For me, the perfect keyboard is the one you build. I personally like the modular keyboard design linked here: https://www.pcgamingrace.com/products/gmmk-full-customized. With the modular keyboards you can swap out switches to your heart's content and make it the perfect one for you. 

EVGATech_AdamB
For me, the perfect keyboard is the one you build. I personally like the modular keyboard design linked here: https://www.pcgamingrace.com/products/gmmk-full-customized. With the modular keyboards you can swap out switches to your heart's content and make it the perfect one for you. 

I'm liking this.

If you want to make something a bit more custom, it's hard to go wrong with WASD

mike406
If you want to make something a bit more custom, it's hard to go wrong with WASD

A couple of the ones I looked at there look like GMMK barebones with a lot more customization options than GMMK offer. Thanks!
 
 

still not worth it but if you have the money to burn then go for it, I'm too cheap for that.

Nereus

jfw06013
still not worth it but if you have the money to burn then go for it, I'm too cheap for that.

Doesn't appear to have LED keys. Although I don't necessarily need a three ring circus on my keyboard, I do require at least monotone LED as at times I am using it in a darkened room, and I'm not 'skilled' enough to type blind.


 

If backlight is necessary then the least "race-car-alien-ship" looking keyboards I would recommend are the previously mentioned GMMK, WASD Code, or CoolerMaster MasterKeys Single Color Backlight (scroll down a bit). CoolerMaster's keyboards are built pretty tough and have a pretty clean design with minimal branding (a plus for me), I'm still rocking one of their original series mech keyboards from 2012 and have never had an issue.
 

jfw06013
way too much money for WASD

 
Some people take the look and material quality of their keyboards very seriously. They're not for the average person, but I definitely wouldn't say they are not worth it to those who value such things. Some people will easily spend upwards of $200 for their perfect keyboard. There's entire communities that revolve around having fun with custom keyboard builds. If you're willing to have an open mind and not brush something off solely off its price tag, check out /r/MechanicalKeyboards on Reddit.

sorry, I meant the Dragon model k556 rgb.
 

Nereus
 
So with no other suggestions, and the Razer and GMMK being similarly priced atm when you add in the wrist rest, I'm waiting to see if the Razer is discounted on Amazon Prime Day tomorrow. Other issue is that apparently the GMMK can take up to a month to arrive in the US when ordered custom from the site (which I would be), and I need something sooner, it's driving me nuts having to go back and correct everything I type because of key stutter.
 
 

Nereus, I highly recommend that you read up on Razer Synapse 3.x beta on their forums.  Their hardware is excellent...but the software and CS is hard to like.  I have the Lancehead TE mouse and synapse has caused issues that took months to resolve.  Even after resolution, I received emails from support saying that there is nothing they could do to fix the issue (really???  already resolved).  Left hand doesn't know what the right hand is doing...

 
Thanks everyone for the input. I just ordered the GMMK full size keyboard with Gateron Brown switches and standard black key caps. The only real hesitation I had on the GMMK was delivery time, but I found one on Amazon with the specs I wanted and I should have it by the end of the week. :)   
 
No wrist rest included, I'll see how I go without it. I haven't been using one with my Razer Blackwidow, so maybe I don't need one.
 
I found this little chart which some may find useful:
 
 
 
 

 
I've had the GMMK for a few days now and I'm definitely liking it. The Gateron Browns are pretty close to the Razer Orange switches, which is what I wanted. I installed the GMMK software and it's extremely intuitive and you can do pretty much anything you like with the LEDs - swirling patterns, individually colored keys, a raindrop on a pond effect on each keystroke, whatever - I'm finding individually colored keys very useful. Of course you can have several profiles so it's easy to switch between them - my young daughter was fascinated with some of the more active and colorful modes.
 
The only slight negative up front was the noise. I guess I'm somewhat of a 'violent' keyboard operator as I tend to mash every keystroke down to the base pretty hard, and presumably because the alloy face plate and the somewhat hollow insides on the GMMK base, it sounds quite a bit louder and 'clickier' than my old Razer BlackWidow. I'm definitely not a fan of loud clicky keyboards. Fortunately GMMK have a solution for that, and I've ordered some O-ring switch dampeners (soft and thin option) which I should have by the end of the week. I also ordered a wrist rest (full size and slim option) - whether I need it is yet to be seen.
 
I may look at replacing some of the keycaps a little later - most are fine, but I'm not big on the stencil type font on some of the keys. I pulled off all the keycaps from my Razer so I may swap a few of them over, although their fonts aren't the best either (it's the older style pre-2014 font for those familiar with Razer). Having the option to swap keycaps and switches on the fly is awesome.
 
I'll post an update when I have the O-rings in place, but for now I'd certainly recommend the GMMK keyboard, and thanks to EVGATech_AdamB for the heads-up on it. 
 
 

k70 rapidfire 

Yeah, the loud clicky-clack keys is pretty off-putting after a short time , so the oring dampeners would be quite nice.
 
I have just stuck to mostly Cherry reds , as a good compromise of me not having to fuss anymore.

Hoggle
I have thought about trying o-rings but have feared them breaking down over time and getting stuck in the switches. Probably take a long time for it to happen but probably would happen before I wear out the switch. I might try them though since I don’t think I will want the same keyboard for the 50 million keystrokes it’s rated for.

Here's a photo of the o-ring placed in the key cap. They are sturdy and I'd imagine will last a few years at least, if not longer than the switch, but even if they did start to degrade, a can of compressed air should quickly solve any issue. Side note - they are clear, so they don't interfere with the LED lights.
 
  
 
Key cap looks like crap and dirty, but that's just my phone camera on a kind of macro zoom doing that.
 
 

MSim
I purchased some o rings for my K70 RGB keyboard on ebay, they didn't help much at all for noise. I could notice the change in how far down i can press the keys. I ended up removing them.

Guess it depends on the keyboard base and how low the switches sit etc. etc., worth a try though. Worked for me. :)

 
I've noticed a few posts recently asking or commenting about the latest/best keyboards, so I'm going to necro this thread to reiterate that the GMMK keyboard I purchased back in July 2018 is still going strong and is the best keyboard I've used. The Gateron Browns are doing a great job with no issues yet with nearly a year & a half of daily use. The O-rings I added are also holding up well, haven't had to replace any of them yet. Still on the original keycaps with no sign of wear, amazingly enough - tough little buggers! If you're looking for a highly customizable, high quality keyboard, GMMK is the one.

p.s. it appears they are planning a Black Friday / Cyber Monday sale, so might want to check it out.