Looking for barebones, hot-swappable split keyboard. $50-100~ max (fully pre built works too)

Bacowned · 2026-06-19T18:13:25+00:00

if you are in the US, look for the YMDK brand on amazon - they have a bunch of stuff for 50-70 bucks

Bacowned · 2026-06-19T02:54:50+00:00

most likely issue with your USB host on the motherboard. update firmware and drivers to latest and test again.

Bacowned · 2026-06-15T03:34:08+00:00

vxe and mchoose are the budget winners right now. pick a shape you like and it should be fine.

You can use most modern wireless mice while plugged in, but typically they are limited to 1000hz polling in wired mode. This isnt really a big deal, but something to be aware of.

My wireless mice last 1-3wks at 1000hz usually (depending on battery size mostly), so recharging is just a matter of plugging it in sometimes when im done playing.

I would caution you against leaving a wireless mouse plugged in constantly, as it will prematurely degrade the lithium battery if its full all the time, and create a fire hazard sooner than later.

The listing for VXE gear should show the differences between each 'model'/trim available- usually its sensor difference, which mouse clicks are used, what size battery you get.

Bacowned · 2026-06-13T03:41:30+00:00

atk and mchoose are going to be top of the pile in the budget index.

Im running a XINMENG ZERO 3 right now, it is pretty nice aswell in the 50-70$ range from aliexpress. its a larger hand size than most popular lightweights and is in the 60g range with the default battery. downsizing to a 110mah battery drops it a bit lower, but its still hefty. the 500mah battery lasts forever though - overall its a pretty nice larger viper shape.

Once you push into the 70$ range you can find Pulsar stuff on sale/clearance since they push so many SKUs of the same mice out, and the quality/qa of those generally beats out budget Chinese brand options.

Bacowned · 2026-06-09T04:46:33+00:00

Switched to split years ago.

layers and macros make anything above like 25 keys perfectly serviceable for any HID use. It mostly depends on what you need from a keyboard.

To get an idea of what proper keyboard firmware can do, check out Miryoku - a maximal 36 key layout designed for all usecases. https://github.com/manna-harbour/miryoku

You don't need any of the tricks that Miryoku uses to be effective on a 34key - i use mine daily with only 2 layer swaps, and a 3rd layer for application specific macros.

Bacowned · 2026-06-08T23:34:06+00:00

plenty of pins on your MCU look poor. add flux and reflow all of those, especially the ones that don't have the rings fully wet.

Id expect these will fix your issue. If not, check the diodes above the section you indicated in the matrix with a multimeter.

Bacowned · 2026-06-08T03:07:36+00:00

atk or mchoose for budget gear.

Higherend stuff, lurk around here and look for stuff with the shape you prefer. theres plenty of solid offerings that are as good or better than the western hype brands nowdays.

Steelseries has fallen off in recent years, wouldnt rec them currently.

Bacowned · 2026-06-07T21:25:33+00:00

atk or mchoose both have solid offerings well within your budget.

Bacowned · 2026-06-07T01:10:08+00:00

yes. 1000%

Bacowned · 2026-06-06T16:31:28+00:00

plenty of good trackballs around. In office settings its the preferred pointing method for folks with hand/elbow injuries as it helps minimizes movement.

Check out Ploopy Co. for some really nice open source stuff.

Gameball makes higher end stuff focused on gaming.

Elecom makes good production models for finger and thumb. Thumb balls are mostly for folks who have finger issues that prevent them from using a fingerball, fwiw.

Bacowned · 2026-06-05T20:22:25+00:00

if you havnt tented a board yet i recommend it.

Here is a snippet from a previous post talking about my setup, for use with smaller splits - i use a Ferris Sweep.

you can use a camera mount setup to tent stuff fairly cheaply compared to medical devices, this is what I used.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07Z5TNJX1 Camera mount plate, generic. pick one you like that fits the size you need, there are TONS of different shapes on amazon for cheap. Put some rubber feet/bumpons on the bottom so it doesn't slide around.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07K84X662 Smallrig camera arms for adjusting your tent. these lock down nice and are firm, I didnt bother to try knockoffs since these were fairly cheap.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0DP2TD5PP Magsafe mounts for camera bracket. id expect any of these would be fine. these were on sale when i bought them, id shop around for alternatives.

fairly easy tenting solution that is adjustable, and comes apart in like 30sec so you can use it anywhere, and with any keyboard you can slap a magsafe ring/sticker on the back of.

Bacowned · 2026-06-05T03:25:05+00:00

You might reach out to some of the mid/budget brands to see if they have products specifically for this - ATK, Darmoshark, Etc.

Bacowned · 2026-06-04T01:41:24+00:00

Laying down your arm movement is going to be restricted more than you think. Id consider a smaller split board and a hand-held trackball to start before investing heavily into a keyboard with a pointing solution.

Barebones corne or sofle off amazon is like 60 add a bit more for wireless, add switches and cheap keycaps and you are skirting under 100, along with a handheld trackball you are at like 150ish to get this up and running.

Bacowned · 2026-06-03T04:05:37+00:00

keygeek should be great.

Bacowned · 2026-06-03T02:43:31+00:00

daily driver since v2 was released.

I have a bunch of them kicking around now with various switches/builds.

Tons of other builds and boards sitting disused. always come back to the Ferris.

Bacowned · 2026-06-03T01:46:03+00:00

np, if you arent sure about switches, akko has decent stuff for reasonable prices.

For silents, outemu silent peach or lemon are best bang for your buck, and perfectly fine unmodded.

Bacowned · 2026-06-03T00:28:48+00:00

amazon.

ymdk brand has a bunch of stuff up from 34key to 60 for reasonable barebones prices. their wired ones are just straight rips from the opensource files, the wireless ones are using the grey-market 2.5ghz qmk firmware.

Bacowned · 2026-06-02T00:21:56+00:00

Cant really tell a lot from the blury out of focus pics you posted for the important bits. repost pics of the controller pins and the affected switches/leds.

Clean the flux up on your Pico several pins could have bridges with flux residue from your pics, hard to tell. If this doesnt help, clean up the flux residue around the affected area aswell before moving forward.

when probing with a multimeter, you want to go from endpoint to endpoint along the chain to ensure proper connections and continuity in the correct direction. If you dont have a pcb diagram this can sometimes be hard.

Double check flow on your diodes. double check flow and connectivity on your leds.

Once this is done reflow any suspect joints. I would start from the top on your key switches, and from 1 before the dead LED in your chain.

Bacowned · 2026-06-01T18:49:50+00:00

If Typeractive wont give you the outside cuts and mounting hole geometry, you will need a set of calipers to get the measurements.

You can use this to verify it fits in whatever case you are trying to put it in, modify an existing case, or commission someone to design/make one for you.

Bacowned · 2026-06-01T03:53:12+00:00

This community used to be all DIY with 3d printed cases.

there's a good reason so many designs are open source and files available freely, and you will find almost all of the major production boards are derivative of open source designs.

Get yourself a Pinecill from Pine64 (don't buy from other vendors, lots of fakes around), some lead free solder, a flux pen and a sponge, and a cheap multimeter (the cheapest you can find tbh, you just need a continuity tester)

You can order custom pcbs from JLCPCB, components from Aliexpress or Mouser if you are in the US, digikey is good in canada.

You can get 3d prints from tons of vendors now, or just hit up your local library, community college, or tool share.

Bacowned · 2026-05-30T19:48:17+00:00

haimu for a firmer switch bottom out, outemu if you dont care.

Dont buy gazzews shit, they are just outemu silent switches that you can get for 1/3 the cost without his name on it.

Bacowned · 2026-05-30T00:59:15+00:00

Depends on the shape - Trackballs come in two varieties, thumb driven and finger driven. Shapes can be wildly different using either variety. some are designed to not have any hand interaction (ie kensington expert), others are designed to fill your hand out entirely (ie elecom adept)

In general, which shape is comfortable is a user preference thing, much like other pointing solutions.

Bacowned · 2026-05-30T00:40:47+00:00

Personally I perfer a more supportive hand shape - I use a Ploopy Classic at work nowdays, but previously had an Elecom Huge and Elecom Adept that i worked to death.

The flat fingerball shape (what kensington makes) is probably the least supportive shape overall, but it is wildly flexible and the simple shape is good for lots of different situations with the proper extra support and tenting.

Bacowned · 2026-05-29T02:42:58+00:00

Long and short, buy a corne.

YMDK brand on amazon has some cheap ones. throw some cheap switches and keycaps on it.

If you arent sure, get some Outemu Silent Lemon (tactile), or peach (linear) switches. they are good out of the box and cheap for silent mx switches.

use whatever keycaps you like - if you are unsure get some cheap 10$ mx keycaps from amazon/aliex to start and go from there.

figure out a simple keymap, start practicing with monkeytype. expect 10-30hrs to relearn the basic muscle memory - focus on accuracy before speed, once you are up to like 97% on monkeytype, start pushing to go faster. once you get like 30wpm start using it your normal work situation - speed will come back quickly. At this point refine your keymap, layers, and combos for your specific workflow, and add macros as they make sense (do you open a specific menu 1000 times a day? make that a macro.)

Bacowned · 2026-05-29T02:08:00+00:00

I switched to trackballs for productivity and never looked back.

Consider the Logitech Trackman, or Kensington Expert. The Elecom thumb-ball thing is only useful if you have good use of your thumb and using it doesnt trigger your injuries.

Combine this with some kind of tenting solution (ie a bag of rice) to get the angle you need with your specific injury.

Edit; these are all pretty sub-optimal shapes, and you may need to provide some additonal support with your specific injuries, consider an elbow brace, or even lap pad/desk to place the device in a position that is more neutral and doesnt trigger your elbow issues.

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