electronics in the CTRL V2 PCBA have undergone their own enthusiast evolutions. Most noticeable right out of the box are the reworked traces for a neater aesthetic. But once you get to building, you’ll love the support for 5-pin switches to accommodate a much wider range of typing hardware. There’s also the new STM32 chipset—a major upgrade from the original CTRL’s Microchip chipset, allowing for quicker implementation of new QMK features and updates. (VIA support is also included, with Vial support coming soon.) Finally, unveiled for the first time on the CTRL V2 is our revamped Keyboard Configurator, which now allows for on-the-fly keymapping without the need for separate flashing or other setup steps. (This latest version of our Keyboard Configurator is similar to the VIA configurator, but it offers additional security checks in order to ensure higher protection against malicious actors.) It’s the finishing touch to an attentive electronics refresh—all to optimize personalization and performance, from hardware to software.