DARKBEACON GUIDE
Configure Rapid Trigger
Tune press and reset detection, understand how it combines with remapping, advanced keys and macros, and distinguish turning RT off from disabling a key.
Applies to: Supported Hall-effect keyboards shown in the App
What you will accomplish
Enable Rapid Trigger (Dynamic press and release behavior that resets according to key movement instead of one fixed release point) on one harmless test key, retain its assigned action, and verify the visible press and reset controls before saving.
Applies to
Steps
- Confirm that travel calibration and the ordinary actuation point (The key travel position where a Hall-effect key becomes active) are stable.
- Open Rapid Trigger, select one harmless movement key, and enable the Rapid Trigger switch.
- Start with the unified Sensitivity control. If the App displays separate Press Sensitivity and Release Sensitivity, leave them equal for the first test.
- Leave Continuous Rapid Trigger off initially. Test a slow press, quick direction changes, partial release, full release, and light resting contact.
- Change only one visible sensitivity by one small step. Reverse the last change if chatter, unintended repeats, or an early reset appears.
- Enable Continuous Rapid Trigger only when the App displays it and its visible description matches the intended full-release behavior. Repeat the same movement sequence.
- Verify Rapid Trigger alone before adding another behavior offered by the App. Use the combination guide below: an earlier release can change which action runs, not just make the same action faster.
- Test the layer boundary with an ordinary held key action. Changing layers releases the active output in this test; fully release the key before pressing it on the destination layer. Macros and latched actions have their own stop rules.
- Select Save to keyboard, reconnect, and repeat the slow press, full release, and layer test.
What RT changes
RT changes when a physical key counts as pressed or released. It does not choose a new output or add the printed letter alongside an assigned action. For example, if physical W is remapped to Up Arrow, enable RT on W: its travel controls Up Arrow. This does not enable RT on the physical Up Arrow key.
For an ordinary or remapped key, the first press must reach the actuation point. After activation, Release Sensitivity controls the upward movement needed to release; Press Sensitivity controls the downward movement needed to activate again. Smaller distances need less movement and can also react to unintended finger motion.
With Continuous Rapid Trigger off, returning above the actuation point ends the movement-based cycle. With it on, release and re-press can continue higher in the key's travel until the key returns to rest. It does not remove the initial actuation requirement. DKS has its own phase-based starting point, described below.
Which setting takes priority?
These settings answer different questions; there is no universal rule that RT overrides every other feature.
| Setting | What it decides | Practical result |
|---|---|---|
| Disable in Remap | Whether the key's configured keyboard behavior may act on that layer | A disabled key cannot start its assigned action or win an RS/SOCD pair, even with RT on. |
| Normal detection or RT | When the key becomes active or releases | RT release can end a held action or allow a new activation before a full physical release. |
| RS or SOCD, when assigned | Which member of the pair may act | Being active is not always enough to produce output; the pair's rule still applies. |
| Remapping or an advanced action | What an accepted activation does | An ordinary remap outputs its assigned key; MT, DKS and latched actions follow their own rules. |
| A macro's trigger mode | What happens after a macro starts | An RT release is a release signal, not a universal command to stop all playback immediately. |
Only configure combinations the current DarkBeacon App accepts. Ordinary keyboard remapping can change the outputs of RS/SOCD members. The current Remap interface does not offer every action type for those pairs. DKS, MT and Toggle own their key's action: edit that action in Advanced Keys, or remove the assignment before applying an ordinary remap or macro. RT does not bypass an assignment conflict. Keep protected keys such as Fn available.
Turn RT off, disable a key, or clear its output?
| Control | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Disable selected keys on the Rapid Trigger page | Turns RT off for those keys. It does not disable their ordinary input or remove their other assignments. |
| Disable in Remap | Blocks that key's configured keyboard behavior on the selected layer. Cancel Disable allows it to act again. |
| Clear Key Value in Remap | Leaves no assigned output instead of restoring the printed key. An enabled empty-output key can still take priority in an RS/SOCD pair. |
| Restore the original mapping | Gives the key an output again. This is separate from turning RT off or removing an advanced-key assignment. |
For example, clearing the output of the right-hand SOCD member can make it suppress the left-hand member while producing nothing itself. To stop a key participating in the pair, remove the pair assignment or use Disable; do not use Clear Key Value as a substitute. Assigning a new ordinary remap or macro also re-enables a previously disabled key in the current App. See Remap keys and layers before changing several settings at once.
RT with advanced keys and macros
| Combination | What to expect and test |
|---|---|
| Ordinary key or custom keyboard mapping | Partial release can release the assigned output; another downward movement can press it again. The printed key is not added as a second output. |
| SOCD | RT changes when each member counts as active. In Last Input Priority, a new RT activation counts as a new input, even without a full physical release. Absolute Priority and Neutral still apply their own overlap rules. |
| Rapid Shot (RS) | RT affects eligibility, while RS compares the pair's travel. With Dual bottom-out on, both enabled members may act when both are fully pressed. Turn it off when testing an exclusive one-winner result. |
| Multi-function Click (MT) | An RT release before the hold threshold can produce Click while your finger is still on the key. After Hold begins, RT release ends that held action. Re-activation starts a new click-versus-hold decision. |
| Dynamic Key Switching (DKS) | DKS phase positions still choose actions. RT can end and restart a shallow press sequence before the deeper phases are reached; see the DKS guide for the phase-specific result. |
| Macro | Each accepted activation can trigger playback. The chosen macro mode determines whether release ends repetition, runs a release section, or leaves playback running. See Create and assign macros. |
If experimenting with Toggle, do not assume an RT release clears a latched action: re-activation can change its on/off state again. Detailed Toggle instructions remain withheld while the App's click-versus-hold description is reconciled. This is separate from a macro's Toggle Switch mode.
Main and Fn layers
In the current App, RT is configured per physical key and shared by Main and Fn. Their assigned outputs and disabled states can differ, but they are not separate RT sensitivity profiles. Fully release all involved keys after changing layers or applying settings, then test the destination layer. Do not use a layer change as a universal stop command for macros or latched actions.
Confirm success
The assigned action is unchanged, the selected key activates and resets predictably at different speeds, and no chatter, stuck input, or unintended repeat remains after reconnecting.
For a combination, repeat one shallow press, one deep press, a partial release and re-press, then a full release. Check the expected pair winner, MT choice, DKS phase or macro stop rule rather than checking only the on-screen travel indicator.
Save result
Editing changes the current working configuration. Save to device (Store the current settings on the device so they remain after the App disconnects or power is restored) through the App's Save to keyboard action to make the tested behavior persistent.
Limits and cautions
Recovery
Disable Rapid Trigger for the affected key or return its sensitivity controls to the previous stable values. If ordinary input is also inconsistent, restore the actuation point and recalibrate before testing again. Factory reset is not the first response.
If travel is visible but no output occurs, check the selected layer, Disable state, empty mapping and RS/SOCD priority before changing sensitivity. For a macro, also check that the App is running and the macro is assigned. Gamepad Mode has separate keyboard-output controls; Disable is not a promise to stop every gamepad or lighting response to physical movement.
If two physical keys are mapped to the same held output, releasing just one does not release that output while the other still holds it. Release both before diagnosing a stuck key.