Software

With all functionality hardware based, there are no software drivers for the Das Keyboard 6 Professional. As such, I have chosen to combine this section with the performance section below. This was a surprise, given there was software support for the older Keyboard 5Q with extensive key mapping and lighting control, so this can hurt adoption from those who care about software configuration and profiles but also means the keyboard works regardless of your OS and could perhaps have onboard customization.

Performance

The Das Keyboard 6 Professional supports NKRO out of the box, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. No key chatter was detected on all the keys using Switch Hitter. The image above also shows the base layer on the keyboard is as far as dedicated keys go and it's not often that I get a fully green map here with Das having gone with the traditional key layout of R. Win and Menu retained, instead of one being replaced by an Fn key. Unfortunately that also means there is no Fn layer and in fact there is nothing extra on the keyboard beyond what you see here. No macros, no OS shortcuts, no key mapping. What you see is what you get, and I will also mention here that the volume wheel ends up going in double increments per full step (4 volume steps in Windows instead of the usual 10) while also being somewhat stiffer, to where this itself will be a love or hate affair.


There is white backlighting on the Das Keyboard 6 Professional courtesy the LEDs associated with each switch. The brightness control key allows you to toggle through eight brightness steps for the static lighting effect on all switches, which is all you get for LED control too. On the other hand, this is arguably all that the typical working professional—the target customer perhaps—would need and the LEDs are plenty bright even in a well-lit environment.


This review unit comes with the venerable Cherry MX Brown tactile switches in the older opaque housing, and I am not really a fan of these switches for various reasons. For one, Cherry has updated the molds for the RGB version a few times but not given the same love to this older design. Second, these are fairly scratchy and the tactile bump is barely felt in practice to where you would end up bottoming out on this medium-force switch more often than not anyway. As such, expecting to see it for actuation feedback is going to end in some frustration. You can train yourself to have light fingers and only press down halfway on this typical 4 mm travel switch I suppose, and doing so will make for a quiet typing experience too. Still, having used so many excellent switches from the last few years that easily best the MX Brown—including direct clones from Kailh and Gateron let alone more specialized tactile switches—this is a negative in my books for the typical end user, who can't even easily replace them on this keyboard. But if all you care about is a reliable switch for millions of consistent actuations then the Cherry MX Brown will certainly do the job for you. It's also the quieter of the two switch options available on this keyboard and thus the only practical solution for a shared workspace.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me typing on the Das Keyboard 6 Professional at ~105 WPM as it comes out of the box with the Cherry MX Brown switches. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with tactile switches. I did bottom out constantly here as mentioned above and the good thing is the foam sheet in the case helps minimize pinging as well as any case reverberations. You still hear the switches bottoming out as well as the occasional ping off the steel plate, but it goes to show how much the simple addition of foam improves the overall sound signature to where this is a keyboard which certainly sounds better than its types and costs. The keystrokes themselves are not dampened much and the stabilizers remain a weakness in both typing feel and the sound signature itself, as obvious from the recording above. There is plenty of room for improvement here except I am not sure it's worth the hassle.