What do you guys think of the new Razer Tartarus Pro?

Victory comes to those with superior command—this is the Razer Tartarus Pro. Experience the new Razer Analog Optical Switch with scaling input. Control with 32 programmable keys, backed up by unlimited profile storage.

Pick up the gauntlet today: https://t.co/rwwhoe7wBX pic.twitter.com/Ri2mD0l5PO

— R Λ Z Ξ R (@Razer) October 24, 2019

https://www.razer.com/gaming-keyboards-keypads/razer-tartarus-pro

What do you guys think of this new keypad? It's pretty innovative and looks great but I would much rather see a new Orbweaver with opto-mechanical tactile switches that aren't analog.

It's nice to know that keypads aren't forgotten, but I just wish that there would be a new mechanical keypad soon. I would love to buy a new one if it's mechanical and tactile.

P.S. I would also love to see a new Razer Naga.

 

That's a great product.
Definitely better than previous incarnations because of non-chattering reliable optical switches. AND the switches are also ANALOG providing more options for the user. More options are almost always a good thing.
Even tough if you don't need analog inputs, its still great to be able to adjust the actuation point of each switches. Win-Win.

I hope the "thumb joystick" is as durable as the switches. If Razer can also make the switches of that joystick optical switches rather than normal metal actuation that would be über cool.

One last concern for me is the scroll wheel. They tend to break (chatter) easily. Another "optical" solution to the scroll wheel be überüber cool I guess

 

Just saw this and I was going to buy the original Tartarus, glad I waited.

 

Question: has the construction of the thumb stick been changed, to increase stability ?

Maybe some official could give us a statement ?

 

Don't know, what is different about it?

 

Hey guys,

I just got my Tartarus Pro in the mail and i am not impressed unfortunately...

The build quality is nice, don´t get me wrong, but the usability is questionable at best.
For example, i can´t put in a "detection delay". What i mean by that is : I put 2 inputs on a button: "F" and "G"
On the first pressure point it uses F and on the second it uses G. Using the first pressure point is no problem,
on the second it always puts out : "FG" because it registers the "half pressed" input as well.
So it´s basically unusable for all games with 2 "abilities" bound to the same button because you will miss fire ability 1 before using ability 2. The only instance i found so far where this is usefull, is walk and run.

The second problem i have is the strange utilisation of pressure points. In Synapse you can define the pressure points when the keyboard switches from input 1 to input 2. The maximum for input 2 is unbelievably low.
English isn´t my first language and i can´t describe it better, but let me try. Imagine the whole button press as percentages. Full press would be 100%, just touching it slightly would be 1%.

The first pressure point is at the start of the button press at 1%, as it should be. The second, even at max sensitivity, is about 10-20% further down into the button press. About 50 - 60% of the button press is command 2.
It would be so much better if 70% of the whole button press would be command one , and only when i push the button all the way through it used command two. As is right now, the amount of wrong inputs i had is astonishing, and for reference, i play guitar as a hobby. My finger pressure is not super bad, i´d rather say i´am quite good at regulating that aspect.

Maybe someone sees this and has workarounds for this ? Maybe ini tweaks to push the 2. Command detect further down the button press ?

For now i`ll just use the Tartarus as a normal keypad. All the functionality i bought it for in the first place is not usable, at least for me, until i can tweak it better to my liking.

Hope this helps

Ps: Greetings from Germany in case anyone was wondering

 

@FeldarisDE I fully agree with you. If both situations you described are realy true, and one cannot change this, the whole funcionality of the "scalable" keys is completely useless.
See Steam controller functionality:

1. Normal Key press put's out F, with a short delay and full through press put's out G.
2. Directly full push through only outputs G

Second function should only get fired, when key is fully pressed, otherwise likely no one can control that.

 

Why do you think it is we don't see an analog stick yet? Does Logitech or someone have a patent or something? Or is it because not all games support analog input? I think I'm just going to go buy the Azeron Gamepad instead. This is what the community has wanted for decades and I'm surprised Razer won't do it. Gonna have to go with Azeron now

 

I have a question about the Tartarus Pro default keybinds (without using software). Since there is no onboard memory on the device, I assume it defaults back to default keybinds without Synapse 3 installed.

If that is the case, does the button above the thumbstick default to 'Alt' like it does on the Orbweaver? Or does it default to a 'Cycle Down Keymaps' button as seen on some YouTube reviews?

 

@pervysage19 :

It looks like , when you install the software it auto changes the input to "cycle through" , the standard that is on the button is "Alt" though.

So my guess is, it defaults to alt if no software is detected whatsoever

 

Ah okay, that is good to hear. Thanks for checking that for me!

 

I'm disappointed thus far -
I can't even get Synapse 3 to save a key binding after multiple reboots.
It doesn't appear that you can use macros for varied pressure inputs, only key presses.
I'm optimistic that being able to actually program it is just an annoyance, and that further updates to Synapse will add in multiple macro potential, but it's sitting next to my V2, lighting configured, looking like a bored twin at a show they were dragged along to.

 

I have the same problem ... I received the Tartarus today. All happy, I configured it for some games, after multiple tests, I come to the same conclusion ... The analog is unusable, since it is impossible, even putting the values of the actuation point completely to the opposites, to play like that.

Razer gives us an excellent example:

A slight pressure, we walk, a pressure more supported, we run ... Except that in reality, it is impossible to walk very long, so the pressure must be light. The millimeter is also not respected, because according to my measurements, certainly there is a 1.5 mm for the first function, but the second is activated after 2.2-2.5 mm. (Normally, 3.6 mm)

In short, analog is therefore useless.

I feel myself to be reimbursed, so the promise is false.

 

I just got mine and I have to agree, the analog input is a gimmick and completely worthless for the two-in-one key as the actuation points are a hair apart and impossible to reliably get right. It would be amazing if it worked as advertised, but it does not. I thought my unit was defective until I read other reviews.

 

However, I have tried all the possible modifications.... (Calibration, full searching in Synapse, complete restart in case Synapse doesn't want to update the parameters, etc.) In short, it's a lost cause, analog is absolutely useless.

I don't understand how Razer was able to present and release this device immediately, without first testing it.... I longer feel like I've been swindled by this beautiful promise, because without analog, it's nothing more or less than a Tartarus V2 sold for almost twice as much.

So Razer, if you can hear me, quickly (Very, very quickly) fixes this problem, or does your mea culpa and refunds half of all devices. (As I said, it's only a Tartarus V2 in the end)

For my part, I'm French, and as the world often says about us, I'm going to do what I know best, to complain to hardware test sites.

 

Just got mail, and after 2 Weeks they "gave up" and want me to send it back because they cant fix it and/or think "its a feature" to have 2 different Inputs on the same button. The fact that its impossible to use, and sends input 1 before input 2 completely ignored.

Lost hope, to all interested : don´t buy it, it doesn´t work as advertised.

My "story" mails going out to all big german hardware magazines tomorrow. If at least one write about it it maybe help others steer away from this mess.

What a joke ...

 

I still have "Razer Tartarus Standard Gaming Keypad" and have always been satisfied.
I'm already thinking about buying the new Razer Tartarus Pro.

 

The thread is called: What do you think of the new Razer Tartarus Pro?
Since I am satisfied with the standard version and it is a new version, why should it be worse?
Therefore, I have expressed my opinion.

greetings

 

The Tartarus Standard is a similar product, but has been superseded by the orbweaver chroma, and V2. Commenting that one likes the form factor might be useful, but it's not relevant per se as the form and features have changed. Saying that you like the idea of the optical switches and why might be on topic.

update on my Pro -
apparently migrating my synapse2 account settings borked in converting to synapse3. Support, despite not receiving every other email because it bounced as their mailbox was full, has been unable to find my second razer account which they asked me to make to migrate my account settings to a new account. In the interim 10 days of watching support flounder uselessly I created a new account to try to get my Pro working, and it seems to.

The "depth" of press settings in Synapse3 (as of 3.4.1024.102510) are comically similar, so that even as I'm *very* carefully testing them out in a text editor I'm not able to consistently get only the top input. I'm used to a 45g tactile switch, and usually don't bottom out, so these opticals should be an ideal switch for me. There is plenty of travel beyond those points, but maybe a typist trained on an optical keyboard with varied inputs or a musician used to optical switches on a musical keyboard might be able to make use of it.

As others have noted, the "top" press is always input before the "lower" press, so if "top" is "H" and "lower" is "R" you're going to input "HR" if you fully depress the key, not only "R". Macro's are not available, only typical keyboard HID keypresses. In combination with the lack of an "ignore top trigger" this renders the optical feature useless to me. I can see some gaming uses, e.g. single shot light press vs a double shot for a full press, but for dealing with 3D modeling inputs I need to input multikey macros to trigger keyboard shortcuts, and this doesn't fly.

I'm a tactile switch person, generally not a fan of either clicky switches or linear switches (Kailh Pro Purples are my preferred) so I'm still using the Pro alongside my V2 in trying to decide if I like the feel of the linear switch better than the harder tick of the V2 "mecha mechanical" and I'm not sold either way.

At this point, for the price difference I can't recommend the Pro, unless a single -> double press input or a single -> other keypress input is useful to you, and you've got a REALLY light touch.

I'll probably keep both units, one for home office, and one for workstation, which will let me move my home n52 out to the workshop computer, but I'm not impressed thus far.[/USER]

 

We add a layer of "We take you for idiots" RAZER version. Here is the answer of the technical service made at my request:

You have reached the Razer Technical Support Team and we are glad to assist you.

We sincerely apologize for the inconvenience you have encountered with your Razer Tartarus Pro. There are a lot of factors why it does not work. I understand that it is difficult to play a game if a key does not work accordingly to its function. Set your worries away for you're in good hands now. It will be a great help for us to further narrow down your concern by providing us a video of the said issue.

You can also try to follow the steps below to customize the sensitivity of the key, and I can walk you through it.

1. Open your Razer Synapse.

2. Click the Sidebar button (three horizontal lines) and it will reveal all current key and button assignments on your device.

3. You can set an estimated key travel distance (in millimeters) for both the Primary and Secondary actuation points to adjust how sensitive your keys are before each point registers as an input.

Please let us know if the steps mentioned above helped you fix the issue. If you have more questions regarding your concern, please feel free to contact us.

[Idiot Mode: On] No kidding? O dear RAZER, how come I haven't thought about it before?! Setting up a keypad before testing it wouldn't even have occurred to me![/Idiot Mode: Off]

And apart from that RAZER, do you plan to do something or will you send us a pre-registered email each time and think we're pigeons ?

EDIT : I resend a mail to support. I hope that this time they will become aware of the problem...