I've owned Leopold tenkeyless keyboards with Cherry MX Blue and Brown key switches. I stayed away from MX Blacks because of so many users saying that they're not good for straight typing. Wrong! The MX Blacks are excellent for typists who have a heavy key stroke. Touch typists who have a shallow key stroke may prefer Cherry MX Blues or Browns for their lighter required down force to actuate each key stroke.

The matte finish key caps feel really nice. I have read that the key caps are made of ABS plastic--for me the feel is preferable to PBT, but this is a matter of personal preference only. Also, the 'bump' on the F and J keys is easily picked up when getting back to the home row, for those of us who seldom look at the keyboard.

Cherry MX Blacks do produce a thud-like sound re audible feedback. I, by years of habit and first typing on typewriters way back, make a full key stroke when I type. This linear switch has no click to it, but the thud-like sound when the key bottoms out is quite pleasant. It sounds like solid plastic on plastic--a good sound by my standard. If the keys are actuated with a lighter touch, they make a audible sound that's easily recognizable as a full key stroke whether or not you 'bottom out' the key. Like all Cherry MX switches, the key actuates at 2mm and bottoms at 4mm, perfectly acceptable. These Black key switches require a bit more down force to actuate, which, for me, means there is less likelihood of accidental key strikes if your fingers 'tip' or 'graze' keys apart from the target key.

The learning curve, unless your coming off an old Remington 'mill' from the 1960s, may take a bit of time. But if you're used to mechanical keyboards, the learning curve will be considerably shorter. I just received this keyboard this morning and the more I use it, the better the typing experience. Did I mention how much I like this keyboard with Cherry MX Black key switchers?

I had been using a Leopold tenkyeless, a good keyboard for the money, about $40 less than the Filco. However, in my observation of the two boards, I prefer Filco. With this said, in all fairness, I've not owned a Leopold with Cherry MX Black key switches. Nonetheless, I prefer Filco's key caps. Key caps can cost between $30 (cheaper ones) to $50 plus for better quality caps. Perhaps this attends to part of the difference in price.

If you are not used to Black key switches, your weaker fingers may need to some time to adjust and build some strength to handle the MX Black switches. I had felt some wrist discomfort initially, I raised the legs but they increased the KB's pitch a bit too much for me; so I resolved the issue by raising the keyboard with two 1/4" self-adhesive pads (Lowe's or Home Depot) place over the rubber feet. No more wrist issues. Everyone has preferences with respect to keyboard pitch.

I'll write updates if necessary. My one-week old Leopold with Cherry MX Blue key switches is now officially 'boxed'; and the one with MX Browns I gave to a family member. This Filco with its Cherry MX Blacks is my favorite keyboard to date. I've owned many KBs: Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid, Dell, HP, Logitech, Keytronics, Sony, and some off-brand KBs. And for my typing style this Filco simply outperforms the others I've used. There is no reason to look askance at Cherry MX Black key switches if your primary use for a keyboard is typing rather than gaming. This may be a terrific gaming key switch, I don't know, but I can tell you from my experience is a fantastic switch for typing.

I have to thank Scott H. for his assistance as I was considering this keyboard. His review and his discussion comments with me attended to my questions/concerns and helped me to make the decision to try this KB--now I own it! Thank you, Scott.

Update
I have moved on to a Realforce 87UB/55-gram keyboard. Realforce uses Topre key switches. The feel is exceptional, different from the Cherry MX switches I've owned. After using this Realforce for six months or so, I find it preferable to MX Black key switches. Also, Realforce's keyboards have quiet key switches and there is internal 'pinging' noise that I found became worse over time with the Filco M2.

I picked this board up the other day and for the most part I'm pretty happy with it. There aren't many reviews out there so I thought I'd drop a few pieces of info out there for those that may be looking into this board. There are a few complaints, which I'll get to in a bit, but first the positives.

The build quality of this board is fantastic. It is very heavy and stable on the desktop and it's tough to move. No seams in the enclosure like some of the competing TKL boards out there, so already they've got a leg up when it comes to a solid build quality. The keys all take about the same amount of pressure to activate whereas a few other boards I've tried have had different needs based on the key that is pressed such as the spacebar and shift keys. The Filco does a great job making all of your keystrokes uniform which results in a fantastic typing experience. The feeling of the ABS keys are the best of that type I've felt. I've preferred PBT keys normally, but these are really nice and they dont' show a lot of finger grease or anything like a lot of other ABS keys do. I've got four different Cherry Black boards in my possession at the moment and the Filco has the most uniform typing experience. From an asthetic point of view, the Filco is definitely on the minimalist side of the spectrum. There isn't anything flashy about it at all so it's a very professional looking board. Normal fonts and a small Filco logo on the front are really all that's noticeable about the board at all. In fact, I'm actually looking into getting some black on black engraved caps to make it even more subdued. The stealth look.

On to the negatives. Well, there really is only one negative that is bothersome. The board is quite a bit louder than all of my other Cherry Black boards. Also, on a few of the stabilized keys (the bigger ones, spacebar, shift, enter, backspace), occasionally you can feel and hear a slight tick when you press the key. Yes, it's simply the stabilizer being slightly higher on one side or the other and with a little tweaking (removing the key and ever so slightly bending one side or the other), you can rectify the situation for the most part. I may get some little pads to go over the ends of the stabilizer that should tighten it up even more and if that works then this board will be perfect. I'd imagine if I switched it up to the PBT engraved keys a lot of my complaint would go away, so that is certainly something I'm contemplating. Again, the feel of the keyboard is so good, I can live with a little excess noise. Heck, most people like Cherry Blues, which click every time you press a key, so this likely won't bother most people at all that are in the market for a mechanical keyboard. Going in you should know that all mechanicals are noisier than the regular membrane keyboards, so it's pretty much moot. Just something to note if you're typing in a quiet office close to your co-workers/spouse.

Two other negatives worth noting that may or may not be an issue for you. No removable cable. A lot of high end boards these days have a removable USB cable so that you can transport the board easier and also so that you can easily replace the 5 dollar cable instead of the 130 dollar keyboard. That could be an issue going forward for some but I don't transport my board so it's not an issue for me. And second is no media keys. Sometimes I like to control my music from my keyboard and it is somewhat annoying that I have to use my mouse to do so now, but it's not a deal breaker by any means. Plus when you add those controls it also takes away from the aesthetic appeal of the board...so I'll go without.

Anyway...to recap. This is a great board with only the slight knock for the stabilized key noise and the lack of media keys and a removable cable. So if these things are really important to you, you'll have to look elsewhere, but for me it wasn't a really big issue. It simply is the best of the Cherry Black boards I've tried and it is a joy to type on, which is the first and most important criteria.

EDIT: 6/7/12 - After using this board for the past week and a half, I'm realizing that the sound from the stabilized keys has since disappeared and my complaint really isn't a complaint anymore...so I'm adjusting my score to a perfect 5 star board. You will not be disappointed in this board.

Very good.

I had never used a mechanical keyboard before this, but this keyboard has been really great. It's very durable and the keys seem like a dream to press on. Sometimes I just press random keys before I enjoy the feeling.

Didn't expect for it to squeak every time I use the backspace or Shift, but it is still a tremendous product - considerable upgrade from my previous $20 keyboard.

good keyboard, but i broke the left leg on the bottom of the keyboard. would you give me replacement?

This is a well made keyboard that does not disappoint. Compared to a cheaper (and smaller) mechanical keyboard with the same Linear keys (black cherry), this one feels more solid and key presses more crisp.

Coming from a rubber dome keyboard (though a good one), I can say that this is leaps and bounds better in terms of feel and ease of typing.

However, do not expect a tank-like built like the older IBM M's. These days this is as good as it gets for build quality.

TAKAKAKAKAKKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKAKA

I WAKE UP THE WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD WHEN I'M PULLING ALL NIGHTERS TYPING MY ESSAYS
I GET SWARMED BY MAD HONEYS EVERY TIME THEY HEAR THE CLACKS
THEY'RE ALL OVER ME HEL-