New Cherry MX keyboards for the A500, A600 and A1200

[seb132]

I’m all in!
Although I think price will be a killer but I will use these on my high end machines. I have an A500 with Vampire, 2x A600 and 2xA1200 which will definitely be upgraded!
Good job guys!

Will the keycap sets be fully localised? I want French layout... :P

[kipper2k]

Originally Posted by seb132

I’m all in!
Although I think price will be a killer but I will use these on my high end machines. I have an A500 with Vampire, 2x A600 and 2xA1200 which will definitely be upgraded!
Good job guys!

Will the keycap sets be fully localised? I want French layout... :P

i think the demand will climb, atm i am treading carefully. A commercially made product will be higher as there are laws that then must be adhered to for import etc. Having this built by someone in your own country changes the rules to the benefit of the enduser and obviously reduces shipping costs.
The keys as far as i know are only available in the USA. In all reality unless you find someone who is already geared up to go (The company i am using already has all the molds), and you can muster up enough orders it will be better to buy from Aaron who should, be able to cater to peoples key orders later on. The company has a few fees for special keys, characters etc so i need to see what options, ultimately there is safety in numbers, put down your prefs and acceptable priorities and we will try to cater

[sean_sk]

I haven't had a chance to read the entire thread, but to help you out and to maybe take some of the production time and stress out of the equation, is it possible to sell all the parts together (incl. key caps etc) as a disassembled kit and allow the customer to assemble it? I'd certainly be up for putting my own keyboard together. I enjoy that kind of thing.

[kipper2k]

Originally Posted by sean_skroht

I haven't had a chance to read the entire thread, but to help you out and to maybe take some of the production time and stress out of the equation, is it possible to sell all the parts together (incl. key caps etc) as a disassembled kit and allow the customer to assemble it? I'd certainly be up for putting my own keyboard together. I enjoy that kind of thing.

Hi, that is what we will do, Aaron has an online store in the USA, and can sell in kit form, also i will be willing to allow people overseas (in moderation go through Aaron for supplies. I have already allowed 2 persons in the UK to begin doing this.
...

So i worked on the problem with the a1200 LED board sitting too low and i think i have problem solved.

Basically the lower board will have a breakable tab, when the board is intact it is set up as an A500, if you snap it off then it now allows the a1200 LED board to sit. Hooray!!, thanks to Indigolemon for the very simple solution, i was waaaaaay overthinking it.

Save the little board cos later on you can always add a male/female header and revert back to an A500.

Here is a pic...

[seb132]

Amazingly cool idea. Would be event better if the board was already split and the connectors welded in place... unless the connectors height or volume are an issue for the A1200 LED PCB...

[kipper2k]

Originally Posted by seb132

Amazingly cool idea. Would be event better if the board was already split and the connectors welded in place... unless the connectors height or volume are an issue for the A1200 LED PCB...

chances are once a person receives their a1200 set board they wont revert to an a500 so no point in increasing to the cost needlessly, just make it possible for them to do so.

[seb132]

True too... ::thumbsup

[mr_a500]

This is pretty frigging awesome! Great work, kipper2k.

With a drop in Cherry MX A500 keyboard, I could finally have doubleshot spherical keycaps on my A500! This is something I've dreamed about for decades.

I'd want at least two A500 keyboards (US layout) and one A1000.

Edit: This is the sort of thing I'm hoping to do:



(or black keys with blue modifiers)

[kipper2k]

so, who has broken case clips on their a1200 at the back, probably a few people, i will post the files for this fix later, it works like a charm

3d printed.







I'll print off lots and try to get them added to each order, also works on the a600

[seb132]

Doesn’t the A1000already have cherry mechanical keyboard? The 2 I have seem so...

[kipper2k]

Originally Posted by seb132

Doesn’t the A1000already have cherry mechanical keyboard? The 2 I have seem so...

i dont think they are cherry mx, pull a cap off, i dont think they are standard MX so finding replacements be very tough. i think they are called HiTek if i remember correctly

[mr_a500]

No, the Amiga 1000 has Mitsumi mechanical type 2 switches.

[seb132]

Well indeed but since it is a mechanical keyboard I believe the interest for this replacement solution should be low...
But I’d love it for A4k too, for sure.

[xterc]

Good idea selling this in kit form. I'd actually prefer this approach as it increases my attachment to anything that I assemble.

Originally Posted by kipper2k

Hi, that is what we will do, Aaron has an online store in the USA, and can sell in kit form, also i will be willing to allow people overseas (in moderation go through Aaron for supplies. I have already allowed 2 persons in the UK to begin doing this.
...

So i worked on the problem with the a1200 LED board sitting too low and i think i have problem solved.

Basically the lower board will have a breakable tab, when the board is intact it is set up as an A500, if you snap it off then it now allows the a1200 LED board to sit. Hooray!!, thanks to Indigolemon for the very simple solution, i was waaaaaay overthinking it.

Save the little board cos later on you can always add a male/female header and revert back to an A500.

Here is a pic...

This is great... look forward to learn more about it.

Thank you Brian for making these and for pointing me towards this thread.

Cheers,

[Steffest]

Originally Posted by seb132

Will the keycap sets be fully localised? I want French layout... :P

Originally Posted by kipper2k

put down your prefs and acceptable priorities and we will try to cater

I'm in too if French layout would be available : for both the 500 and the 1200.

[Mick]

Originally Posted by mr_a500

No, the Amiga 1000 has Mitsumi mechanical type 2 switches.

What's the closest modern day equivalent?

I've only had experience with the MX Browns on my current PC keyboard and I find they register a bit too easily, I've heard MX Black are the same but need more force to press down.

edit... apparently blacks are a bit different (smoother) but less prone to accidental key presses and such.

What are other people planning to go with?

[candyman]

I'd be interested in a A1200 MX keyboard.

[lmimmfn]

@kipper2k, any chance you could release all the info as open source if we pay extra or crowdfund or something?

I'm thinking in 10 years time we may be back in the same situation where our kb's are busted and there's no alternative

[kipper2k]

Originally Posted by lmimmfn

@kipper2k, any chance you could release all the info as open source if we pay extra or crowdfund or something?

I'm thinking in 10 years time we may be back in the same situation where our kb's are busted and there's no alternative

Hi, eventually i will release all my files when i have had enough, doing this project has taken MANY hours to get to this point, not so much the electrical side of it but also the physical side of it getting the boards to fit etc. Someone has actually released the schematic for the A500 keyboard so they are already available, i never used it. I took pictures of all the different membranes and manually traced everything. I have no doubt that this will be repeated by someone else. Remember this project is not just the one project but a few that has cascaded from the original membrane that i done,

The biggest problem you will find in 10 years will be getting new keycaps, that is where the cost is, trying to replace the original style of keys. I will release the info on where to get the keycaps once this project has ran its course. be prepared for a very expensive cost if not able to drum up a lot of support. I was very fortunate in finding a manufacturer who already has the moulds for all the key sizes we need hence the quick project turnaround time or it would have been a very long haul like other similar projects. Unfortunately for our pocket book the manufacturer is in the USA and not China where the manufacturing cost would be approx 30% less. If i had abandoned the authentic look then prices would be lower as there are quite a few mainstream companies that cater to the PC industry.

the Cherry MX switches are almost $40 USD a set and i was shocked that i was offered no discount from their website price if i ordered 10,000 switches. The knock off switches in China are $15 a set (Ali express) which other projects use for their keyboards, but i really didn't want to go through the waiting game hassle waiting for the parts to arrive and not certain of their quality, for those people that want to go this route then it is entirely up to themselves. As i have said before, if people can help by finding alternative cheaper pricing for the parts then i will see if we can implement it.