You may perhaps be familiar with the Armaggeddon brand. They make affordable computer gaming gear such as keyboards and mice. Their latest mechanical keyboard is the MKA-13R RGB Eagle Gaming Keyboard.
The Armaggeddon MKA-13R is a full-sized mechanical keyboard with 16.8 million colour programmable backlit keys. It is available in both black and white colours. I have the white one for this review. Apart from the obvious colour differences, the two versions also differ in the types of key caps used.
The MKA-13R build quality is excellent. The entire keyboard feels very solid and robust. The top plate is made of metal, so the keyboard feels quite premium. There’s also quite a bit of heft to the keyboard. With rubber anti-skid pads on the underside, including on the keyboard legs, this keyboard will not slide around on your table, at least not unless you’re determined to make it move.
The 1.8 metres nylon braided USB cable on the MKA-13R provides extra durability. The USB connector is gold-plated, and a velcro cable tie helps with cable management.
The most important component on any keyboard, let alone a mechanical keyboard, is of course the keys themselves. The MKA-13R uses Outemu blue switches. If you’re more familiar with Cherry MX switches, don’t worry, these Outemu switches are excellent too. This Outemu blue switches are loud and very tactile. I’m personally not fond of loud switches, but the loudness aside, these keys are excellent.
The Outemu blue switches on the MKA-13R have deep travel, a total of 4.0 mm, and working travel of about 2.2 mm. The keys require about 60 grams of actuation force. This combination of deep travel and actuation force come together to provide a superb typing experience.
Another feature of these Outemu switches is that they are modular. You can replace them easily, with some spares included in the packaging.
In terms of design, the key caps on the MKA-13R “float” on the top-plate, and with the RGB backlighting on, it looks like they are levitating.
While the black version of the MKA-13R have standard matte-finish concave black key caps, the white version goes with a different, shinning, plastic finish. The latter key cap has an added non-slip feel due to the material of the key cap. I do prefer the more conventional caps in the black version though, but in practice, I don’t think there is any significant difference in the overall typing experience.
I do take issue with the fonts on the key caps. I can see this has been the style that Armaggeddon has been going with on their other keyboards. I really much prefer regular fonts, usual positions of shifted key names, and also standard special key names (e.g. Home instead of HM).
You will need to download software for the MKA-13R on your own. It is not included in the box. The keyboard on its own already allows you to configure some basic LED backlight patterns, but of course, full customisation, including macro programming and profile setup, requires the MKA-13R software. The software is available only for Windows, which is fine since this is after all a Windows keyboard.
There are 14 backlight patterns you can choose from. Each pattern can be further customised with options for brightness, speed, and colour, where applicable. The Game Mode pattern allows you to highlight certain key groups, or arbitrarily choose which exact keys you want individually.
In the box, the MKA-13R comes with three spare Outemu blue key switches, a key cap puller, and a key switch puller.
The Armaggeddon MKA-13R RGB Eagle Gaming Keyboard white version retails at S$109. The black colour version retails at S$99.
Conclusion
If you’re looking for a great mechanical gaming keyboard on a budget, check out the Armaggeddon MKA-13R RGB Eagble Gaming Keyboard.
Pros:
- Deep travel, very satisfying tactile feedback
- Programmable key backlighting with many options
- Programmable macros
Cons:
- Not fond of the fonts on the key caps