GMMK 2 96% Quick Review and Mods - Surprisingly great prebuilt keyboard!
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 28 มิ.ย. 2024
- I was fortunate enough to get the GMMK 2 via the early access preorder. I opted for the 96% layout since I already have a lot of 65% keyboards and could use the numpad for work. I was pleasantly surprised by the good performance of the Glorious Fox linear switches out of the box, as well as the included plate mount stabilizers.
While the out of the box performance is fine for most users, since this is a keyboard modding channel, I decided to open it up and see where we could make some improvement. I clipped and relubed the stabilizers, and did the band-aid mod to dampen the spacebar and backspace bottom outs. I also added a layer of PE foam between the PCB and switches in order to achieve a poppier sound.
Overall, with just a few simple and cheap mods, the GMMK 2 can be made into a very respectable keyboard. And at the price of $120 for the prebuilt, it's actually a really good value that I think will help bring our keyboard hobby to a lot of new customers.
If you have any questions or feedback, please leave a comment and I will try to get back to you. If you liked the video, please like and subscribe to help me curry the favor of the algorithm gods.
Music Credits:
"Moose" from Bensound.com
"Dance" from Bensound.com
"Summer" from Bensound.com
Purchase Links / Materials:
GMMK 2:
www.pcgamingrace.com/products...
Athletic Tape (cut to size for stab mods if you don't have stab stickers):
kbdfans.com/products/kbdfans-...
PE Foam: GMMK 2 comes wrapped in plenty of it ;)
Lube: Use your preference, I mix SuperLube oil, grease, and PTFE powder to preferred thickness
Grease: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Oil: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Powder: www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00...
Chapters:
0:00 Intro & overview
0:40 Weight, keycaps, and switches
1:18 Stock sound test
2:12 Disassembly
3:52 Band-aid Mod
4:14 PE Foam Mod
5:00 Reassembly 1
5:30 Modding Stabilizers
6:55 Reassembly 2
7:52 Modded sound test
8:45 Final thoughts - วิทยาศาสตร์และเทคโนโลยี
![LISA - ROCKSTAR (Official Music Video) REACTION [SHE'S BACK!]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/QBxE30vavMQ/mqdefault.jpg)
I just bought this keyboard and this is the video that I keep coming back to. These are great mods and fantastic explanations.
Thanks Alex, and I hope you enjoy your new GMMK 2!
@@bigxie Does all keycaps fit on fox switches.....read somewhere that cherry type does not fit, also gmmk keycaps that are not compatible with gmmk2...how can it be??
@@Wizz3m4n GMK (not GMMK) keycaps are generally cherry profile and they will cause interference on the primary row (ASDF) with this keyboard since the sockets have north facing LEDS.
@@bigxie tnx, pls tell me can i use razer pbt keys on gmmk2 prebuild 96% keyboard
@@Wizz3m4n you'll need to double check if they support the condensed numpad, otherwise I don't see any issues since Razer keycaps support standard layouts and use an OEM profile.
As a newbie in this hobby, I appreciate the thorough walkthrough. Thanks! :)
No problem! Glad you found it helpful.
this is the only tutorial that actually did the modding explanation correctly. subscribed
Am paling on getting the barebones version on this ! It’s my first time even touching a custom keyboard so I appreciate you making this kind of videos ! Thx
No problem, glad it's helpful. Feel free to follow up if you have any questions or issues!
Solid video that doesn't waste my time, thank you!
I've had the 65% version for about a week. This is a great guide if I ever get the courage to open it up and do these mods.
HOLY CRAP YOUR MODS SOUNDS SO GOOD
Saw your gmmk pro video a year ago and I know this one is gonna be good 🔥
Thanks Eric, appreciate that a lot!
I never thought about modding a keyboard. You got pretty in depth there. I use a $14 white keyboard I got on Amazon, with fixed 3 color RGB, haha. It never occurred to me that there was something better.
bro thank you so much ı modded my keyboard with pe foam 2 days ago and I didnt broke it cuz of you :) thanks
While I like the more quirky videos from Glarses and Hipyo, among others, I appreciate a grounded and thorough walkthrough for people who, like me, are interested in the hoppy but haven't made the leap.
That's an absolutely insane number of screws. Definitely would need to get this barebones so I could remove the foam.
The PE foam lowered the sound overall, but it's still a high pitch plastic noise, which seems to be the keycap's fault. Some higher quality keycaps might help eliminate most of the remaining noise.
Just wanted to say this video is perfect for beginners and the way yout explain things is so clear and simple. Great vidoe and easy to follow! Also I had a question what are some solid tactile swtiches for a keyboard if you know any? I was looking into the Neapolitan Ice cream at cannon but they are currently sold out...
Well done, sir. Thanks
Thanks for the feedback, bro!
I bought the 65% version and modded it with pe foam, switch film and lube, screw in stabilizers, and a gmk keycap set, it sound like one of my custom keyboards now, i am amazed at how good it feels and sounds compared to the price i paid, got the keyboard for $60
Thanks for the video, super super helpful. Btw, what typing software are you using?
Thanks Doug! And the typing test is monkeytype.com, it's free and has a lot of different options - definitely my favorite of the ones available.
It's unbelievable how a simple PE foam mod would change the sound signature so much for the letter keys, guess I will be lazy and only do this mod.
bought the keyboard, looks sweet
I like how the 96% takes up as much desk space as a standard tkl.
Great video, I wish the pink variant was in stock.
When the GMMK 2 available in Germany I will buy it and I will mod it with this good video.
First of all, Fantastic video. Going to follow it to mod my new gmmk2 96%. What are your thoughts on the keycaps? Are they worth changing? I only have $20-30 left on my budget right now so trying to see if any pbt keycaps in that range would be an upgrade to the double shot ABS ones that they come with. Thanks!
just ordered one but i did lubed lynx switches, and the slate black keycaps
Just got my barebones 96. Put in some ink black v2 and plan in doing these mods soon
I got the 96% version, I just put Glorious Pandas (lubed 3203) and replaced springs with Korean 80 Grams springs lubed with silicone lube. It's all I need... I have a thocky keyboard that has switches that require a lot of pressure since i'm a heavy typer that is prone to typos. With the original fox switches it was typo galore...
Do you do any gaming on it? How is it with the heavier springs? I also prefer tactiles for typing accuracy, but prefer a light linear for fast paced games.
Hey Andrew, thanks for the breakdown of the mod process! I had a question about the space inside the bottom case - would it be worthwhile filling in all the hollow space / replacing the foam with a silicon sheet? Typing sounds a little hollow to my ears and wondered if this could be what causes it, but I'm new to all of this so not really sure where to start :)
Yeah something more dense like silicon or even a sheet of car audio dampener (Killmat) can remove that hollow sound more effectively than the foam.
@@bigxie Nice one, I'll give that a go first before I go pouring silicon and see how it goes. Cheers! :)
im getting this soon
Hey! Thanks a lot for the informative video. I had a small question: how much of light from the backlight would you say was captured by the PE Foam Mod? Did you have to poke extra holes to allow for the backlight to shine through the double shot keycaps?
To be honest, it seems pretty negligible to me, all the RGB is still very clearly visible even several notches down from 100%. If you're really concerned about it, nowadays there are even precut PE foam pads available on Amazon (like little stickers per switch) that will have the cutouts in them already for the RGB LEDs, although they usually run like ~$8-10 for enough to cover a 96%.
@@bigxie Thanks a lot! Yeah, I bought a GMMK 2 barebones, and it came with the precut foam around the key switches, so i added your PE foam mod on top of the factory cut foam.
I just assembled it a few hours ago, and I'm glad to say that the backlight dimming from your mod is pretty negligible. Thanks a ton for your help!!!
I like this video thanks
Are there any good replacement stabilizers for this keyboard? I don't really care for the ones it comes with, and the one for the spacebar keeps sticking at the bottom.
Fairly new to the hobby, have had this kb since it's release and love it (had 2 of the initial GMMK). I'm going to have to try the PE mod, seems like an easy beginner mod. Also gonna have to try the stabilizer mod, the rattle is the one thing that I truly cannot stand. You mentioned there are aftermarket stabs that would fit this, do you have any you could point me towards?
I like Durock plate mount stabs. They're pretty decent when modded and especially if you do the holee mod.
@@bigxie With the help of this tut, I've officially finished my first mod. Stabs are solid (went with the GSv2, and did the holee mod) with absolutely no rattle, and the keys have this nice little ping to them. very happy overall! Thanks for the tut!
Thanks for the video. Where do I find PE foam and which 96% keyboard do you recommend that's pretty good out of the box and that has a Home and End button? I liked this one but it doesn't have the Home button. Thank you!
You can find PE foam on Amazon, but most keyboards come packaged in PE foam wrappers already, so I just usually reuse that. And I don't have much experience with other 96% keyboards, but if you need those 2 keys and have 2 others you don't need, you can reassign them in the Glorious software (or QMK).
@@bigxie Have you ever tried the IQUnix F96 keyboard? I was thinking in getting one.
I'm not too familiar with that one, but it looks like it isn't hot-swappable, so it's likely more difficult to mod and definitely not as customizable. It does look like it has more features like wireless and a full aluminum body though, so that might be worth it to you.
Was wondering I did the pe foam and band aid mod but having some keys not triggering, and idea to fix this?
Wish they made some kind of top panel add-on for this. I'm not into the floating keycap look.
wonder if durock v2 stabs work with this board?
This was a great video, thank you! It’s hard for me to tell from the video, but I’m looking to set the backlighting to a warm white setting, not a huge fan of the rainbow look haha, does anyone know if that is possible on this model?
I just had mine today, I mod it with pe foam but my switches don't reach the connectors.
Does anyone know if the barebones kit has that esc and ascend keys if not they 100% should
would you suggest tapping the back of the pcb?
So, if I don't want to mod, what white keyboard should I buy that's just great out of the box? (I want a full number pad)
If i dont have dedicated foam for Band-aid Mod what should i do? Should i skip the part when you cut holes for the stabs during the PE Foam Mod?
I haven't tried having the stabs hit the PE foam directly, I'm guessing it's going to have the same if not better performance dampening the sound, but what I'd be wary of is it making the stabilized keys a bit squishy, since the PE foam is thicker than band aids. A great alternative is just some athletic tape, which you could find at a Walgreens (or whatever local pharmacy you have).
Doesn't this packaging foam reduce the brightness of the light from LEDs?
nice video. what is that deskmat?
Thanks! The deskmat is called 'keycadets'
Still waiting for this keyboard to arrive in Malaysia. May I know if I use a thicker PE Foam, does it make any difference?. What's the best thickness needed? (0.5mm/1mm/2mm)
I wouldn't use too thick of PE foam because it could potentially cause the switch to not sit in the socket far enough. I think 0.5mm or maybe 1mm at the max.
How to put the stabs back
is there an indicator if cap or num lock is on?
Where did you get you key and switch puller?
3 layers of tape on the back of that PCB and some PBT key caps and then it might actually sound good
Does it support any type of screw in stabs ?
Why does the left shift key sound like mush
does adding a tempest mod to this lower or raise the pitch?
I haven't tried it, but it is a bit tight under the PCB already. Maybe adding a couple layers of tape and removing the case foam could sound a little bit lower.
Did u put more lube on top of the pre lube as sometimes there isn't enough.
No, I left the switches stock lubed for both sound tests. There are definitely additional steps that can be taken to make it even better (i.e. relubing the switches, holee modding the stock stabs or switching out for screw in stabs, etc.), but I didn't do any of those since I wanted to show how the keyboard can be made to sound significantly better with only minimal mods. Any additional steps will only improve it more (marginally).
I like this as an inbetween to the GMMK Pro & Ducky One 2 Mini. But is this their 1st 96% or was there a v1. Of so i misser it
Yeah the original GMMK wasn't available in 96%, the V2 is the first version with this form factor as a choice.
Would rubix cube lube work here?
Love the keyboard so far but anyone know what to do if the up and down arrow keys dont work even after turning off scroll lock?
Were they broken out of the box, or did you change the switches at all? Most common cause is pins got bent when putting the switches in, which is pretty easy to straighten with a pair of tweezers. If it was broken out of the box, it should be covered by the warranty.
Was that a Essential phone?
OMG i used to have one it was great
Yep, good eye! I loved my PH-1 as well, but had to move on since the camera was pretty subpar, even for its generation. Now that ceramic back makes a good surface to balance stab wires on lol
Is there a way to make the stabilizer wholes a little bigger with scrubbing the metal ?
Once you have the plate removed from everything, you could use something like a metal file to make the stabilizer openings larger. Just be careful to clean all the metal shavings off to prevent any from getting on to the PCB and potentially causing any shorts.
any suggestions how to make the spacebar not sound hollow after rebounding? I'm not planning to open the board since im fairly new and this is my first mech board. I already lubed the space stabs with gsv2 but after rebounding the keyboard really sound hollow.
You could add some foam into the spacebar to dampen the noise. Stupidfish makes some precut ones, but you could also just make some of your own with adhesive backed foam from Amazon cut to size.
@@bigxie i just used some diy and added some cotton tapes and works just fine now. Do you have any suggestion on what white PBT shine through i should buy. because there is a lot of keycaps profile in the market and i dont know what fits with gmmk 2. TIA
@@adrianplan3986 only cherry profile will have interference on the GMMK 2. I'm sure there are plenty of OEM profile choices for shine thru caps that will work great.
Out of the box these sound rather average.. but again i use Gat Yellow with custom lube mix and with swapped springs.. For better sound try can stereo dumpers.. its a thick bitumen type sheets with sticky one side and aluminium top (i just take the al top out as it may make electrical connection with the switches).
Would you recommend the GSv2s?
I've read that they addressed the major issues with the original GOAT stabs, but I don't have first hand experience with them. I'd assume they're better than the included plate mount stabs, but I'm sure if you tune them (holee mod, lube), they'll be great - even the plate mount stabs perform well if modded. Maybe someone else with first hand experience can chime in too with their findings?
I've heard that screw in durock stabs are too big for the gmmk 2 is it true?
I didn't actually test it with screw in stabs, but from a visual inspection, it does not look like they will fit without either extreme force or some filing down of the plate.
@@bigxie I got it yesterday and yes are they are too big, what i did was filling down some of it and i like you said had to press really hard to get it down, it works perfectly fine tho, was just scared the pcb was gonna get da,maged or breake
How thick was the foam you added? 🙃
The PE foam was pretty thin, likely around 0.5mm.
I wonder how much better the sound would be by relubing the switches and adding gsv2
I think that it can certainly make a difference. I actually ended up relubing and filming the switch under the spacebar after filming this and it cleaned it up a bit. Also, in person, when I really listen closely, there is some barely audible spring ping that I think bag lubing the springs would clean up. I actually think that if you go all out with screw in stabs, use some higher quality switches and keycaps, you could get some premium sound out of this chassis.
All that being said, I approached this video from the perspective of someone staying around the $120 price point of the prebuilt keyboard and doing some of the more basic mods to maximize the performance/value.
@@bigxie yeah for sure! I just pre ordered mine, so hyped! Would u be able to maybe provide links to the materials u used for the mod? Like the pe and tape and etc please?
Congrats! Yeah, sure, I've updated the description with some links. For the PE foam, there's actually a lot that comes with the GMMK 2 packaging! For the stabilizer stickers, I had extras that came with my KBD67 Lite, but you can use athletic tape or band-aids and it will perform the same. I also added links for what I mix to make my lube, but you should use whatever lube you prefer. Good luck and have fun with your build!
@@bigxie thank you so much man! Ur video is so underrated! Do u recommend also adding tempest mod, Eva foam, and maybe sorbothane?
Where can you get those pads?
Do you mean the pads to place underneath the stabilizer legs? You can just search for stabilizer stickers on Amazon and you'll find a bunch of results.
Im torn between ducky one 3 and Gmmk 2 65%. Which one do guys you prefer?
I prefer gmmk 2 personally
im sorry, why u use that band aid tape if u not using screw in stabs ?
Stabs will bottom out on the PCB regardless of if they're screw in or plate mount. The band aid mod is to dampen that sound.
Do you recommend this keyboard on 2023 ?
How the hell does one write that fast with that accuracy?
Does it have better rgb and build quality than razer?
I think the Razer RGB is definitely better, and Chroma also integrates into a lot of other ecosystems and games. But the build quality I do think is better than Razer. The switches come prelubed, there's already some sound deadening in the case. It doesn't have spring ping and rattling like a Razer board does out of the box.
I don't care what anyone else says, that sounds impressive stock out of the box. And this is coming from someone with a $300 custom board with lubed switches and stabilizers.
Edit: That being said: it's certainly not perfect and I think they intentionally made it that way for it to be modified.
Yes, I think especially for enthusiasts who have experience with premium keyboard builds, sometimes we just need to take a step back and view a product from the perspective of a new/casual fan of the hobby. For the price and what it offers, it's a perfectly suitable beginner/intro board to the hobby. And having more interest and users in the hobby will just move it forward as a whole for all of us, from the beginners to experienced vets.
Thanks for the view and insightful comment. Cheers!
I just got my gmmk2, i connected it and the rgb appears but it will not type does anybody have any fixes??
I would try with a different USB port or on a different computer. If it's still not working, you should reach out to Glorious to get it replaced under the warranty.
Why remove factory lube only to add your own lube?
Factory lube is usually pretty inconsistent and low quality. If you're going to put the effort in to tune the stabilizers, you might as well redo the lube job while you have them out.
i literally only did the foam mod and holy fuck did it make a difference
what exactly do the bandaid mods do?
Putting them on the PCB under the stabilizers will reduce the noise of bottoming out the stabilized keys (like space, enter, etc.). Putting tape on the plate where the stabilizers mount just reduces the gap between the plate and the stabs, which holds them in place better and helps reduce rattling (makes plate mount stabs "feel" a little more like screw-in ones).
Great board but only work with Glorious buttons as they are north facing. I want a standard design.
Yeah I definitely get the sentiment. To play devil's advocate, north facing LEDs are better for backlighting shine through legends, which are more common in mech kbs aimed at the gamer audience. And north facing LEDs also only cause interference with cherry profile keycaps, so actually any other taller profile keycap set will work great with the GMMK 2 (such as OEM, SA, MT3, etc.)
@@bigxie can you still fit cherry profile keycaps on a north facing keyboard?
You'll get interference on the primary row (asdf) if you use cherry profile keycaps. There are certain switches that design around this and allow for no interference with north facing sockets, but I can't name them off the top of my head.
@@jaykerowan1101 this guy hasn’t even tried to test, I have the gmmk2 and cherry profile keycaps work fine with no interference
can I do this without a paper plate?
no, that's the most important part ;)
@@bigxie shoot. postponing this project..
1:04 - Wait wut.. The standard normal GMMK 2 with the standard switches comes PRE LUBED ?! Is that true ?
Yes, the standard switches (Fox switches) come with "pre-lubed" parts. While it's better than nothing, it can certainly be improved if lubed over with your own application.
Freakin freedom units 😂
for all this modding it is still too loud
It really wasn't my intent to make it quieter - adding stuff like PE foam, tempest mod are all counterintuitive to making it quieter. The good thing is that this is a hotswap board, so if you want it to be quiet, you can get the barebones and buy silent switches and then it'll be very quiet.
I feel like this is way too much effort for this type of board. While I appreciate seeing the internals, I definitely don't see myself going through these lengths to worry about modifying the "sound" profile.
I did the exact same mods as you and I feel like you've over "sold" the sound difference.
Its an awesome keyboard and I freaking love it! But I don't like when youtubers lie like you just did.
What ugly layout is that? 🤮
Terrible keyboard... why?
96%.... worst profile ever
Well that's probably why they offer both 65 and 96 percent for people with different preferences.
Is there a recommended puller kit?
did the pe foam affect your rgb?
How long is the power cable?