Be Quiet! Dark Mount review – the king of modular gaming keyboards

The Be Quiet! Darkish Mount marks the beginning of Be Quiet!’s adventures into making gaming PC peripherals, and it makes for fairly the doorway. It’s full of options and features that the majority different keyboards merely can’t supply, making it immediately amongst my favourite keyboards because of its versatility. Its most notable function, apart from whisper-quiet typing, is its skill to return aside, with the numpad part and multimedia buttons capable of be eliminated and positioned in numerous positions.

If this core function set appears acquainted, you’d be proper to assume so. For a begin, the likes of Asus tried such a system earlier than with its Claymore and Claymore 2 keyboards. Then there’s Mountain, which made the same Everest Max keyboard. It’s that firm that was purchased by Be Quiet! a couple of years in the past, and, as such, the Darkish Mount is successfully the successor to the Everest Max. Provided that the Everest is at the moment on our greatest gaming keyboard information as the very best modular keyboard, the Darkish Mount has some sturdy pedigree. Nevertheless, there’s much more happening right here than only a change of name.

Specs

Options

The Be Quiet! Darkish Mount is a keyboard that’s outlined by its modularity. A very powerful side right here is that its numpad part might be indifferent from the right-hand facet and both disregarded of the way in which, leaving extra room in your mouse to maneuver while you’re gaming, or you possibly can even reattach it to the left facet of the board. Nevertheless, be aware that the entire numpad part doesn’t work independently of the principle keyboard – it must be plugged in to both finish to work.

This single function alone is why the Mountain Everest Max has been my each day driver keyboard ever because it got here out. It’s simply so helpful to have all of the features of a full-size keyboard, but in addition the choice to then unencumber desk/mouse area. Regardless of what number of different beautiful keyboards I’ve examined and reviewed – from the Wonderful GMMK3 to the Monsgeek M1W SP – I’ve at all times come again to the Everest Max.

Additionally included into the numpad part are two rows of OLED-backlit programmable buttons, which might be configured to point out no matter picture you want and carry out all method of features, from opening apps, typing out an entire load of textual content, placing your laptop to sleep, and working complicated macros.

There’s additionally a multimedia buttons part that may be hooked up to the highest of the board. It will probably both go on the highest proper or high left and supplies play/pause, skip/again, and mute buttons, plus a quantity curler and left, proper, and choose buttons for navigating its built-in display screen. This display screen supplies features similar to a built-in cease watch/timer, controls for the keyboard’s backlight brightness and sample, keyboard profiles, and additional media management.

On its rear, this keyboard has a USB-C socket for its removable cable, whereas on the underside are sq. rubber toes on high of which you’ll be able to place a number of extra rubber toes – held in place by magnets – to boost the again fringe of the keyboard.

The keycaps on this board use hard-wearing PBT plastic (reasonably than ABS) and use doubleshot injection molding to kind the legends (letters/numbers). This doubleshot methodology means the legends can by no means put on away, in contrast to with screen-printed legends.

Beneath the keycaps are Be Quiet!’s own-brand switches with linear (45g) and tactile (55g) choices obtainable. They’re basic Cherry MX-style switches with a cross mount for the keycaps. Nevertheless, in designing its explicit switches, Be Quiet! has targeting low noise and stability above all else. To that finish, they arrive with lubricant pre-applied to the change internals and the important thing stabilizers, for a really easy really feel, whereas the tolerances on the switches are additionally very tight, so there’s noticeably little or no wobble to the keys.

Additional serving to to scale back noise are three layers of sound-dampening contained in the board. There’s a layer of froth between the switches and the PCB, one other underneath the PCB, after which a denser silicone pad fills the underside housing. The previous helps dampen the upper frequency rattles of the keys, whereas the silicone pad helps get rid of the echoey, hole sound that may have an effect on some keyboards.

One factor to notice about these switches is that they’re not analog, optical, or corridor impact. They’re simply commonplace metal-on-metal contact switches. Meaning you possibly can’t arrange any of the intelligent new analog features which have been showing lately in some gaming keyboards, such because the Fast Set off and Snap Faucet features on the Razer Huntsman V3 Professional. You’ll be able to, although, hot-swap the switches for some other 5-pin Cherry MX-style switches.

Additionally included with the Darkish Mount is a padded wrist relaxation that magnetically attaches to the entrance of the board and is cut up into two sections – one for the principle board and one for the numpad. You additionally get a keycap puller, a 2m lengthy braided USB-A to USB-C cable, and eight of the magnetic toes (4 with rubber bases and 4 extension items with plastic bases). The cable within reason thick and hard, but it surely’s not as thick because the outdated Mountain keyboard’s one, and it doesn’t have the handy USB-C to USB-C extension cable of that board both.

Additionally not featured, on the subject of cabling, is the under-board cable routing of the Everest. On that board, the USB-C socket was within the middle of the underside of the board, and you possibly can route the cable out from the perimeters, the entrance, or the again of the board. Right here, although, the USB-C socket is simply on the again of the board.

Design

The Be Quiet! Darkish Mount has a design that has hints of the premium construct of extra boutique boards, by having an aluminum high plate, for instance, however largely it has a reasonably plain design. Gone are the rounded corners of the Mountain Everest (backside within the picture under), and as a substitute, the board has very straight, squared-off edges for every part, and there are only a few frills.

What’s extra, that aluminum high plate doesn’t really feel significantly premium. It’s not a thick slab that provides the board a satisfyingly heavy really feel. It’s a reasonably skinny plate with a easy black paint end.

As such, for those who’re after a keyboard that’s each a device for gaming and dealing at your PC and a bit piece of desk artwork, this isn’t actually the one for you. The above-mentioned Wonderful and Monsgeek boards, in addition to the Drop CSTM80, the Lofree Move 100, or the Razer Blackwidow V4 75%, all ship extra of a visible affect.

Not that the Darkish Mount is devoid of how to brighten up your desktop. The road of sunshine that runs all the way in which spherical the sting of the board is a beautiful contact and, together with the per-key RGB backlighting, it may be used to create all kinds of customized lighting patterns.

Be Quiet!’s IO Heart software program doesn’t but have the type of intelligent sport integration as you’ll discover with Logitech and Razer peripherals, so it may well’t routinely change between totally different modes or lighting settings while you fireplace up a sport. Nevertheless, it has loads of built-in patterns, and you’ll absolutely customise all of the lighting.

What’s extra, the programmable OLED buttons on the numpad, whereas primarily there to offer a pictorial clue as to the perform of the button, may simply be used to jazz up the look of the board. You’ll be able to put your gaming avatar on them, your favourite sport character, or no matter else you prefer to make for a enjoyable look.

Software program

Be Quiet! is launching a brand new piece of software program alongside this keyboard, referred to as IO Heart. This provides avid gamers a option to customise the perform and look of the Darkish Mount, together with the Mild Mount keyboard that’s launching alongside it, and the corporate’s different upcoming peripherals, similar to its Darkish Perk gaming mouse.

IO Heart is an impressively slick little bit of software program for a primary go. It runs shortly and with out feeling prefer it’s slowed down by adverts and different bloat, like in some equal software program. What’s extra, Be Quiet! has supplied an online-only model of this software program too, so you possibly can configure you gadget with out the additional put in software program.

IO Heart supplies entry to full customization of the keyboard’s lighting, key bindings, media dock features, and macros, in addition to the general keyboard features, similar to toggling whether or not the Home windows secret’s energetic or disabling sure key combos, similar to Alt+Tab or Alt+F4.

There isn’t, nevertheless, any choice to vary the polling charge of the board, and once more, there are not one of the further options you get for keyboards with analog switches, similar to programmable activation distances.

Efficiency

With no intelligent analog features or excessive polling charges included on this board, it may well’t make any nice declare to be the quickest gaming keyboard round. Nevertheless, that doesn’t imply it’s a slouch on the subject of general gaming efficiency. Utilizing the linear change model of the board, its core skill to reply exactly and shortly to quick and complicated key inputs is superb, with n-key rollover making certain all key presses are registered correctly.

The important thing areas the place it arguably falls quick for gaming are within the lack of adjustable actuation distance and the shortage of analog response. That, in flip, results in its lack of skill to offer a Snap Faucet-like function.

Beginning with the actuation distance, many fashionable gaming keyboards that use corridor impact or optical switches enable the consumer to regulate the purpose at which the important thing press is definitely triggered. This implies you possibly can create a extremely gentle, hair-trigger really feel for sure keys whereas lowering the response of others. I’ve discovered this convenient for making certain WASD keys solely require a light-weight contact whereas keys round these (Q and E, for example) I cut back the activation distance so I don’t by chance press them. It’s not a function that’s important for many gaming however some aggressive avid gamers trying to actually fine-tune their gaming interface may even see it as a precedence.

In the meantime, Snap Faucet is Razer’s title for a function it pioneered that enables keyboards to set off one key as quickly as one other is launched. That’s, for those who’re holding down A to strafe left, you possibly can merely faucet D to strafe proper and, when you’ve launched the D key, the keyboard instantly reverts again to urgent A for you – you by no means must carry that finger. This has profound benefits in sure video games the place very quick strafing or alternate key presses are helpful. Once more, the emphasis right here is on aggressive gaming, although, so all of it relies upon the place your priorities lie.

For common gaming and typing, the texture of the Darkish Mount is very nice. The dearth of wobble within the keys is actually noticeable, even in comparison with far dearer boards I’ve examined, and the smoothness may be very notable too.

All these efforts to make this keyboard very quiet have paid off too. Measuring from simply 20cm above the keyboard, my decibel meter confirmed simply 42dB whereas typing usually and 44dB when attempting to hit a bit more durable than typical. That’s by far the bottom studying I’ve ever taken. For example, the Wonderful GMKK3 measured 48dB, the Corsair K70 Max measured 61dB, and the Monsgeek M1W SP hit a really loud 62dB. In the meantime, my earlier file holder, the Razer Huntsman V2 measured 46dB.

As for the efficiency of the modular design of this keyboard, the precept works in addition to ever. The system that joins them is simple to make use of but safe, with a sliding mechanism on the numpad pushing the connection elements out from the required facet. Little plastic items are supplied for overlaying up the uncovered connections on the perimeters of the keyboard and numpad however I discovered I merely didn’t use these in any respect – the connections are effectively hidden sufficient.

One enchancment in comparison with the Mountain Everest is that the connection is safe sufficient which you can choose up the board and the numpad will keep hooked up. On the Everest, it hangs alarmingly unfastened. Nevertheless, the draw back to that is that it’s not fairly as straightforward to detach the elements. On the Everest you possibly can simply pull up and away barely and the numpad would detach. On this board, you could far more firmly pull them aside first.

In the meantime, the multimedia part and programmable buttons are good to have however didn’t really feel overly important, I’ve equally by no means received into the behavior of utilizing stream decks, although, so your mileage might range. Regardless I can see a less complicated, cheaper model of this board that simply has the plain modular keyboard and a set play/pause and quantity media management would attraction to many customers.

Worth

The Be Quiet! Darkish Mount value is $254.90 / €259.90 / £239.90, making it one of many dearer commonplace gaming keyboards round. Nevertheless, it’s no dearer than the likes of the Razer Huntsman V3 Professional and is significantly cheaper than high-end customized keyboards. What’s extra, it packs in masses extra bodily options than the likes of that Razer board, however once more you do miss out on any analog keyswitch options.

Options

Razer Huntsman V3 Professional

The Razer Huntsman V3 Professional doesn’t supply the identical modular design because the Be Quiet! Darkish Mount however for a really comparable value it does supply a great deal of programmable performance because of its analog keys. In case you’re after a keyboard that has the potential for peak gaming efficiency, it’s a terrific different.

Verdict

The Be Quiet! Darkish Mount is a keyboard that’s more likely to divide opinion, with some customers seeing it as the reply to their keyboard prayers whereas others received’t see what the fuss is about.

In order for you peak gaming efficiency with a quick polling charge, adjustable actuation, and leading edge options similar to Snap Faucet, it merely doesn’t ship these issues. Likewise, for those who embrace the premium look and clackity sound of sure high-end or customized keyboards, you received’t discover that right here. Then there’s the truth that for those who merely don’t care that a lot about having a numpad, all this keyboard’s modularity is for nought.

Nevertheless, in order for you a keyboard to be as quiet as doable whereas nonetheless delivering the complete mechanical keyboard expertise, that is the one. In the meantime, its modular system is one which I discover I can’t stay with out. The numpad is crucial for each day work use and the flexibility to take away it for extra mousing area with out having to stretch my arm away from my physique helps with lowering RSI and simply typically feels way more snug.

It’s not an inexpensive board but when that quiet, handy mixture of options appeals to you as a lot as me, it’s going to be a value effectively price paying.

For extra methods to develop your gaming setup, why not try our greatest gaming microphone and greatest gaming monitor guides.