Before the Staebies hit the market last month, the Durock V2 stabilisers were widely considered to be the “gold standard” of screw-in keyboard stabilisers. While they are still really good, the Staebies have an edge when it comes to refinement and ease of tuning.
That being said, while the Staebies compare favourable against the Durock V2, the latter is still worth getting, especially right now when the Staebies are sold out everywhere. In this article, we will compare the pros and cons of these two keyboard stabilisers.
Staebies Are Great Out of Box & Very Easy to Tune
The biggest draw of the Staebies come down to their tight, tight tolerances. This leaves little room for the wires to move around in the stems and housings of the stabilisers, keeping rattling and ticking to a minimum. In fact, straight out of the box in stock form, the Staebies sound and feel great.
Of course, there are still some ticking and rattling, but I have never tried stabilisers that sound this good without lubing or modding – it’s incredible. The tight tolerances of the Staebies also make them very easy to tune. I lubed the housing with Krytox 205g0 and applied some XHT-BDZ on the wires, and…that’s all I needed to do.
It’s been a couple of weeks now since I’ve tuned the Staebies, and they still sound and feel great. This is unlike Durock V2 stabilisers, which will start rattling or ticking after some time as the lube settles. To get the same level of performance out of the Durock V2, I’ll need to holee mod them, which is time-consuming (and annoying) to do.
But Staebies Are Hard to Come By
This is currently the biggest issue with the Staebies: you literally cannot purchase them right now. You can refer to the list of vendors that carry the Staebies here, and at the time of writing, none of them have these stabilisers in stock.
Granted, the first run of the Staebies is considered to be a “beta round” to collect user inputs, so it’s possible there weren’t as many stocks available. Naturally, another run is expected to happen in the near future, which may see some improvements too, such as better stem compatibility.
The Durock V2 Is Still Better in Certain Aspects
Yes, as good as the Staebies are, the Durock V2 is still better in some aspects. In terms of smoothness, for example, the Durock V2 beats the Staebies. Of course, this can be attributed to the fact that the Durock V2 has looser tolerances, allowing more room for the stems to move freely in the housings.
There’s also the fact that Durock V2 stabilisers are much, much easier to purchase. Basically any noteworthy keyboard vendor has the Durock V2 in stock right now. If you’re here in Malaysia, Keys.my has them in stock for only RM63 a set.
And that’s the other thing: Durock V2 is a lot more affordable than the Staebies. This is especially the case if you’re located in Malaysia like us. As mentioned, a set of Durock V2 stabilisers cost only RM63. As for the Staebies, we got them from Keyboard Treehouse for $22 a set – that comes up to about RM90…without shipping charges included.
So how much did we pay for shipping? A cool $40 (about RM165). Needless to say, this drives up the overall cost of the Staebies quite a bit. Unless more vendors start stocking the stabilisers – such as iLumkb (based in Singapore), which does carry AEBoard products – be prepared to pay quite a bit for shipping if you’re not located in bigger markets.
But…do I regret paying so much for the Staebies? Not at all. Even though I can get a similar level of performance out of Durock V2 stabilisers by holee modding them, it’s still not a perfect solution. After all, holee modded stabilisers run the risk of getting mushier over time as the band-aid inside the stem collects dirt and what not.
So there you have it. If you urgently need a set of screw-in stabilisers – and you don’t mind spending time and effort to mod it – the Durock V2 is still a good option, even if holee modding has its own disadvantages. But if you can wait and you want stabilisers that are much easier to tune (at a higher cost) then it’s worth waiting for the Staebies to be restocked.
Hopefully, the Staebies will be widely available in the near future. They really are some of the best – if not the best – keyboard stabilisers in the market now.