Synth Labs 065 - A Seamless Gasket Mount 65%

The Synth Labs 065 was designed alongside the SLK keycap profile, and was made to compliment it, sharing many common design elements. I wanted to make something that feels at-home with the minimalist aesthetics of the SLK profile, but also had enough unique elements to stand out and be memorable.

It also takes inspiration from the U.S.S. Enterprise from Star Trek (the 2009 reboot), in which the silhouette is composed of a few simple, highly functional geometric shapes, brought together by smooth sweeping curves.

ai03's Lunar II keyboard was also particularly influential for this design - it also features a zero-seam design with a one-piece chassis. While this sort of construction was more common in much older case designs, I thought it's interesting to see a more modern build use it and really lean into it's advantages. I thought this was incredibly elegant, but kind of basic in terms of functionality, and I believed I could improve on this idea. I thought of several ways to incorporate a gasket-mount system to this design instead of the tray-mount on the Lunar II.

I also like to make sure the weights feel uniquely suited to the design of the rest of the board. I try to avoid relying on engravings or 2D designs to make the weight visually interesting. I opted for a smaller internal weight instead of something like the large external weight on the Lunar II to compliment the seamless appearance. While this internal weight won't actually be visible past assembly, I felt that a unique shape reminiscent of the exterior makes this weight feel like it embodies the spirit of the design.

The Bias TKL keyboard was also a big inspiration for the interior design of the 065. It was the first keyboard I've seen to feature a channelled out interior that form fits components on the PCB, which is such a simple and effective way to preserve more material while maintaining a low height. I implemented this with flat non-angled channels, which even though doesn't look as interesting aesthetically, seems more friendly for hotswap sockets and the inclusion of case foams.

As some of you may know from Instagram, I've been working on this keyboard design for quite a long time actually - since late 2020. The exterior design took pretty much it's final shape in early 2021, but the interior has had many dramatic reworks since then.

This keyboard design has been on the shelf unannounced for quite some time for two reasons:
- Other projects going on
- Not feeling confident about the previous interior designs

However, with the Synth Labs Solo macropad project now complete, and the revisions made to this keyboard's interior, I feel finally ready to present it on Geekhack.

The keyboard has actually been prototyped once before as a true unibody tray-mount design.

It looked stunning, but felt a bit lackluster in terms of sound and feel. To improve this, I've made many changes - most notably the pillar-mounted gasket system, the channeled interior floor, and the addition of the internal weight. Not all of these ideas came to me at once - I figured them out in the order I listed one at a time, and each one entailed a major rework.