Disassembly

Disassembly of the HyperX Alloy FPS RGB is on the simpler side of things despite the use of a plastic casing. Begin by removing the keycaps on the front to expose screws as seen above, and then remove the rubber pads at the top on the back to access two more screws hidden underneath. These last two screws are not countersunk, so they are easy enough to distinguish from the other thirteen when putting things back together. With all fifteen screws taken out, the two main pieces of the keyboard can be easily separated given the lack of internal USB cables and use of a detachable keyboard cable.


The plastic casing is made out of ABS plastic, as is the norm these days, and has cutouts to accommodate the various bits and bobs on the keyboard PCB. This includes the mini and Type-A USB ports, as well as spacing for the keyboard feet on the back. The PCB itself is connected to the steel plate such that the switches are soldered through, and this makes it harder to swap out switches for modding. The steel plate is thicker than average, which adds structural integrity to the keyboard while also acting as the frame on top. The PCB is black in color, and all components are soldered on well—this PCB is very likely machine assembled.


Powering the Alloy FPS RGB keyboard is an NXP LPC11U35F 32-bit ARM Cortex-M0 USB microcontroller with up to 128 KB on-board flash memory, 12 KB SRAM, and 4 KB EEPROM. There is also a Sonix SLED1734 dedicated LED driver capable of running as many as 256 LEDs or 75 RGB LEDs, including adding support for some specific lighting effects. It and the NXP microcontroller run all keyboard functionality and lighting. All the components, including the switches, LEDs, and capacitors, are soldered to a multi-layered PCB.

Before we move on, be advised that disassembly will void the warranty and that TechPowerUp is not liable for any damages incurred if you decide to go ahead and do so anyway.