Need help buying a new keyboard

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I never bought a keyboard specifically for gaming use before. The only keyboard I've bought and I've been using for years is a dbtech blue-backlit keyboard. It's served its job well, and despite being rather cheap it's lasted for almost 5 years with no backlight problems, and no keys wearing out.

However, it is very basic otherwise. The feet that raised it up have fallen off and been lost, the cord I'm afraid is starting to wear out just a bit with constant moving and use, and I just want something new.

I don't know where to start however. There are so many different switch types and hundreds of keyboards.

I was looking at the Corsair Vengeance Mechanical keyboard since I heard it's switches aren't loud to press, and are very soft to press (which is mostly what I prefer). The backlighting doesn't matter too much, but I do like having customizable options.

My budget is around $120. I'm willing to get one used or refurbished, if that means I'll get a very high quality keyboard without going over my price range.
 
Solution
punahou1
I went through this same process of looking for a new keyboard for over several months. I found this guide very informative: http://www.keyboardco.com/blog/index.php/2012/12/an-introduction-to-cherry-mx-mechanical-switches/

I ended up selecting a brown switch option and have been really pleased with the results. I paid a bit more and ended up selecting a Deck Hassium Pro. and have been very pleased with its look, feel and performance. There are many other great keyboards out there which do make it rather difficult in the selection process. I dare say that the first step in your process should be to determine what switch type to go with as some of the manufacturers do not offer all types - as an example many gaming keyboards only...
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Most mechanical keyboards use Cherry MX switches, further denoted by a color, such as Red, Blue, Black, Brown, and Green (may be others now). They differ in amount of noise they make, and exactly when they register a keystroke. Your best bet is to look on YouTube; there are a number of videos where someone has obtained a keyboard of each type and does typing on it at various speeds to show how much noise they make. For example, the brown and blue switches have similar activation points, but the blue ones produce a louder click.
 
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I went through this same process of looking for a new keyboard for over several months. I found this guide very informative: http://www.keyboardco.com/blog/index.php/2012/12/an-introduction-to-cherry-mx-mechanical-switches/

I ended up selecting a brown switch option and have been really pleased with the results. I paid a bit more and ended up selecting a Deck Hassium Pro. and have been very pleased with its look, feel and performance. There are many other great keyboards out there which do make it rather difficult in the selection process. I dare say that the first step in your process should be to determine what switch type to go with as some of the manufacturers do not offer all types - as an example many gaming keyboards only offer red which tend to be quiet. I like a little click but not as loud as a blue. The brown is a good medium between these two options...
 
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I also chose brown over blue for that reason. Unfortunately, the keyboard I bought (a Rosewill) experienced logic failure about a month after the warranty expired. I'm back on a Saitek, but irritated by keycap wear on that membrane board. If I get another mechanical (undecided), it will probably be a Corsair, will definitely not be CoolerMaster, and I'm a little skeptical of Rosewill now.
 
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Sorry to hear of the problems - Corsair and Logitech both seem to have good reviews so you should be good there. One of the things I liked about my Deck was that the letters were cut through the key caps so you don't get keycap wear. With the amount of rated actuations, they claim that the thing should last for 23 years. (This is not too ridiculous because I used my last keyboard for over 15 years...).
 
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The Rosewill's keys were that way too. Its switches were fine, including their illumination. It was the logic board in the keyboard that croaked, basically bouncing random keystrokes a dozen times or so. Not good.
I may actually go for Blues next time, as the Browns were a little too quiet. I was hoping for something with a feel like my old Northgate, IMHO the best PC keyboard ever made.
 
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