White Alps

[Polecat]

The "Alps" on the PC board probably means it's the Alps version (as opposed to versions made for other switches) rather than being made by Alps.

The early unbranded white Alps switches from 1989 or so probably share internal parts with late blue Alps, and are very similar in sound and feel. Later pine white Alps switches sound and feel different than early ones, probably due to changes in the internal parts. Pine white Alps are definitely not all the same. Most people haven't tried the early ones because 1) they don't realize they were different and 2) the early ones are much less common. "Better" is subjective in regards to sound and feel, but many of us prefer the early switches over the later ones. In my experience the early switches are more consistent and reliable, being much less prone to degradation and wear than the later ones. Just my opinions of course.