Recommendations for buying a new keyboard?

[Spiller]

One thing which have always annoyed me is that my current (and my previous) keyboard can't do Hands on the arrow keys properly. I have considered getting a new keyboard for like 1-2 years now but I'm still stuck with this one...

There have been two things primarily which have been holding me back:

1. I want low keys like those found on laptops, and few gaming grade keyboard have this
2. I can't find confirmation on that exactly the arrow keys can all simultaneously pressed. Most seems to focus on the WASD keys and tells nothing about the rest of the keyboard.
3. I also want one with American layout instead of Nordic, but nobody sells them around here...

The best candidate I have found so far is the Razor Lycosa, but it is pricey considering that I can't be sure it actually solves my problem.

So does anyone know any good keyboards which you know supports QUADs on the arrow keys, or any hints on how I can confirm that a certain keyboard does support it?

[BerryPunch]

Any gaming keyboard should feature anti-ghosting for at least 15+ keys... So there shouldn't be any issue with pressing the 4 arrow keys at the same time.

Personally, i have a SideWinder X4, very very few lag (cause saying no lag is wrong), and anti-ghosting up to 26 keys, with some macro features too, cheaper than the razor lycosa.

[Bloodyy]

http://www.logitech.com/keyboards/keyboard/devices/4740 This supports quad's on the arrow keys, and if you ever want to switch to playing spread, it's a great keyboard for spread.

[Housekeeper]

http://www.logitech.com/keyboards/keyboard/devices/4740 This supports quad's on the arrow keys, and if you ever want to switch to playing spread, it's a great keyboard for spread.

yess

[AetherFlaer]

tempted to buy this too... still using the stupid free keyboard that came with my computer. Might get this when I save up some money after D3 comes out.

[Spiller]

Any gaming keyboard should feature anti-ghosting for at least 15+ keys... So there shouldn't be any issue with pressing the 4 arrow keys at the same time.

I have a so-called gaming keyboard and as you hear I'm still having issues...

http://www.logitech.com/keyboards/keyboard/devices/4740 This supports quad's on the arrow keys, and if you ever want to switch to playing spread, it's a great keyboard for spread.

Could be worth a try, I doubt that I will every play spread through ; )
However I have heard the keys have a tendency to pop off without you being able to put them back on, do you have any experiences with this? It could be quite a problem because I use sliding quite a bit when playing with 2 fingers...

[SkRAWRk]

To be honest, I doubt the Razer Lycosa won't have anti-ghosting on the arrow keys. But there's a lot of hate for Razer floating around lately, so... 'eh. Have you considered trying a mechanical keyboard?

[Spiller]

I have considered a mechanical keyboard, especially since some of my friends have some and really recommend them for writing. I would probably end up importing one anyway, so getting a US layout keyboard should be quite possible too. However you can't get a mechanical keyboard with slim keys and I can't play properly with high keys so it is out of the question for this. : \

I really want to avoid having to use multiple keyboards, but it seems to be difficult to avoid it. I'm considering the Logitech Illuminated keyboard as it should be good to write on too, I'm just a little worried about the key-caps being ripped off when sliding...
I have also considered trying to modify an old keyboard of mine, rerouting some of the lanes so that the up arrow key would map to some other key. I'm not sure how well it would work out, but hey, I'm not using that keyboard anyway, it can't hurt to experiment a little.

[kisler]

Oh yeah, speaking of keyboards...any good ones that connect by USB? I have a cheap one with a PS/2 port only; perhaps it would actually be more worth it to buy some kind of PS/2 to USB adapter?

This would just be for typing, not playing, but it's mostly a question of affordability.

Wow, I wish I had something else to lend to this thread. My keyboard of choice for playing is a free one from Dell. I recall it handling quads on the arrows just fine, though I might have worn that out with use. :P

e: By "free" I mean it came as a pack-in with a computer, but I couldn't think the keyboard itself would cost much more than $15.

[Charlo]

I don't think they make keyboards that connect via PS/2 anymore. According to the all-knowing Wikipedia, the PS/2 port was actually designated as "legacy" as far back as 2000, and USB is preferred for connecting mice and keyboards.

As for the question at hand, I wouldn't recommend a mechanical keyboard unless you really enjoy "clicky" keys. I find that pressing mechanical keys takes slightly more effort than a standard key, but that might just be because I have very scrawny fingers.

I'm currently using a discontinued Logitech keyboard (the Media Keyboard Elite) and it's been working great for six years now. Other people seem to enjoy their Logitechs for rhythm gaming.

[Spiller]

Wow, a PS/2 keyboard nowadays... But yeah, the first keyboard I had which came with my computer also supported quads, however that was 4-5 years ago I last used that one and I couldn't play keyboard charts back then anyway...

As for the question at hand, I wouldn't recommend a mechanical keyboard unless you really enjoy "clicky" keys. I find that pressing mechanical keys takes slightly more effort than a standard key, but that might just be because I have very scrawny fingers.

From my two friends I found out that a mechanical keyboard is not just a mechanical keyboard, it is a science for itself. Depending on the force and noise level there is a variety of different key switches with each their properties, and o-rings and shit... You can probably get exactly what you want if you is ready to pay for it, as long as it is high keys...


Anyway, bought the Logitech keyboard today and had a quick test of it. It is a bit funny, but it does support Quads as claimed. I also tried the numpad and I could get up to 6 keys at once, which is great since I started on some one-handed 8-key play using the numpad.
Quick comparison with scores:
steelseries 3G:

Logitech Illuminated Keyboard:

Song contains 125 hands of 665 notes. I not used to this keyboard and didn't do a proper warm up, but the difference is still quite noticeable.

So now I have 4 logitech devices on my desk: keyboard, mouse, speakers and webcam...