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thnikk's Osu! Keypads [Development]

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Topic Starter
Thnikk
Hello everyone! Just posting a quick update before a bigger one later in the week.

-I've added a guide for reprogramming a v2 keypad and worked on the pages a little bit to clean them up. I would still like to get some images for the guide, but I haven't had the time. I'll try to get it finished by the end of the week, but it is actually usable right now. The link in the OP will take you to the page where there's now a button linking to the v2 guide.

-I'm looking at generic Pro Micros to potentially replace the Teensy LC with in my v2 model. My main reason for this is that I don't think there's enough of a difference between the v1 and the v2 to justify the v1's continued existence, so I'd like to phase it out and have it be completely replaced by the v2. There are some cheap $5 pro micros available through ebay, but I'd like to find a reputable supplier that could sell them for about the same amount as a trinket. The basic and basic+ will still always be available, but I'm thinking about taking out the no keycaps option and combining the two into one listing to make things a little simpler. If this happens, the price will probably just stick with the price for the no keycap versions of both respectively.

-I've been working a lot on the new RGB design, and I think I'm settled on almost everything. I'd still like to do a lot of prep work and bug squashing before I make if available, but the time I have before the Gateron switches come in (shipping on the 28th I believe) should be more than enough to get everything ready.

The big update is going to be all about the RGB keypad and I'm waiting for one more part to come in before I write up my post with pictures and hopefully a new video, so you can expect that by Thursday or Friday.

Pituophis wrote:

love the keypad I got from you. I also love the Gateron switches. :D
Glad you like it and thanks for the +1! Maybe it's just becuase I used them in the product shots but there are a few more people going for them now which I'm very happy to see.
Box-_old
nice i will buying a few soon! (yes more then one :p i brake stuff easily)
Sytarno
I love this keypad, been using mine for about a month now and I haven't had any problems so far.
(holy crap this tape is amazing, its fully reusable)

I'm using a v1 keypad with gateron clears.
Topic Starter
Thnikk
RGB osu! Keypad



Four new lighting effects
 Cycle: Cycles from red>green>blue and back around.
 Fade out: LEDs on when nothing is pressed. When a key is pressed, LED turns white. When released, it fades to red>green>blue>off
 Push off: LEDs on when nothing is pressed. When a key is pressed, LED fades to red>green>blue>off.
 Custom: When the side button is held down for over 1.5 seconds, you can hold a key down and it will cycle through the colors. When you let go of the key and stop holding the side button, the keys are set.

New side key functionality
 If the key is held for less than half a second, it will function as escape (or what you remap it to)
 If it's held for more than half a second but less than 1.5 seconds, it will move to the next LED mode
 If it's held for over 1.5 seconds on the custom LED mode, it will let you set the LED colors

Settings saved with EEPROM
 If you set the LED mode or the colors in custom mode, it will save to the device when you unplug it and reload your settings when you plug it back in!

New Gateron switch options
 Since these have to use gateron switches for the clear housing, I wanted more options for switches. When this model goes up, reds, blacks, browns, and clears will all be available, giving options matching what I have on the Cherry front (except for blues.)


One other things to note: I'm only planning on selling these with the transparent keycaps shown off in the video for now. Glow in the dark may come in the future, but I don't want to go through the trouble of manually adding all of the other keycap options to the page and deal with the additional stock management when I don't think the colored keycaps are even going to look good on this model. You'll still be able to pick up additional keycaps with the keycap listing on the shop.

Scheduled to come out late May/early June


Box- wrote:

nice i will buying a few soon! (yes more then one :p i brake stuff easily)
I'd be surprised if you could manage to break one but I have no objections :P

Sytarno wrote:

I love this keypad, been using mine for about a month now and I haven't had any problems so far.
(holy crap this tape is amazing, its fully reusable)

I'm using a v1 keypad with gateron clears.
Glad it's been working out for you and thanks for the tape testimonial. I've added more info to all of my Etsy pages so hopefully people will know you can actually clean it now :?
Pituophis
This was a few days ago, but Thnikk provides excellent customer support. :)
I had an issue with one press registering multiple clicks. He did everything he could to help me.
In the end, I found out on my own that it seems the o-ring(I believe it reduces the key's travel distance by 0.4 mm) was keeping the key on the edge of pressed and not pressed so when I pressed down it would register as multiple clicks. Removing the o-rings fixed it and hasn't ever registered multiple clicks from one press since.
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Pituophis wrote:

This was a few days ago, but Thnikk provides excellent customer support. :)
I had an issue with one press registering multiple clicks. He did everything he could to help me.
In the end, I found out on my own that it seems the o-ring(I believe it reduces the key's travel distance by 0.4 mm) was keeping the key on the edge of pressed and not pressed so when I pressed down it would register as multiple clicks. Removing the o-rings fixed it and hasn't ever registered multiple clicks from one press since.
Here's a small update to the o-ring situation.

I'm switching from wasdkeyboards 40AR o-rings to clear ones from ebay. This is both as a cost saving measure and a choice ofut of preference. I took keycaps off an older keypad today and found remnants of blue rubber on top of the switch, something that could make its way into the switch pretty easily and gunk it up. For the somewhat outrageous $20 per pack of 120, they aren't something I really want to use anymore if this is a potential issue.

On the other hand, these clear o-rings from ebay offer a few positives. I can put them on any keycap and they won't make a visible colored ring, which will work particularly well with the transparent keycaps, they're more firm which results in less of a feel difference but the same reduced travel and sound dampening, and the firmness should also contribute to less "rubber rubbing" resuting in less drebris.

They're also a little bit smaller. This is good, because using multiple 40-ar wasd o-rings in one keycap caused occasional issues (like in Pituophis's case) with being too big to offer granular enough steps of travel distance. What does this mean and why would you need multiple o-rings in one keycap?



Almost all of my keycaps DO NOT have the scructural pieces that hold the stem in place. This isn't bad for the keycaps as they're only necessary with the use of thinner plastic, but it does mean multiple o-rings need to be used per keycap instead of just one for them to actually be doing anything, since bottoming-out refers the switch, not the keycap.

In summary, the change should result in:
A cleaner look for the inside of the keycaps, which is more important for any transparent keycaps
No unexpected debris gunking up the switches
Reduced travel and sound without making the switches feel too soft
No keys not registering because too much reduced travel from o-rings

They are of course still removable so if you don't like the feel you can just take them out.
Wingler
Have you tried using soft-landing pads on any switches yet?
Something like this could be a good alternative to O-rings altogether.
I haven't tried using these with osu so they may not be good gameplay wise but regular typing does the job.
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Wingler wrote:

Have you tried using soft-landing pads on any switches yet?
Something like this could be a good alternative to O-rings altogether.
I haven't tried using these with osu so they may not be good gameplay wise but regular typing does the job.
I've considered it, but these pose the same issue with the lack of posts on the stem as o-rings do with the caveat of not being able to reliably stack them. I'll still probably try them on one of my personal keypads to see if there's that much of a noticeable difference within the next few weeks. They do look like they'd do a better job with sound dampening.
The Gambler
Well, you might be facing some competition now as techkeys had released a new keyboard. Check it out:
http://techkeys.us/collections/accessor ... eekeyboard





^^ If you're asking, it's legit from the website.

They use gateron browns, and seem competitively priced as well.
Parasyche

dagambler999 wrote:



^^ If you're asking, it's legit from the website.
you can't forget this use for the keypad ~ I laughed a little too hard at it.

The Gambler

Parasyche wrote:

you can't forget this use for the keypad ~ I laughed a little too hard at it.

Nahh, I have a big, red Staples "Easy" button that does it for me. It's also a surprisingly fun project to do.

OT: The plate mounts look like machined aluminium. That and rubber feet and this is a surprisingly solid build. I have yet to purchase thnikk's keyboards but this quality is insane.
FieryLight

dagambler999 wrote:

Well, you might be facing some competition now as techkeys had released a new keyboard. Check it out:
http://techkeys.us/collections/accessor ... eekeyboard





^^ If you're asking, it's legit from the website.

They use gateron browns, and seem competitively priced as well.
There is absolutely no competition.

Techkeys is selling a keyboard with no USB connector for $48. It uses Gateron Browns (merely inferior Cherry MX Browns) and likely has only 125Hz polling. The separate cable costs $23 from them. That's $71 for a 3 key keypad.

By contrast, a Thnikk keypad has 1000Hz polling, a wide variety of switches (including the popular MX Red switches as well as the interesting Gateron Clear switches (essentially Reds that require less force)) and only costs $36.
The Gambler

FieryLight wrote:

There is absolutely no competition.

Techkeys is selling a keyboard with no USB connector for $48. It uses Gateron Browns (merely inferior Cherry MX Browns) and likely has only 125Hz polling. The separate cable costs $23 from them. That's $71 for a 3 key keypad.

By contrast, a Thnikk keypad has 1000Hz polling, a wide variety of switches (including the popular MX Red switches as well as the interesting Gateron Clear switches (essentially Reds that require less force)) and only costs $36.
True, but that plate mount though.. I know that you could use teensy boards for thnikk's keyboards in order to do 1000Hz but again, that build quality for the techkeys KB is nuts.

If I had to make a comparison (pardon my overly blunt analogy), it's like PC vs Mac. Getting the job done vs. pure luxury. Besides, I think techkeys is selling this assuming we already have micro-USB cables anyway.

Anyway, I'm not here to start a fight. I'm just letting thnikk know the latest word from the grape vine. I'd say thnikk has balls to do this anyways so there's my credibility as an opinionist out of the window.

EDIT: The techkeys board retails for 58.97 CAD while the thnikk board retails for 44.20+ CAD. I'd say those are both fully decked out models (LEDs vs. aluminium plate). Idk if the thnikk board ships with a cable though.
Topic Starter
Thnikk

dagambler999 wrote:

True, but that plate mount though.. I know that you could use teensy boards for thnikk's keyboards in order to do 1000Hz but again, that build quality for the techkeys KB is nuts.

If I had to make a comparison (pardon my overly blunt analogy), it's like PC vs Mac. Getting the job done vs. pure luxury. Besides, I think techkeys is selling this assuming we already have micro-USB cables anyway.

Anyway, I'm not here to start a fight. I'm just letting thnikk know the latest word from the grape vine. I'd say thnikk has balls to do this anyways so there's my credibility as an opinionist out of the window.

EDIT: The techkeys board retails for 58.97 CAD while the thnikk board retails for 44.20+ CAD. I'd say those are both fully decked out models (LEDs vs. aluminium plate). Idk if the thnikk board ships with a cable though.
It does.

I'm with FieryLight in not really viewing this as competition. You're essentially paying for a piece of aluminum. I wouldn't even agree with the mac vs pc analogy. For the sake of equal scrutiny:

It's using what appears to be simple plastic tubing for elevation, leaving very little surface area in contact with the table/desk. This wouldn't be as much of a problem if they were rubber coated or sticky, but they're not. With the way people play osu and considering the not-too-heavy weight of the aluminum, it's going to move around a lot and there's not much you can do about it.

If the polling rate is 125hz and we're really comparing apples to apples, it's $31 for a v1 and $48 for this. Mine comes with a cable so it actually works out of the box. $5 more will get you the 1000hz model with cool lighting effects 8-)

I don't even think the PCB is worth the price. $12 for two of your switches being half-mounted to the PCB. You're better off picking up a trinket for $7 and whatever plastic housing.

The housing is nice, but I think the branding is a bit much.


I actually saw this yesterday but thanks for posting. I do think it's a cool concept, but the "perfect for osu" part seems like an afterthought the owner of techkeys thought up after seeing the noodlefighter thread and the few people using the techkeys business cards. They'll still do well without my endorsement thanks to that linustechtips video.
Shiyzo
Aaa this is so cool I want one x3 too bad i dont have money
The Gambler


I think you've also seen this as well. If you could negotiate with WASD and get those steel backplates in bulk, I think it would be nice as well. Or the DIY solution would be to buy 1-inch C-channel metal struts and carve the mounts with the dremel. Idk, just throwing it out there too.

P.S. Pardon the resize fail. I don't exactly know how to resize photos on the forums.
drum drum

dagambler999 wrote:

P.S. Pardon the resize fail. I don't exactly know how to resize photos on the forums.
it resizes it for you
The Gambler

drum drum wrote:

dagambler999 wrote:

P.S. Pardon the resize fail. I don't exactly know how to resize photos on the forums.
it resizes it for you
I wanted it smaller but idek how to edit. Meh I guess it's good enough.
Wingler

FieryLight wrote:

It uses Gateron Browns (merely inferior Cherry MX Browns
:(
The only competition with techkeys is if you bought this, soldered your own switches, and applied 3m tape on the bottom.
Though it would be cheaper (excluding shipping costs and whatnot), it wouldn't have LED support, would be somewhat uncomfortable to rest your fingers on, and would take effort to apply switches and program buttons.

But anyone who's willing to go this far has probably made their own already, so no big deal.

dagambler999 wrote:

I think you've also seen this as well. If you could negotiate with WASD and get those steel backplates in bulk, I think it would be nice as well.
Considering that fact that he's planning on dumping WASD's O-rings, I don't think there's much of a chance to get those backplates.
Also I'm pretty sure that the teensy is a tiny bit too large to fit in those anyhow.
Topic Starter
Thnikk
I don't really have any problem with WASD. They've been very nice to me but their switch prices are higher than other places and now that I've tried o-rings that cost over 10x less and work better I'd never spend another $20 on theirs again.

Wingler wrote:

Also I'm pretty sure that the teensy is a tiny bit too large to fit in those anyhow.
This is my thought. I'm definitely interested in trying it out though. Coupled with some u-channel rubber this could actually work pretty well.

I'd have to mount the teensy to the side (there may be a better solution but this would just be for the prototype) so it would need to be tall enough to accommodate that and a little more for the rubber. I guess the side button could just be mounted to the front, though without sticking to anything you'd just push it back. After I release the rgb keypad I'll probably go straight into trying this out.
Topic Starter
Thnikk
All keypads are going to be down for the next couple of days after the basic+ I have up is gone. I'm out of trinkets and Adafruit is too... so the basic(+) and v1 will be back up whenever those come back in stock. The v2 will be back up first hopefully alongside the RGB model.

Everything's gone pretty smoothly so far. The Gateron switches came in today and they all feel great. The code is at 99% with all of the bugs I've found decimated and thoughts of some other features.

One more feature has been added since the last update that allows you to hold the side button down for 6 seconds to change the button mappings from z and x to c and v. You can still change all of the mappings by editing the code (explained in my remapping guide) but this is for people who already have a keypad like a basic and want the newer model for the lighting effects and would like to use the combo to play taiko and 4 key osumania.
Sytarno
Hey guys, the osu store's got something new coming soon. http://new.ppy.sh/store/product/20
Is everyone ready for the competition?
FieryLight

Sytarno wrote:

Hey guys, the osu store's got something new. http://new.ppy.sh/store/product/20

Alright. This is the REAL competition. It's most definitely noodlefighter's amazingly built keypad since peppy even calls it (in quotes) the "nono" keyboard which is also what noddlefigther calls his (see http://noodlefighter.com/Osu_Keyboard.html ). 1000Hz, 3ms latency, $40 now, $30 later.... Thnikks, you gotta find a better price point to compete =P Plus these look just gorgeous. I hope the software noodlefighter made for it works too. There's some really awesome customization in there.

Thanks for sharing Sytarno =)
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Sytarno wrote:

http://new.ppy.sh/store/product/20
new.ppy.sh huh... why is that?

I like it except for the seam between the two pieces of aluminum on the top and the anodized finish. It reminds me of a 3DS case I got off dealextreme.

One thing to note about mine in regards to software is that I've worked very hard for no software to be necessary. I would like for any adjustments to be able to be made from the keypad without the need for any additional software, eventually even button mappings if possible. This is the one feature of the techkeys keypad that I really like and would like to adopt. Unfortunately, this likely means that the cool pulse to bpm thing will never exist on my keypads.

I do plan on adjusting prices within the next month after I release the RGB model and have more time to source different parts (mainly the pro micros for the v2.) At that point, the v1 will be gone and the v2 will take its place at $30, but it's hard to say when that will be. Probably sooner rather than later knowing me.

The RGB keypad will be coming in at $40 at the start and drop to $35 after the price drop of the v2.

Depending on how everything goes with the aluminum, I might switch to that if it's viable or at least offer it as an option. I'm going to try to get ahold of some tomorrow while I'm still waiting for parts to come in.
Supreme11
What are the three little buttons ?
ZenithPhantasm

Supreme11 wrote:

What are the three little buttons ?
Probably pause, smoke, and retry.
FieryLight
I think they can be mapped. Pretty sure it's more like Esc, C (or whatever smoke is by default) and SpaceBar.
Shizuyi
http://store.ppy.sh/store/product/23 So theyre available now. I wanted to try yours or the one from the osu store but i have no clue which one is better for me? What are the benefits from yours and what are the benefits from the osu one? Can someone explain it to me? :S
Topic Starter
Thnikk
I've added a page to my website for cleaning the restickable tape on your keypads here: [link]
This will be added to the OP later in the week after the RGB keypad goes up.

Shizuyi wrote:

http://store.ppy.sh/store/product/23 So theyre available now. I wanted to try yours or the one from the osu store but i have no clue which one is better for me? What are the benefits from yours and what are the benefits from the osu one? Can someone explain it to me? :S
It're really going to come down to what you prefer, but I'll do my best to provide a comparison.

-The nono keyboard is driverless.
 -Mine is too.

-The nono keyboard is remappable.
 -Mine is too, but it requires you to be a little more hands on. Any of my Teensy LC models are very easy to work with though and once the IDE is configured you can change whatever code you'd like.

-The nono keyboard comes with three extra buttons.
 -Mine comes with one. I have no qualms about this because mine was designed with the one button in mind. I also think the placement on the left is a lot better because you can hit it with your ring finger without interrupting gameplay (it's not as awkward as you'd think) vs having them under your fingers and having to adjust your hand. You still have a keyboard for the buttons that don't need to be quickly accessible and even if you want to map left/right to something for song select I would just say use the buttons on your tablet if you have one.

-The nono keyboard has an RGB LED for under/side glow like a riced out car.
 -Mine doesn't, but my RGB keypad will be out this week for $36. As far as this compares to my v2 which will be the same price (in 1-2 months according to the description) it's a plus if you like it. That color reactive mode is pretty cool though... :idea:

-The nono keyboard has one lighting effect with the switch-mounted LEDs(?)
 -Mine has 5 including off if you want to turn them off.

As far as the inclusions in the box go, I don't see much of reason to change what I offer. Two sets of o-rings seems like overkill since a lot of my customers don't even use them and rubber feet still aren't reliable enough for me to want to include.

Then there's aesthetics and whether you prefer aluminum with a seam or a minimal plastic box. This is even more subjective.

Edit: I also have a product line so if you don't like lighting effects or extra buttons you can pick one up for as low as $22 USD (+$5 shipping to the US, $8 to CA, and $10 everywhere else.)
Shizuyi
So its as much as i thoguht there is no big difference in what they offer. ANd the price (if i want the same things) is the same as well, boith 40$. Well now i have to choose. :D
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Shizuyi wrote:

So its as much as i thoguht there is no big difference in what they offer. ANd the price (if i want the same things) is the same as well, boith 40$. Well now i have to choose. :D
I'm actually going with the sooner rather than later thing I said a few posts back and the v2 is getting bumped down to $30 when it goes back up (probably by Wednesday or Thursday.)
Te Amo
I couldn't get it to start working again, tried it on a different PC with no luck and bought another cable just to make sure my cables weren't the issue, no luck their either. Theirs nothing wrong with it physically so all I can think of is that the programming must of gotten messed up or something and I wouldn't know how to fix that either ways, lol. Either ways it was great while it worked xD
E m i

KevEz wrote:

Theirs nothing wrong with it
whose?
Topic Starter
Thnikk
I've added a few pages to my website along with all of the prep work for the new keypad going up.

[link] Updated page for the v2 remapping guide, adding the RGB to the guide since they use the same microcontroller
[link] Added a page for the "v2.1", a new version of the v2 that uses the Pro Micro instead of the Teensy LC. The .1 doesn't mean it's any better, I just wanted a different name to avoid confusion with these guides.
[link] Added a page for LED modes of the v2/v2.1 to show them off to people who may be interested.
[link] Added a page for LED modes of the RGB keypad.
I also changed the navigation a bit to make it less confusing.

KevEz wrote:

I couldn't get it to start working again, tried it on a different PC with no luck and bought another cable just to make sure my cables weren't the issue, no luck their either. Theirs nothing wrong with it physically so all I can think of is that the programming must of gotten messed up or something and I wouldn't know how to fix that either ways, lol. Either ways it was great while it worked xD
I'd still like to check it out to see what's wrong with it. I'm thinking it's just a fluke and the trinket died, but I'd have to see for sure.
Free upgrade to RGB from a free model before would be cool though, huh? ;) I really wouldn't mind doing it, you've helped me out a lot.

[ Momiji ] wrote:

KevEz wrote:

Theirs nothing wrong with it
whose?
No grammar sticklers in my thread, pls.
THE FLAT EARTH
Awww, everything is out of stock besides the keycaps.
Topic Starter
Thnikk
Alright, everything's up. To quickly outline the changes for people who haven't read through the thread:


The v1 and v2 are gone and replaced with the v2.1, which has taken the v1's place in price.

The RGB keypad is up for $36. There are no alternate keycap options right now, but glow in the dark may be added in the near future. It also exclusively uses Gateron switches for their semi-transparent housing which is perfect for the backlighting.

Cherry MX black switches are back in stock and Gateron reds, blacks, and browns have been added.

All keycaps are back in stock (though maybe not for long.)

There were a bunch of changes made to my website to add more information, including remapping/reprogramming guides for all models, a cleaning guide for my tape, an FAQ page, and pages showing off LED modes for the v2/v2.1 and RGB models.

[Shop] [RGB] [v2.1] [Basic+] [Basic]

[Website]

Kaas wrote:

Awww, everything is out of stock besides the keycaps.
^
Shizuyi
Im thinking about ordering one.
2 Questins before:
1. Whats the differnece between the RBG and the v2.1 besides the Ligghning effects of course? :P
2. WHats the difference between GAteron and Cherry Switches? I never used GAteron; are there the same differences´between the colours as at the Cherrys?
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Shizuyi wrote:

Im thinking about ordering one.
2 Questins before:
1. Whats the differnece between the RBG and the v2.1 besides the Ligghning effects of course? :P
2. WHats the difference between GAteron and Cherry Switches? I never used GAteron; are there the same differences´between the colours as at the Cherrys?
1) Lighting effects are the only difference besides there being no option for Cherry switches on the RGB.

2) All of the Gateron colors match the corresponding Cherry colors except for clears which are a 35g linear switch and yellows (which I don't have) which are a 100g(?) linear switch. Beyond that, they are almost identical physically except for the semi-transparent white housing and the Gaterons feel a lot smoother.
Shizuyi
What about Basic and BAsic +? WHat makes em worse than RGB or v2.1?
Topic Starter
Thnikk

Shizuyi wrote:

What about Basic and BAsic +? WHat makes em worse than RGB or v2.1?
The 125hz polling rate instead of the 1000hz found on the RGB and v2.1. Other than that, no backlighting and no escape button on the basic.
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