Akko Mod007v3 Review: Flexy, Cheap, and Thocky

Introduction

Having now gone through 3 iterations, the Mod007v3 is a 75%, full aluminum, gasket-mounted board that, in its current form, now has an external brass weight, flex cut PCB, and Via support, amongst other features. Although its price point of around $100 makes it seem like a great board for those getting into the hobby, certain decisions regarding its construction and choice to exclude certain key items like an allen key in the accessories make it a great sounding board with a few unfortunate drawbacks for any newcomers to the space. 

Background

The Mod series from Akko has been a long-standing one, spanning back multiple years, with now discontinued models in sizes such as the Mod003, an 1800, that also had previously come in an array of bright colors. Since the success of Akko’s sister brand Monsgeek, many of these non-75% Mod boards have transitioned into their M series lineup for Monsgeek. However, despite Monsgeek M1 and Mod007v3 being made under the same parent company, the boards still feel distinct in many ways that may make someone like myself prefer the Mod007v3 over the Monsgeek M1.

Initial Unboxing and Thoughts

For $99 (excluding shipping), I purchased the Akko Mod007v3 in Space Gray. The packaging felt very secure as I opened it up, and included some nice add-ons such as an FR4 plate, a sturdy switch puller, and a coiled cable. The design is fairly similar to previous Mod iterations, now with a gold accent that separates the top and bottom pieces of the board. While the design itself is inoffensive and classy, what did surprise me was that the board’s anodization leaned much closer to a dark navy than a space gray. The anodization itself was not the smoothest in texture but still very consistent in color; it just cannot be ignored that the gray color promised on the product page was not delivered at all.

My Mod007v3 also came without an allen wrench, which, were it not for the fact that I owned a toolkit already, would make this board impossible to assemble for anyone who may not already own such tools. Many higher end boards also tend to omit such tools, but for many entry-level boards, it is almost imperative to give the users a way to build the board together, or to at the very least make it clear on the product page what tools might be needed. For this build, I ended up using one of my own hex-key allen wrenches. 

The choice for a flex-cut PCB surprisingly did not create as thin of a sound as I expected, although the board is made to be foam dependent as well. Many consumers of boards at this price bracket, however, most likely want RGB as a feature, which is removed in place of the per-key flex cuts. Flex cuts themselves used to be the trend and main option for many board designers a few years ago, but many companies like Qwertykeys have since backtracked and offer non-flex cut PCBs once again.  

While building, I did end up adding my own layer of case foam (EPT Geon case foam), and also did a force break mod for good measure. No taping was necessary, however, in my opinion.

Sound and Typing Experience

During my use of this board, I did two configurations.

The Matcha Latte switches brought out a full, deep sound out of the board. The board surprisingly did not feel overly flexy while typing, but it was definitely more noticeable on the edges or when intentionally pressing down. 

With the KTT Coconut Lattes, the build became clackier, and retained the same fullness in tone. For both configurations, the spacebar and other modifiers had a very pronounced sound and didn’t feel dull at all.

The VIA software also came pre-installed and required no effort on my part, which I appreciated greatly. 

Some nitpicks though include the knob rubbing against the board occasionally, if the plate came out of alignment. The plate did not sit firmly in place, and could sometimes be wriggled around which affected its sound slightly. The backweight also still had some evidence of machining marks, which may not be as pronounced to a newcomer to the scene, but is much more noticeable as someone who has built multiple other boards at different price points. 

Conclusion

To someone with experience building other budget boards or other tech equipment, this board satisfies my personal love of thock and a soft typing experience. However, the lack of RGB and slightly tedious build experience does make me hesitate to call it an easy budget choice. The Monsgeek M1, while in some ways needing more modding to obtain a similar sound signature, has some improvements and changes that overall appeal to broader audiences. But if the gold accent on the Akko Mod seems more tasteful to you than the one on the Monsgeek, or you are okay in sacrificing RGB for a white board, then this board may be right for you. 

You can buy the board here.