Disclaimer: Monoprice lent me this product to try in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The Dark Matter Collider was my first experience with a true gaming keyboard with mechanical keys. I have friends who use them and swear by them but I never really understood what could be so different. I have thoroughly enjoyed gaming with this keyboard though, as the customization and solid feel of the device has made me feel more confident with my keystrokes.

The keyboard itself has a solid steel frame. It has a good weight to it that keeps it in place on my desktop while taking up a lot less space compared to my old one. The keyboard comes with Cherry MX switches which is a benefit for double and triple tap key strokes while gaming. The actuation point is 2mm and the force is 45g. The key caps are great, with no wear indications and no dirt build up, two things I have dealt with before with basic keyboards.

The biggest changes for me that has helped me with gaming using this keyboard are the RGB backlit keys and the custom mapping key commands. With the RGB backlit keys you have a multitude of color options to choose from, not only for the keyboard itself, but for every single key. My setup has six colors used with how it relates to what I typically use the key for. This isn't because I need help remembering, but with my peripheral vision, I can see a color disappear as my finger presses it and it just gives me an assurance that I'm going to make the right keystroke. The custom key mapping gives me an advantage in that I can processes multiple commands with a single keystroke, cutting off a lot of time when playing games or doing other work that can be repetitive.

I think the one thing I am still getting used to is the actual clicking sound of the keyboard. It is much louder than what I am used to, and supposedly the Cherry MX Red is on the quieter side for mechanical keys, but often times my mic will pick up the clicking noise while gaming. I will need to sort that out better but it is a tiny complaint for such a great feel and use. I can now say I've converted over to the gaming mechanical keyboard side and I love it.