These PCB Colors Look WAY Better Than I Thought! (9 Colors Compared)

I'm excited to have been sent a huge load of PCBs for my latest keyboard design The Piano ( • Design Your Own Keyboard! ) - these boards are in every color that PCBWay offers and in this video I show each one in detail considering how they reflect light as well as look at the varying levels of translucency between the colors.
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Contents:
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0:00 Intro
1:24 White
2:16 Blue
3:00 Gloss Black
3:40 Red
4:14 Matte Green
5:03 Gloss Green
5:15 Green Compared
5:39 Purple
6:14 Matte Black
6:42 Black Compared
7:04 Yellow
7:36 White with keys
7:50 Yellow with keys
8:14 Blue with keys
8:29 Gloss Black with keys
8:44 Purple with keys
9:01 Gloss Green with keys
9:12 Red with keys (my fave!)
9:30 Matte Green with keys
9:42 Matte Black with keys

[@BenVallack]

Subscribe to my new custom keyboards channel! www.youtube.com/@BenVallacksKeyboards

[@Jvbeagles]

A really inspiring series of videos from the Ferris sweep all the way to here and exactly what KZbin is all about finding really high quality content sharing expertise. Thanks 👍

[@BenVallack]

Great to hear!

[@susseratal]

I've got to thank you hugely for these videos Ben, thanks to you I've not only started prototyping my own custom board, but also custom non-keyboard electronics projects

[@PCBWay]

What a Big pleasure that we are!! Glad to hear these boards didn’t let you down🤪 Ahh one more important thing is that your design is Amazing 🤩! And the immersion gold surface finish does look stunning 😁🥂

[@didgineil]

Fantastic Ben, another beautiful directed demonstration. The red & white looked great, the black & white just awesome. Also thank you for sharing really inspired me to dive in. Seeing these PCBs just sparks imagination, love to try the piano just so simple, and looks so entuitive. Thanks again

[@theblackfluid]

Awesome! I always wanted to see a comprehensible comparison. Thanks.

[@unkowndata2338]

This is great! Thanks for sharing what the colors look like.

[@erichanson5628]

Wonderful video Ben!

[@notvoidz]

thanks for doing such informative videos ben

[@tupinikeebs]

The purple one looks awesome! When I bought my first kit I chose black, and now I kinda regret

[@Vorporal]

Exactly what I needed. Thank you

[@GmailNexus]

Thank you Ben ♥️

[@Doctorcraft773]

This was fascinating! Thanks so much for sharing. 🙂

[@doomikusz]

Thanks Ben. I wouldn't mind seeing the boards in natural sunlight if you had time

[@atemoc]

Still can't get enough of all this beautiful work you put in your videos, going really deep into the subjects, talking about the details, clearely explaining things, and going full-on in subjects that a lot might consider niche and not worth working on, thanks for all of your content ! Also, I have a quick question, how many keys do you currently use on your keyboard, and what layout does it use ? I use a Moonlander with 34 keys on each half, I had gone all the way down to 10, but after a while I decided to go back up slowly until I found a sweet spot for me I use a slightly modified ISRT layout, znd a custom layout for symbols, numbers, movements, controls etc. I want to go down to 28 keys, or 30, by removing the 3 keys on each half of the keyboard where my index fingers have to reach sideways, as I find it quite uncomfortable and only want my fingers to move up and down, but I don't know how I could do that and adapt the ISRT layout for it without ruinning the SFB, SHB, and others that would make it feel akward. Also, quick more question, do you have any plans for experimenting with a custom-built Lalboard keyboard? They are trickier to build and not as portable, but, having tried one for a few days, it feels so brilliantly good to type on, and I was able to get up to speed really quickly and didn't felt any weirdness with my adapted layout on it, now I want to build one, but I don't have much time on my hands!

[@BenVallack]

Many thanks. Would love to try a Lalboard. Maybe one day. I am using the Piano from this video actually, 18 keys. Based on ISRT split over two layers. Basically the same as in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/a4OxkGeGhpWdZ6M but with a repeat key and a direct key to get to caps layer 2 (as mentioned in the video). I am almost very happy with it but might make a few tweaks to the key positions yet.

[@atemoc]

@@BenVallack Thanks for the very quick reply !

[@JanneSauvala]

Very cool looking boards. I liked especially the matte black and purple. Have you thought about creating a keyboard with MX-style switches? I guess with the low-profile switches you can just attach them straight to the PCB-board but the bigger MX-switches would require at least a top plate to attach the switches to it and maybe another plate to the bottom. I wonder if you could also manufacture the bottom and top plates somehow with PCBWay.

[@BenVallack]

Yeah I think I have seen people do that - I just love this low profile format though - it's so easy and simple to work with.

[@UNVIRUSLETALE]

I ordered purple (from jlc) for my split, don't have it working yet but it looks very nice. Those matte from pcbway are amazing tho

[@PCBWay]

Hey Angelo,thank you & nice to meet you!

[@blazecall]

What song is playing in the background?

[@yellowcrescent]

Would love to see someone who has had some boards made with the colors available with their Advanced service -- Pink, Grey, Orange, and Transparent (with black core FR4) as well as the other silkscreen colors (Yellow, Blue, Grey). I saw Adafruit had some made from PCBWay with the Pink soldermask + Black silkscreen that looked pretty cool, although would love to see what the Grey color actually looks like (or even the Pink on a larger sized board). Presumably with the Advanced service you get your own dedicated panels made rather than sharing a panel with other orders.

[@BenVallack]

I’m talking to them about this. Fingers crossed.

[@yellowcrescent]

@@BenVallack Awesome! Thanks

[@PCBWay]

@@BenVallack Hey Ben,let’s just do it! Actually already imagining what the pink, orange and grey keyboard would look like🤣 Super expected!🥳

[@BenVallack]

@@PCBWay Fantastic! I will be in touch when I have a new design - want to make the silkscreen really good on these!

[@vuongduc3975]

These PCB Colors Look WAY Better Than I Thought! (9 Colors Compared)

[@TheOfAndTo]

still no ws2812 leds ?

[@isaacbacker1426]

Thanks!

[@Sil3nC4]

Thanks for that comparison. The product photos cannot properly convey the look like a video can. The matt black with gold looks fire

[@KyekOfficial]

Very useful, thank you. I think my favorites are matte black and blue. I wonder if all these cost the same on PCBway because I know JLC charges extra for some combinations of colors and finishes. I'll have to check.

[@BenVallack]

Yeah think there is some variation on price. I’ve just discovered the four secret colours they have on the Advanced PCB area though. Would love to see those!

[@PCBWay]

@@BenVallack warmly welcome to try our advanced boards!

[@kabbeblom]

Cheers Ben! These videos are really great! Informative as well as entertaining. I’ve been a developer for many years with a preference for the Apple full-size keyboards. However you’re the culprit behind me switching to smaller keyboards all the time 😃. I’m now on a Ferris Sweep and I’m apparently slowly following you down this mad rabbit hole of fewer keys. I must admit that it is a very interesting journey. I was wondering if you could publish your 18 keys Piano zmk-setup. Since I’m Swedish I usually tend to base my keyboards on your setup (which is great) and then add my own tricks to add the Swedish characters. Å,Ä & Ö. I really don’t know how I’ll solve it this time with no keys to spare but I’ll figure something out. Thanks for great and informative videos.

[@BenVallack]

Thanks! Here you go github.com/benvallack/zmk-config-piano

[@kabbeblom]

@@BenVallack Thanks a million, Ben! I’ve never played around with nice!nanos so already reading the readme is rather daunting. A third nice!nano you say….this will keep me occupied 😁 Keep up the good work. Cheers, mate!

[@BenVallack]

@@kabbeblom yeah dongle mode for the win!

[@Graham_Wideman]

8:30 obviously needs gold keycaps :-)

[@aerispalm6523]

Why didn't they send you a pink pcb? i get that those are more expensive but i might be willing to pay a lot if i get good pink pcbs and everything else i can get cheaper elsewhere.

[@BenVallack]

I can't see pink on their website actually. Would like to see one though!

[@aerispalm6523]

@@BenVallack it's only available in the advanced pcb section. that's why it's sadly way more expensive.

[@BenVallack]

@@aerispalm6523 Ah wow I didn't even see those - there are loads of other colours in there! Now I really want to try them. Shame they don't offer those colours in the quick PCB tool.

[@PCBWay]

Suggestion well-received 😁thx Aeris

[@xaytana]

I'm a bit surprised they don't offer an unpigmented translucent option, seems like that would be a good option for projects that use the artistic aspect. They could also provide different finishes of how the unpigmented translucent board messes with light, such as having a frosted piece, a plain piece, diffusion methods that aren't necessarily frosting, etc. If there's a way to get the gold coloring on the keycaps, on the red board I'd go with red caps with gold legend. Figuring out how to do this would be such a dive down rabbit holes of how to get this look and how to extend it's longevity. I'm not sure how well this would work, but a double shot keycap but with the legend layer being copper, so that then the copper can have the same gold treatment the PCB gets; alternatively, triple shot where the copper layer is sandwiched between the plastic layers, as an encapsulated solution will probably be better than plastic on metal, unless you perforate the metal portion to allow the plastic second shot to penetrate and seal on the backside as a more complex double shot. Massive money sink, but I'm a bit surprised nobody has delved into this idea, especially considering the market for specialized keycaps, such as all the custom resin ones.

[@BenVallack]

You have just made me wonder about using pcb itself for keycaps. I guess you’d have to glue them onto the switches somehow but it would make for some seriously interesting looking keyboards!!

[@BenVallack]

I think they do a translucent option and pink, orange and grey, in the advanced PCB section.

[@xaytana]

@@BenVallack You may be able to interface with a keyswitch stem via the typical friction-fit, or the snap fit of some switches, to get a PCB keycap to work. Have the stem type cut out of the PCB and it should be able to friction fit itself. If you want a clean top surface, use a couple of PCBs soldered together, one for the clean top and a lower piece for the stem interface, you could probably achieve something similar with 3+ boards. Alternatively, for something like a Cherry-style stem, a piece of plastic that interfaces with the lower layer, either by sandwiching or by some kind of compliant snap, could also work; glue would also work here, but I personally just don't like glues, especially when material and surface compatibility can be questionable I'm not familiar with the design and tolerances needed for keycaps, so all of this is in-head theoretical conceptualization, but I'm sure it wouldn't be too difficult to design a PCB keycap that's not glued to a keyswitch stem.

[@mofous]

The piano keys golden logo ... is that a custom size/shape pad? Apologies for the basic question, I'm very new to this. Great video!

[@BenVallack]

Yeah that is a result of adding vector artwork into the copper layer. Great fun.

[@strictnonconformist7369]

I'm more partial to the purple. You have enough there it appears you're making a number for sale. If so, how much for the US?

[@BenVallack]

The quantity was all based on minimum order numbers but I’ll definitely look at setting something up for selling. I have had success using a heat gun and solder paste for soldering so I could sell them as partially ready (I.e no switches, battery or controller) too.

[@StephanGelenscher]

I really want to see you typing on this keyboard 🎹

[@otann]

The video does a very weird impression when you are looking just past the camera. Like I was not supposed to see it, like green PCB :))

[@BenVallack]

Ha yeah that was a bit of an experiment - I don’t normally do it but the idea was to suggest we were watching it together - which we were - the b-roll was pre-recorded and edited.

[@isaacbacker1426]

Do you have a patreon or anything? Would love to support the channel. Your ergo keyboard content is amazing!

[@BenVallack]

Many thanks! Is there a ‘thanks’ button below the video? That should work I think! I enabled it recently. It may only show on desktops.

[@isaacbacker1426]

@@BenVallack ah yes I see it on mobile. Thanks!

[@masterjcoz]

👍

[@jenniferbrien3408]

'Piano'? Are you aware of the Micheli stenotype keyboard? Two keys per finger, can use a MIDI keyboard - D# to C on the left hand, E to C# on the right.

[@BenVallack]

Ah no I wasn’t, that’s really interesting!

[@TheOfAndTo]

how i can get one ? (from brazil)

[@BenVallack]

See if PCBWay ship to you, they ship to 170 countries. There is a link in the description to order this exact board, they already have files ready to go. You can choose colours and order.

[@TheOfAndTo]

@@BenVallack thanks they will :) could you post a maker guide for it ?

[@bd93nl45]

First!