Not the best photo of this Ikki68 Aurora R2, but you get the idea. It’s got:
- Aflion Thunder Shadow heavy tactiles (Milktooth has them on sale at the moment)
- Cerakeys R1 white blanks
- 1.2mm flex-cut PCB (yep, like a series of rope-bridges)
- Polycarbonate plate
- TX stabs for 1.2mm PCBs in white, V3 I think
- All gasket chips used, silicone pads - all case padding used
- “IKKI” badge featuring solar system graphic in matte white
Not the best recording either - but at least gives the impression of how D E E P this thing sounds:
More photos, thoughts:
On the whole, I really like this configuration so far - but I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t full of caveats. Let’s get the bad out of the way first:
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If those keys look wonky and kinda all over the place, it’s because they are. It’s less that the stems are crooked (though a few are), and more that they sort of splay-out towards the bottom, allowing them to teeter on the stem despite having a very tight grip in most cases. I’m sure at least some of this has been addressed in R2, but I can’t speak to that personally.
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If the color looks different from row-to-row, you’re not crazy. It’s minor, but the white glaze appears to wander from slightly warm to slightly cool across the set.
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The other minor inconsistency with the keys is that they aren’t always exactly the right width, which in most builds really isn’t going to matter - but in the Aurora with is super-tight bezel tolerance, the Caps Lock key scrapes the sides. (Something similar happens with MT3 on this keyboard)
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On this PCB, some of the switches are upside-down or sideways compared to the rest of the South-facing ones; not a big deal, but some switches fit loosely enough in the sockets / pin holes so as to not sit straight under the Pipe key.
That’s about all the not-good stuff I can find to say about the keeb, though - I bought this keyboard for myself after building one for a friend and not wanting to let it go. 
For me, all the caveats are easily outweighed by how interesting the thing is, and how much I enjoy using it.
If you like a typing experience that’s all about low-frequency vibes, this is a configuration for you. Screws aside, the hardest part of this entire keyboard are its caps, and after that the switches. Everything else is either soft or flexible in comparison - meaning that even though these caps have more in common with teeth than other keys, there’s not a hint of harshness to be found here.
Unsurprisingly, it goes a little farther than just not being harsh - this is like a love letter to dampening - even sans silent switches. I’m pretty sure at least half the mass (and / or volume) of this keyboard is silicone - and this keyboard is quite hefty for not having a metal case. The literal stoneware keycaps help keep the overall feel from being too soft, providing a hard and glassy surface for the fingers - but since everything underneath is so soft and bouncy it keeps any potential edge away.
The switches are heavy long-pole tactiles, which usually means loud and sharp sound - but these have rounded pole-bottoms and buttery factory lube, so it’s more of a muted, subdued, almost wet “knock” as opposed to a dry, sharp “clack” I usually expect from long pole tactiles. Pair that with the rest of this build, and you get a pretty unusual typing experience. The bump is wide and round, which I think pairs well with the general wide-wavelength theme going on here. These don’t even thock… they thonk - or even womp.
Back to the Cerakeys, specifically how they are to use, I think it’s a mostly-positive mixed-bag. I don’t like the inconsistent grip the stems have - I really had to go to town with the PTFE tape for the space bar - and I don’t like the inconsistent positioning some have - but that’s about it for negatives I actually care about. Personally, I love their unique sound and feel. In a cool room they’re cold to the touch until your fingers warm them up. In a fairly unique way, these are premium caps that don’t seem delicate.
Yes, I’m sure if you drop them from high enough onto a concrete floor they’ll shatter - but I don’t think there’s anything even my fingers could do to these, even over the course of years. I feel like I need to wear silk gloves when I go to use a GMK set I don’t want to shine - but these? I don’t even need to wash my hands.
Here’s one more bad picture where you can almost make out the badge:
On the one hand, shiny white caps really show any dark colored dust that might fall on them - but on the other hand, this ceramic is super easy to clean without fear of damage. When all the plastic and silicone in this board is dry and yellow beyond salvaging, these caps will endure.
I can’t recommend R1 Cerakeys to everyone, or even most people - but I can recommend them enthusiastically to folks who are interested in their unique qualities even in the face of the above mentioned caveats. There’s nothing else like hardened ceramic keycaps, and I think they’re really neat.
As for the Aurora itself - again mixed feelings. I think it’s a fantastic keyboard, but I always have to include an asterisk or two when I talk about it. If those clearance and PCB asterisks aren’t dealbreakers, then it does have a great deal to love.