Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion Mechanical Keyboard Review – HiFi Meets Geeky High End Typing
Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion is a $119 USD / 142.79 EURO High-End Keyboard with a 65% Layout, Multiple connection inputs, Wooden CNC Casing, Hot Swappable Switches, and PBT Dye-Sub Keycaps. Today we will review the Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion and compare it to other high-end Keyboards, including KiiBoom Moonshadow 81 (199 USD), and KiiBoom Phantom 81 V2 (159 USD).
Introduction
Audiophile-Heaven is an audiophile reviews website, but a big part of my job as a reviewer is writing the reviews you see here, so I always have to improve the setup used for reviewing, including the camera equipment, PC I am using as well as the keyboard. As I hear the clacking of my keyboard over 6 hours per day every day, it becomes important to have a keyboard that is comfortable to use for my hands, which makes a pleasing sound, and which simply works, to allow me to express my feelings and emotions as directly as possible, without having to spend time debugging. Akko is a popular company creating keyboards, Switches and keycaps, being the most popular budget options for Enthusiasts who want to have the best performance possible but spend the least while getting the best bang for the buck. Akko products are available on the Akko website, aliexpress, Amazon, and multiple other sales channels, as the brand has one of the most stellar supports out there. As an Amazon Influencer, I earn from qualifying purchases, and using the purchase links in my reviews helps me maintain this website and Youtube Channel. Huge thanks to AKKO for providing us with the sample for this review.
PROs – Superb walnut wood base ennobled with wax, matte keycaps that feel velvety and smooth to type on, superb sound when typing that feels like wooden marbles falling on a wooden pad, excellent software to match the keyboard, and superb support from the Akko company. The RGB Backlight is great if you want to see the keys, and the Akko Rosewood keys are incredibly smooth, and precise. Long battery life and both wireless and wired modes make it a perfect choice for anyone looking for an excellent experience out of the box.
Cons – The wireless receiver is sensitive and needs no interference in between itself and the keyboard, no 100% version available yet, which would be great for programming.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3ZTMUdp
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DmpfRln
Build Quality/Aesthetics
The story of the AKKO MU01 Mountain Seclusion starts with the Walnut CNC Processing used in the keyboard case, and we are talking about ennobled Walnut with a wax finish applied to the keyboard. This gives the whole keyboard an alluring blend of natural beauty with modern technology inside, and will be a huge reason the keyboard has a deep thock sound when used, with a really pleasing feeling when you’re touching the case, compared to the acrylic or metal used by KiiBoom.
The Keycaps used for the AKKO MU01 Mountain Seclusion are MOA PBT Dye-Sub Keycaps, being one of the most durable variant of keycap that will survive for a long time, as the Dye-sub process prevents wear and discoloration with use. The Keycaps have a really pleasing matte finish, which is more pleasing to my fingers than the transparent glossy plastic KiiBoom uses for their keycaps, and the MOA profile has a rounded edge for each key, which is far more pleasing than either the standard ASA, Cherry or OEM profiles typically found on keyboards.
You can order the AKKO MU-01 Mountain Seclusion with one of two switches, either AKKO V3 Piano pro Switch, or Akko Rosewood Switch, both of which are linear, but with the Rosewood being a lighter type kind of switch, featuring an Operating force of just 40 gf, a total travel of 4mm and a Pre Travel of 2.0mm. The Akko V3 Piano Pro Switch features a higher operating force of 45gf, an End Force of 50 gf, and a Total Travel of 3.1mm, with a Pre-Travel distance of 1.9mm.
Generally, for typing, I prefer the Akko Rosewood, it has a light touch, but has enough resistance to being pressed to actually be insanely accurate. I complained quite a bit when reviewing the KiiBoom Moonshadow and the KiiBoom Phantom 81 V3 that they had very poor accuracy and that I kept going back to the KeyChron Q6 I am using standard, but despite the AKKO MU 01 Mountain Seclusion being even smaller than either of the KiiBoom keyboards, I have an accuracy rate of 99%, I basically never have to delete a word or re-type it, as somehow the combination of the switch, with the keycap with the casing makes the AKKO MU01 the most accurate and comfortable keyboard to type on for me so far.
Even if you order the Mountain Seclusion and don’t like the default switches, you will be delighted to hear that they are Hot-Swappable, with no need for soldering or desoldering, and you can use any modular switch, as the keyboard has sockets for both 3-Pin and 5-Pin switches, so you can install some Tactile or even Silent options if you desire. Speaking of silent, the one thing that keeps me reviewing keyboards like a madman despite this being an audiophile website, is the metallic ping and chattery sound of the KeyChron Q6. You will be delighted to hear that Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion comes with Purple Plate-Mounted stabilizers, and it is also compatible with screw-in stabilizers.
Those purple stabilizers work wonders on the AKKO MU-01, I never hear any kind of click, ping and I have zero wobble, the whole space bar and all the other stabilized keys press evenly, with the whole key pressing at once.
There is a built-in 4000mAh battery inside of the Mountain Seclusion, and with my daily usage, it survives around two weeks if I use no RGB backlight. Akko includes RGB Backlight, with the Akko Cloud Driver allowing for the most diverse animation speed and animation styles, but honestly, for a wooden keyboard with beautiful wooden-looking keycaps and a matte finish with a waxed wooden base, I really felt no need for RGB, hence why all my photos are with the lights turned off. I love the look of the Mountain Seclusion with the lights turned off, and at most I would turn the lights on at pure white just to have some kind of light if I write in the dark, but to protect my eyes I typically have some kind of ambient light while working. N-Key Roll-Over is supported, and you can use the FN Key + a combination of keys to supplement for the missing keys, for example FN + P will take a Photo or a Screenshot, while FN + > will make the volume louder. The Akko MU01 Mountain seclusion is lightweight, at 850 grams, being much lighter than the 1-2 KG that KeyChron Q6 has after the mods I did to it.
Subjective Usage / Sound Quality
In my subjective usage, the AKKO MU01 Mountain Seclusion is basically perfect. Writing journalistic articles is a breeze, I can type all-day long without any kind of finger and hand fatigue, and the keypress feels heavenly, it has a satisfying thhock to it, and it sounds like a heavenly dampened wood. The Sound Test part on the Akko website is exactly how you can expect the Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion to sound like, it is perfect and beautiful, and it will actually sound that way out of the box.
This is something that always bothered me with the most mechanical keyboards on the market, they never sound like any of the reviews online say they will. With most models, there is always a horrendous click and clack in its sound, stabilizers are wobbly even after upgrading them to the most expensive aftermarket options available, and you can never get most models to feel as comfortable for typing, as it feels like hammering with metallic keys on a metallic pad, and I feel more like a blacksmith than a typist using it. Akko MU01 works with my windows PC just fine, it works with Linux PCs just fine, MacBooks, iPhones, but also android phones via Bluetooth. I have used it outdoors when taking notes, but I feel that’s me being a bit pretentious, yet, for someone who uses a tablet, it will be a Godstent compared to a tablet chiclet keyboard.
While Battery Life, Typing experience, and overall I found the keyboard to be descended from Heaven, I noticed a few things that are not ideal, so on the negative side of things I noticed with MU01 Mountain Seclusion, it is somewhat sensitive to the input dongle placement. For example, I cannot have the keyboard on my desk and the dongle at the back of my computer as the connection will be lost and it will fail to register key presses sometimes. The maximum distance between the keyboard and the USB receiver is around 1 meter and a half, with no obstacles in between. Having both the MU01 Mountain Seclusion and Keychron Q6 on my desk at the same time can cause interference, and so can my smartphone being in between MU01 and its receiver if downloading something via wifi.
The second thing that I noticed is that I needed to apply my rubber mod on it too, so I basically take two or three erasers, this time two being enough, and using double sided thick soft glue tape, I tape the erasers on the back of the MU01 Mountain Seclusion, to increase its angle with about 7 degrees. This gets me a bit of extra wrist strain, but improves my accuracy when typing, as without it, I was not really able to get the same accuracy. I had to apply this to every single keyboard I have used, so it is more of a personal recommendation than a defect.
If the lights are turned to pure white or even some cream options, the keyboard will have a white color when seen from above, but a a red outline to each key and salmon color when seen from an angle, as the light will shine through the Akko Rosewood keycaps, which are not fully transparent. The look is beautiful, but once again, I feel the keyboard looks much better with no lights at all, as the wooden base, matte keycaps and that golden stripe at the top make it look and feel much better than any other high-end keyboard I used and tested to date.
At the back of the Akko MU01 is just one Type-C USB input for using it wired, or for charging with, with the Windows / Mac switch being found beneath the Caps Lock key. Akko is the first company in the whole world to actually make a keyboard with a supporting software that actually works and is not a pain to use, so the Online Drive / Cloud drive from Akko simply works. You can make Macros, configure the FN buttons, combinations, set any color you want, including using a photo as a reference, and everything can work without ever installing a piece of software, even from your browser. It is Perfect. Comparing it to Kiiboom’s almost non-existent software support, or to Razer’s horrendous software which almost is malware, and you can quickly see why Akko is the 1st most recommended brand for Mechanical keyboards.
The only actual situation I would not recommend Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion is for programming, as I am not used to not having the numpad, and currently MU01 Mountain seclusion is not available in 100% format, and neither can you purchase a numpad separately. As promised by most companies and reviewers, for typing text, a 60%, 65% or small formats are far more comfortable, but for programming, I am quicker if I get a numpad. As a result, currently, for typing reviews, I actually switch to AKKO MU01 Mountain Seclusion every single time, while for programming Eternal Hour and writing games, I switch to KeyChron Q6 to have the numpad.
And now to describe the sound in detail, I honestly find it dreadful having to use any other keyboard at the moment, that is how much I enjoy the sound of AKKO MU01, it sounds like those wooden bars for wind sound you purchase from stores, like wooden marbles rolling on your table, the sound is actually enjoyable, quiet and low-pitched, dampened, and you will get exactly the same sound as the sample found on the Akko website. I will also make a video review to showcase this a bit better, and there we will also expand a bit on a few new Akko switches.
Comparisons
Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion vs KiiBoom Phantom 81 V2 (119 USD vs 159 USD) – KiiBoom made a keyboard that is entirely transparent, and the sound of the Phantom 81 v2 is great, it has a silent clack to it, but the ergonomics are quite horrible, with the Phantom 81 V2 becoming fatiguing fast, having an easy to smudge and easy to scratch build, and the crystal keycaps, while astonishing to look at, feel sticky and are too soft, with a profile that makes it less accurate to type on in person. In strong contrast, Mountain Seclusion uses wood and a velvety surface for the keycaps, along with a much better software support, and a more silent look to it, and a more beautiful, wooden sound while typing and with a less hard feeling to the whole typing experience. My general accuracy is much better using the MU01 Mountain seclusion, it is a better product with a much lower price, although if you prefer the acrylic – transparent look of the Phantom 81 V2, the wooden luxury design of the MU01 Mountain seclusion will not be for you. Generally, I feel like if you want an excellent experience out of the box, you will be happier with MU01 Mountain Seclusion, the only thing that’s missing being a volume wheel, but as an audiophile I do not use digital volume at all, so for me it was useless to begin with. Both keyboards have hot-swappable switches, and are made with high-end craftsmanship, so I can’t complain in any way about the KiiBoom, just that I have a much better sound and typing experience with the MU01 which makes it easier to recommend.
Akko MU01 Mountain Seclusion vs KiiBoom Moonshadow 81 (119 USD vs 199 USD) – To match the tankish build of the KeyChron Q6 Max and other keyboards with an aluminum casing, KiiBoom made the Moonshadow 81, a keyboard that is heavy, but has a better sound and better stabilizers than KeyChron, but a really odd keycap selection. MU01 and Moonshadow 81 both have hot-swap switches, but I feel more comfortable typing on the PBT matte keycaps of the MU01 than the plastic sticky keycaps of the Moonshadow 81. Despite having a larger size, Moonshadow 81 is less precise and I have a lower accuracy. The typing experience of the MU01 feels more relaxed and is better for my fingers, plus touching the wooden base is far more pleasing in reality. The configuration software from Akko is on a whole different level, typing is smoother, and stabilizer quality is better, plus it is cheaper than the Moonshadow 81 while offering a better experience, so it is the better keyboard in my experience.
Value and Conclusion
If you are a gamer, typist or used to the smaller format that AKKO MU-01 Mountain seclusion is available in, it is the best price / performance ratio you can ever get from a keyboard, and I am really sorry about the European Pricing being much higher than the USA one, but that’s on the taxes imposed by the European Union and each country in particular, not up to Akko.
As in this paragraph we typically speak about value, I spent over a thousand USD on keyboards in the past two years alone, and I got more frustration and anger than I got a good result, while Akko MU01 can offer what I consider end-game for this mini size for just 119 USD, and if this isn’t top value, I don’t know what is.
At the end of the day, if you’re looking for an excellent keyboard with an excellent value, with a wooden base, matte keycaps, competitive performance for typing, gaming and even programming, and if you want something that actually delivers on everything promised in the marketing, and is even better than I can ever put in words in my review, you need to do yourself a favor and give the AKKO MU01 Mountain Seclusion a try, it is the best sounding, best feeling keyboard I have tried to date, with this entire review written on it.
Product Link
Amazon – https://amzn.to/3ZTMUdp
Aliexpress – https://s.click.aliexpress.com/e/_DmpfRln
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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