[GB] Rama M60-b group buy

New Rama hhkb group buy looking very nice.

image of M60-b

As a M60-a owner I really like this new one but the existence of the Heavy Grail makes it less exciting for me.

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Their lack of ability to ship out product and running a product multiple times without any samples (KATE keycaps) is worrying.

Itā€™s a nice board that members of the RAMA team designed, but I donā€™t know if I could say it has aged particularly well considering the KARA is a fantastic board.

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Sheesh - they werenā€™t kidding when they said that it was coming ā€œvery soonā€. I definitely welcome the update. Iā€™ve owned a couple of M60-As but always wondered what it would be like if there was more flexibility around the plate. Iā€™m genuinely intrigued by this but Iā€™d like to know more about it and hopefully see a few build streams and sound tests to learn more.

For me, the Heavy Grail and M60 are in two very different camps; enough that owning one wouldnā€™t diminish the joy of owning the other.

I use a HG as my daily as Iā€™ve come to prefer Topre these days, but Iā€™ve always lusted over a Mist M60, so Iā€™m considering picking one up. That saidā€¦ the rainbow finish sure is purdy, but worried I would grow tired of it quickly.

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I think itā€™s worth noting that this revision of the M60 is using the Karaā€™s revised proportions as itā€™s blueprint - The wider corner radii and rounded features.

Iā€™ve always thought that the M60 seemed like the 60% board. It seems like the default high end keyboard for almost every keyset render. Iā€™m a big fan of its aesthetic, but was never really a fan of the typing experience. Iā€™m hoping the new Kara-compatible guts help with the sound profile and typing experience.

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Man I really really want this board. Just not sure if I want to support RAMA after some of the recent activities heā€™s pulled off.

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I just picked up a KARA from r/mm. Now that I think about it, the name KA(TE)RA(MA) may be changed to something else if there is a Seq3 :joy:

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This is a tough one, especially w/ a Heavy Grail in the queue. I have the M60-A and Kara. Both are great boards, but very different from one another with regards to typing feel. I expect the M60-B will fall somewhere between the M60-A and Kara, but Iā€™m really not sure thatā€™s worth the requisite spend and ~year wait.

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I own m65-b, been waiting for it ~1.5 year, and really want to try m60-b but (thereā€™s always ā€˜butā€™ (not applicable for RNBW version)):

  • RAMAā€™s reputation going down
  • No Wilba pcb
  • Stock version no longer has brass pvd backweight (only with extras)
  • Price +20$ comparaing to m60-a but now with cheaper materials :point_down:
  • Just think, m60-a weighs is 1440 gramms unbuilt according to ramaā€™s website, materials brass backpiece(>3x heavier than aluminum) and aluminum (heavier than plastic) 4.5mm integrated plate. m60-b comes at 1600 gramms unbuilt with all aluminum case and plastic plate. :thinking:

Slavas,

In regards to your observation on the price, not that I am defending the product in any particular way (especially as this is touted as being redesigned from the ground up when it is essentially an aluminum KARA) but do not forget that material prices have significantly gone up in the past year.

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No Wilba PCB / Details on who designed the new PCBā€™s is concerning. Thereā€™s also no Via mention on the product page :grimacing:

They seem to have conflated ā€˜backplateā€™ and ā€˜backweightā€™, but the backweight ā€˜extraā€™ page states that " THIS IS ALREADY INCLUDED WITH THE M60-B". And (as _PixelNinja noted) the cost of materials has and continues to increase significantly). Iā€™m actually surprised that it is only $20 more.

The PCB is a concern, but itā€™s not like there arenā€™t plenty of quality PCB mfgs that are not Wilba.

Regardless, with all of the changes and turmoil, the M60-B (not to mention the M65-C and Kara seq2) isnā€™t quite the Rama slam dunk / no-brainer of old.

Iā€™ve been waiting for a mute mount m60 ever since I got my U80. Iā€™m excited, but I really hate how Rama continues to nickel and dime his GBā€™s. I can accept the separate weight / dampener business to a point, but forcing us to buy the iconic PVD back piece is garbage. Itā€™s the first thing people asked for when they saw the recent Instagram posts. He knows itā€™s what people want, and is making them shell out almost another $100 for it. Itā€™s also funny how most GBā€™s these days offer an e-coating for a $20 premium, but his remains at $60. With the departure of his team, and his sinking reputation, these practices have a bigger chance blowing back on him than before.

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VIA is mentioned under Features & Specifications:

Screenshot 2021-12-19 002007

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Iā€™ve always had great experience with them until the last M65-B GB. Thatā€™s probably the same time things started to fall apart internally. I ended up having to change colorā€™s b/c my board wouldnā€™t fit together properly.
I have five M60-Aā€™s and would be all in for this GB but the drama has put me off.

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Ah, I was looking at the studio page vs the store listing, thatā€™s reassuring

Do we know yet what PCB itā€™s going to be, if itā€™s not a Wilba PCB? As far as I remember, RAMAā€™s PCBs pre-WIlba wereā€¦ kind of a hit and miss, no?

If I was a betting man, Iā€™d wager that we wonā€™t get any official details from Rama.

At this point I think the only way Iā€™ll ever buy a rama product is off r/mm since I dont think i want to support him

Oh, I havenā€™t been following keeb stuff recently but am a big fan of Rama products and was likely going to get the new m60. Why are people down on rama products or the guy?