Best Clicky Switches You've Tried

JCMax

26 Jan 2022, 02:32

In your opinion what are the best clicky switches you've ever tried?

I have heard a lot of people talk about buckling springs, beam springs, complicated alps, etc. and am just wondering if these switches really live up to all of the hype?

So far, the closest I have come to a retro keyboard or switch from way back when is the New Model M buckling spring. I would say it rates the best overall switch I've tried so far.

In your opinion what's the best clicky switch you've ever tried, old or new?

P.S. I also have a preference for clicky switches that have great tactility.

xxhellfirexx

26 Jan 2022, 07:01

In my opinion, all of the switch types you listed are great both in terms of feel and sound. I prefer beam springs, capacitive buckling springs, and blue Alps in that order. Alps can require a bit of repair (dead switch plates) and tweaking (bending click leaves) if you do not get one in good condition.

Based on your criteria of clicky switches with great tactility, check out capacitive buckling springs, box navies/jades, and amber Alps.

Hak Foo

26 Jan 2022, 07:19

It's a bit subjective. I always found capacitive buckling spring a bit "twangy". I tend to prefer Alps-style mechanisms over the MX-style mechanisms, but currently use the Kailh Box Pale Blues because it strikes a good balance of "compatible with the broad MX-style ecosystem" and "reasonably clicky plus available in 25 different permutations to find something you like."

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Bjerrk

26 Jan 2022, 08:58

By "great tactility", do you mean sharp/well-defined or of great magnitude (large tactile drop)?

Buckling spring tactility is very sharp and well-defined, but the tactile drop is modest. Alps AKCM White or Matias Clicky switches, on the other hand, have a big tactile drop.

There's something satisfying to the large tactile drop, but over longer stretches I find that I prefer the sharp-but-moderate-in-magnitude tactility of e.g. buckling springs.

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Chyros

26 Jan 2022, 11:47

You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.

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Muirium
µ

26 Jan 2022, 11:59

Black Space Invaders are also up there for me, because of their satisfying tactility combined with click. They're honestly what MX blue *should* be like, if all the general simplified opinion about MX out there was accurate. ;)

The IBM way is metal-sharp click with instant, fairly gentle tactility. Blue Alps is a bit like that, but you'd never confuse the two. Clicky Space Invaders are a whole other thing, where the tactility is much… what's the way to put it? Meatier.

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Lalaland124

26 Jan 2022, 12:07

Chyros wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 11:47
You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.
How did the Omron B2H triple magnet switches feel in terms of clickyness and tactility compared to Blue Alps etc.? Could be hard to define without having proper keycaps/a full sized board with them I guess.

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Chyros

26 Jan 2022, 14:09

Lalaland124 wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 12:07
Chyros wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 11:47
You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.
How did the Omron B2H triple magnet switches feel in terms of clickyness and tactility compared to Blue Alps etc.? Could be hard to define without having proper keycaps/a full sized board with them I guess.
Absolutely impossible to say without even so much as a keycap, let alone a proper board, but they felt more tactile than I would've thought considering how the mechanism works. They felt very promising though, I'd kill for a try on a full board of those :D . Sound was also pretty promising!

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Muirium
µ

26 Jan 2022, 14:26

Omron magnetic? Had to look it up. Delightfully bonkers!

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TheInverseKey

26 Jan 2022, 18:46

Still SKCM Amber.
  • Best tactility
  • Best sounding clicky Alps switch
  • Great bottom out
  • Good compatibility

JCMax

27 Jan 2022, 03:49

Bjerrk wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 08:58
By "great tactility", do you mean sharp/well-defined or of great magnitude (large tactile drop)?

There's something satisfying to the large tactile drop, but over longer stretches I find that I prefer the sharp-but-moderate-in-magnitude tactility of e.g. buckling springs.
Agreed. Really when I say great tactility what I am talking about is having a good combination of the two, but I think sharp tactility is more important for me than tactile drop. I still like at least moderate drop.

What I really like is a switch that has sharp tactility but is also very fast, responsive, and precise. That way I can type fast. I also find the weighting on the actuation point helps with speed too. I am typing this with Hyper X blues right now and the only thing they really have on my Model M is the lighter weighting, which not only feels better on my hands, but also let's me types faster.

JCMax

27 Jan 2022, 03:54

Chyros wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 11:47
You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.
The Zeal Clickiez? Thanks! I am reading up on them now and they look interesting. :D
I have a switch tester for the Beamspring, Model F BS, and Model M BS and the beamspring is coming out the clear winner so far. Although I'm sure they feel different within a board.

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Chyros

27 Jan 2022, 10:25

JCMax wrote:
27 Jan 2022, 03:54
Chyros wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 11:47
You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.
The Zeal Clickiez? Thanks! I am reading up on them now and they look interesting. :D
I have a switch tester for the Beamspring, Model F BS, and Model M BS and the beamspring is coming out the clear winner so far. Although I'm sure they feel different within a board.
I HOPE to bring out the Clickiez review this Sunday, but I'm ultra busy this week so I hope I don't have to delay it. Should answer some of your questions.

Do they hold a candle to beamsprings? Not a chance IMO. But they cover different needs.

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Muirium
µ

27 Jan 2022, 22:01

That name is as dipshit as a hog’s tit.

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Bjerrk

27 Jan 2022, 22:32

What, you mean HogzTittiez?

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Muirium
µ

27 Jan 2022, 22:44

Yes. I absolutely mean that. My Zeal for Beemerz is so pronounced I may need medical attention if it remains engorged for much longer.

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zrrion

27 Jan 2022, 23:48

should have called them Zalps

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oofers

28 Jan 2022, 11:14

Chyros wrote:
27 Jan 2022, 10:25
JCMax wrote:
27 Jan 2022, 03:54
Chyros wrote:
26 Jan 2022, 11:47
You'd love the new Clickiez if you like 'em very tactile.

For me it's beamsprings.
The Zeal Clickiez? Thanks! I am reading up on them now and they look interesting. :D
I have a switch tester for the Beamspring, Model F BS, and Model M BS and the beamspring is coming out the clear winner so far. Although I'm sure they feel different within a board.
I HOPE to bring out the Clickiez review this Sunday, but I'm ultra busy this week so I hope I don't have to delay it. Should answer some of your questions.

Do they hold a candle to beamsprings? Not a chance IMO. But they cover different needs.
Can't wait for the review. They seem interesting, but Zeal switches are very expensive so I haven't had the chance to try them myself. Maybe your review can change my mind?

micmil

28 Jan 2022, 22:57

Kailh BOX Jades. They feel oddly similar to buckling springs, but crisper. The tactility is so sharp it's almost like something is breaking under your fingers when you type on them.
They're loud as frick, but if buckling springs don't dissuade you then give the Jades a go.

keyboardnoob

29 Jan 2022, 01:16

I have owned and tried capacitive buckling springs on a used Model-F XT, membrane buckling springs on a Unicomp Model M (the spacesaver version) and SMK 2nd gen blue (Montereys). I have also tried the razer green switch at some point through a friend.

Purely feeling-wise I would rank them as they are:
1.) Capacitive buckling springs (by quite a margin)
2.) Membrane buckling springs
3.) SMK
4.) Razer green (Well I wouldn't even dare putting them on this list but as the first mechanical switch I tried, I liked them then)

As for sound, it is roughly the reverse, excluding the razer. Capacitive buckling springs are LOUD and can be annoying in person.

I wouldn't classify any of these as very tactile, with buckling springs and especially the capacitive version being very sharp though. My only gripe with the tactility of the membrane buckling springs (at least on my unicomp) is that it occurs later than the midpoint, or at least it feels that way making them feel somewhat shorter travel compared to the capacitive.

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Arto

29 Jan 2022, 03:22

the best I've tried yet is my IBM model M 102-key from 1987, it is really smooth in the strokes

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joebeazelman

29 Jan 2022, 07:06

I don't have a favorite tactile, but here are my favorite switches:
SKCM vintage Black Alps
SKCM Amber
SKCM Orange
IBM Model F

I am really excited about these Zeal clickiez and Chyrosan's upcoming review on them. As someone mentioned, the name is so stupid I want to berate the dummy who thought it up. Hopefully it won't start a trend of even stupider names like tactileez and lineeareez. The price is high, but if it is anywhere near as good as vintage ALPs, it's DEFINITELY worth it. If it becomes successful enough, there will be an attack of the clones, moving the market away from the crappy cherry mechanisms.

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Muirium
µ

29 Jan 2022, 09:26

Good point about clones cloning something better when it comes along. As I far as I gather: China don’t patent!

You’re nuts putting Model F below so many Alps, though. I’ve nice SKCM blues and they’re just a pale shade of nice Model F. Magnificent in their way, for what they are: discrete contact switches. But compared to the king? No cigar!

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Bjerrk

29 Jan 2022, 10:20

Muirium wrote:
29 Jan 2022, 09:26
You’re nuts putting Model F below so many Alps, though. I’ve nice SKCM blues and they’re just a pale shade of nice Model F. Magnificent in their way, for what they are: discrete contact switches. But compared to the king? No cigar!
Would tend to agree, especially given all the problems inherent to Alps SKCM.

My personal "checklist" for switch niceness goes something like:
* Durability/longevity/repairability
* Sharp tactility of moderate magnitude
* Inherent synchronization of tactile, audible and actuation events
* Significant overtravel
* Smoothness
* (Pleasant sound)

Try it with some of your favourite clicky switches.
I find that very few switches pass the test, but capacitive buckling springs do (depending on your opinion on the sound).

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Muirium
µ

29 Jan 2022, 10:50

Good list. Thinking about my own typing preferences, for all switches, they go like this:
  • Smoothness: if(scratchy) FAIL
  • Stability: I'm looking at you, wobbly
  • Travel: can I even type on this thing without bottoming-out? Hope so!
  • Ring: does the sound of this whole thing nip the shit out of me? Generally that's not good
  • Pleasant upstroke clack: either clack with mellow satisfaction, or damp it out for silence's sake. No thwacking!
That's basically it, for linears. Be SMOOTH. Be pure to your linearity. And you too, other switches. Scuff is never a good thing!

For tactiles and clickies, add these:
  • Clarity of tactile event: be clear, be sharp (Model F) or be chunky (NMB), but don't be MX brown! No apologies, do your thing!
  • Timing of tactile event: I want to feel the actuation point, dur. If you're gonna fake it, be so close it doesn't matter
  • Timing of click: same applies to clicks, which should be simultaneous to tactile trigger point or get major grumbles!
  • Quality of click: be sharp and consistent, feel part of the stroke, not an add-on
  • Sound of click: is it nippy on the ears? Do not sound like a bowl of Rice Crispies
  • No upstroke clicks: ideally, I want clicks only on actuation and eerie linearity on the way back up, but you know how it is
Mind, all of these are overridden if the switches chaatttter like Matias or stodge up like well worn Alps. Reliability ultimately matters. But right there, in the typing moment, these are the things I'm feeling and listening for. After some serious fondling of those all important caps, of course. ;)

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hellothere

29 Jan 2022, 20:20

Clicky:
Kailh Box Jade. I have not tried a beamspring or amber Alps. I want to try both the Kailh Arctic White and Kailh Clickiez. I've wanted to try an IBM Model F AT keyboard for a bit. I'm not overly impressed with the Model F XT and the Model M is just OK.

I have a soft place in my heart for Futaba MA switches. They're not everyone's cup of tea, though.

Tactile:
Abko K935P Capacitive Dome. After a couple months, I've decided it's better than my Topre Realforce R2. Both are great, though, and I would like to try an HHKB. I'm also interested in trying Zealio and Halo True switches.

I have a SKCM brown Alps keyboard. It's very, very tactile. However, the springs are a bit too heavy for me.

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Bjerrk

29 Jan 2022, 21:19

hellothere wrote:
29 Jan 2022, 20:20
I have a SKCM brown Alps keyboard. It's very, very tactile. However, the springs are a bit too heavy for me.
In what sense do you find them very, very tactile? Just curious.

Isn't it a rather rounded, mild, drawn-out tactility?

Image

Tribal

29 Jan 2022, 23:00

Capacitive buckling springs, easily. Each press feels like you’re breaking a tiny glass rod. I floss mod my buckling springs because the sound is unbearable otherwise.

Membrane buckling springs is also good - maybe like breaking a tiny ceramic rod. MBS seems much more susceptible to variation, though. I’ve found Unicomp’s newer one-piece keycaps able to dramatically improve a tired IBM board. My Mini M is pretty nice, but it doesn’t hold a candle to CBS.

I’ve never tried ALPS-type or Space Invaders switches.

As assertive and rewarding as the above switches are, an honorable mention should go to basic Cherry MX Blue. If you’re looking for a “gentle rain on the roof” sound, these can be really nice.
Last edited by Tribal on 02 Feb 2022, 12:15, edited 1 time in total.

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zrrion

30 Jan 2022, 00:47

Bjerrk wrote:
29 Jan 2022, 21:19
In what sense do you find them very, very tactile? Just curious.

Isn't it a rather rounded, mild, drawn-out tactility?
Image

If you draw a line from the initial weight to the final weight on a force curve you can get a curve that represents the linear version of the switch. the area under this linear curve (marked in blue) represents the weight of this hypothetical switch.

A tactile switch will have a significant amount of it's own curve above/below this line. In the case of a heavily tactile switch the area of the curve above/below the linear curve (represented in red) is going to be significant when compared to the area under the linear curve since the tactility is a large amount of the total force of the tactile switch. For brown alps you can see that of the total area (red and blue combined) the blue area only makes up 2/5 while the red area is 3/5, which is significantly more! So while the tactility isn't sharp, it is clearly highly significant.

The point on the brown alps force curve farthest away from the linear action's curve isn't an outlier though, there are a lot of points almost as far away, which is why the tactility is rounded, there aren't many places with a steep rate of increase on the curve. If there was then this would be considered sharply tactile. There's probably some math you could do regarding the rate of change of the rate of change of the tactile slope compared to the area between the tactile force curve and the linear action line to get a single metric that indicates both sharpness as well as magnitude of the tactility but that sounds like a lot of work for a metric that won't help people who can't properly read the graph anyway so presenting that info in a hard to understand way isn't productive. Would still be fin though
Last edited by zrrion on 17 Oct 2022, 20:43, edited 1 time in total.

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hellothere

30 Jan 2022, 03:29

Bjerrk wrote:
29 Jan 2022, 21:19
In what sense do you find them very, very tactile? Just curious.
Oh, it'd be so fun for me to post, "+1 what zrrion said."

Anyhow, TL;dr of the below:
* Bjerrk does have a point.
* I rather like Space Invader clicky switches, too.

---

Bjerrk, you do have a point. It would be great if I could break down why I choose switch X over switch Y and zirron's post shows how difficult that can be. I'm not sure that just a force graph is sufficient to answer the question. I think I'd have to sit down and have the tactile and clicky keyboards I have spread out in front of me to be able to tell you what I like about them.

The reason I don't like the Model F XT much is because it feels like hitting too many keys is going to make the keyboard either explode or implode. Brown Alps are about the same for me, but they do feel more under control.

I mentioned, above, that I have a 45g Topre Realforce and an 45g capacitive dome Abko. Why do I prefer the Abko? I think the Realforce is more like bubble wrap and the Abko is feather pillow-y. It just took me a long while to decide that the Abko was better, even though both are outstanding. The reason why I mentioned that I'd like to try an HHKB, which is another Topre keyboard, is because a few people (Mu) have been telling me that the plastic mounting plate in the HHKB further softens the "ride characteristics" of the Topre switch.

---

I wanted to mention that there has been a couple mentions of the "Space Invader" Hi-Tek 725 clicky switches. They do have a delightfully light click and a pleasant weighting. The major drawback of either collecting keyboards or what I do, which is restore keyboards, is that you'll constantly say something like, "Yes, switch A is great, but I like switch B more." Enjoy searching for that white whale.

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