I finally had to choose between a full aluminum case and a polycarbonate one for my new 65% build

I was building a daily driver and got stuck on the case material. The aluminum one was a heavy, fancy unit from a group buy, but the polycarbonate option was cheaper and had a softer sound. I went with the polycarbonate, thinking it would give a deeper, less harsh typing feel. After putting it together with some Gateron Ink Black switches, the sound was amazing, really deep and quiet, but the whole board felt way too light and almost cheap on my desk. It's been six months, and I still miss the solid feel of metal, even though I love the sound. Has anyone else picked sound over weight and ended up feeling the same way?

3 comments

3 Comments

knight.xena2mo ago

Yeah, that's the exact trade-off that keeps me up at night. I went with a polycarbonate board for the same reason, and the sound is perfect, but it just doesn't have that anchor on the desk. It feels like it could slide away from a stiff breeze. I get why you miss the metal.

the_fiona2mo ago

Ever wish you could just have BOTH?

robin_foster11mo ago

Actually I had a friend who tried to solve this exact problem in the weirdest way. She bought two identical keyboards, one plastic and one aluminum, and kept switching them out depending on her mood. It drove her absolutely nuts because the cable management alone was a nightmare, plus she could never remember which keycaps were on which board. She finally gave up and just got a heavy silicone desk mat that keeps the polycarbonate board from sliding around. Not the same as having a metal case though, your mileage may vary on that fix.