I think it’s about time I do a higher end build on the channel, but instead of one,
we’ll do a double build.
So today we have the Canoe by Percent Studios, which is from a groupbuy a while back.
So yeh, I’m pretty lucky to have gotten 2 people to build these for.
The first one I have is this white and red version.
And then we have a black and grey version.
And the case comes pre-assembled in the box, but we still of course have to take it apart.
So we get an aluminium plate.
An aluminium weight.
And yeh, it’s just alu, so it’s not like a brass weight or anything, that would actually
make the thing heavier, coming in at just under 300grams.
The case has 2 parts, both made from solid CNC’d aluminium.
And yeh, just beautiful pieces to look at.
And it’s finished nicely all on the inside as well
These PCBs are known to be kinda dodgy, with a bunch of people having issues, so I was
glad that they worked out of the box, by testing them with tweezers.
But they do look really nice with that matte black solder mask.
For the white board, I’m using GMK screw in stabilisers, with a bit of Super Lube applied.
And for the black board, we’re using some rich boy Zeal Stabs, which look really nice
by the way with the transparent housing and gold plated wires and screws.
However, there was an issue with the spacebar stabiliser.
So I realised that it wasn’t coming up all the way, and looking closer, I actually realised
that the wire was hitting the edge of the plate.
So basically the plate wasn’t giving enough clearance.
So yeh, I had no choice but to give it just a little file to give that clearance.
And to be honest, it’s not that bad.
Like most of the filing was done on the underside, so you can’t really see it.
Plus of course when assembled, you can’t see it at all.
Still would rather not do it though.
For the keyswitches, both boards have them Zeal PC goodies.
For the white board we have 67g Tealios, which are smooth linear switches.
And for the black board, we have 67g Zilents, which are silent tactile switches.
We’ll see them at the end with the sound tests and all.
Alright, so now to put it all together, and by the way, all of these screws are good solid
hex screws.
If you’re gonna have these beastly boards, you’re gonna want some nice keycaps.
For the white board, we have GMK Red Honey.
Made in Germany, GMK keycaps are highly regarded in the community for their quality and feel,
but they are ABS plastic, which is seen as a positive by some, while others think the
other way, because they do shine over time.
And we get some pretty good compatibility as well, but we also got this extra kit.
And for the black board, we have Enjoy PBT Black on White.
A stunningly simple and clean colourway by ePBT, who are also highly regarded, but are
a tier lower than GMK.
Both companies do use the popular Cherry profile, being shorter than your typical OEM caps.
And here they are all done, and let’s just start with the white one.
This board is stunningly cohesive.
It’s not actually white, as I’ve been describing it throughout the video, as you
can’t anodise aluminium white, but you can get close.
So in different lighting conditions, as with most things, it changes from a white appearance,
to more of a grey appearance.
The keycaps are a perfect match for the whole colour scheme, also remember that we do have
a red mounting plate underneath these keycaps.
Of course the white of the keycaps won’t match the actual colour of the case, but it
is a nice change.
The dark grey modifiers give it a bit of depth to oppose the case and white caps.
And then of course the red legends for that edge and colour, which really brings it to
life.
The anodisation is of a higher quality being harder and more durable, while having a softer
feel.
Both of the ones I have here came in pretty much perfect condition.
However you may notice that there are no rubber feet or anything included.
So it’s just aluminium against whatever surface you put it on.
It’s pretty stable on the desk, but you just don’t feel comfortable putting like
a 500 dollar board on a table just like that.
Now the black one has kind of a stronger and contrasting look.
This time, we have a black top and grey bottom, which again, is very clean.
These ePBT Black on White keycaps are very very strong, as it’s quite a bright cool
white.
Usually with white keycaps we’d get something a bit warmer, and this makes them stand out
a whole lot more, so it matches the black perfectly with that strong contrast.
Whether it matches with the grey, I’m not so sure.
But it’s definitely not out of place.
The 65% form factor is the sweet spot for me personally.
I always felt like it was the perfect balance between size and functionality, with the few
nav keys and dedicated arrow keys on the right.
But yeh, everyone is different.
And here’s how they sound.
Alright so these are pretty expensive MX style keyswitches, so you’d expect them to be
good.
And they are.
The Zilent’s are silent tactile keyswitches, basically being a silent version of the well
regarded Zealio’s.
So they have these little dampeners on the stem, making them very quiet as you would
have heard.
And the tactile bump is still quite prominent and rounded, but it feels different because
of those dampeners, so everything feels softer in a way.
The Tealios on the other hand are linear switches, with its main drawpoint being its smoothness.
And they are smooth.
Probably the smoothest MX style switch I’ve personally used.
And combined with the high quality keycaps and the hefty case, it makes for a real solid
typing experience.
But they’re also quite loud, perhaps because they’re so clean.
Alright so before I end this, unfortunately it’s not all perfect.
At the time I recorded this audio, the PCB of the white and black Canoe is not functioning.
I tested the PCB before building, and it worked, and I already knew that these PCBs are dodgy,
with quite a few people having problems, so I did take care when building.
But somewhere in the process, I must have done something to upset it, so yeh, super
super disappointing.
I just really hope that I can fix it.
Overall, these are two absolutely fantastic looking boards.
The case design is stunning, being elegant, but at the same time having a strong character
with its smooth angular design.
Both boards look unique in their own ways, and the owners definitely went hard with pretty
much everything.
Like the switches, stabs, keycaps, everything is pretty much right up there.
I know doing this may not make sense to a lot of people.
But it is a hobby, and people can do what they want.
And I for sure enjoyed building these beautiful keyboards.
If you’re in Sydney and want to see other decked out keyboards, we have a meetup coming
up in December.
I’ll put the links in the description if you want to check it out.