Drawing near
Hope remains in the finishing stage, with surface polishing taking longer than anticipated and progress consequently being slower than expected. This manual process removes minor imperfections from the machined surfaces before the enclosures are blasted and anodised, providing the most consistent foundation possible for the even, refined finish we seek.
The factory team continue to advance the schedule wherever possible, and we sincerely apologise for the delay. Fulfilment is expected to commence within Q4.
We have received an extraordinary number of enquiries regarding in-stock extras, for which we are immensely grateful. These will be exceptionally limited, and we will only know how many ultimately prove flawless once production is complete and every unit has undergone our own quality control inspection.
Once our group buy orders have been fully fulfilled and customers have had approximately one to two weeks to inspect their orders, any remaining extras available through our store will be raffled. A Google Form will be published at that time, allowing entrants to select their preferred available variant, with successful entrants subsequently invoiced through signatura.limited. Please ensure you have created an account on signatura.limited before entering, as an account will be required if selected. Our partner vendors may approach their respective extras differently.
An unforeseen imperfection
During the surface polishing stage of Luna, the factory team unfortunately identified noticeable streaking and grain within a number of the aluminium units. These imperfections only become apparent once the surfaces have been polished and are a defect within the original material itself, rather than the machining process.
The factory have kindly prioritised the affected units and have already begun machining replacements. Thankfully, the polycarbonate units remain entirely unaffected.
The carry case design for Luna is now receiving its final touches, with production planned using our new 3D printer.
While the replacement of the affected units will add some time to the production schedule, we remain within our stated Q4 delivery estimate.
The sound of things to come
We have some rather significant developments regarding Reign. Acoustic testing with our 3D-printed mounting system has been a tremendous success. The aluminium bottom retains the full, bright clack we were aiming for, with the copper bottom introducing slightly more depth. Despite full copper bottoms often being described as sounding “flat”, this is certainly not the case with Reign. We believe the raised geometry of the lower enclosure plays an important role, providing additional space for frequencies to resonate rather than becoming confined within several millimetres of solid material. We have tested Reign with keycaps from a range of high-end manufacturers, including GMK in both CYL and MTNU profiles, as well as SP in the DCS profile, and are extremely pleased with the results. We truthfully believe Reign is our most versatile board to date when it comes to acoustics.
We are particularly looking forward to showcasing Reign to a wide range of content creators, with the vast majority of content being produced using our existing prototype unit. This will be refinished over the coming month or so with a Cerakote finish matched to GMK CYL Varenye, which will be offered as the Vinaceus variant. The prototype differs only slightly from production, with a few internal aesthetic refinements and an enlarged USB-C port to accommodate larger CNC-machined covers. Neither will affect the sound profile, and both will be prototyped before production begins.
Gondolindrim has now finalised the production-specification PCBs, with the PCBs required for content creation to be ordered later this month. Both solder and hotswap PCBs will be offered, with the solder PCB supporting MX and ALPS, whilst the hotswap PCB will support MX only.
Following a poll conducted in our Discord server, accessible through the footer of our website, Reign will enter group buy in March 2027. We have extensive content planned ahead of the group buy, with the sale combining raffle and first-come, first-served purchasing. The majority of units will be offered through raffle, reflecting the anticipated demand and the limited production capacity necessitated by Reign's complex machining. Final configurations remain in development, informed by our still-open interest check, with a range of materials, finishes and colours planned in set configurations.
Onward
As we move into the final stages of these projects, we would like to thank everyone who continues to follow, support and take an interest in what we are creating.
Jack.