Setting out on a new adventure, be quiet! has launched its very first gaming keyboards in the form of Dark Mount and Light Mount. Just like its range of power supplies, coolers, and cases, you probably won’t find it surprising that the aim is to keep things whisper quiet, which will certainly be music to your housemates’ ears.
Ever since be quiet! acquired Mountain.gg, I’ve been waiting for a true successor to its Everest Max keyboard being both a backer to the original Kickstarter campaign and a reviewer. And here we are, with Dark Mount leading the charge as company’s flagship, carrying a familiar sense of modularity.
Adopting the same versatile design, you can shunt the detachable numpad from right to left for a southpaw approach, or remove it entirely for a TKL layout. I’m reluctant to let it go entirely, however, as those eight customisable LCD macro keys come in rather handy. Making the switch is just as easy as the original Mountain Everest Max. The main board features female connectors either side, hidden by cover plates, and the numpad itself slides a male USB-C out to slot right in, held in place by magnets. It’s all rather intuitive.
The general design has shifted from softer rounded edges to hard rectangles, better disguising the seams between components. Nowhere is this more noticable than the media dock, which contains the same playback controls but with a volume scroll wheel and a far larger screen. I’ll sure miss rotating the dial, but regardless of your preference, the added benefit here is that the dock’s display is more standardised than the circular attachment of old, allowing for greater functionality than simply showcasing logos.
While Mountain’s main aim was to create a funnel, letting you buy the barebones Everest frame and build upwards towards the complete Max, be quiet! is simplifying the process. You’ll only see Dark Mount in its full configuration, complete with numpad, media dock, magnetic memory foam wrist rests for both the main board and numpad, and a selection of magnetic feet for $254.90 / €259.90 / £239.90.
Of course, you’ll still get your choice of pre-lubricated mechanical switches from be quiet!’s new orange linear Silent Switch (45g) to its black tactile Silent Switch (55g). If you’re not a fan, Dark Mount’s hot-swappable design lets you opt for your favourites, but they are fine-tuned to work wonders with the keyboard’s silicone sound dampening system.
By comparison, the full-sized Light Mount offers a lower barrier to entry at $169.90 / €169.90 / £169.90, forgoing all the bells and whistles. It’s a pretty addition with a gorgeous light bar running across the top and dial to the left side, competing against more traditional rivals like Corsair and Razer.
All of this is complemented by be quiet!’s IO Center software to control everything from its per key RGB and LED strip to key functions and displays. The app is still a work-in-progress but already gives great first impressions, and I’m not just talking from the low bar that Mountain’s Base Camp set. The brand is launching the main desktop software with a fully functional browser version to enable flawless macOS and Linux compatibility alongside Windows platforms.
With Dark Mount and Light Mount, we’re not just entering a new product category—we’re setting a new benchmark for what gamers and creators should expect from their keyboards.
Aaron Licht, CEO of be quiet!
“These models reflect everything be quiet! stands for: smart engineering, understated design, and a relentless focus on performance without compromise,” says CEO Aaron Licht. “We’ve put great care into the acoustics, the feel of every keystroke, and the overall user experience. This launch is the beginning of an exciting new chapter for us, and we’re proud to bring our expertise in silence and quality to the world of peripherals.”
Both keyboard will arrive on April 29, available in North America (US-ANSI), the United Kingdom (UK-ISO), Germany (DE-ISO), and France (FR-ISO).
