DNA 65: Grab or Pass?
Is this not talked about for good reason?
The DNA 65 is a keyboard not talked about, but with its acrylic case and impressive RGB features, at a relatively low price of $81.90 with switches and keycaps and $69.10 for a barebones board. How does it stack up to the rest of the competition?
Build Quality
The DNA 65 is a four-layer acrylic case with a brass plate. The overall quality is what you would expect for the price, which is pretty decent. Not a lot of board flex, and seems to be quite durable. One of the only problems with this board is that the rubber feet on it make the board angle very weird to type on. Additionally, the board will still move around on a mousepad, even with the brass weight, rubber feet, and acrylic feet. It would be best to buy rubber feet to increase stability.
Acoustics
The DNA 65 comes with a choice of Gateron Reds, Blues, Blacks, or Brown switches. The switches are a bit scratchy, which is to be expected. The stabilizers are also rattly and really not good at all. If you lube and grease the switches and stabilizers, however, they will sound alright, though you probably should buy Durock plate-mounted stabs, as they are leagues better and relatively inexpensive at 25 USD. When modded, however, the board sounds really good, a good mix of clack and thock. If you somehow manage to get foam in the case it should sound even better.
Customization
When it comes to modding, this keyboard falls a bit behind the rest. You can tape mod it no problem, and replace stabs and switches due to the board being a 5-pin hot-swappable board, but because there is so little space between the PCB and bottom of the case, you can’t really foam mod it unless you have extremely thin foam. Disassembly and reassembly are also a huge pain, as the layers of acrylic and the acrylic feet are very annoying to put back together. I modded my board by lubing the stabs and replacing the Gateron Blacks with Novelkeys Cream switches, and tape modding it, but due to the little space in the case, foam modding is not really viable for the board. It does the bare minimum only.
The Verdict
Overall, for the modest price of $69.10 the DNA 65 does its job really well. The build quality is durable and the look and feel of it are alright. You won’t be getting as much customization as other boards or many special features, but it makes up for that with its other strong features listed above. Overall I would recommend this board to others getting into the hobby or enthusiasts.
RELATED STORIES:
https://drop.com/buy/dna65-rgb-stacked-acrylic-mechanical-keyboard/details
https://www.newegg.com/p/1DJ-00XR-00743
https://epomaker.com/products/epomaker-dna65-diy-kit
TAKE ACTION
To try the DNA65 you can buy from a number of merchants like KPREPUBLIC, EPOMAKER, and Drop. You can buy a barebones kit but you have to buy switches and keycaps, or the full keyboard with switches and keycaps
