HHKB Pro 1 and Pro 2 sound difference

alh84001 · 15 Nov 2016, 18:29

So, I got my first two Topre boards in one swoop, and I noticed a difference in how they sound, and I'm wondering if this is normal or if there's something else going on.

One keyboard is a white HHKB Pro 1 with printed keycaps, and when I type on it, the sound keys make on the upstroke is pretty noticeable, and it's a bit sharper than the sound you make when you press/bottom out the keys. The second keyboard is a black blank HHKB Pro 2, and when I type on that one, there is virtually no sound when the keycap goes back up, or it is not noticeable in regular typing. So, did anything change between these two models sound-wise? Could it be the Pro 1's age? I have yet to open them up, but I have some other stuff to attend to on my work desk, so it will have to wait a bit.

Laser · 16 Nov 2016, 00:21

Maybe the 2nd one (Pro 2) is a Type S, *or* the owner modded it with silencing rings.

mike52787 · 17 Nov 2016, 03:05

Simple explanation, The HHKB Pro 1 isn't topre. Its just domes

as if real topre wasn't

002 · 17 Nov 2016, 04:53

There's a bit of confusementation in here, I can see

The HHKB Pro 1 *is* Topre, but alh84001's description (printed caps) sounds very much like the the PD-KB02 / PD-KB02N which is a non-Topre membrane keyboard, and technically the first "Happy Hacking Keyboard" released in the late 90s. I think it used some average Fujitsu switch. The HHKB Pro 1 was the first Topre-based HHKB, released in 2003.

alh84001 · 17 Nov 2016, 09:03

Sorry for the confusion, when I said "printed" I meant it has legends on keycaps, and not that it was pad-printed. This one is definitely Topre

.

I don't see any silencing rings on the barrels of the black one. Are there any methods for silencing that work from th einside of the assembly?

002 · 17 Nov 2016, 10:54

Factory applied silencing rings are indeed on the inside. You'd have to take the keyboard apart to see them. Did the person you bought these from mention anything about having modified the HHKB Pro 2 to be silenced?

If you can do a recording of the keyboards to show the difference, that would be cool. It might be just the age of the HHKB Pro 1 like you said -- but I honestly would not expect too much of a difference.

alh84001 · 17 Nov 2016, 11:45

Well, looking at the listing, nothing was mentioned. And since I bought them through a proxy I have no way of contacting the seller. I was planning on recording their sound sometime this week, but real life keeps getting in the way. I'll probably do it over the weekend.

cookie · 17 Nov 2016, 15:53

My Pro1 sounds better than my Pro2, both are silenced though. So yes there is a sound difference due to dome stiffening over time. But fear not, this is very little and does make the board nicer imho. I've noticed difference in sound after opening up an HHKB because the springs and domes have to settle. I think the typing will improve over the time when the springs and domes are in place.

Topre is love, Topre is live.

alh84001 · 08 Dec 2016, 22:34

So, I finally made a video
http://sendvid.com/20hhwz5u

I used my phone, so sound is off, but pay attention to how middle and bottom alpha row are rattly on (white) HHKB 1. Top alpha row on HHKB 2 also sounds different than middle row, but it's a different sound than HHKB 1 - as noisy, but not as rattly.