I have not heard of U4 Boba, but I will look into it.
I am now experimenting with the Durock Light Tactiles.
I have not heard of U4 Boba, but I will look into it.
I am now experimenting with the Durock Light Tactiles.
U4 Boba is a recent product of the OUTEMU custom line. U4 is the stem [tactile like T1, but dampened], and Boba is the housing. Boba housings are very tight, with little wobble, and the tactile leafs are quieter. The tactile leaf is Herculean in strength, so it's also used for making Holy Panda derivatives. There's lots of stuff you can put in a Boba housing, but U4 is the #1 silent tactile right now.
Please let us know how the Durock Light Tactiles work out. I have Pewter, but I don't like the factory lube. I'm not sure what kind of lube is best for them, maybe a thin coat of GS1 all over or something. Tactile leaf seemed kind of weak or dead to me, even compared to MX Brown. I prefer the Pewter stem in whatever the Taro Ball housing is made from. Natural weight for the Durock Light Tactile seems to be around 57-60 G.
I have found the BOX silent browns plenty tactile. I've been typing on them for several months now on my Drop CTRL. Of course, my main is usually a Topre board, so by comparison these BOX silent browns feel sharper in terms of tactility. So I imagine the experience will be quite different depending on what you are used to.
Between de-soldering original switches, lubing new switches, and re-soldering; although I didn't time it , I'm sure it was 7-8 hours total time. The switches are mounted in a Leopold FC660M.
Where is the best place to purchase them? I don't really want to go overseas.
It's not that it's not tactile enough, it's just very different. Coming from a Box Brown, the bump is short and sharp. The bump here longer and lacks that distinct almost click. It is a light switch, but it is also stiff at the top. I really want to swap out the springs and try again, going 5-7 gf lighter. That's a lot of work though. This can be frustrating.
Well, at the end of the day I feel that all tactile switches pale in comparison to Topre anyway, so I understand the disappointment. I don't believe there is a switch out there that feels like (or feels better than) Topre, so I think everyone is wasting their time questing for one.
Here, this is your saviour:Oh my here's an idea that weirdly didn't cross my mind, combining Kailh BOX switches, I've got plenty of samples to try.Show Image(https://www.keebtalk.com/uploads/db8059/optimized/3X/3/8/38da5bf2280c2d06d616eda64d8215778c8b148c_2_750x750.jpeg)
Cookies n’ Cream
NK Box Cream housing & spring :icecream:
Kailh Silent Box Brown stem :chocolate_bar:
More quiet, deeper sound - virtually no ping :sound:
More moderate tactility, like reg. Box Brown :brown_heart:
Like a mild Silent Box Brown, but better.
https://www.keebtalk.com/t/funky-frankenswitches/8206/188
Between de-soldering original switches, lubing new switches, and re-soldering; although I didn't time it , I'm sure it was 7-8 hours total time. The switches are mounted in a Leopold FC660M.
How was the desoldering experience with the Leopold? Did you run into any difficulties?
PS: First time posting so please let me know, or remove this if this isn't allowed since it may be off-topic.
What did you use to desolder the switches? I always have a hard time desoldering things with lead-free solder.
Realforce R2 keyboards are the same way with one screw and tabs all around. I don't think the screw in those is there for anything but security purposes. You definitely have to have a decent case opening tool for those things.
I replaced the switches in a Das Keyboard 4 a while back with silent box browns, and they were pretty decent. They had a much more pronounced tactile bump at the top, but some of the stems were slightly crooked, and that bugged the heck out of me. I was very impressed with how quiet they were, though. They were right up there with the silent black switches in a Cherry G80-3494 I have, and about as quiet as a silenced Topre.
Thanks for the advice, HungerMechanic!NovelKeys are launching muted Jades in August, unsure how silent it will be compared to the traditional silent ones but from the short demonstration I’ve seen on IG, it seems quite tolerable.
My Boba U4s came today. I was initially disappointed to find them a little gravelly still (though not as bad as the zilents, and with far less stem wobble). But after lubing and sticking some longer springs in them (that's all I had, which is perhaps just as well as they seemed to improve things), I'm quite pleased with them. The graveliness has all but gone, and they feel very nice - indeed much like a gentler panda. I've got some at 65g and some at 45g and both feel very good so far.
I might pick up some outemu silent sky stems anyway, for frankenswitching. I think it's going to get increasingly hard for me to enjoy non-cushioned switches from now on, so I may be tempted to convert some of my existing switches.
By the way, is there such a thing as a 'silent' clicky switch? (This would only be an oxymoron because of the word "silent"; actually, a switch with a loud tactile click at actuation but a nice soft landing at bottom-out would be great)
Thanks for the advice, HungerMechanic!
My Boba U4s came today. I was initially disappointed to find them a little gravelly still (though not as bad as the zilents, and with far less stem wobble). But after lubing and sticking some longer springs in them (that's all I had, which is perhaps just as well as they seemed to improve things), I'm quite pleased with them. The graveliness has all but gone, and they feel very nice - indeed much like a gentler panda. I've got some at 65g and some at 45g and both feel very good so far.
I might pick up some outemu silent sky stems anyway, for frankenswitching. I think it's going to get increasingly hard for me to enjoy non-cushioned switches from now on, so I may be tempted to convert some of my existing switches.
By the way, is there such a thing as a 'silent' clicky switch? (This would only be an oxymoron because of the word "silent"; actually, a switch with a loud tactile click at actuation but a nice soft landing at bottom-out would be great)
NovelKeys are launching muted Jades in August, unsure how silent it will be compared to the traditional silent ones but from the short demonstration I’ve seen on IG, it seems quite tolerable.
For silent tactile, have you all tried Durock Silent Shrimp? I have the Silent Dolphin and it's amazing, not that jelly like so it still feels smooth but silent. Really curious to see how the Shrimp feels given the tactility.
I have the shrimps, and I think they're a very good switch, though the tactility is actually too heavy-handed for what I personally wanted them for (alphas). They have virtually no pre-travel, and this, combined with the strong tactile bump, makes them have almost a 'binary' feeling: one moment you're increasing pressure on the key without it even budging, the next moment you've already bottomed out. Similar to Holy Pandas in that respect, I guess.
Overall I'm a huge fan of the Kailh switch lineup. They are reasonable in cost, many have shorter travel distance and great tactility.
I am kind of disappointed overall.