webcc/drafts/switches.md

title: Mechanical keyboard switchees
tags: computers, keyboards
date: 2022-04-24 00:00
---

I am trying something new. Here I will be recording my thoughts about
various keyboard switches I tried.


# Tactile

**Gazzew Boba U4**

Silent high-tactility switch, 65g. Does not produce a lot of sound, but not
_completely_ quite. Great tactility with a sharp early bump. I tend to
bottom out easily when typing on these.

My favourite switch so far, in terms of pure tactility.

**Gazzew Boba U4T**

High-strength tactile switch. All bump, no pre/post-travel. Feels very
nice. The sound is supposed to be "thocky", but I subjectively found
it more "poppy" than SP Star Magic Girl, for example, which tends to
have a more muted sound. Overall, a great switch with an amazing
tactile signature and a moreish sharp bump.

**Durock T1**

TBD

**Glorious Panda**

I have not tried the original Holy Pandas yet, but I was told that
Glorious Panda can be a sufficient replacement. So far I have been
enjoying those switches. They are on the more heavy tactile end of
things with a sharp bump (still not as heavy as Boba U4 dd, and not as
sharp as Kailh Box Royal). The sound is alright, not too annoying, and
it seems to improve with some lubing on the housing. However, under
heavy typing there can be a noticable ping.

**Purple Panda**

Mid-high-strength tactil from Tecsee, 68g. Another take on the "Holy
Panda" signature with a P-shaped bump. However, the stem is very long,
resulting in very short travel (3mm?). Because of that, the
post-travel is rather small, and it is not very hard to bottom out
with these switches. The upstroke also feels very fast.

Initially when I got them, there was very little ping stock. However,
after using them actively for a week I think the ping has gotten
worse.

Comparison with some other tactile switches:

- Compared to Glorious Panda, Purple Pandas have shorter post-travel and
a more rounded bump. Purple Pandas also have less ping.

- Tecsee Sapphire
Techsee Sapphire have a much shorter, lighter bump, and have way more post-travel.


- SP Star Magic Girl.
The Magic Girl switches have a generally similar tactile signature,
with almost no pre-travel before the bump. The bump on Magic Girl
feels longer than on Purple Panda. Despite of that, the post-travel on
Purple Panda is shorter than that on Magic Girl, probably due to the
stem length.


- Compared to SP Star Magic Girl, Purple Pandas have a way shorter ..

**SP Star Magic Girl**

Mid-to-high-strength colourful tactiles. A pronounced but rounded bump
with very little pre-travel. Smooth for the post-bump travel. Since
the post-travel is longer than on some other tactiles (probably the
most post-bump travel on this list, at the time of writting), it is
quite possible not to bottom out on every keypress. Sound-wise they
are kind of muted. Not silent, but with quiter typing force the sounds
of keycaps etc will easily drown on the switch-proper sounds. For
example, compared to Box Royals or Glorious Pandas, these have way
less ping.

**Kailh Box Royal**

Mid-strength tactile, on the more tactile end of the scale. These have
a really "fun" tactile bump, with almost no pre-travel. I don't think
it requires a lot of force for the bump, but since the bump is so
sharp it may feel heavier than it is. I find it hard not to bottom out
when using these switches.

Soundwise, these can sound quite inconsistent (stock), and some
switches have really annoying ping.

I do not think I will be using them for a full build, but I enjoy
having this switch on some of designated keys, maybe return or the
F-keys?

**Tecsee Sapphire**

Mid-strength tactile. Has a nice bumb and and very smooth travel
afterwards. Cannot really say anything bad about it. The sound may be
too high pitched for the connoisseurs, but I do not mind too much.

**Gateron Brown**

Hated among many. I actually do not think it is too bad, but it does
require lubing to sound more tolerable. Not a fan of such a "light"
tactile signature tho.

**Cherry MX Brown**

TBD

**Frankenswitches**

- Glorious Boba (?): Glorious Panda stem in Boba housing. Feels like
Glorious Panda with less pre-travel and easier bottom-out. Sounds
quite similar.

# Linear

**Gateron Red**

Linear switch. A bit too smooth for my taste. It feels like for some
of these switches the actuation point is really close. I sometimes
accidentally triggered a switch when i was resting my fingers on the
keyboard.

Can be very clacky, but sound is drastically improved with a tape mod.

**Gazzew Bobagum**

Silent linear, 62g. Nice linear switch, smooth, but with a good amount
of force. Produce very little sound.