Gateron Yellow vs Gateron Black

[br4n_d0n]

I got my set of Gateron Yellows today and wanted to share with those that also had the same question I did.

"What is the difference between the Gateron Yellow and the Gateron Black if they have the same actuation force?"

NOTE: This is just my opinion and I do not claim to be very knowledgeable in this area, so please keep that in mind when reading.

To me, the Black has a little bit more "push-back" or resistance when you're getting closer to bottoming out with the key. This makes it easier to let the key travel back up and makes it feel a little bit heavier than the Yellow, even though they are supposedly the same in actuation force (50g). The Yellow seems to be closer to a Cherry MX Red, but smoother, than it does a Gateron Black.

This is just my suggestion, but if you've tried the Cherry MX Red and feel like you might bottom them out, then I would say you're better off going with the Gateron Black. If, however, you are fine with the Cherry MX Red, but want something a little bit smoother or just so ever slightly heavier (real slight), then I would go with the Gateron Yellows.

[Polymer]

Thanks for that...given that these have changed a bit it is nice to hear one more opinion on the subject.

Yellows sound exactly what I want without having to do my own custom change to the switch..something slightly heavier than reds but not by much...

[iLLucionist]

Isn't Gateron Yellow just a clone of MX Red similarly to Zealios Purple being MX Clears clones?

[Hypersphere]

Recently, I acquired a custom 60% board with Gateron Yellows, and I really like typing with these switches. In marked contrast to any Cherry mx switch I've  tried, Gateron Yellows feel just about right -- they have an actuation force of 50g - 55g (about the same as Gateron Blacks but lighter than Cherry Blacks at 60g - 65g), but their bottoming-out force of ~65g is less than that of Gateron Blacks (~70g) or Cherry Blacks ~80g.

There is some confusion about Gateron Yellows, because apparently there was an earlier version that had a very high bottoming-out force -- these were dubbed "Super Blacks", which were very different from the current generation of Gateron Yellows.

The Gateron Yellows are also extremely smooth. They have none of the grittiness of Cherry Browns or the scratchiness of Cherry reds that I have tried.

Now that I have thick PBT keycaps on my Gateron Yellows, they feel just a tad too light. Therefore, based on the specs, I would like to give Gateron Blacks a try. I've already tried contemporary and vintage Cherry Blacks and found them too heavy for sustained typing.

[Fictiouz]

Thanks for this. This reassured me that blacks are what i'm looking for.

[zisb]

Thanks for the clarification. The more facts the better!

[E3E]

Makes me wonder if Gateron Yellow modeled itself over Kailh Yellow and Gateron Black is more on MX Black. Kailh Yellow as a tad heavier than MX Red. If Gateron Black supposedly feels heavier than yellow, despite the listed specs, then it's anyone's guess really. Perplexing.