Page 3 - Conclusion
Is the ROCCAT Vulcan II Max really that beautiful? And is it a good keyboard in of itself? It is an easy "yes" to both from me -- and hence why I have been using this as my main keyboard the moment it came out of the box. I do not replace my main keyboard often, with the last one being the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum XT, and that one came in pre-COVID, which was a while ago. Choosing the Vulcan II Max really was not a hard choice. This keyboard sports a very clean design with seriously awesome RGB LED lighting effects. The comfortable silicone wrist rest has a row of dedicated RGB LEDs projecting lighting effects into it for additional eye candy. It even has what the company refers to as Smart Keys, which are keys at the top row with dedicated secondary LEDs giving a visual cue when secondary functions are active, system performance monitoring, and ROCCAT mouse and headset battery status indication. Under the keycaps are smooth Titan II Optical Linear switches that feel amazing. The solid backplate also flexes little to none under use. Without a doubt, ROCCAT kept everything great about the Vulcan 121 AIMO, but making it way better all at the same time. I do have a few recommendations for improving the Vulcan II Max. First, the array of RGB LEDs responsible for projecting light into the wrist rest leaks light onto the keys at the bottom row, which does not look good if they are configured to be different colors. Second, for a keyboard of this price, I expect PBT rather than ABS keycaps. Third, all lock indicator secondary LEDs glow white only. It should be user-configurable, since you cannot see the LEDs if your main key is also set to illuminate white. Fourth, the mice and headset battery status Smart Key indicators should have user-configurable numerical thresholds instead of fixed ambiguous names that mean little to the end user in software. Adding compatibility with non-ROCCAT products will also be nice. Lastly, as always, ROCCAT Swarm looks and feels outdated and should have been replaced more than 5 years ago. For about $230 at press time, the ROCCAT Vulcan II Max pushes the limit of excellence of what one could expect in a retail keyboard, but you will have to pay to play.
ROCCAT provided this product to APH Networks for the purpose of evaluation.
APH:Renewal Award | APH Networks Review Focus Summary:
8/10 means Definitely a very good product with drawbacks that are not likely going to matter to the end user.
7/10 means Great product with many advantages and certain insignificant drawbacks, but should be considered before purchasing.
-- Final APH Networks Numeric Rating is 7.8/10
Please note that the APH Networks Numeric Rating system is based off our proprietary guidelines in the Review Focus, and should not be compared to other publications.
The ROCCAT Vulcan II Max is a truly excellent mechanical keyboard that combines unbeatable looks with top-notch quality, functionality, and performance.
Page Index
1. Introduction, Packaging, Specifications
2. A Closer Look - Hardware and Software
3. Conclusion
