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Anyone have experience with the Cloud Nine C989M Split Ergonomic Mechanical Keyboard?

Jan 9, 20212848 VIEWS

Looks like the best mechanical keyboard option for replacing my Microsoft Natural 4000. Cherry MX Browns, similar geometry, reverse tilt, etc. Does anyone have any experience with these?

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dvsDave

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dubbs117

Aug 30, 2022

I know this is an old thread, but I would like to share my pros and cons experience with using it after six months. Pros:

Ergos are comfortable for those suffering from RSIs like carpal tunnel syndrome or want to help prevent them
The wrist rest is padded which provides comfort when resting during typing sessions
Back lighting is easy to adjust and customize
The keys are Cherry MX, so they are good to go

Cons:

Construction quality is mediocre at best. The chassis on this unit pings so loudly on the rebound action of the keys. It's super annoying and pretty much impossible to eliminate. I have tried numerous mods to eliminate the ping noise to no avail.
The keyboard feet are fragile. The left side keyboard feet broke off just after a couple of weeks of use.
This keeb is THICK! It's very bulky, even the TKL version is. If you like low profile keyboards, keep looking because this one will not check that box for you.
The padding on the wrist rest is only attached by a small strip of velcro which does not fully lock the pads into place. The pads tend to wobble in place and make squeaky noises. Not good.

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Mkdk

Aug 9, 2021

I have used Ms 4000, sculpt and now c989 for 3 weeks. Typing experience on c989 is crisp and way better but this is bulky, takes too much space, unnecessary numpad on right and puts ur mouse even farther to the right.. I am having right shoulder pain because of mouse access, placing mouse in the middle doesn't work, now learning mouse with left hand. Macro keys are amazing addition. Cherry brown are more like linear than tactile. Hand rest feels slippery.. Is a good buy if less than $90.., if considering original price then other options such as kinesis, matias ergo, ergodox ez, keyboardio are better options imo.

(Edited)

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ThePatient

Feb 7, 2021

If you just want info on the C9, you can skip my post, but if the goal is to find you the right kb, my question is: What is it about the MS 4k you like and dislike and what do you primarily do with it? I don't have experience with the C9, but I used the MS 4k for years and the MS Sculpt for a lot of years after that. I very recently retired my Sculpt and am using an Ergodox EZ, Ergodox Infinity, and a Sofle Keyboard. I primarily use mine for windows and macOS programming, as well as PC gaming. The sculpt might not be a bad choice for transitioning off an MS 4k. It can do reverse tilt, has all the keys, and a mostly familiar layout. The difference will be in the key travel and detached number pad. I don't do a lot of data entry, so the number pad mostly collected dust. The collection of programming languages I use require pretty much the full set of non alpha characters though. With the Sculpt, I tended to rest my palms on the palm rest and use that as my anchor rather than home row or hovering. I love how light and compact the Sculpt is compared to the 4k. After a short transition period of using it, then going back to the 4k, I preferred the short travel and light touch of the Sculpt over the long mushiness of the 4k. It felt more like gliding over the keys rather than having to push like a typewriter. You may find yourself bottoming out for a while whatever keyboard you try next. Tactile switches (like the browns on the C9) will feel like home coming from the membrane on the 4k. Some have mentioned split ergos, and I think something like an Ergodox might be a pretty big jump coming from the 4k, but a plus for them is that you can configure them however you want. It looks like the C9 has a huge footprint given the split, numpad, and two rows of macro keys on the left. You don't need near as many macro keys when you can use layers on a fully programmable board. Most boards like this have a way to toggle a layer that makes the right side into the number pad or whatever you want. This offers the convenience of the numpad without the need for it to take up extra space or take your hand off the home row. Personally, because I am left handed and not all games allow you to rebind everything to the right, I have a layer on all my boards to map the right side as wasd. I just turn it on with a button press when I start. tl;dr:

Consider Microsoft Sculpt - shorter travel, separate numpad, more familiar than other layouts.
Ergodox good too because you can use layers to avoid needing numpad or macro keys.
Brown switches will feel familiar coming from dome whatever you end up choosing.

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toytaco92

Feb 4, 2021

Just got it about 3 weeks ago. Still a bit of adjustment (also came from 10+ years on the MS 4000) but I am loving it so far. My typing speed and accuracy has dramatically increased.

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slainbylich

Feb 2, 2021

go with an ergo split, like a dygma raise or an ergo dox. mx browns suck. the dygma raise has very good switch options, including options for gateron and kailh switches. ya go with cherry, you won't be so merry.

Sabrejack

Jan 21, 2021

tl;dr: it's good. I bought this keyboard specifically because I have decades of motor memory from my ms natural 4000 and its predecessors and I needed a 100% sized keyboard with all the keys in the same spots. It's a pleasure to type on, the MX browns are buttery smooth. It seems to have full n-key rollover. It is as close as you'll get to a mechanical ms natural at the moment. The downsides: It's huge, I think I'd call this a 110% keyboard. The switches are soldered in (to be expected I guess.) The left alt is way far left but you'll get used to it. You'll want the firmware that swaps the location of the fn and windows keys (and then swap the keycaps ofc.) There are a lot of hidden keystrokes not in the manual that you can find on their website. I have not found the knob useful and it took a little while to stop bumping it accidentally. The outer edge RGB is not customizable except a few color choices, or "rotating rainbow." The knob RGB is not customizable and is based on its current function. The wrist wrests are hard plastic. The caps lock key isn't stepped, so you might bump it accidentally for a while until you get used to it. But! When my first keyboard's USB-C port was loose (I suspect the solder), they honored my warranty and replaced it with little fuss. I respect the company greatly for that and would buy again. Edit: After a couple years.. I type all day for my job, the full body pinging/ringing is really starting to get to me. I was thinking about putting padding inside or something but another poster here says no modding helped.

(Edited)

toytaco92

Feb 4, 2021

SabrejackI disabled my caps lock key in the software on day 2 because I was hitting it too often. I never use it anyways.

rhpot1991

228

Jan 19, 2021

Drop has had Kinesis keyboard before, look at them if you want ergonomic.

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dvsDave

Jan 19, 2021

rhpot1991The kinesis doesn't have a num pad, that's a non-starter for me.

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rhpot1991

228

Jan 19, 2021

dvsDaveThey sell an external one. At first I missed it, but honestly it gives you a way better mouse placement without all those extra keys. Now I just use the top row most of the time and have the external one to move around when needed. Having an external numpad allows placement above my mouse as well.

djhankb

Jan 17, 2021

I actually just picked one of these up w/Cherry MX blues a few weeks ago. So far, I am quite pleased with the keyboard. I have used the Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite every day since the late 90's when it was released - up until last year when both of the ones I had finally started to show enough issues that I sought replacements. Wanting to go the mechanical route for a suitable replacement, I tried a couple standard layout boards, before I came across the Cloud9. I installed the Drop MT3 Susuwatari Keycaps, and it turned out great! It nearly matches the Microsoft layout exactly, while the MT3 keycaps give it a vintage "feel" despite it's modern looks.

Rayndalf

364

Jan 14, 2021

I have a few vintage boards with similar design elements, but that board looks really cool. The fact that each half is tented, but you can adjust the seperation angle make it both solid and adjustable. I kind of want one.

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