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GK64 Mechanical Keyboard Kit
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GK64 Mechanical Keyboard Kit
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Your ideal keyboard is waiting for you. The new GK64 Mechanical Keyboard Kit will help you build it Read More
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keyboard_arrow_downshawnp
29
Aug 29, 2019
If you’re looking to get into mech keyboards, do not get this board. It has a nonstandard bottom row, which makes buying cheap keycaps frustrating because none of them will fit properly. If you are looking to buy your first mechanical keyboard, try something like a gk61 or an Anne Pro 2
scottlu
346
Aug 29, 2019
Massdrop CTRL high profile is ok , low profile looks cheap. and the big key make clunky noise.
FireCharge
197
Aug 29, 2019
Uh... It's like 49 bucks base price on Aliexpress. There's also a bluetooth version over there that I bought alongside a wooden case rather than plastic for like 100 bucks. Go buy it there imo
louisefindlay23
24
Aug 29, 2019
FireChargeHave you got a link to the bluetooth version of the GK64 you mentioned? I could only find GK61.
FireCharge
197
Aug 29, 2019
louisefindlay23US $55 | GK64 S Kit de teclado GK64 GK64S caja de madera CNC placa PCB con cable Bluetooth 2 vendidos
https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/looDiOHa
Here's the one I got, everyone check out this guy's store he has a ton of the gk61 and 64 variables
FireCharge
197
Sep 6, 2019
Posted this on the other GK64 thread with the Sakura Keycap set, so why not here as well, my review of the GK64S:
I keep seeing people debate this keyboard and I thought i'd just give you my piece right here rather than linking to any other site or whatever.
TL;DR : Buy the board for cheap from AliExpress, test out the layout, then decide if you want to go for the full ordeal. However I do believe the other popular 60% boards are better (Like the Tada68 or DZ65)
P.S. There is a Bluetooth version available on AliExpress for the GK64 (called GK64S), which is the one I have.
LINKS: Boards: (Mine) GK64S (bluetooth version) on AliExpress (55-105USD) PCB = 55 GK64 (non bluetooth) on AliExpress (45-89USD) PCB = 45 Keycaps: (Mine) Moonlanding 1969 165 keycap set on AliExpress (65USD) Sakura Keycaps (129) on AliExpress (82USD) Sakura Keycaps (126) on KBDFans (86USD) You know where you like to buy your switches so on you go I was looking for something specific, so while I am going to be barking at the same tree everyone else is, I am taking a different approach as there are things here that are deal makers for me. For my new board, I had some requirements: A. 60-70% with a USB type C connector. That means I was looking on the DZ65, KBD67 and Tada68. B. I just wrecked a board (I had the RK61 from Royal Kludge, which I wanted to re-switch to Pro Burgundy, managed to burn out a connector), so I'm quite scared of doing that again to a board that costs about twice as much as that Bluetooth mech entirely, so I'll just go hot-swap here. C. Stay under 250 bucks for the entire thing, the less the better (I really want to get a DAP) D. ~ A Bluetooth option would be cool, as I've used the RK61 with my phone and laptop at work while it was also connected to my work's PC. So far, that would mean that I'm about to spend pretty much 75% of my budget for a barebones hotswap kit alone (the DZ65 with a Tofu case and aluminum plate and weight goes for around 185 on KBDfans or AliExpress). In the beginning I wanted 67g Zilents or Zealios but since I wanted a kit of 90 in case I decide to move them over to my GMMK tkl, that would mean this board is going to get to double the price I want. I settled then for the Kailh Box Royals which are slightly more scratchy with a slightly less pronounced bump but I do like them quite a lot. 90 For 45 bucks was great in my opinion so I went for that. (KBDFans) This would mean that I need a REALLY REALLY cheap 64keycap set. Honestly, the ones that come specifically for this board look way too generic and boring. I wanted to go for the Maxkey Miami SA or the Miami Nights, but the 'cheaper' options were still around 45-50 bucks (like the Tai-Hao miami set or an **etched (ew)** miami night set which did have all the correct keycaps though, but went for like 60. Heck, even getting a pre-made keyboard through KBDFans would cost around 245 bucks with ugly keycaps, so as much as this was a good option for me, I wanted to be able to swap the switches if I ended up not liking them as much or for whenever I have enough money to buy Zilents or something else that I'd like. Now, since I'm already over-budget, I started looking for a cheaper option. In comes the GK64. YES - IT IS ANNOYING, slightly, honestly, you guys should go listen to Z Reviews and instead of smacking everything bad about a product, start appreciating the things it does well. I'm used to tenkeyless. I've been using tkl boards for about 6 years now, ever since my first mech - the Corsair K60. The RK61 was the first 60% I've owned, and I was using it at work (for now replaced with the RG987 from Royal Kludge with Greetech reds) and I've grown mostly used to the 60% layout for typing, but when I used it to code (I'm studying NodeJS right now) I really missed the arrow keys - that's why I was looking for a slightly larger board. I still go over to the right too much to look for the arrow keys but I'll probably get over it in a few days. There are so many things wrong with this board, that even without being a day-to-day 60% keyboard user I can say that bother me: First of all, let's get all the frustrations about the software cleared up. It's terrible-ish. I mean, I've used purely Corsair and GMMK tools before as my RK boards didn't have software to re-configure them. The GUI is annoying and is clearly geared towards the Chinese market, but it has EVERYTHING you need, you just need to find how and where to do things. It's also quite slow to download the configuration to the board itself so it defaults to something, but to me that's acceptable. I took the time to go through figuring out the lighting a little bit, only to then disable it entirely. I mean, I'm going to use it wirelessly quite a lot, so let's just get rid of the main battery hog right away. Plus, the Moonlanding keycaps aren't even shine-through. Second, that weird 64 key layout: I thought about what could I use that weird key above the right arrow. Honestly, it's located in such a bad spot that I'll probably never use it, but I then decided to just keep it as default to delete, as I do use DEL sometimes over backspace (especially because you can't control fn+backspace as it's defaulted to the LED controls. JEEZ this software is annoying). Next, knowing that I gave up the extra 4 keys to the right which equals to home and end to me, I remapped fn+A and Fn+D to home and end respectively. One issue solved. Last but not least, the Shift keys conundrum. Left shift is a 2U. Annoying, but not a deal-breaker. It would mean every keycap set I get for this has to have a 2U shift available (so 126keys+ mostly), which is pretty much why I went with that expensive Moonlanding set instead of the Tai-Hao Miami (which was also out of stock). Also, the '1U Right-Shift' outrage needs to stop - I need one person to show up who presses it on any other key than the question mark or maybe quotation marks. And when you do press it - if you press it on the right side, man (or woman) you are a lunatic! I didn't notice a difference in my finger positioning while trying to press it so it feels natural for me. Great! Now, lets talk lighting, even though I don't use it. You have 5 different available lighting profiles on-board that you can set with the software (oh god not again). However - there are some things you can't control. First, Ralt is uncontrollable. Wait, what?! I hear you scream. Yup. Especially in connected 'offline' mode, You're bound to use this as a battery indicator. Caps lock does this as well, if it's on - LED under that key turns white, off is your designated color. Pressing function also does this, as the selected profile key goes bright while you're holding the Fn key to show you which layer you are on (Q is default, W, E and R show the 1-3 layers. OH! By the way, these are not re-mappable). Note that these are not the same layers as the lighting profiles, but function profiles. Another thing is, whilst it is good to have it available, the implementation of Bluetooth on this keyboard isn't the best. Pairing is slightly annoying, holding fn+z, x or c to pair to one of 3 devices. A short press on the two connects to said paired device, doing so again triggers it to go back to wired mode. This board doesn't use the best Bluetooth module, but at least it does have good connectivity as range within the same room for me wasn't an issue. Now, to the final question to rule them all - WOULD I BUY THIS BOARD AGAIN? Short answer: yes, but also no; for the long answer read this entire thing again. HOWEVER - I do recommend this *IF* you are limited by your budget and want a good looking, sturdy, hefty, hot-swappable board, even if you don't need Bluetooth. If not, just go with the Tada68 or something. I'm probably going to get the DZ65 in a few years to replace this one or the GMMK. Maybe I'll try a 75% instead. I don't know... The entire cost for this project tallies up to 209 bucks, however I got everything (Except for the switches) through AliExpress, so there were seller coupons and also a 7USD off coupon for each item seperately, so it ended up being 189 bucks (20 bucks less). Getting the DZ65 would've meant that I paid another 100 bucks for the board, plate, case and stabs alone. Something like that is going to come down the line, as I venture into higher end boards and higher end switches, but for now, with my limited budget, this is a good purchase in my opinion. In conclusion; just don't get it from here. Like 70% of drops since like 2016 (and I'm one of the third wavers to join MassDrop back at 2014 although I've been here even before, hiding in the shadows below the empty wallets), it's cheaper on AliExpress. If you are interested in this, go get it from there through one of my links above or just look for GK64 or 'hot swap 60% mechanical keyboard' wherever, you'll find it. As funny it sounds, note that the aluminum version does cost more than the wooden one on Drop, so please, do yourself a favor, and grab every part on it's own through one of the MANY keyboard part sites available. P.S. If Sakura keycaps are what got you interested, they are available through both AliExpress and KBDFans for quite cheap. Links up top.
LINKS: Boards: (Mine) GK64S (bluetooth version) on AliExpress (55-105USD) PCB = 55 GK64 (non bluetooth) on AliExpress (45-89USD) PCB = 45 Keycaps: (Mine) Moonlanding 1969 165 keycap set on AliExpress (65USD) Sakura Keycaps (129) on AliExpress (82USD) Sakura Keycaps (126) on KBDFans (86USD) You know where you like to buy your switches so on you go I was looking for something specific, so while I am going to be barking at the same tree everyone else is, I am taking a different approach as there are things here that are deal makers for me. For my new board, I had some requirements: A. 60-70% with a USB type C connector. That means I was looking on the DZ65, KBD67 and Tada68. B. I just wrecked a board (I had the RK61 from Royal Kludge, which I wanted to re-switch to Pro Burgundy, managed to burn out a connector), so I'm quite scared of doing that again to a board that costs about twice as much as that Bluetooth mech entirely, so I'll just go hot-swap here. C. Stay under 250 bucks for the entire thing, the less the better (I really want to get a DAP) D. ~ A Bluetooth option would be cool, as I've used the RK61 with my phone and laptop at work while it was also connected to my work's PC. So far, that would mean that I'm about to spend pretty much 75% of my budget for a barebones hotswap kit alone (the DZ65 with a Tofu case and aluminum plate and weight goes for around 185 on KBDfans or AliExpress). In the beginning I wanted 67g Zilents or Zealios but since I wanted a kit of 90 in case I decide to move them over to my GMMK tkl, that would mean this board is going to get to double the price I want. I settled then for the Kailh Box Royals which are slightly more scratchy with a slightly less pronounced bump but I do like them quite a lot. 90 For 45 bucks was great in my opinion so I went for that. (KBDFans) This would mean that I need a REALLY REALLY cheap 64keycap set. Honestly, the ones that come specifically for this board look way too generic and boring. I wanted to go for the Maxkey Miami SA or the Miami Nights, but the 'cheaper' options were still around 45-50 bucks (like the Tai-Hao miami set or an **etched (ew)** miami night set which did have all the correct keycaps though, but went for like 60. Heck, even getting a pre-made keyboard through KBDFans would cost around 245 bucks with ugly keycaps, so as much as this was a good option for me, I wanted to be able to swap the switches if I ended up not liking them as much or for whenever I have enough money to buy Zilents or something else that I'd like. Now, since I'm already over-budget, I started looking for a cheaper option. In comes the GK64. YES - IT IS ANNOYING, slightly, honestly, you guys should go listen to Z Reviews and instead of smacking everything bad about a product, start appreciating the things it does well. I'm used to tenkeyless. I've been using tkl boards for about 6 years now, ever since my first mech - the Corsair K60. The RK61 was the first 60% I've owned, and I was using it at work (for now replaced with the RG987 from Royal Kludge with Greetech reds) and I've grown mostly used to the 60% layout for typing, but when I used it to code (I'm studying NodeJS right now) I really missed the arrow keys - that's why I was looking for a slightly larger board. I still go over to the right too much to look for the arrow keys but I'll probably get over it in a few days. There are so many things wrong with this board, that even without being a day-to-day 60% keyboard user I can say that bother me: First of all, let's get all the frustrations about the software cleared up. It's terrible-ish. I mean, I've used purely Corsair and GMMK tools before as my RK boards didn't have software to re-configure them. The GUI is annoying and is clearly geared towards the Chinese market, but it has EVERYTHING you need, you just need to find how and where to do things. It's also quite slow to download the configuration to the board itself so it defaults to something, but to me that's acceptable. I took the time to go through figuring out the lighting a little bit, only to then disable it entirely. I mean, I'm going to use it wirelessly quite a lot, so let's just get rid of the main battery hog right away. Plus, the Moonlanding keycaps aren't even shine-through. Second, that weird 64 key layout: I thought about what could I use that weird key above the right arrow. Honestly, it's located in such a bad spot that I'll probably never use it, but I then decided to just keep it as default to delete, as I do use DEL sometimes over backspace (especially because you can't control fn+backspace as it's defaulted to the LED controls. JEEZ this software is annoying). Next, knowing that I gave up the extra 4 keys to the right which equals to home and end to me, I remapped fn+A and Fn+D to home and end respectively. One issue solved. Last but not least, the Shift keys conundrum. Left shift is a 2U. Annoying, but not a deal-breaker. It would mean every keycap set I get for this has to have a 2U shift available (so 126keys+ mostly), which is pretty much why I went with that expensive Moonlanding set instead of the Tai-Hao Miami (which was also out of stock). Also, the '1U Right-Shift' outrage needs to stop - I need one person to show up who presses it on any other key than the question mark or maybe quotation marks. And when you do press it - if you press it on the right side, man (or woman) you are a lunatic! I didn't notice a difference in my finger positioning while trying to press it so it feels natural for me. Great! Now, lets talk lighting, even though I don't use it. You have 5 different available lighting profiles on-board that you can set with the software (oh god not again). However - there are some things you can't control. First, Ralt is uncontrollable. Wait, what?! I hear you scream. Yup. Especially in connected 'offline' mode, You're bound to use this as a battery indicator. Caps lock does this as well, if it's on - LED under that key turns white, off is your designated color. Pressing function also does this, as the selected profile key goes bright while you're holding the Fn key to show you which layer you are on (Q is default, W, E and R show the 1-3 layers. OH! By the way, these are not re-mappable). Note that these are not the same layers as the lighting profiles, but function profiles. Another thing is, whilst it is good to have it available, the implementation of Bluetooth on this keyboard isn't the best. Pairing is slightly annoying, holding fn+z, x or c to pair to one of 3 devices. A short press on the two connects to said paired device, doing so again triggers it to go back to wired mode. This board doesn't use the best Bluetooth module, but at least it does have good connectivity as range within the same room for me wasn't an issue. Now, to the final question to rule them all - WOULD I BUY THIS BOARD AGAIN? Short answer: yes, but also no; for the long answer read this entire thing again. HOWEVER - I do recommend this *IF* you are limited by your budget and want a good looking, sturdy, hefty, hot-swappable board, even if you don't need Bluetooth. If not, just go with the Tada68 or something. I'm probably going to get the DZ65 in a few years to replace this one or the GMMK. Maybe I'll try a 75% instead. I don't know... The entire cost for this project tallies up to 209 bucks, however I got everything (Except for the switches) through AliExpress, so there were seller coupons and also a 7USD off coupon for each item seperately, so it ended up being 189 bucks (20 bucks less). Getting the DZ65 would've meant that I paid another 100 bucks for the board, plate, case and stabs alone. Something like that is going to come down the line, as I venture into higher end boards and higher end switches, but for now, with my limited budget, this is a good purchase in my opinion. In conclusion; just don't get it from here. Like 70% of drops since like 2016 (and I'm one of the third wavers to join MassDrop back at 2014 although I've been here even before, hiding in the shadows below the empty wallets), it's cheaper on AliExpress. If you are interested in this, go get it from there through one of my links above or just look for GK64 or 'hot swap 60% mechanical keyboard' wherever, you'll find it. As funny it sounds, note that the aluminum version does cost more than the wooden one on Drop, so please, do yourself a favor, and grab every part on it's own through one of the MANY keyboard part sites available. P.S. If Sakura keycaps are what got you interested, they are available through both AliExpress and KBDFans for quite cheap. Links up top.
Phlooke
198
Nov 21, 2019
FireChargeI have a brand new never used still in the box GMMK Tenkeyless Hotswap keyboard with Gatereon Brown rgb switches that's for sale (posted on ebay for anyone interested, unless you'd rather do a private sale using PayPal GandS to save ebay from screwing me with their taxes and percentages they take I'd be completely fine with that. Comes with everything that comes in the box, Keyboard, owners guide, instructions on macros/Aurora keycaps, Gatereon Brown switches (or I can swap them out Cherry MX Brown RGB switches if you prefer those for $25 extra), keycap puller, switch puller, black braided gold plated USB cable, Glorious PC Gaming Odin sticker, Aurora keycaps that (comes with the leftover keycaps from a full size keyboard set also has special keycaps that are used on 65% keyboards like the shortened shift key see all included). You can reply to this or shoot me an email at Phlooke@gmail.com, plugged in keyboard to show it works but it has never been used. $140obo
jdswhatwhat
273
Dec 9, 2019
Please don't show pictures of the board with keycaps if they arent available to order as well. I definitely would have purchased if they were though.
(Edited)
MyKnifeUrLife
7
Dec 9, 2019
I have had this keyboard for the last 3 years. I love it but would like to get a warning. The left shift key is an odd length. Please be warned that if you want nice key caps you will be having a difficult time finding anything that works or fits perfectly. Outside of that, the software is ok. It could be better, could be worse. The USB-C port does seem finicky at times, it is a little bit loose feeling. But like others have said, the keyboard is great for entry level. The case is sturdy and feels great. The hotswap pcb is great as well since there isn't a need to solder at all. Overall, I would say if you have a budget, if you are new to keyboard it is worth. If you plan to customize keycaps, are OCD about keys being perfect then stay away. I would say overall it is a 6.5/10.
FireCharge
197
Dec 9, 2019
MyKnifeUrLifeUhh... Honestly, while I do agree with most of what you say, there is a huge caveat:
This is an incredible entry level board with so many options available for cases on Banggood, AliExpress and even Amazon (and KBDfans I believe, if you want to spend more money peeps)
I've been using it for about 3 months and it's been incredible. I'm honestly not a sucker for the 64key layout and have yet to try a 67 key layout, but I've had a 61key for a while and grown accustom to the 60% layout and insane use of the Fn key (compared to the TKLs I've ran since I've first picked up a mech)
The main reason I decided to go for this rather than the DZ60/65/68 which also feature hotswap is the price. Except for the Tada/Tofu aluminum case options, they feature mostly the same case options, and honestly the wooden one that I've got feels extremely solid. I've connected and disconnected it plenty of times and have yet in the period of owning it had any issue with the USB type C, the auto Bluetooth can get annoying sometimes as it doesn't turn itself off automatically when disconnected, and it kinda comes back to life if we have voltage spikes or power surges while my PC is off.
Software is pretty limiting. Lighting-wise, it's great, but there are so many keys you can't rebind which got on my nerves. Thankfully it's pretty widely available so someone already modded the firmware and we've got some utility to rebind keys (Things as simple as fn+backspace remapped to del are so incredibly useful for a 60%).
Anyone looking for exactly that - I definitely recommend checking out https://github.com/pixeltris/GK6X
Other than that, definitely agree with you.
YJ93
117
Dec 11, 2019
MyKnifeUrLifeMore and more keycap sets have a 2u and 1u shift these days. Both the budget ones, as well as the more expensive ones. Some AliExpress sellers even sell sets specifically for the 64-key layout, just naming a few: KBDfans, KPRepublic and Idobao. I ordered a full PBT set from KBDfans during cyber monday for only €27 and it contains a 2u and 1u shift. MiTo had his Pegaso keycap project on here a while back (1.6mm PBT) and it had the proper key sizes for this layout as well.
So if you’re reading this and you’re interested in buying the GK64, don’t be afraid about not finding the right key sizes. In worst case scenario, you can even use a 2u “+” or “0” from the numpad.
MGDN
23
Jan 30, 2020
Why wouldn't you just buy this off Banggood WITH brown gaterons for $10 more... and get it in a week or so as opposed to sometime in May probably?
MGDN
23
Feb 5, 2020
Total Price: US$57.95
That's with Browns you could sell or trade, shipped. Got it in 3 days.
To each their own ¯\_(๑❛ᴗ❛๑)_/¯
FireCharge
197
Jan 30, 2020
Holy__cowNot this one, but there is a kit on AliExpress that has Bluetooth (Am typing on it right now). It has a pretty good connection and switches pretty quickly between BT and wired (Fn+Z/X/C)
confed
230
Aug 30, 2019
I have this with the silver, metal case. I love it but if I didn't have existing keycap sets that would fit, I could see it being an issue for some.
Others have pointed out the important pieces here such as the small changes to the bottom row of alphas and the smaller key sizes on the right hand side.
louisefindlay23
24
Sep 2, 2019
Thanks. I suppose the GK61 is better for buying keycaps but I do love the fact there's arrow keys on this.
confed
230
Sep 2, 2019
louisefindlay23GK61 is very much easier for keysets. The GK61 may have the right control/alt/windows key/? utilized as an arrow cluster. If not by default, it can easily be added. However, that could be odd since the control/windows/alt are 1.25u instead of the normal 1u.
As for the left shift on the GK64, I am using my keysets numpad+ since that is 2u. That is standard on most keysets. Bonus, you can use the 1u + key from the numpad area for your 1u shift. Then it will be consistent.
Filling in the 1u function key and 1u control should be easy enough. It just doesn't work with a color combination like the set you linked. Keysets with alphas as 1 color and modifiers as a different color will work fine. Here's a link to my GK61 with and without keycaps, along with my artisans: https://imgur.com/a/EhtGXrA#z9jvQkE
YJ93
117
Dec 11, 2019
If you want your GK64 PCB to be compatible with other 60% cases, like the super fancy ones that people with a GH60 or DZ60 have, you can order an aluminium or fiberglass plate (that both have the proper cutouts for plate mount stabilizers) that have holes in the right places, to mount your PCB to those cases.
I’ve ordered the fiberglass plate off of AliExpress from KPRepublic, hoping that it has a more sound dampening effect than the aluminium one. Plus, I ordered original Cherry plate mount stabilizers (€8, also off of AE) which - I’ve been told by the MK community - are way better than the off-brand OEM ones that are probably being sold with this kit.
(Edited)
spr0k3t
181
Dec 9, 2019
While the PCB is a solid board, the software is crap. If you want a 60 board with hotswap, look into a DZ60 or anything else that supports QMK.
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