INTRODUCTION

 

 

 

 

 

 

   From the durable Model M keyboard by IBM (1991-1992) and the ergonomic natural keyboard line by Microsoft (1994-1998) to the ground-breaking G19 gaming keyboard by Logitech (2009) and the entire line of unique Apex gaming keyboards by SteelSeries (still ongoing) there's simply nothing i haven't seen in regards to that specific market/industry. So, it shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone that I've become somewhat "picky" when it comes to which keyboards make their way to the office/lab so whether it's something special with its build quality, design, RGB lighting, switches or extra keys and screens I'm always looking for something to pique my interest. This of course doesn't happen often lately and so when the very first attempt by Mountain to create an innovative gaming keyboard caught my eye last year i decided to check the top model called Everest Max out.

   MOUNTAIN creates innovative, premium peripherals with a user-centric design that enables gamers to perform at their best. Our vision is for gamers to have what they need to perform, through uncompromising innovation, pioneering design, supreme quality, and customization. “Reach Your Summit” is the mantra of MOUNTAIN. INNOVATION – PERFORMANCE – AESTHETICS – CUSTOMIZATION.

   The Everest Max is currently available in 2 colors (gunmetal grey and midnight black) and as already mentioned it's the feature-rich model of the Everest line (there are also TKL and Barebone versions available). This is actually one of the most interesting models I’ve ever seen, not only because it actually consists by 3 separate pieces (TKL, Numpad and media dock) which you can position pretty much freely but also because of its display dial, 4 fully adjustable display keys and its hot-swap Cherry MX mechanical switches (100 million actuations) complete with stabilizers. This of course is not all so the Everest Max by Mountain also sports per-key RGB lighting (7 effects - 8 with off), 32-bit Arm Cortex-M0 processor (Armv6-M), brushed aluminum plates, full NKRO (N-Key Rollover) with 100% anti-ghosting, 1000Hz polling rate, up to 5 onboard profiles, USB passthrough, detachable magnetic palm rest and magnetic snap-on feet. What Mountain has made sure sounds interesting right?

 

 

SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

PACKAGING AND CONTENTS

 

 

 

 

 

Mountain uses a black and blue box to ship the Everest Max in which as you can see has Reach Your Summit printed at the front.

 

 

A quick product description printed in 8 languages can be found at the base of the box.

 

 

The keyboard layout, choice of switches and the keyboard color are all placed on the left side.

 

 

A large product picture located at the rear of the box is used to showcase all of its features while next to it we find the bundle contents and specifications table.

 

 

Once you open the box, you'll see many product drawings and the main keyboard body (TKL) wrapped inside a plastic bag.

 

 

The rest of the bundle is placed in a drawer right under the main keyboard body.

 

 

So, inside the box we find an TKL keyboard (this is basically the Everest Core edition), numpad, media dock, 4 hot-swap Cherry MX RGB switches (blue/red/silent red/brown/speed), detachable magnetic palm rest, 8 magnetic snap-on feet (plus 4 which are already pre-mounted), 2 meter long USB to USB-C cable, 15cm long USB-C cable, escape keycap, keycap remover and cleaner, Mountain stickers, and a quick start guide.

 

 

THE EVEREST MAX

 

 

 

 

 

The two main parts of the Everest Max are obviously the TKL keyboard (154x366x41mm) and the numpad (154x94x41mm).

 

 

Both pieces follow the now typical floating keys design for improved lighting and easier cleaning.

 

 

Mountain has used two brushed aluminum plates with the Everest Max and their logo is on the default escape keycap.

 

 

The keyboard has USB-C female ports on both sides so you can actually mount the numpad on either one.

 

 

There are also two USB-C ports at the front (for the media dock) and a USB passthrough.

 

 

Turning the keyboard over we find 5 cable routes, the USB-C port (center) and 5 rubber feet.

 

 

The top round ones are magnetically attached and as you can see you can stack more on to raise the height of the keyboard.

 

 

If you decide to not use the numpad (or use it with its pre-mounted magnetic feet) you can attach up to 5 feet on each side of the keyboard.

 

 

Needless to say, what stands out from the numpad are the 4 display keys.

 

 

Of course, the numpad piece has USB-C male ports on both sides.

 

 

At the base of the numpad we find three rubber feet, 2 of which are magnetic ones.

 

 

You can extend the USB-C ports with the help of a small lever also located at the base.

 

 

Both pieces attached measure 460mm in length, 154mm in width and 41mm in height.

 

 

The media dock is made out of plastic and features 4 activity LEDs, 5 media navigation buttons and a LED display dial.

 

 

As you can see it uses an USB-C connector which means you can mount it on either side of the keyboard as seen above.

 

 

With the detachable magnetic palm rest attached the keyboard width increases to 222mm (265mm with the media dock mounted).

 

 

Here you can see all available switches for the Mountain Everest line of gaming keyboards.

 

 

BASE CAMP SOFTWARE

 

 

 

 

 

For complete control over your Mountain peripherals, you need to download their Base Camp software.

At start-up the software detects all compatible peripherals and checks for firmware updates.

 

 

Updating the firmware only takes but a couple of minutes.

 

 

The very first tab is the settings tab and from here you can configure game mode, disable indicator LEDs, change the layout of the keyboard, reset all settings to factory defaults and access the full device manual.

 

 

You can adjust everything in regards to the display dial and the display keys from the 2^nd tab.

 

 

You can even upload your own picture for the dial to display instead of the Mountain logo.

 

 

The macro tab is self-explanatory (not much of a macro guy myself but many people do find them useful).

 

 

From the key binding tab, you can program every single one of the keys found on the Everest Max.

 

 

Inside the lighting tab you’ll be able to change the effects (7 available ones), switch between single and RGB lighting, sync your choices across compatible devices and adjust the speed, direction and brightness levels.

 

 

As you can see the gaps around the keyboard are not random, light comes from probably LED strips located inside (9 LEDs on each side).

 

 

The 4 display keys are a nice touch and obviously remind me of the Elgato Stream Deck models.

 

 

The dial is also a nice touch but the bottom end is clearly not part of the LED screen.

 

 

From the dial you can access several screens such as keyboard lighting, system volume, keyboard brightness levels, system resource monitor, APM and a digital/analog clock.

 

 

Finally, here you can see the minimum and maximum brightness levels.

 

 

AUDIBLE FEEDBACK

 

 

 

 

 

Many people ask my opinion on what keyboard they should get for their needs. Some want a “silent” model for use in their living room or even in their bedroom while others ask for a model with good audible feedback for use in the office or for gaming. Because of this I decided to test keyboards by placing our ExTech HD600 vertically over each keyboard (5cm distance) and typing NikKTech a total of 6 times with each (after that the max recorded number - max hold - is placed in the graph). I have to admit that this methodology may not be 100% accurate but it does give a good idea on what you can expect from each model since aside the type of switches used keycaps and keyboard material also matter.

 

 

CONCLUSION

 

 

 

 

 

   The Everest Max RGB Gaming Keyboard by Mountain is without doubt one of the most innovative and feature-rich models to ever reach my office/lab and just saying that means I’m very satisfied. The ability to mount the numpad and the media dock on either side of the TKL keyboard (which again is basically the Everest Core model) is very useful and if by any chance you don’t want to place the former on either side you can always use the 45cm USB-C cable to place it even further. Using an LED dial was also a good move by Mountain, yes, this isn’t really the first time we’ve seen something like that (the G19 for example used a larger LCD screen which you could even use to watch YouTube – perhaps Mountain can introduce such a feature here too) but at the same time it’s not something we’ve seen in this industry happen more than a handful of times either. The same applies for the hot-swap mechanical switches although to be fair not many out there use Cherry MX ones and certainly not all these variants (red, silent red, blue, brown and silver). Of course, using two brushed aluminum plates and a USB passthrough are also good additions to the Everest Max so kudos to Mountain. Now I would had liked a sturdier mounting system for the numpad (you can’t really pick the keyboard up without holding on both the keyboard and the numpad) but that’s clearly not a serious drawback by any means.

   The sole significant drawback of the Everest Max RGB Gaming Keyboard by Mountain is obviously its price tag which is currently set at 279.90Euros inside the EU (Amazon.de) and is thus set too high for most gamers. The solution Mountain has followed is to also make the Everest Core (TKL keyboard) available for people who have no need for the numpad or the media dock but again at a price tag set at 169.90Euros (Amazon.de) it’s not exactly affordable either. Still even though price is crucial with just about anything there are always people willing to spend more for something like the Mountain Everest Max and thanks to its build quality and plethora of features it clearly deserves the Platinum Award.

PROS

- High Build Quality (Brushed Aluminum Plates)
- Hot Swap Cherry MX Switches (100 Million Actuations)
- Media Dock (LED Dial)
- 4 Display Keys
- Full RGB Per Key Illumination (Side RGB LEDs)
- 7 Available RGB Effects
- NKey Rollover With 100% Anti Ghosting
- Detachable Numpad, Palm Rest & USB Cable
- Media Dock & Numpad Mounting Positions
- Extra Cherry MX Switches (Cherry MX Red, Silent Red, Blue, Brown & Silver)
- Magnetic Snap On Feet
- USB Passthrough
- Base Camp Software (Available Settings)

CONS

- Price (For Some)
- Numpad Stability (Mounting Mechanism Not Sturdy Enough)