Disassembly

Given the Mistel MD770 Barocco is a split keyboard, it is only fair that each piece of the keyboard gets disassembled separately to see what makes these tick. Beginning with the left piece, there are four Phillips head screws on the back that are easily removed. You then need to remove specific keycaps on the front to access seven more countersunk Phillips head screws to completely separate the two-piece ABS plastic case and the PCB.


The PCB is a matte red in color and finish, and the switches are soldered in place through the plate for more structural integrity. Solder quality is pretty good, especially on this unique PCB layout. The two ports are on one side, alongside some capacitors strewn across the I/O and the controller section. Powering the left piece is a Holtek HT50F52352 USB microcontroller; a data sheet of it was not available online. I have seen it used to good effect with other backlit keyboards from Vortex, Ducky, and Cooler Master. There is also a dedicated Macroblock MBIA043GP LED driver we have seen to good effect before in other RGB-backlit keyboards. As per usual, all the components are soldered on to a multi-layer PCB.


The right side of the keyboard is larger, but otherwise identical as far as disassembly goes. Four screws are on the back, with seven more underneath keycaps on the front. As expected, the case is larger and has holes to accommodate the Type-C ports on the PCB as with the left half.


The PCB is very similar to the one on the left side, with another Holtek HT50F52352 MCU and two Macroblock MBIA043GP LED drivers on this master unit, in addition to the dip switches we saw before. All 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 decided to go ahead and do so anyway.