The Class80 was the keyboard that put MMKey Studio on the map, and it’s back again for a second round. Ridiculously retro, this keyboard kit is nothing short of glorious if you’re a fan of vintage aesthetics and stellar typing and gaming. It sold out quickly during its first round and will surely do so again, so if you’re interested in taking your desk top back in time with all the amenities and features of a modern, high-end custom keyboard, the Class80 R2 is for you.
Specifications
- Current Price: (Amazon)
- Layout: WK/WKL 80%
- Case materials: 6063 aluminum
- Color:Retro E-White, Retro E-Red, Retro E-Green
- Size: 39.34*18.95*2 cm (L*W*H)
- Typing angle: 7 degrees
- PCB: 1.6mm Wired Hot-swap & Wired Soldered & Wired EC kit (With Niz standard switches and plate stabs)
- Plate: POM/ Stainless Steel (EC PCB)
- Mounting: Top Mount, Gasket Mount(Plateless Supported)
MM Studio Class80 R2 - Group Buy Information
The MM Studio Class80 R2 will become available for on a first-come, first-served basis as an in-stock purchase on October 10th. It will be sold directly through MM Studio at this link.
Prices for the kit will start at $355 for the wired standard kit and $450 for the electrocapacitive kit.
Every standard kit will include:
- Aluminum keyboard case
- Internal weight: stainless steel
- Badge: Aluminum
- Solenoid and Buzzers
- 1.5mm plate: POM / Stainless steel (EC only)
- 3.5mm Poron plate foam
- 0.5mm PE foam
- PCB: Soldered (with 5mm Poron plate foam)/Hot swap/Wired capacitive(EC)kit
- Type-c daughter board
- Case foam : 2*1mm foam, 2mm HS foam
- Gasket poron
- Top mount silicon pad
- Feets
- Screws and tools
Extra parts available for purchase are as follows:
- Indicator Light Module(Optional): $20
- Extra Foam Kit(Optional: $15
- 1.5mm plate foam
- 3.5mm plate foam
- 0.5mm PE sheet
- 2mm hot-swap case foam
- 2*1mm case foam
- Gasket poron
- Extra Tools and others(Optional): $5
- Screws and tools
- Feets
- Gasket poron
- Top mount silicon pad
- Type-C daughter board
MM Studio Class80 R2 - Design and Features
The MM Studio Class80 R2 looks like it was pulled from the pages of a 1980s computer magazine. Available in green, red, or classic beige, it immediately brings to mind IBM, Texas Instruments, Apple, and Packard Bell. If you’re a net denizen of a certain age like I am, these are the computers you grew up on. The Class80 R2 is blast from the past in the best, most nostalgic way.
MM Studio was kind enough to send me a prototype to take stock of, and I’m in love. It has big, wide bezels with an extra large forehead. It’s striped with four grooves that flank a pencil tray. I even got the indicator light module that gets rid of Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause and replaces them with an indicator light cluster ripped straight from the keyboards of old. Does it matter that this is a TKL and only Caps Lock will ever be lit up? Not at all because it completes the look.
But while the visual design plays heavily on nostalgia, the physicalities bring in the best of what’s popular in custom mechanical keyboards today. The case, for example, is made of CNC-milled aluminum and is exceptionally heavy. Each of its three colors are applied through an e-coating process which provides a hardened, durable, and smooth finish that feels prepared. Somehow, anodization where it’s bare-colored metal doesn’t feel like it would work with this keyboard. Electrophoresis, on the other hand, feels just about perfect.
The design of the case itself is also exceptionally well-considered elsewhere. Flip it around to the back and you’ll find more engraved stripes that match the retro aesthetic to a tee. Centered is the rear is a weight made to resemble a game controller ala the Super Famicom.
This, I think, is interesting and a bit of the designer’s own nostalgia for the era seeping through. When I see the Class80, I don’t think of video games. I think of vintage PCs. And yet, that’s what the best nostalgia products do for us: they take us back in our minds to another time. When I was a kid playing on my old TI-99, I also had an original NES I adored. The badge is a different feel from my first impression but it works.
So far, this was true of the original Class80 too, but the Round 2 offers a major option that wasn’t previously available: electrocapacitive switches. These switches, similar to Topre, use high-quality rubber domes on springs that sit on top of the PCB to trigger each key press. They’re quieter and softer and have a unique feel that lands between mechanical switches and the best rubber dome membranes. It’s an excellent option to see included and one that’s still exceptionally rare in the custom mechanical keyboard world.
The flip side to this is that, from what I understand, it’s a much more challenging build. I would recommend it if you’ve built several keyboards already and have a firm understanding of their mechanics. Even then, it can be challenging as popular keyboard YouTuber, Shoobs, makes clear in this video. I was sent the mechanical kit, which is much more straightforward.
Internally, this is very much a custom keyboard of 2023, which means you can count on an exceptional typing experience that’s soft on the fingers and delivers a refined, pleasing sound. It supports both gasket and top mounting (with dampening pads), the former delivering a softer, more rounded sound and feel. It’s fairly firm no matter what, though, you can go with whatever sound you like best and not worry that you’re leaving performance on the table. It can also be used plateless, even with the hot-swap PCB, using a thicker layer of supportive PCB foam which comes included with the kit. It features a full set of foams (plate foam, IXPE switch foam, PCB foam, and two layers of case foam), supports screw-in stabilizers, and has an internal weight to tune the sound for use without any foams if you choose. There is no RGB, which you would expect from a board like this.
Interestingly, there aren’t as many options when it comes to plates and layouts as I expected. If you go for the soldered PCB, the only option you get is for a stepped Caps Lock. If you plan to solder your switches, you get split left shift, ISO support, and the option for WK and WKL 7u spacebar (as well as standard 6.25u). The mechanical kit will only come with a soft POM plate while the EC kit will come with stainless steel. Neither PCB option features flex cuts and is 1.6mm in thickness.
Another interesting feature of this keyboard is that it comes with a solenoid and a buzzer that can be turned on and swapped between with a dedicated switch. This is very old school and not something I would use normally due to noise, but it’s also a really neat gimmick that emphasizes just how vintage it is. And honestly, the light chirp of the buzzer is actually kind of nice. I expected to use both to play around with here and there, but when I’m by myself, that solenoid is on, baby. Chirp chirp.
I didn’t know I had such a longing for a retro keyboard like this until I laid eyes on it for the first time. This is personally the most exciting kit I’ve tested all year. It’s a sleeper hit. Built with a set of great switches, it’s also one of the best-sounding keyboards in my whole collection. Simply put, I’m in love. It’s a piece of my childhood, today.
MM Studio Class80 R2 - Packaging and Assembly
The Class80 R2 comes in a large, hardback travel case. Given its large bezels, it probably shouldn’t have come as a surprise that it was as large as it was, but it still did. I’m glad it was included, however, because this is a keyboard that’s fun to share with others. No one assumes it’s going to be as heavy and feel as nice as it does to use. I’ve been taking it back and forth from work to home and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.
The case is also broken into two compartments with a zippered barrier. This is especially nice because if you get extra components, they like to fall out of the top pocket during travel (this happens with all of my keyboard cases, not just this one) and that barrier keeps the Class80 safe from scratches. There’s plenty of room for accessories too.
MM Studio provides everything you’ll need to complete the build. It’s relatively straightforward if you’ve built a custom keyboard before, but if you haven’t, you may want to read the assembly guide or preview a few YouTube videos where influencers have built it before.
Like all custom keyboards, you’ll want to prepare your switches and stabilizers ahead of time. I built mine with WS Stabilizers V3 (Silicone) screw-in stabs, lubed with Krytox 205g0, and a set of Bolsa Laguna Blue pre-lubed linear switches.
With these done, you begin by laying down the PE foam if you plan on using it and screwing in the stabilizers. Then you add the plate foam, again if you’re planning on using it, the plate… if you’re planning on using it… and install the switches, soldering or pressing them into place. Even though the tabs on the PCB say “gasket,” I would recommend installing the PORON gasket strips onto the case itself.
But before you do, try the other mounting styles first. Like all adhesive strips, once they’re applied, you will destroy the gasket getting it off again. There is enough to replace them all once but it’s smarter to see how you like plateless and top mount first.
With the switches installed, you can install the gaskets or add the silicone dampeners for top mounting. If you’re top-mounting, install the PCB assembly face-down into the top case. If you’re gasket mounting, apply strips to the top and bottom case. Next, you’ll need to plug in the USB Type-C daughterboard and the small solenoid and buzzer circuit boards, both of which were pre-installed on my sample. This is very simple as it is only two plugs but make sure to line up the pins before pressing them into place.
The final consideration would be the LED indicator panel, if you chose to buy it separately. Run its cable through the circuit board and plug it in the back. There are four metal standoffs and silicone inserts that fit around the cluster for Print Screen, Scroll Lock, and Pause. Put these into place and fasten the panel. Put the top case back on and secure it with the screws on the back. Add keycaps and you’re done.
MM Studio Class80 R2 - Typing and Gaming Impressions
I won’t bury the lead on this one. The Class80 R2 is easily my personal favorite keyboard of the year. It delivers on its retro promises so well and doesn’t sacrifice the typing, gaming, or acoustic experience to get there. Built with Blue Lagoon switches and all of the foams (minus one case foam), the typing experience is just sublime. The build quality and construction is excellent. The overwhelming impression is one of sheer satisfaction. MM Studio absolutely nailed it with this keyboard.
In more practical terms, the typing experience is firm yet forgiving. Even mounted on the PORON gaskets, the amount of visible flex when typing normally is minimal. But it is there, so what translates to your fingers isn’t bounce but is softness.
The sound is absolutely excellent. I prefer it with the PE foam but it sounds great without it. I’ve left it in because it adds to the “sleeper” quality of the keyboard. A keyboard that looks like it will deliver some heavy clicks instead is buttery smooth, rounded in sound, and has a light marbly quality. There’s absolutely no ping to speak of with a single case foam, and if you’d prefer not to use it, MM Studio even included some additional flat strips to apply a force break. This board sounds great.
The build quality here is simply excellent too. There are no imperfections whatsoever on my case. The e-coating is smooth and consistent, inside and out. The fit and finish is impeccable.
There’s a real artistry to its design too. Take the inner weight and how it waffles across the bottom case. It’s also frosted with a crystal-like finish that reminds me of carbon fiber. It looks amazing but I suspect it also has a direct impact in the consistency of the sound across all of the keys. The mix of materials, rather than being centered in a single spot like most keyboards, breaks up resonances across the entire bottom. It’s smart.
Or the external case. Small touches abound there too. I love how the top case is wider and then cuts in below, giving the impression that the key set is floating on air. I also like how the chin is beveled down. It’s tall enough that I’m most comfortable using it with a palm rest, but there’s no hard angle to press into my wrist.
For gaming, it works perfectly. Since it’s a wired keyboard, it responds with only 1ms of latency, so it won’t lack anything behind dedicated gaming keyboards. It utilizes VIAL for its programming, which makes remapping keys and creating custom layouts a cinch. I’ve been using it as my daily keyboard for a solid two weeks and I haven’t felt any major drawbacks to using it even in competitive gaming sessions. It doesn’t have the same software capabilities as the likes of Razer Synapse or Corsair iCUE, but all of your changes are stored on board and will carry through to any computer without the need for VIAL to run in the background.
The Class80 R2 is a unique joy in the world of custom mechanical keyboards and is an absolute treat to type and game on.
Final Thoughts
All of this really culminates in one thing: this is a keyboard that feels almost like a work of art. It nails the retro aesthetic incredibly well and then enriches it with a typing experience that’s a joy to use. At $355 for the mechanical kit and $450 for the electrocapacitive, it’s expensive but one-of-a-kind and incredibly well done. That you can buy it in stock (if you’re in time) is the icing on the cake.
If you crave that vintage look and want a set of keys that can last you a lifetime, it really doesn’t get much better than this.
The product described in this article was provided by the manufacturer for evaluation purposes.
