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Head to head · Prices checked Nov 2, 2026

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro vs Pulsar Xboard QS

Get the Heavy shell Barix87 Pro for sound dampening. Get the Pulsar Xboard QS for knob and qmk.

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Quick verdict

Which one should you get?

Get the

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro

Sound dampening

Build quality in the bottom 40% of 80% boards under $300.

$285 at Mechkeys

Get the

Pulsar Xboard QS

Knob

Build quality in the top 25% of 80% boards under $300.

Rules this board out

  • South-facing LEDs. Shine-through legends stay dark, and some sculpted keycaps can clip the LED.
$290 at MK

What actually differs

The differences that matter

Skip the 40-row spec sheet. These are the specs that change how each board feels, sounds, and fits your desk.

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro

Pulsar Xboard QS

  • Mount style

    Gasket Mount

    Plate Mount

  • Knob

    No

    Yes

  • QMK

    No

    Yes

    The deep option when you want to remap every key

  • VIA

    No

    Yes

    GUI remapping without compiling firmware

  • Sound dampening

    Yes

    No

KeebFinder scores

How we score
  • Heavy shell Barix87 Pro
  • Pulsar Xboard QS
Performance
53
74
Build quality
54
72
Productivity
68
86
Customizability
57
88
Portability
58
60

What they share

  • Layout size: 80%
  • Connection: Wired
  • Hot-swappable
  • Case material: Aluminum
  • Keycaps: PBT
See every spec side by side

Full specs

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro vs Pulsar Xboard QS specs

Every tracked spec, side by side. Rows marked with a dot differ between the boards.

9 of 20 specs differ

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro

Pulsar Xboard QS

Typing & switches

Switch options

Clicky, Linear
—

Hot-swappable

Yes
Yes

Mount style

Gasket Mount
Plate Mount

Sound dampening

Yes
No

Layout

Layout size

80%
80%

Layout standard

ANSI
ANSI

Ergonomics

Standard
Standard

Knob

No
Yes

Display

None
None

Connectivity & battery

Connection

Wired
Wired

USB passthrough

No
Yes

USB-C

Yes
Yes

Build & materials

Case material

Aluminum
Aluminum

Plate material

—
Plastic

Keycaps

PBT
PBT

Backlight

RGB
RGB, south-facing

Firmware & software

QMK

No
Yes

VIA

No
Yes

Mac & Windows

No
Yes

Extras

Released

2022
2024

Where to buy

Compare prices

Live prices from the stores we track, cheapest in-stock offer first.

Prices in USD are converted to your currency and can change at any time. KeebFinder may earn a commission when you buy through these links, at no extra cost to you.

Lowest price across stores, Amazon excluded.

Heavy shell Barix87 Pro2 stores
Pulsar Xboard QS2 stores

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