Kailh Speeds vs Gateron Minireview

[klennkellon]

Today I received four switches in the mail. Kailh Speed Silvers, Kailh Speed Coppers, Gateron Browns, and Gateron Yellows. I've always wanted to see a comparison of all of these so I bought a few for myself to put into my keyboard. Keep note that these are all brand new switches that aren't broken in.

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Kailh Speed Silvers vs Gateron Yellow

The Kailhs win here They are noticeably smoother as well as less wobbly. They're also quieter and less clacky than the Gaterons. TBH the Gaterons were kind of disappointing. They're not much smoother than these red Outemus I have.

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Gateron Brown vs Kailh Speed Copper


The Coppers are interesting. The tactility on both switches is quite weak but feels very different.

The Coppers have a very sharp bump right at the top. Gateron Browns have a more drawn out, softer bump. The Gaterons feel smoother to me in this case.

I honestly wouldn't recommend either the Browns or Coppers. The tactility is just so weak that it almost vanishes when you actually type on it a reasonable speed. If the Coppers were more tactile they would probably be a great switch.

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tl;dr: Kailh Silvers are smoother and wobble less than Gateron Yellows, both Gateron Browns and Coppers are kind of lame.

I also have some MX Blacks coming from SwitchTop that are supposed to be the new retooled ones. I'll definitely be comparing those as well when I get them. Check back for an update.

I hope someone found this useful!

[Marvellion]

Super useful for me, thanks ! By the way how does Kaihl Silvers' travel distance feel?

[klennkellon]

Super useful for me, thanks ! By the way how does Kaihl Silvers' travel distance feel?

Kailhs travel is about 3.6mm versus the usual 4mm. Noticeable but still a full travel switch.

The 3.6mm travel, coupled with the high actuation and 50g spring, makes them feel quite similar to SKCL Green imo, though Alps still are smoother.

[Marvellion]

I really should get some Matias, need that smoothness. By the way Gateron Yellows are a bit problematic regarding the smoothness, you should try some Gat Blacks. They are very often quite good.

[klennkellon]

Retooled MX Black came in today.

I'd say they're about equal to the Kailh Silvers smoothness, but the Kailhs are a little less wobbly.

[sublyme]

what is "retooled"?

[klennkellon]

what is "retooled"?

Evidently some time last year Cherry made some changes to their switches and now they are much nicer. So by "Retooled" I mean it's one of the newer and smoother versions. Switchtop guarantees retooled MX Blacks.

[Cotay]

The Kailhs win here They are noticeably smoother as well as less wobbly. They're also quieter and less clacky than the Gaterons. TBH the Gaterons were kind of disappointing. They're not much smoother than these red Outemus I have.

Did you test RGB or SMD Gateron Yellows? I have both SMD Gateron Yellows and the Kailh Speed Silvers and my take is that they are nearly identical in sound and feel. The SMD Gateron Yellows actually feel like they are a tad smoother. That seems logical to me since, as you pointed out, the Silvers have less wobble. I'd personally choose the Silvers since they wobble a bit less, but I'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between them otherwise.

[sublyme]

Evidently some time last year Cherry made some changes to their switches and now they are much nicer. So by "Retooled" I mean it's one of the newer and smoother versions. Switchtop guarantees retooled MX Blacks.

Ah ok thanks. I am looking to pickup a RGB TKL with mx blacks. Hopefully I can find a newer board so I can experience the retooled hawtness.

[klennkellon]

The Kailhs win here They are noticeably smoother as well as less wobbly. They're also quieter and less clacky than the Gaterons. TBH the Gaterons were kind of disappointing. They're not much smoother than these red Outemus I have.

Did you test RGB or SMD Gateron Yellows? I have both SMD Gateron Yellows and the Kailh Speed Silvers and my take is that they are nearly identical in sound and feel. The SMD Gateron Yellows actually feel like they are a tad smoother. That seems logical to me since, as you pointed out, the Silvers have less wobble. I'd personally choose the Silvers since they wobble a bit less, but I'd be hard pressed to tell the difference between them otherwise.

They are SMD Gaterons. I'm using them side by side right now and the silvers still feel a tad smoother. Perhaps there is some inconsistency on Gaterons part?

Evidently some time last year Cherry made some changes to their switches and now they are much nicer. So by "Retooled" I mean it's one of the newer and smoother versions. Switchtop guarantees retooled MX Blacks.

Ah ok thanks. I am looking to pickup a RGB TKL with mx blacks. Hopefully I can find a newer board so I can experience the retooled hawtness.

Can't go wrong with Ducky or Cooler Master, CM is my choice simply cause I've had good experiences with their customer service.

[Cotay]

They are SMD Gaterons. I'm using them side by side right now and the silvers still feel a tad smoother. Perhaps there is some inconsistency on Gaterons part?

It could very well be. I only have one board with Yellows and four with Gateron Blacks. My experience is that the Blacks are fairly consistent but the Yellow's might just be the exception.

[klennkellon]

They are SMD Gaterons. I'm using them side by side right now and the silvers still feel a tad smoother. Perhaps there is some inconsistency on Gaterons part?

It could very well be. I only have one board with Yellows and four with Gateron Blacks. My experience is that the Blacks are fairly consistent but the Yellow's might just be the exception.

I'm going to order some RGB Gat Blacks and Gat Yellows along with Kailh Box Blacks soon too so stay tuned.

[davkol]

Kailh Speed Silvers vs Gateron Yellow

The Kailhs win here They are noticeably smoother as well as less wobbly. They're also quieter and less clacky than the Gaterons. TBH the Gaterons were kind of disappointing. They're not much smoother than these red Outemus I have.

Weird. I'm not a fan of gaterons by any means, but…

All Kailh Speed switches that I have are extremely loud ("clacky"). I blame the housings. I've tried the stems in genuine Cherry MX housings and they sounded normal then (quieter than gateron), but holy **** the Speed housings are loud.

(I was mainly interested in jailhousing Kailh Speed Gold, but not only it felt weird, the clack was overbearing, whereas my jailhoused Cherry MX Blues were very quiet.)

I agree that silvers are quite tight, not that smooth though. In my case, Gaterons wins, although by a small margin. Either way, nowhere near OG vintage blacks.

Gateron Brown vs Kailh Speed Copper


The Coppers are interesting. The tactility on both switches is quite weak but feels very different.

The Coppers have a very sharp bump right at the top. Gateron Browns have a more drawn out, softer bump. The Gaterons feel smoother to me in this case.

I honestly wouldn't recommend either the Browns or Coppers. The tactility is just so weak that it almost vanishes when you actually type on it a reasonable speed. If the Coppers were more tactile they would probably be a great switch.

The thing with Speed Copper is that it does have a quite pronounced bump, but it's very short… and sort of muffled in the original housing, I'm not sure why. When I put the stem in a Cherry MX switch, it suddenly feels kind of clearer; the bump also aligns with actuation much better. It actually reminds me of even more compressed Cherry ML with very long post-actuation travel. Or jailhoused Cherry MX Blue (using JSpacers), which are slightly mushier/grittier/whatever, but also quieter and not as pronounced.

I wouldn't even compare it to browns. Well, except Kailh Box Brown, which is apparently very close to Speed Copper, except with the bump moved closer to the middle of overall travel.

The problem with all those switches (compared to something like MX Clear and respective—usually purple—clones) is that the tactile bump simply disappears, when pressed rapidly or with more force.