List which switches you have tried and your rating 1-10 of the switch?

[LiquidEvilGaming]

I'd love to start a thread asking one simple question (Well one with a few parts)

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?
A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)
B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

(I'll definitely be posting myself further down into the thread just so happens i'm posting this at 3:50 AM before work and don't have the time to make a proper full list right this second)

However i look forward to reading responses as i love hearing different thoughts and opinions since they change so very much user to user.


Cheers!

[Sifo]

1. Topre, all Cherry MX and variants, DT-35
A. Topre: approaching negative infinity
    MX: Most of them are sitting around 5-6
    DT-35: 8

[algernon]

1. Gateron Blues, Browns and Reds
A. Blues: 0, Reds: 2, Browns: 7-8
B. Clicky switches drive me mad. I have no use for the sound, as I have my headphones on, and prefer the music over the noise. So do my colleagues at work, and my wife at home. The sound thus does not buy me anything, and is rather annoying. Reds just felt bad, without any tactile feedback. Browns so far are okay, the noise is well within acceptable levels, I can feel the tactile bump with some fingers, that don't mash the keys to the bottom. I'd prefer something a little heavier, though, but Browns are okay for the time being.

I'm not going to try anything clicky or linear. Have a keyboard with Matias Quiet Click incoming, very interested in trying that too.

[chyros]

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL285ATFsHGY9JnaQemdjRLEMmLRKpmbfB

 

[LiquidEvilGaming]

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL285ATFsHGY9JnaQemdjRLEMmLRKpmbfB

 

Cheater ,  But given the sheer amount of vintage switches you have tried i don't blame you for not typing them all up lol.

[chyros]

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL285ATFsHGY9JnaQemdjRLEMmLRKpmbfB

 

Cheater ,  But given the sheer amount of vintage switches you have tried i don't blame you for not typing them all up lol.

You should see how many LOOSE switches I have, too ) .

[jcoffin1981]

1. Mx Brown, Mx Clear, Mx Brown, Gateron Brown, Mx Blue
A. Mx Brown 8/10, Mx Clear 6/10, Gateron Brown 7/10, Mx Blue 3/10
B. Mx Brown has the right resistance, but I like that it has less tactility.  I'm gonna try a linear switch and give the board a test drive.

[Fiery]

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

MX: Browns, Greens, Clears.
Rubber: K120, two roccat ones.

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

Browns: 3/10
Greens: 8/10
Clears: 9/10
K120: 7/10
Roccat rubber domes: 2/10

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Browns are too light, scatchy, and lack any real tactile feedback.
Greens are too loud for me, but I love the feel.
Clears are almost perfect, just a tiny bit too heavy, like only just.
K120 for a rubber dome keyboard it's great, especially compared to some of the more pricey gamer ones I have tried.
Roccat rubber domes both were quite bad, but the one my brother had was the worst I have ever used, literally either no resistance or too much, mushy, the led's made a buzzing noise, just awful. And for the price both were bad and the k120 is way better. The reason I said Roccat rubber domes is simply as I can't remember the name of them.

on a different note I really want to try zealios. And I'm getting a planck with matias quiets.

[kawasaki161]

1:
MX Blues, MX Browns, Zealios 62g

A:
Zealios: 8/10
Blues:6.5/10
Browns:5.5/10

B:

I did not try enough switches to be able to give out a 10/10 without feeling bad about it, so 8/10 is my max score.

Browns: I like Browns, but only if they are consistent. I've probably gotten a board with late 2015 or learly 2016 production date and the switches are just like rolling dices. Some feel like dirty Reds, some are kinda smooth, some are very scratchy and some are just like they should be. If all switches were like they should be then it would be a better rating, but my batch was awful. (Or were the two switches I liked the odd ones?)

Blues: I've been using Blues for a LONG time now, almost 5 years to be exact. My Blues were always pretty consistent and I never had ones that stopped clicking or something among those lines, even though I had a few spills. I could daily Blues without a problem.

Zealios: A wise man once said "I can assure you that Zealios are the way to your feelios" (ChucklingKumquat) and oh boy was he right. I'm currently using 62g Zealios on a Cooler Master Quickfire TK with Vortex PBT alphas and Maxkeyboard ABS mods (just for the record). The sound of those switches is extremely nice, a lot deeper than all Cherry switches I tried and the upstroke clack is just phenomenal. Those things also are extremely smooth with no scratching I am able to recognize. And the tactility is just right with the resistance of the spring being just how I want it. the only thing that slightly bothers me is the stem wobble, but it is not the feelig of it that I dislike, it's just the fact that it exists. If I had the chance to thoroughly try out more types of switches I might raise the score of these, I just didn't want to be that guy that only tried a few but is handing out 10's left and right (even though I wouldn't go higher than 9).

As soon as my new board arrives I can test my creation of true Vintage Blue stems in 90's Black housings and also 90's Blacks (also with springswap and lube) thanks to switchtopremoval.

[chyros]

OK, I'll list my opinions of some of the more common switches. Not going to do all the ones I've tried so far, that would take way too long xD .

MX blue - 5/10
MX red - 2/10
MX black - 2/10
MX brown - 2/10
MX clear - 4/10

SKCM black - 6/10
SKCL green or linearised other Alps - 8/10
SKCM orange/salmon - 9/10
SKCM white - 8/10
SKCM blue - 10/10

MBS (M) - 8/10
CBS (F) - 10/10

Topre - 9/10

I don't like Cherry MX a lot. Blues are by far the best in the series, but their keyfeel is still not great and the sound is absolutely horrible, it's probably the worst-sounding switch I've heard to date. Blacks and reds are stratchy, boring, lifeless, and badly weighted, and overall some of the worst switches I've tried so far. MX brown is just awful in every way, I don't know what they were thinking when they thought this was a "tactile" switch.

Alps are great switches, but marred by a huge weakness - if they're not clean, they feel like crap. The figures I posted are assuming they're spotlessly clean (of course this goes for all entries). Blacks feel rather rough, but at least they have an actual tactile bump, and they're quite versatile. Linear Alps are THE linear switches go get IMO, with perfect weighting and extremely smooth keyfeel. Tactile Alps are possibly my favourite tactile switches. Clicky ones are the best-sounding clicky switches there are IMO.

Buckling springs are fantastic too. Membrane ones (M) are on par with white Alps in my opinion, although they're more robust and less vulnerable to dust. Capacitive ones are pretty much the ultimate typing switch IMO, they feel slightly better than blue Alps, but blue Alps sound better.

Topre is really nice too, I can see why people like these. Smooth, soft keyfeel with a proper, well-rounded tactility, these show that rubber domes can be great if done well. I wish I had a board with these with a normal size layout as unfortunately these tend to come in layouts and form factors that are very useless for me.

[HeeCh2ei]

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

Cherry MX Browns, Reds, Blues, Topre

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

Browns: 2/10
Good, smooth Reds: 6/10
Bad, with spring issues and scratchiness Reds: 1/10
Blues: 8/10
Topre 45g: 8/10

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Browns are ok if you absolutely don't care about the feels and otherwise they are top notch crap
Blues are not have that fall after the tactile bump, which is great, I like how it clicks if the speed of typing is not too high. I would love to try some whites with washed out grease
Reds has some linearity to show how smooth or scratchy they are. I find them great for long typing
Topre is far better tactile switch than brown, but for using them over the month I found that my fingers become too lazy to type on it, it slows ands slows and so on.

[NewbieOneKenobi]

I've tried MX browns, blues and blacks, black Alps, Topre, Buckling Spring and Beam Spring.

All would get a relatively high note, as in not below 5 and perhaps not below 6, and none would get a 10 or perhaps even 9. Beam Spring could perhaps hope for the highest note of all, whatever that'd be. Blues and probably Buckling Spring wouldn't fall below 7 but probably wouldn't climb above it either*. The rest would be too difficult to rate, notably I'd need more experience with blacks, as well as a modern brown TKL to try.

* Buckling Spring probably deserves a higher rating in objective terms than I would assign to my subjective feel of it.

SKCM blue - 10/10

Bought that through Classifieds once, but it was lost in transport.

Browns: 3/10
Greens: 8/10
Clears: 9/10

Do you have particularly strong or heavy hands or is there a different reason you prefer stiffer switches, such as key resistance playing an important role in your typing technique (due to either slow or very fast speed or some other reasons)?

1. Gateron Blues, Browns and Reds
A. Blues: 0, Reds: 2, Browns: 7-8
B. Clicky switches drive me mad. I have no use for the sound, as I have my headphones on, and prefer the music over the noise. So do my colleagues at work, and my wife at home. The sound thus does not buy me anything, and is rather annoying. Reds just felt bad, without any tactile feedback. Browns so far are okay, the noise is well within acceptable levels, I can feel the tactile bump with some fingers, that don't mash the keys to the bottom. I'd prefer something a little heavier, though, but Browns are okay for the time being.

Perhaps something as simple as Cherry blacks? They're just a tiny bit heavier than blues.

[Red October]

Let's start with what's in front of me:
IBM Capacitive Buckling Spring (Model F): 10/10 good feedback, good sound, perfect weighting.
IBM Buckling Spring (Model M): 9/10 slightly heavier than F, sound is different but tactility is the same.
Alps SKCC Green: 7/10 Light and fluffy and ever so slightly tactile (marketed as a linear switch, tactility is strictly from the mechanism itself).  Noisy, the keyboard clatters.  Nice if you like that sort of thing, which I do.
Alps SKCM Green: 7/10 very similar to the above.
Cherry MX Black: 6/10 for modern, 7/10 for "vintage".  Not sure if the simply feel better as they wear in, but they are linear and severely weighted.  Similar in weight to Honeywell Hall Effect switches.

[klennkellon]

IBM Model M Buckling Spring: 8/10 Great for typing, but a little heavy and too tactile/clicky for extended periods of gaming.

MX Blue: 6.7/10 Like really wimpy buckling springs, I enjoy their lightness over the buckling springs and the board I had used a very nice batch that was very consistent and extremely smooth.

Kailh Reds: 4.5/10: They are weighted much better than MX Reds or MX Blacks at 50g, but they are scratchy as hell even after being heavily worn in for nearly half a year and sometimes you can hear the springs creak. They also ping like mad but this didn't effect the score. It's still my preferred gaming board, though.

Linearised Complicated White ALPS 7/10: The slightly shorter travel and smoothness made these very nice for me. I don't care to type on linear switches but I really liked these, plus the sound is delicious.

I'm undecided on Complicated White ALPS because the board I had wasn't in great condition and overall felt like crap, but I have tried a loose NIB Matias Click and was extremely impressed by their smoothness, so I would probably put them between MX Blue and Buckling Springs.

[NewbieOneKenobi]

MX Blue: 6.7/10 Like really wimpy buckling springs, I enjoy their lightness over the buckling springs

There's wisdom in that comment.

[supamesican]

White alps clones, that need some cleaning(fk-2001) 7.9/10
topre switches(hhbk) 8/10
buckling spring(model m) 9/10
model f. easy 11/10, best thing I've ever used.

[Fiery]

Browns: 3/10
Greens: 8/10
Clears: 9/10

Do you have particularly strong or heavy hands or is there a different reason you prefer stiffer switches, such as key resistance playing an important role in your typing technique (due to either slow or very fast speed or some other reasons)?

I might have slightly "strong" or "heavy" hands
but I for the most part just enjoy the heavier experience as I get a more clear feedback
and usually make less mistakes.
I don't type extremely fast anyways (max 60~ wpm) so being able to type with less errors is more beneficial than the occasional burst in speed I theoretically could get from using lighter switches. I also have newer felt much fatigue when using heavier switches so for me using them has little to no downside. I also bottom out less, or at least less harshly. Hope that answers your question

[klennkellon]

OK, I'll list my opinions of some of the more common switches. Not going to do all the ones I've tried so far, that would take way too long xD .

MX blue - 5/10
MX red - 2/10
MX black - 2/10
MX brown - 2/10
MX clear - 4/10

SKCM black - 6/10
SKCL green or linearised other Alps - 8/10
SKCM orange/salmon - 9/10
SKCM white - 8/10
SKCM blue - 10/10

MBS (M) - 8/10
CBS (F) - 10/10

Topre - 9/10

I don't like Cherry MX a lot. Blues are by far the best in the series, but their keyfeel is still not great and the sound is absolutely horrible, it's probably the worst-sounding switch I've heard to date. Blacks and reds are stratchy, boring, lifeless, and badly weighted, and overall some of the worst switches I've tried so far. MX brown is just awful in every way, I don't know what they were thinking when they thought this was a "tactile" switch.

Alps are great switches, but marred by a huge weakness - if they're not clean, they feel like crap. The figures I posted are assuming they're spotlessly clean (of course this goes for all entries). Blacks feel rather rough, but at least they have an actual tactile bump, and they're quite versatile. Linear Alps are THE linear switches go get IMO, with perfect weighting and extremely smooth keyfeel. Tactile Alps are possibly my favourite tactile switches. Clicky ones are the best-sounding clicky switches there are IMO.

Buckling springs are fantastic too. Membrane ones (M) are on par with white Alps in my opinion, although they're more robust and less vulnerable to dust. Capacitive ones are pretty much the ultimate typing switch IMO, they feel slightly better than blue Alps, but blue Alps sound better.

Topre is really nice too, I can see why people like these. Smooth, soft keyfeel with a proper, well-rounded tactility, these show that rubber domes can be great if done well. I wish I had a board with these with a normal size layout as unfortunately these tend to come in layouts and form factors that are very useless for me.

You like MX Blues more than MX Clears? I thought you said MX clears were your favorite Cherry.

[LiquidEvilGaming]

I will in all likelyhood do a full video review of each switch i own in the future at some point with more in depth thoughts on each but this is a basic list at the least

Cherry Switches

Cherry ML 5/10

Felt like a "Laptop mechanical switch" and off center key presses make the keys feel near unusable.  Fairly rough overall and not a switch i like all that much but i have used far worse.

MX Black 7/10

With a higher force required than MX reds typing on these makes avoiding accidental keypresses much easier, however they are fairly scratchy and take quite some time to break in to make any sort of difference.  They also typing on them for long periods can get fairly tiring unless you touch the switch JUST exactly to where it actuates and release.  They require a very specific rhythm and typing method to not get tiring.

MX Red 5/10

While great for gaming being VERY easy to "double tap" given these switches have a VERY low force and no tactility it is easy to make LOTS of typos via accidental key presses unless you have hands and fingers near in size and weight to that of my Guinea pig.  They while less scratchy than the MX Blacks are still IMO noticeably scratchy.  I can't see using these switches for anything but the most twitch based games...typing on them is a virtual nightmare IMO.

MX Blues 7.5/10

A delight for typists with an audible click for tactile feedback and feeling decently smooth as far as Cherry goes it's very easy to get a fast typing rhythm with these switches as you click away.  They can annoy people near by you however and Hysteresis can be a problem in fast twitch like games.  Also it's not uncommon to find some of these switches having lost (or never having come with) a proper click.

MX Clears 8.5/10

Easily my favorite cherry switch they are relatively smooth while providing fantastic tactility much more so than Browns and without the loudness of Blues or Greens.  Paired with some PBT Cherry profile keycaps these are one of my favorite switches to type on.  The only real CON is they can get relatively tiring typing at anything over 80+ WPM for long periods...Though i imagine Ergo clears may solve that to a degree.

MX Browns 7.5/10

I have had varying thoughts on these switches throughout the course of time from love to hatred to..meh they are ok.  These days i don't mind using them when i have to but the ever so slight tactility while preferable to pure Linear is barely noticeable, they can also be fairly scratchy until broken in.  They are fairly quiet however unless you bottom out and provide "just enough" tactility for the very light typist.

MX Whites 2/10

Easily my least favorite Cherry switch...maybe least favorite switch period.  With Wildly inconsistency among switches some click....some do not...some do but it's a muted click..they feel odd to type on at the best of times.  It was a great idea in theory, a heavy MX Green like switch with a softer click not quite so high pitch.  Instead we got a heavy switch with VERY inconsistent clicking and feeling among the switches feeling more like a batch of MX Greens where some are broken and some work.  VERY poor switch all around IMO.

MX Greens 6.5/10

Too heavy for myself personally but if you are a fan of Blues and feel those are too light MX Greens CAN be a typists dream.  They are simply too heavy to be practical for myself however.

Matias Switches

Matias Clicky

8.5/10

These switches have a lovely satisfying sound that makes MX Blues cower in the fetal position when in the same room together.  With a tactile click near the top of the switch these have a very different feel to them than tactile Cherry switches and they are a pure delight to type on feeling quite smooth and easy to get a proper typing Rhythm going.  They are however QUITE loud (Just lower pitch than MX Blues) So while i find them less annoying sound wise they will likely annoy several people near you.   Also for gaming i don't find them ideal personally as double tapping is a chore...but for typing they are quite lovely.

ALPS

Black Alps 6.5/10

While the tactility force level feels quite nice these switches have an almost "sticky" feel to them when trying to get into a fast paced typing motion.  (And i assure you the board i use them on is anything but dirty) for slower WPM typists or slower gameplay these feel fairly nice.  But for Faster typing it almost feels as if i am fighting with the switches a bit and have to be very deliberate with my key presses like someone using a hammer to type with (Even compared to things like MX Greens)  I may actually use Chyros video tutorial and turn the board into a linear one.

Topre

45 G (Case Mounted) 9/10
These switches are smooth as all get out and while not as snappy as 55G Topre do not really get tiring after using them for very extended periods of time.  They have just enough of a tactile bump without being majorly distracting and have a very pleasant typing sound in addition to all of this.  The only real con is they can once you get very used to them become slightly boring since there is not a while lot of variance within the Topre world compared to ALPS or Cherry or anything else really. 

55G (Plate mounted) 8/10

These switches emphasize everything that is Topre between the notable thock and topre snap.  My view on this is very subjective as while I like them as a whole and even though they are only 55G compared to some much stiffer switches I use daily....they do get fairly tiring with extended usage.  When I had my 55G Realforce I found on many occasions my hands tiring out to the point I would have to swap boards...even more so than my much heavier MX Blacks and MX Clears...perhaps it's something to do with the force curve?  But for myself that combined with the case mounting of the HHKB feels overall superior to the plate mounting when it comes to Topre switches while the 55G is still a fantastic option (and maybe superior for some) for myself I prefer the 45G Case mounted HHKB Topre overall, still a very fantastic switch in it's own right however.

Romer-G switches  3/10 (No variants of weighting I am aware of)
These switches ii truly dislike...between the switch itself feeling as though a wet piece of tissue is stuck under the switch...the lack of near any keycap replacement options at all....Truly and honestly just not a fan in any way shape or form, I see little reason for these to even exist in an already crowded market.

Buckling spring (Model M) 8/10

I love the sound and feel of these switches for so many reasons,however i personally tire on them after long term usage and thus could never use them as a daily driver.  Also they are far from ideal for gaming (though usable) but are fantastic for typists with heavy fingers.  But given the heavy weight to them and soso for gaming usage i really have to cap them at an 8.  I do so LOVE to use them on occasion though and would likely do so more often were they not to tire my fingers out so quickly.  Some people are annoyed by the sound but personally i find it borderline therapeutic.

I have not bothered getting into any of the clone brands of Cherry as it would take too long to cover them all so instead I will just make a general statement about each.

Gaterons: Generally smoother than cherry from when I have tried the Blue switches and Black switches.

Outemu: Can be smoother than cherry but at the cost of great inconsistency from switch to switch.  This is VERY noticable on my Magcforce 68 to the point some of the Black switches feel like super blacks.
Kailh: See Outemu, virtually the same opinion on these as Outemu though I will say the clicky tactile switches seem much more pronounced than Cherry

[chyros]

OK, I'll list my opinions of some of the more common switches. Not going to do all the ones I've tried so far, that would take way too long xD .

MX blue - 5/10
MX red - 2/10
MX black - 2/10
MX brown - 2/10
MX clear - 4/10

SKCM black - 6/10
SKCL green or linearised other Alps - 8/10
SKCM orange/salmon - 9/10
SKCM white - 8/10
SKCM blue - 10/10

MBS (M) - 8/10
CBS (F) - 10/10

Topre - 9/10

I don't like Cherry MX a lot. Blues are by far the best in the series, but their keyfeel is still not great and the sound is absolutely horrible, it's probably the worst-sounding switch I've heard to date. Blacks and reds are stratchy, boring, lifeless, and badly weighted, and overall some of the worst switches I've tried so far. MX brown is just awful in every way, I don't know what they were thinking when they thought this was a "tactile" switch.

Alps are great switches, but marred by a huge weakness - if they're not clean, they feel like crap. The figures I posted are assuming they're spotlessly clean (of course this goes for all entries). Blacks feel rather rough, but at least they have an actual tactile bump, and they're quite versatile. Linear Alps are THE linear switches go get IMO, with perfect weighting and extremely smooth keyfeel. Tactile Alps are possibly my favourite tactile switches. Clicky ones are the best-sounding clicky switches there are IMO.

Buckling springs are fantastic too. Membrane ones (M) are on par with white Alps in my opinion, although they're more robust and less vulnerable to dust. Capacitive ones are pretty much the ultimate typing switch IMO, they feel slightly better than blue Alps, but blue Alps sound better.

Topre is really nice too, I can see why people like these. Smooth, soft keyfeel with a proper, well-rounded tactility, these show that rubber domes can be great if done well. I wish I had a board with these with a normal size layout as unfortunately these tend to come in layouts and form factors that are very useless for me.

You like MX Blues more than MX Clears? I thought you said MX clears were your favorite Cherry.

No, they're better than MX brown, but I like MX blue more overall. In the flesh, Clears are not as good as I had hoped.

[Suruga Devil]

Switches Used:
MX Reds (lubed and dry)
MX Greens (lubed and dry)
MX Clears
MX Browns
MX Blues
Topre 45g (HHKB)

Ratings:
MX Reds (dry): 4/10 ...when dry. These things are just too damn scratchy.
MX Reds (lubed): 6/10 Much better than dry, everyone with Reds should really try it out. Still somewhat scratchy, but it's a league better than stock.
MX Greens (dry): 7/10 Quite loud for an MX Switch. Click is very tactile and obvious when depressing the key. If I was a tactile guy I'd use these, but the versatility of linear switches just isn't here. Good for tactile switch.
MX Greens (lubed): 3/10 Don't even try it. Lubing these is a PITA and if you **** it up you WILL lose the defined audible click. Feel pretty bad with lube, since it messes with the consistency of the slider.
MX Clears: 4/10 These would be better if they weren't so inconsistent. Some click, some don't. Good for a tactile/nonclicky switch, but the activation point isn't too well defined by the bump. Comes with the territory.
MX Browns: 1/10 Feel like Reds with a grain of sand stuck in them. Terrible. I'd prefer a stiff rubber dome to these things.
MX Blues: 2/10 No idea why these got so popular. Too soft for a clicky switch, and they feel like they're missing something. Sound weird and feel weirder.
Topre 45g HHBK: 8/10 Really solid switch. Exceptionally smooth, and the collapse of the dome gives a great indication of when you're past the activation point. They sound phenomenal and have great typing feel.

[QuincyJones]

This light switch



Feels great (man), has worked for 20 years, near-silent, and is phalic enough to masturbate over.

[xtrafrood]

Red/blue/BS Model F/BS Model M/Rubber dome with ? slider. I miss the Model F

[pr0ximity]

Membrane bucking spring - 6/10
Capacitive buckling spring - 10/10
Beamspring - 11/10

Topre 55g - 8/10

Modern MX Red - 4/10
Modern MX Blue - 5/10
Modern MX Brown - 2/10
Modern MX Clear - 7/10

Gateron Black - 8/10
Vintage MX Black - 10/10
Hall Effect - 7/10
ALPs SKCL Green - 10/10

Note: Hall Effect seem very dependent on condition and lubrication. Low marks because off-axis keypresses are brutally unpleasant on my sample.

Mounting of switches is a *massive* factor for me, so my ranking is very biased because of that (for example, the difference between Gateron and Vintage MX Black is probably closer, but the boards I've tried them in have been vastly different qualities).

[mike52787]

BS (f):10/10
BS (m) 8/10
BS (m2) 8/10
Alps SKCL Green: 8/10
Alps SKCL Green modded with skcm white click leaf and top housing: 9/10
Alps SKCM White: 7/10
Alps SKCM Orange: 7/10
Cherry MX Black (vintage if it means anything): 4/10
Cherry MX Red: 2/10 fcking terrible
NMB Dome with slider (dell quietkey) 6/10
Fujitsu Peerless: 4/10
BTC Foam and Foil: 0/10 fcking terrible
Scissor Switches (Lenovo Thinkpad X230 Keyboard): 5/10
Dell rubber dome board: 0/10
Dirty Alps SKCM White: 0/10 completely unusable
SMK Monterey Blue: 8/10
Razer switches (kailh blue): 5/10 (The only experience I have had with these is opening a blackwidow ultimate box at walmart and typing a little bit on the board. I would personally never buy a razer board. Too gamery for me.)

Probably forgot a few, but this is what I can remember.

[emdude]

Membrane Buckling Spring - 8/10
Beam Spring - 10/10

Alps SKCM Blue - 9/10
Alps SKCM Amber - 7/10
Alps SKCM Brown - 9/10
Alps SKCM Orange - 8/10
Alps SKCM Salmon - 8/10
Alps SKCM White Damped - 6/10

Cherry MX Blue - 5/10 (Reallllly dislike these)

Rubber Dome (Logitech K120) - 4/10
NMB Rubber Dome w/ Slider - 5/10

Have not gotten around to trying a Capacitive Buckling Spring and will funnily enough be trying a Beam Spring first, in a few weeks.  Generally prefer clicky switches, aside from MX Blues, which I find to have an annoying click.  Thought I wasn't much of a tactile switch person until I tried those in the SKCM series.  Would definitely want to try SKCM Browns or something at some point.

EDIT: Added SKCM Brown and Beam Spring

[pr0ximity]

Membrane Buckling Spring - 8/10
Beam Spring - ??/10 (Just got my hands on some IBM 3277 boards that I will be trying out in a few weeks)

Alps SKCM Blue - 9/10
Alps SKCM Amber - 7/10
Alps SKCM Orange - 8/10
Alps SKCM Salmon - 8/10
Alps SKCM White Damped - 6/10

Cherry MX Blue - 5/10 (Reallllly dislike these)

Rubber Dome (Logitech K120) - 4/10
NMB Rubber Dome w/ Slider - 5/10

Have not gotten around to trying a Capacitive Buckling Spring and will funnily enough be trying a Beam Spring first, in a few weeks.  Generally prefer clicky switches, aside from MX Blues, which I find to have an annoying click.  Thought I wasn't much of a tactile switch person until I tried those in the SKCM series.  Would definitely want to try SKCM Browns or something at some point.

So jealous of those 3277 terminals

[Floody]

This light switch

Show Image

Feels great (man), has worked for 20 years, near-silent, and is phalic enough to masturbate over.

Do you like the bottoming out?

[BucklingSpring]

You scored them pretty much all high. You are now officially a switch lover. :-)

I will in all likelyhood do a full video review of each switch i own in the future at some point with more in depth thoughts on each but this is a basic list at the least

[jackstar7]

Topre 30g: 9
Topre 45g: 7
MX Blue: 7
MX Brown: 6

[jacobolus]

Cherry switches: 3.5
Topre: 4
bubble wrap: 10.3

[katushkin]

Cherry MY - 5
Cherry MX Blue - 6
Cherry MX Blue (Vintage from Dolch PAC 1800) - 7
Cherry MX Brown - 6
Cherry MX Green - 7
Cherry MX Grey (Tactile) - 4
Cherry MX White (Clicky tactile) - 7
Cherry MX Clears - 8
Cherry MX Clears ("Vintage") - 9
Ergo Clears - 9.5
Zealios - 9.5
Cherry MX Black - 4
Kailh Browns - 6
Kailh Blues - 7

I'm a big tactile fan, and without going into too much detail, I really rate Kailh switches. I would give Zealios and Ergo Clears 10s but I've not really typed on them for that long a time to rate them as the perfect switch in my eyes.

I've not typed on Topre or any linear MX switches or Gaterons to have any opinion about them.

[exitfire401]

Alps SKCM Blue: 10/10
55g Topre: 9.9/10
Alps SKCM Green: 9.8/10
MX Ergoclear 62g: 9.7/10
MX Clear Stock: 9.5/10
Buckling Spring: 9.4/10
Gateron Clear/Blue: 9.2/10
MX Black: 9/10
MX Blue: 8.8/10
45g Topre 8/10
Orange/Cream/White Alps: 7/10
MX Brown/Red: 5/10
Mx Green: 3/10
Greetech Brown: 2/10 ...really didn't think it was possible to make me hate the MX brown feeling anymore, greetech accomplished that without holding back

[Otesanek]

In order from when I tried each switch chronologically-

Cherry Brown: 3.5
Cherry Black: 5.5
45g Topre: 9
55g Topre: 8.5
Buckling Spring: 8
Cherry Blue: 7
Vintage Cherry Black: 6 (nice, but I think I might be too used to tactile switches)

[demik]

brown = 0/10, felt like ****
black = 0/10, linears are boring as ****
red = 0/10, see black
blues = 7/10, love clicky but too light
green = 7.5/10, love clicky little heavier than blues but could be heavier
whites = i just dont like cherry.
BS = 1/10, love the weight. the board sounds like ****.
hhkb 45g = 8/10, awesome switch. not a huge fan of case mounted topre tho
rf 45g = 7/10, too light for me. can't rest fingers on keyboard without activating a switch
rf 55g = 10.5/10, god tier switch. this is what all topre should feel like. buttery smooth and the right weight. shame you can't duplicated it on HHKB or else it would make the hhkb 110/10.

i tried a single zealio today. love the color purple. switch wasn't too bad. but i don't think it's worth the price.

also one of my hhkbs was modded with lube and dental bands. it was weird at first. travel was too short and it was TOO quiet.  but i can get used to it. i'd give that 7.5/10. i still think stock is best.

[jcoffin1981]

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

MX: Browns, Greens, Clears.
Rubber: K120, two roccat ones.

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

Browns: 3/10
Greens: 8/10
Clears: 9/10
K120: 7/10
Roccat rubber domes: 2/10

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Browns are too light, scatchy, and lack any real tactile feedback.
Greens are too loud for me, but I love the feel.
Clears are almost perfect, just a tiny bit too heavy, like only just.
K120 for a rubber dome keyboard it's great, especially compared to some of the more pricey gamer ones I have tried.
Roccat rubber domes both were quite bad, but the one my brother had was the worst I have ever used, literally either no resistance or too much, mushy, the led's made a buzzing noise, just awful. And for the price both were bad and the k120 is way better. The reason I said Roccat rubber domes is simply as I can't remember the name of them.

on a different note I really want to try zealios. And I'm getting a planck with matias quiets.

Now for me what is most important is  not bottoming out.  I also don't like a heavy switch which if you are typing for a few hours at a time writing papers and such, your fingers will fatigue.  Gateron browns used to be my favorite, but I found that as soon as I broke past the point of greatest resistance, it was difficult not to bottom out on the keystroke.  Cherry browns have more initial resistance which I don't like, but  it is very easy to stop as soon as the keystroke has engaged.  I really wish I had more experience with Cherry reds.  They are very light, but I can't tell bottoming out would be an issue.  Plus, I have only tried them on those little switch testers, and they felt very, very scratchy.  Many complain that Cherry browns have virtually no tactile feedback, but I find it's  just right to not bottom out.  As soon as you break through the point of greatest resistance, there is a bit of a cushion which absorbs the pressure you are applying.  This is all highly subjective and no two people will agree on the same points.  This is why cherry clears are popular, for the same reason...  it's just a stiffer switch.

[Fiery]

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

MX: Browns, Greens, Clears.
Rubber: K120, two roccat ones.

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

Browns: 3/10
Greens: 8/10
Clears: 9/10
K120: 7/10
Roccat rubber domes: 2/10

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Browns are too light, scatchy, and lack any real tactile feedback.
Greens are too loud for me, but I love the feel.
Clears are almost perfect, just a tiny bit too heavy, like only just.
K120 for a rubber dome keyboard it's great, especially compared to some of the more pricey gamer ones I have tried.
Roccat rubber domes both were quite bad, but the one my brother had was the worst I have ever used, literally either no resistance or too much, mushy, the led's made a buzzing noise, just awful. And for the price both were bad and the k120 is way better. The reason I said Roccat rubber domes is simply as I can't remember the name of them.

on a different note I really want to try zealios. And I'm getting a planck with matias quiets.

Now for me what is most important is  not bottoming out.  I also don't like a heavy switch which if you are typing for a few hours at a time writing papers and such, your fingers will fatigue.  Gateron browns used to be my favorite, but I found that as soon as I broke past the point of greatest resistance, it was difficult not to bottom out on the keystroke.  Cherry browns have more initial resistance which I don't like, but  it is very easy to stop as soon as the keystroke has engaged.  I really wish I had more experience with Cherry reds.  They are very light, but I can't tell bottoming out would be an issue.  Plus, I have only tried them on those little switch testers, and they felt very, very scratchy.  Many complain that Cherry browns have virtually no tactile feedback, but I find it's  just right to not bottom out.  As soon as you break through the point of greatest resistance, there is a bit of a cushion which absorbs the pressure you are applying.  This is all highly subjective and no two people will agree on the same points.  This is why cherry clears are popular, for the same reason...  it's just a stiffer switch.

I bottom out almost always, but when I use clears a almost don't and if I do it's pretty lightly. this allows for more comfort when typing as opposed to the harsh bottoming out I end up with on switches like browns. I responded to another guy on why I prefer the heavier switches. And I agree that it's very subjective. Also I always take regular breaks and don't type for hours on end so I never feel fatigued from using heavier switches.

[beehatch]

Cherry MX Black – 9/10
Cherry MX Black (Vintage) – 10/10
Cherry MX Blue – 4/10
Cherry MX Brown – 1/10
Cherry MX Red – 7/10
Cherry MX Green – 5/10
Cherry MX Clears – 1/10
Gateron Blacks – 9/10
Zealios – 3/10
Buckling Spring – 8/10
Alps White – 7/10
Alps Blue – 10/10
Alps Cream – 0/10
Alps Click modded Cream – 5/10
Alps Orange – 2/10
Alps Click modded Orange – 6/10
Topre RF 45g – 7/10
Topre RF 55g – 1/10
Topre RF 55g (lubed, silenced) – 0/10
Topre 45g (HHKB lubed, dental band) – 10/10
Topre 45g (HHKB lubed) – 9/10
Topre 45g (HHKB Type S, stock) – 7/10
Topre 45g (HHKB Type S, dental band,lubed) – 10/10

[nmur]

only going rate switches for which i have owned a board with, or used for a decent while

cherry mx browns: 3 - first switch. may as well be a linear switch because that bump is tiny. lots of friction when new
cherry mx blues: 6 - feel pretty great. way too loud though, and caused double tap issues while gaming
cherry mx reds: 6 - **** for typing, great for gaming
cherry mx blacks: 4 - see above, but more dislike because of high weight
cherry mx clears: 5 - can actually feel the bump. too heavy and scratchy for me
cherry mx ergo clears: 8 - great bump, great weight, smooth typing
gateron clears (35g): 7 - only tolerable for very light typists. decent for gaming
buckling spring: 2 - tremendously heavy for me
topre 45g: 7 - nice weight, nasty upstroke plastic slapping sound
topre 45g silenced: 8.5 - even better weight, much better sound
topre 45g lubed + silenced: 10 - my perfect switch. buttery smooth, initial resistance reduced just enough for me. only remaining sound is a smooth, soft resonance as i type. love both HHKB mount and RF mount.
topre 55g: 5 - really stiff and poppy

[klennkellon]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

[chyros]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

I'd love one! I've tried Topre but they wouldn't donate one to me for a review, sadly ) .

[kekman]

BS: 8
Topre: 8
MX: 3-6
Gaterons: 5-9
Zealios: 7
Hi-tek: 7
Keytronic rubber dome: 5
NMB slider over dome: 2

[LiquidEvilGaming]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

I'd love one! I've tried Topre but they wouldn't donate one to me for a review, sadly ) .

As it comes to mind i don't think iv'e ever really seen Topre directly give out a board for review not even to some of the largest Youtubers around.  The very small few i have seen given out to review were generally sent via a third party like NCIX or etc.

[dgneo]

55g Topre (87U) - 10/10
45g Topre (HHKB) 9.5/10
Ergo Clears - 8/10
Buckling Spring - 7/10
MX Reds - 5/10
MX Blacks - 4/10
MX Blues - 3/10

[LiquidEvilGaming]

You scored them pretty much all high. You are now officially a switch lover. :-)

I will in all likelyhood do a full video review of each switch i own in the future at some point with more in depth thoughts on each but this is a basic list at the least

Yet another reason i will do videos of each in the future, while i can give simple numeric scores here i can't get full into detail of my subjective thoughts versus general thoughts and comparisons to other switches etc etc...or i would need to write up like 10 pages per switch

[Phenix]

Really looking into some nice videos with comparisons

[chyros]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

I'd love one! I've tried Topre but they wouldn't donate one to me for a review, sadly ) .

As it comes to mind i don't think iv'e ever really seen Topre directly give out a board for review not even to some of the largest Youtubers around.  The very small few i have seen given out to review were generally sent via a third party like NCIX or etc.

Tsk, tsk, tsk! They need to reprioritse!

[shortround]

Cherry Mx black:  2/10 (Terrible, I always felt like the key wasn't going to pop back up).
Cherry Mx blue:  7/10 (Always felt just a little too light).
Cherry Mx brown:  7/10 (Pretty good, but wanted a little more tactile bump).
Cherry Mx clear:  8/10 (Felt nice but a bit fatiguing though).
Membrane:  5/10 (I feel completely neutral on these, so long as the caps have decent shape to them).
Scissor switches:  1/10 (I associate these with flat chiclets keys that have no feel, terrible).
Buckling spring:  9/10 (If memory serves, it's been years since I've used one, but the feel was always good).
Topre:  9/10 (A satisfying pop with each press, and little noise to go with it, my current favorite).

I would like to try Zealio switches at some point. 

[xtrafrood]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

I'd love one! I've tried Topre but they wouldn't donate one to me for a review, sadly ) .

As it comes to mind i don't think iv'e ever really seen Topre directly give out a board for review not even to some of the largest Youtubers around.  The very small few i have seen given out to review were generally sent via a third party like NCIX or etc.

Tsk, tsk, tsk! They need to reprioritse!

I've seen the Novatouch in a few reviews; surely CM would say yes to some extra cheap marketing

My original verdict still stands. Model F is No.1 (until TIL RF/HHKB2?)

[zombiegristle]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

[kenmai9]

Topre: 8/10 - I enjoy typing on Topre. Very tactle and satisfying feeling. Unfortunately I have the variable weight Realforce. I'd like to try the 45g or 55g, or the HHKB.
MX Brown: 4/10 - Really scratchy, not a nice tactile feeling. Do not like.
MX Ergo Clear: 8.5/10 - Really like these. I use 62g springs with some lube. I love typing on this keyboard. I like it a little bit more than my Topre.
MX Red: 6/10 - Not bad. They were a tad too soft to my liking.
MX Black: 7/10 - I like. Still like the tactile feeling better than the linears. But not bad.
MX Blue: 5/10 - Gross.

[chyros]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

Sounds like you should give the Model M a try, I think it'd be right up your street .

[klennkellon]

Are the Topre's on the NovaTouch really much worse than on a Realforce? They're both plate mounted Topre so I would assume they feel similar.

[Phenix]

Model M - or F, clickyer.

I compared novatouch lubed/silenced with hhkb/realforce at an meeting not long ago, for me it was way nicer, less rattle

[zombiegristle]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

Sounds like you should give the Model M a try, I think it'd be right up your street .

Yeah, I've been wanting to try buckling-spring for a while now. I may order a Unicomp in the next week or two as a birthday present to myself, but I need to do some reading on Model F/M variants and figure out what I'm doing.

[chyros]

Chryos, if you ever get a Type Heaven it might be up your alley. Full sized and $100 less than the hhkb.

I'd love one! I've tried Topre but they wouldn't donate one to me for a review, sadly ) .

As it comes to mind i don't think iv'e ever really seen Topre directly give out a board for review not even to some of the largest Youtubers around.  The very small few i have seen given out to review were generally sent via a third party like NCIX or etc.

Tsk, tsk, tsk! They need to reprioritse!

I've seen the Novatouch in a few reviews; surely CM would say yes to some extra cheap marketing

My original verdict still stands. Model F is No.1 (until TIL RF/HHKB2?)

Good point, I'll ask them .

[klennkellon]

Oh yes Chryos, a review of the NovaTouch would be amazing from you 

[HeeCh2ei]

Are the Topre's on the NovaTouch really much worse than on a Realforce? They're both plate mounted Topre so I would assume they feel similar.

All difference between them is in the sliders. The conspiracy of Topre did not let the Cooler Master to make the slider stems as good as in the other Topre boards, so NT sound different on the upstroke.

[pab]

1.  Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

MX Brown, MX Clear, MX Green, Topre 45g, Topre 55g, Alps SKCM Cream Damped

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

• Topre 55g: 8
• Topre 45g: 6
• MX Green: 5
• Alps SKCM Cream Damped: 5
• MX Brown: 3
• MX Clear: 2

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Topre 55g: The 55g switch definitely hits the "goldilocks" weight for me (not too heavy that it fatigues my arms, but not soft enough so that the weight of my fingers actuate the switch). The tactility of the switch is quite pleasurable too; the most of the 55g is just required to make the dome collapse, but then the switch falls to the bottom without further force.

Topre 45g: A pleasant switch with all the same characteristics as above, but ultimately too light which has the unfortunate side effect of making the switch feel cheap at times, not to mention all the accidental keypresses.

MX Green: This switches very heavy actuation of 80g only allows me to use it in short bursts (1-2h), but it's one of the funnest switches to type on. It's loud, so it's obvious when you actuate it, and the click is very satisfying.

Alps SKCM Cream Damped: In some ways this switch feels like a damped, tactile version of MX Green (it has a heavy actuation force of 70g), but the actuation point is much closer to the top, which kind of makes it Topre-esque. Typing on this switch all day is a chore, I just wish it was a bit lighter.

MX Brown: Oh the gross, scratchy MX Brown. It's far too light (tons of accidental keypresses) and the switch is not pleasurable. The tactile bump is close to nonexistent.

MX Clear: The other side of the gross, scratchy MX tactile coin. Where the MX Brown is too light the MX Clear is too heavy, and where the MX Brown's tactile bump is nonexistent the MX Clear is overly dramatic. I've rated this one point below the MX Brown because there's nothing I loathe more than the MX Clear's rise in force after actuation.

[shortround]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

Can you tell me what you mean by "flat keyboard?"

[xtrafrood]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

Can you tell me what you mean by "flat keyboard?"

I think he or she meant that they prefer Gateron Blues in keyboards like the Kinesis Advantage? That one has a curved key well afaik

[zombiegristle]

I prefer "clicky" switches because I'm a writer not a coder/gamer, and I find linear switches introduce far too many errors and tactile "non-clicky" switches feel "mushy" to me while audible switches are more "crisp". I also don't have to worry about annoying others with the noise.

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, I don't care for linear but I like the heavier resistance in these. I use them for macro keypads, not typing.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, feels pleasantly crisp but light enough that I accidentally actuate them when resting my fingers.
Cherry MX Brown: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush, absolutely hate them.
Cherry MX Green: 8/10, was my favorite for a long time until I discovered Gateron. Fixes the actuation issue of Blues.
Cherry MX Red: 3/10, lighter than Blacks makes these useless to me. Also a little gritty.
Gateron Blue: 8/10, still too light for a flat keyboard, but in curved keywells they work perfectly. Slightly smoother feel than Cherry.
Gateron Green: 9/10, the closest thing to perfection I've tried yet. Heavy, clicky, smooth. These will be in my next flat keyboard.
Rubber-dome: 1/10, feels like nondescript mush.
Scissor-switch (SP4 type cover): 6/10, has a nice crisp feel but not enough travel for my typing style.

Can you tell me what you mean by "flat keyboard?"

I think he or she meant that they prefer Gateron Blues in keyboards like the Kinesis Advantage? That one has a curved key well afaik

Yes, exactly. On normal keyboards I tend to briefly rest my fingers on top of the keys sometimes, and blue switches are light enough that this can cause accidental actuation. In the Kinesis, the curved keywells avoid that problem and as a result the blue switches are more agreeable.

[Waateva]

Cherry Browns - 3/10
Cherry Blues - 4/10
Cherry Clears - 7/10
Cherry Greens - 8/10
Cherry Reds - 1/10
Zealios 78g - 8/10
Gateron Greens - 8/10

Alps SKCM Black - 4/10

Topre 45g - 6/10

[LiquidEvilGaming]

Cherry Browns - 3/10
Cherry Blues - 4/10
Cherry Clears - 7/10
Cherry Greens - 8/10
Cherry Reds - 1/10
Zealios 78g - 8/10
Gateron Greens - 8/10

Alps SKCM Black - 4/10

Topre 45g - 6/10

Have to ask since i noticed you rated Cherry and Gateron Greens exactly the same,does that mean you don't find Gaterons any smoother than Cherry personally?

[appleonama]

Cherry Blue - 6/10
Cherry Black - 8/10
Cherry Browns - 5/10
Cherry Clears - 7/10
Cherry Greens - 3/10
Cherry Reds - 1/10
Cherry Grays - 6/10
Cherry Ergo clears 62g - 8.5/10
Cherry Ergo Clears 62g lubed - 9/10
Cherry Ergo Grays 62g lubed - 9/20

Gateron Blacks - 8/10
Gateron Browns -3/10
Geteron Ergo Blacks 62g lubed - 9/10


Vintage Cherry Clears - 2/10
Vintage Cherry Browns - 9/10


type-s topre - 10/10
HHKB topre - 8/10
rf55g topre - 9/10
rf45g topre - 8.5/10
fc660c topre - 8.5/10
novatouch topre - .5/10

alps whichever I tried - 0/10

Buckling ssk - 9.5/10

[klennkellon]

I have to agree with Chryos, I think Alps are the best sounding switches. They give such a nice thick n' full thock, even on linears. I prefer the sound over my Model M sometimes.

[Waateva]

Cherry Browns - 3/10
Cherry Blues - 4/10
Cherry Clears - 7/10
Cherry Greens - 8/10
Cherry Reds - 1/10
Zealios 78g - 8/10
Gateron Greens - 8/10

Alps SKCM Black - 4/10

Topre 45g - 6/10

Have to ask since i noticed you rated Cherry and Gateron Greens exactly the same,does that mean you don't find Gaterons any smoother than Cherry personally?

No, they are smoother but I prefer the sound of Cherry Greens, so they cancel out

[Suruga Devil]

Any more people who've tried Hall Effect Switches want to post a review of them? I'm immensely curious.

[klennkellon]

Any more people who've tried Hall Effect Switches want to post a review of them? I'm immensely curious.

chyros has 2

[chyros]

Any more people who've tried Hall Effect Switches want to post a review of them? I'm immensely curious.

chyros has 2

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=37tdDoC7rGA

[asgeirtj]

1. MX blue/black/red/clear/brown/ergo clear, Topre 45g, Zealios 62-65-67g
MX black 3/10
MX red 4/10
Mx blue 5/10
mx brown 6/10
mx clear 4/10
mx ergo clear 8/10
topre 45 g 2/10
zealios 62g 10/10 (for games which require spamming (starcraft 2))
zealios 65g 10/10 (for typing)
zealios 67 9/10

not really interested in trying other switches, from what I gather they wouldn't be my cup of tea

[Wazazaby]

MX Greens : 7/10, too heavy for me.
MX Blues : 8/10, good weight but not that smooth.
MX Clears : 6/10, not smooth at all and too heavy.
Topre (Novatouch) : 7/10 super cool to type on, but I dont like the sound.
Gateron Clears : 4/10, way too light but super smooth!
MX Reds, 7/10, linear smooth, nothing fancy.
Gateron Greens with lighter springs : 9/10, I like clicky switchs and this is the best I had so far, feels smooth and doesn't make that much noise.

[klennkellon]

I'd like to change this up a bit, what about if we rate the switches based on what we're using it for? My opinion below is an example.

Model M Buckling Springs for typing: 9/10
Model M Buckling Springs for gaming: 4/10

MX Blues for typing: 6/10
MX Blues for gaming: 5/10

Kailh Reds for typing: 4.5/10
Kailh Reds for gaming: 7/10

SKCM White ALPS for typing: 7/10
SKCM White ALPS for gaming: 4.5/10

Matias Quiet Click for typing: 6.2/10
Matias Quiet Click for gaming: 6/10

[LiquidEvilGaming]

I'd like to change this up a bit, what about if we rate the switches based on what we're using it for? My opinion below is an example.

Model M Buckling Springs for typing: 9/10
Model M Buckling Springs for gaming: 4/10

MX Blues for typing: 6/10
MX Blues for gaming: 5/10

Kailh Reds for typing: 4.5/10
Kailh Reds for gaming: 7/10

SKCM White ALPS for typing: 7/10
SKCM White ALPS for gaming: 4.5/10

Matias Quiet Click for typing: 6.2/10
Matias Quiet Click for gaming: 6/10

I sort of bear that in mind when rating them myself and my overall is a balance between the two.  Actually in my latest switch review video i listed both desperately than an overall at the end so it may make sense to do the same for this thread.

[Hypersphere]

IBM capacitive buckling spring (Model F) = 10.
Topre 55g silenced and lubed = 9
Topre 45g silenced and lubed = 8
IBM membrane buckling spring (Model M) = 7
Blue Alps = 6
White Alps = 5
Brown Alps = 4
Matias Click = 3
Matias Quiet = 2
Hi-Tek Space Invader = 1
Cherry mx and clones = 0

The features I value in a keyboard switch include excellent tactile or tactile + auditory feedback that coincides with actuation.

[drsauced]

MX Brown: 8/10 - my favourite, light and snappy with PBT caps
MX Clear: 6/10 - crisper, but just too heavy for long term use
MX Blue: 2/10 - just not my thing, sometimes gloriously fun, but mostly not
MX Black: 6/10 - I do type better, but tiring
MX Vintage Black: 8/10 - buttery smooth, and slightly less tiring

'89 Model M - 6/10 - well used, but still very crispy
'93 Model M - 7/10 - NIB, brutally stiff and crispy

Topre 45g - 9/10 - the best damn rubber dome I've ever typed on

Dell L100 - 3/10 - had lots of these rubbers at work, not bad. High resistance at the top, then sudden give to the bottom
Logitech K120 - 3/10 - replacement for above, more consistent key weight, and the keys don't wobble

Apple Keyboard with Numpad - 3/10 - surprisingly good to type on, but then you realize you're typing on form over function
IBM T60 Scissor - 5/10 - thunk chunky, sometimes aggravating, but overall really good

That's all I've got so far. I'm looking forward to trying some newer switches, like Gaterons and Zealios.

[klennkellon]

Are the Topre's on the NovaTouch really much worse than on a Realforce? They're both plate mounted Topre so I would assume they feel similar.

All difference between them is in the sliders. The conspiracy of Topre did not let the Cooler Master to make the slider stems as good as in the other Topre boards, so NT sound different on the upstroke.

Is the feel different too or is it just the sound?

[kekman]

Are the Topre's on the NovaTouch really much worse than on a Realforce? They're both plate mounted Topre so I would assume they feel similar.

All difference between them is in the sliders. The conspiracy of Topre did not let the Cooler Master to make the slider stems as good as in the other Topre boards, so NT sound different on the upstroke.

Is the feel different too or is it just the sound?

feels quite different. much more rattly, and more key wobble so not as solid as other topre imo

[lancre]

Alps SKCM Black (Dell AT102W) 6
Cherry MX Blue (QPad) 5
Cherry MX Red (Leopold 750) 4
Topre (Novatouch) 7
Rubber dome (HP office nonsense) 1
Topre (Realforce variable) 8

[Moistgun]

Gat Brown 6/10
Gateron linear Clear 6/10
Cherry Blue 5/10
Cherry Green 7/10
Cherry vintage black 8.5/10

45g topre 8/10
Lubed silenced 45g topre 9/10

Model M 7.5/10

Dampened Creams 6/10
Click modded Creams 8/10

[Nafs_asp]

Switches I've tried (owned on a board for more than a week):

Cherry MX: Brown, Blue, Clear (stock).

Zealio: 67g, 78g

Ratings:
MX Brown: 4/10 - Springs are too light and not enough tactile feedback.
MX Blue: 5/10 - Better weighting on the springs than Brown but I'm not a fan of the audible click.
MX Clear: 9/10 - Stock Clears are my favorite switch so far. I find the weight to be ideal for me once they've broken in a little bit. If I changed weight for the spring it would probably be close to stock weight anyway, and at that point I don't see the need to do so. At some point I'd like to try ergo (or semi-ergo, lubed only) Clears. However, I don't mind the "scratchiness" of the stems that some people complain about, so I don't think lubed Clears would change my score by much.
67g Zealios: Tentative 7.5/10 - I like them so far, but find that I prefer MX Clears. I've only used these with SA keycaps, so I will need to test them with some other keycaps before giving a final score.
78g Zealios: Tentative 7.4/10 - These feel fairly close to the 67g's to me, but I ended up prefering the 67g's by a hair.

I've also tried most other Cherry switches with a switch tested, though this doesn't really give a full sense of how the switch would feel to type on, so I wont give a number score, but I'll give some general notes:

Linear switches: Out of Red, Black and Linear Grey, Black felt the nicest to me. Red was way too light, Grey was way too stiff, to the point where I'd say Linear Grey are probably unusable unless you have pretty large/heavy hands (for reference I'm 6' and wear a large size glove, but have narrow fingers).

Clicky: I think there should be something in between Blue and Green/White.

[klennkellon]

Glass Keyboard -8/10 would rather type on a keyboard which has used heroin needles as keycaps.

[xtrafrood]

Glass Keyboard -8/10 would rather type on a keyboard which has used heroin needles as keycaps.

Like this one? They're so strange looking; plus it seems like they would bounce as you type. I don't know how I would feel about a keyboard trampoline.

[Moistgun]

Glass Keyboard -8/10 would rather type on a keyboard which has used heroin needles as keycaps.

Think about what you just said.  I would definitely rather use a glass keyboard for the rest of my life.

Sent from my local payphone

[Zar7]

CHERRY MX

MX Red 10/10

My personal favorite. Buttery smooth travel, and light to the touch. Gaming and typing are very efficient and enjoyable with these.
Takes a highly skilled typist to use this effectively. Sound signature is crisp and relatively quiet compared to others.
Top typing speed using this: 133WPM

MX Brown 8/10

My second favorite switch. Subtle touch of a tactile bump makes typing an enjoyable experience. Despite how it can easily adapt in a typing/gaming
environment, they feel sandy compared to the smooth Reds.
Top typing speed using this: 122WPM

MX Blue 6/10

Awesome switch for typing. Personally, I do not mind gaming with this, but others are easily annoyed by the click. In time, I began
to dislike the click sound as well. Currently, I do not have any MX Blue boards any more (all three has been sold).
Top typing speed using this: 127WPM

MX Black 3/10

Higher force, and it feels like your fingers are doing an intense workout. That is not the main issue. The main issue is they are super scratchy.
Top typing speed using this: 95WPM

MX Clears 3/10

Heavier than MX Browns. Feels good to type but for gaming it tires my fingers easily. Also did not like the sound very much.
Top typing speed using this: 121WPM

GATERONS

Gateron Red 5/10

Super smooth (even smoother than MX Reds). However, they lack the crisp and solid feel associated with Cherry MX Reds. A bit inconsistent too. 
Top typing speed using this: 98WPM

Gateron Clear 6/10

Super smooth and very light actuation. However, it is a tad bit too light for typing. Gaming on these feels like you have an accelerated motor in each
of your fingers.
Top typing speed using this: 101WPM

KAILH

Kailh Red 7/10

Quite smooth travel and is slightly heavier than MX Reds. Sometimes suffers from inconsistency, but apart from that, brilliant for gaming and typing.
Top typing speed using this: 124WPM

Kailh Brown 4/10

Feels sluggish and tactile bump feels weird.
Top typing speed using this: 94WPM

TOPRE

45g Topre 10/10

Pure goodness. Elegant feels. Just the right amount of smoothness and tactility.

55g Topre 8/10

Still great. Just a bit heavier.

[zombiegristle]

Recently compared Gateron Blue vs. Gateron Green and Outemu Blue;

Gateron Blue - 8/10 pleasant feel but too light
Gateron Green - 9/10 Good weight but the click loses crispness
Outemu Blue - 9/10 Weight is similar to Gateron Blue, maybe a little heavier but definitely lighter than Gateron Green; has the most pleasant crisp/firm click of the three

I'm leaving the original Outemu Blues in my Teamwolf keyboard for now, and keeping the Gaterons to find a use later. I may do a heavier spring swap to the Outemus at some point when I have some time.

[lee+]

Not knowing what everyone compares the switches they have tried with and knowing nothing about the keyboards the switches were in when giving them a rating, I'm not so sure how useful the ratings are.

BTW, does someone feel like entering the ratings into a database so that a report could be created?

[chyros]

Not knowing what everyone compares the switches they have tried with and knowing nothing about the keyboards the switches were in when giving them a rating, I'm not so sure how useful the ratings are.

BTW, does someone feel like entering the ratings into a database so that a report could be created?

Precisely because of your first point I'd say the latter is pretty useless . A crappy switch might seem really nice to someone who hasn't tried any of the alternatives .

[lee+]

I was assuming that information about the switches are compared with and which keyboards were used would be entered as well ...

[LiquidEvilGaming]

Given people are listing what switches they have used enough to form an opinion of everyone can see each users overall experience which can explain quite a bit. 

[dante]

Too many switches [I've tried] to list so I'll stick to my top 2:

1. Various Rubberdome/chiclet/scissor switches from various keyboards.  I know I know "burn the heretic!"  Sorry... I'm currently typing on a HP KU-0901 tenkeyless that I've used for the longest out of all keyboard 'switch' types combined.  Sifo's appreciation of the DT35 will make me try one should a TKL variant become available.  BTW Topre does not feel like rubberdomes: They feel worse.  10/10.

2. SMK Monterey White.  When I first tried these I swore it was the highest quality rubberdome I've ever felt - but no they are mechanical;  completely underrated and under appreciated.  Once BlueNalgene's SMK compatible board is complete I shall decorate them with this switch. 12/10.

The only future switches I have on my radar are 35g PLUM, silent Gaterons, low profile Kailh.

[Phenix]

Here are my ratings (so far)
IBM M 7/10 feels nice, sounds nice.
IBM F 9/10 - really nice clicking, feels great. Annoys anyone besides me.

Novatouch dental band+lubed 9/10 very quiet, but also nice sound.

mx red 3/10 way too light for me, always bottom out
mx black 5/10 better weighted, ok
mx clear 4/10 too stiff
mx brown 8/10 (nearly vintage ones) never bottomed out, so far quiet nice

[Moufinure]

Cherry MX Black: 8/10, my first mech switch, and I liked it. It reminds me of this: http://www.20th.ch/SMT_Goupil_G3_1983.jpg a french-made computer which keyboard had MX Blacks.
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, not bad but I can't bring them at work, my co-workers would kill me!
Cherry MX Brown: 8/10 I like the tactile bump and I can actually bring them at work without having my colleagues hate me (well, not really) :-)
Cherry MX Red: 6/10 light and easy switch, good!

Unicomp Buckling Spring: 7/10
Topre RF 105U: 4/10, What the ...! It feels exactly like a rubber dome! Can't stand it, despite the fact that I liked it a bit more than before.
Matias Click: 8/10 Actually one of my favorites, which I'm using right now!

[clankgy1]

Topre:
45g HHKB: 9/10.  Love this keyboard
Novatouch: 7/10.  Stems make this not as good.  Might be better if I had it silenced by somebody.

Razer BW Green: 5/10.  Not a fan of the clicky, too soft.

MX:
Clears: 7/10.  I'm looking for a decent low priced TKL option here (come on KUL, start shipping stuff again) to use long term.
Blue: 2/10.  Noisy, not a fan
Browns: 5/10.  Mushy, but usable in a pinch.

Gateron Brown Varmilo is coming withing the week, I understand they feel in-between an MX Brown and an MX Clear.  Sure wish they had Clears still available.

[zephyr11]

I'm currently using the gateron brown, quite liking them, I've had them for a couple of weeks, (actually almost 2mths, I think), use it at work.

also used the othemu brown, before I got my hands on the gaterons, comparatively the gateron browns are waaaaay smoother, and equal, at least to me. I used the othemu browns for also about 2-3mths. but it didn't work out for us.

I would rate the othemu browns 4, and the gateron browns 7.

I'm trying to get my hands on some zelios, and I cannot explain how excited I actually am but not excited about it costwise, a bag of gateron browns cost me about usd$35, but I think the zelios will be at least double that amount, and to add to that I don't exactly know what to do with the swapped out switches, (already have a bag of othemu browns).

plus I actually have a CM novatouch barebones coming end of next month thru the massdrop order. so maybe I should hold out on the zelios. 

 

[Fiery]

Adding a new switch

Matias Quiet Linear (used on a planck): feel quite nice to type on, I like the virtually completely noiselessness nature of them, feel slightly mushy when bottomed out. For games like OSU!mania and Stepmania they are currently my favourite. for typing they are a bit light for my taste. 7.5/10

[ndakota79]

Cherry MX Black: 3/10
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10
Cherry MX Brown: 6/10
Razer Green (Kailh): 7/10

Matias Quiet Click: 8/10
Topre 45g: 9/10

[czarek]

Out of those I have here in my office right now:

Weighted, Silent Topre (RF): 8/10 (current daily driver, I guess feel will improve once fully broken in)
45G Silenced (Hypersphere) HHKB Topre: 8/10
Stock 55G Topre (RF): 10/10
Plate mounted Matias Quiet: 7/10
Plate mounted Cherry MX Blues: 8/10
Plate mounted MX Browns: 6/10
PCB mounted 62G Zealios: 7/10
Plate mounted Gateron MX Black: 8/10
Model M: 8/10
Model F (AT): 9/10
Amiga NMB Space Invaders (white linear): 9/10



Laptops:

MBP retina 15" 2014: 5/10
Powerbook 12" 2004: 8/10
MSI GS60 (Steelseries keyboard): 6/10

[Skywalker]

1. Which switches have you tried long enough to form an opinion of?

Cherry MX: Blue, Red, Brown
Topre: RF87U 45g
ALPS: Matias Quiet Click
Membrane: Key Tronic e06101

A. Rate each of them on a 1-10 scale (1 being awful 10 being godlike)

Blue: 4/10
Red: 3/10
Brown: 7/10
Topre: 9/10
Matias Quiet: 8/10
Key Tronic: 6/10

B. If you so desire put a very brief reasoning as to why you feel the way you do about each switch you rated.

Blue was cool at first but after a while the noise was just annoying.
Red feels way too weird after using anything with tactile feedback. Couldn't get used to it.
Brown is great, I get the tactile feedback of the blues without that annoying click. And I can use it at work without making too much noise.
Topre has a really nice bottom out feeling and is very smooth. The sound is pretty great too. I have been curious about the 55g switches but right now very satisfied with the 45g's.
Matias Quiet Click has a much better tactile feedback than the MX browns, in my opinion. Very satisfying to type on. Only problem with these switches is the quality control. I have used three different boards, each with multiple keys that chatter.
Key Tronic rubber dome switches are by far the best rubber dome switches I have used. They feel similar to Topre, and I actually like the sound more than the 45g Topre. But they are still a rubber dome, and that means you have to bottom out completely on every stroke and not all keys have the same quality since the boards are made cheaply. So I'd still take any mechanical over it.

[xondat]

HHKB: 10/10

No more needs to be said, I haven't used anything but my HHKB since I got it, and Topre since May.

[klennkellon]

SKCL Brown for typing and gaming is 7/10

The keyboard itself for gaming 4/10 the KRO is so restrictive barely any 3+ combinations register. But is it really the boards fault? I don't think whoever designed it planned for it to be used to kill virtual mercenaries.

[emdude]

I think I originally listed SKCM Blues at 9/10 in this thread, but I will probably have to bump that down to 8/10.  Excellent feel, but perhaps a tad too light and I'm becoming apathetic about how they sound.  Also, some new switches:

Alps SKCM White: 7/10, also just okay
Alps SKCM Cream Damped: 6/10
Alps SKCM Brown w/ Damped sliders: 9.5/10

Rubber Dome (IBM PCjr): 0/10, honestly couldn't get worse than this

[chyros]

Rubber Dome (IBM PCjr): 0/10, honestly couldn't get worse than this

...Are you sure? That's a pretty tall order . Might have to give this a go someday then xD . I've had a few quite horrible things so far that are way up on the ****-scale xD .

[emdude]

Rubber Dome (IBM PCjr): 0/10, honestly couldn't get worse than this

...Are you sure? That's a pretty tall order . Might have to give this a go someday then xD . I've had a few quite horrible things so far that are way up on the ****-scale xD .

Haha, OK, I admit I have not tried anything Amstrad or that Smith Corona with the janky leaf springs, but for a rubber dome, the PCjr keyboard is just incredibly awful, nothing like you'd expect from IBM at the time.

[chyros]

Rubber Dome (IBM PCjr): 0/10, honestly couldn't get worse than this

...Are you sure? That's a pretty tall order . Might have to give this a go someday then xD . I've had a few quite horrible things so far that are way up on the ****-scale xD .

Haha, OK, I admit I have not tried anything Amstrad or that Smith Corona with the janky leaf springs, but for a rubber dome, the PCjr keyboard is just incredibly awful, nothing like you'd expect from IBM at the time.

Is this the original chiclet one you're talking about or the updated one?

[kenmai9]

Topre: 8/10 - I enjoy typing on Topre. Very tactle and satisfying feeling. Unfortunately I have the variable weight Realforce. I'd like to try the 45g or 55g, or the HHKB.
MX Brown: 4/10 - Really scratchy, not a nice tactile feeling. Do not like.
MX Ergo Clear: 8.5/10 - Really like these. I use 62g springs with some lube. I love typing on this keyboard. I like it a little bit more than my Topre.
MX Red: 6/10 - Not bad. They were a tad too soft to my liking.
MX Black: 7/10 - I like. Still like the tactile feeling better than the linears. But not bad.
MX Blue: 5/10 - Gross.

To update this,

Gateron Black: 8.5/10

Its lit

[emdude]

Rubber Dome (IBM PCjr): 0/10, honestly couldn't get worse than this

...Are you sure? That's a pretty tall order . Might have to give this a go someday then xD . I've had a few quite horrible things so far that are way up on the ****-scale xD .

Haha, OK, I admit I have not tried anything Amstrad or that Smith Corona with the janky leaf springs, but for a rubber dome, the PCjr keyboard is just incredibly awful, nothing like you'd expect from IBM at the time.

Is this the original chiclet one you're talking about or the updated one?

The updated one, so I guess it could be (slightly) worse.

[czarek]

I should also post switches I like less (which I don't keep in my office):

Alps SKCC in Apple M0110: 1/10 (gritty and scratchy, gives me creeps when I try to type on it)
Alps SKCM White: 3/10 (feel good only when hit in center)
Alps SKCM Black: 7/10 (got it in a NIB board, best feeling Alps I've tried)
Mitsumi Hybrid Switch with a spring (linear): 4/10 (smooth but mushy as hell on bottom out)
Mitsumi Hybrid Switch with buckling rubber: 6/10
Acer Clicky Switch: 7/10
Cherry MY (G81): 4/10

[Keycap]

Cherry MX Black: 5/10, they're just barely okay. Nothing special at all, and they're some of the scratchiest MX switches I've tried
Cherry MX Red: 6/10, the weighting feels better to me than MX Black, but these are also really boring and quite scratchy
Cherry MX Blue: 7/10, easily one of the smoothest switches I've tried, but the sound is annoying
Cherry MX Brown: 8.5/10, I feel guilty for this rating, but I really love these, and they've grown on me immensely. They feel very refined, even though the tactility is barely noticeable
Cherry MX Clear: 7/10, very nice and tactile, but they're just too stiff for me

Alps SKCM White: 9/10, very refined feel and the click is just perfect, and these easily sound the best out of all of the switches I've tried.
Alps SKCM Orange: 10/10, extremely smooth and the tactility can't get any better, and the weighting is just right, probably my favorite switch ever
Alps SKCM Black: 8/10, not very far off from Orange Alps at all, they're a bit stiffer and the tactility is a bit rougher, but still nice to type on
Alps SKCL series: 9/10, these are my favorite linear switches out there, they sound awesome and they are butter smooth

IBM buckling spring: 9/10, probably my favorite clicky switch, these feel amazing and the sound is very good as well, but it feels like there's not that much travel

Other weird switches:
Alps integrated dome: 8/10, these are pretty stiff linear switches (yes, I meant linear), yet very smooth and they're some of the quietest switches I've ever tried
Brother dome with slider: 7/10, the construction isn't that remarkable but the keyfeel is smooth and snappy, reminds me of a lighter MX Clear switch
Smith Corona leaf spring over membrane: ...This just doesn't deserve a rating. I don't even want to remember that these exist, they're that bad
NMB dome with slider: 6/10, not that bad, but the travel is way too short and the tactility could definitely be better

[y11971alex]

IBM
Selectric: 10, as long as they're unclogged
Beam: 10
Model F: 9.5 – 10, depending on quality of mount.
Model M: 8.5

Cherry
MX Blue: 7
MX Brown: -82 (both rough and unbelievably annoying)
MX Red: 1 (I don't like linears)
MX Black: 1 (I still don't like linears)
MX Green: 6.5
MX Clear: -83 (heavy, rough, and annoying)
MX Silent: 1

Alps
SKCM Blue: 9.5
SKCC Cream: 8.5
Monterey Blue: 7.5

[chyros]

Alps SKCC in Apple M0110: 1/10 (gritty and scratchy, gives me creeps when I try to type on it)
Alps SKCM White: 3/10 (feel good only when hit in center)
Alps SKCM Black: 7/10 (got it in a NIB board, best feeling Alps I've tried)

Your SKCC and SKCM white switches were in awful condition. If you'd had them in NOS condition you'd almost certainly rate them much higher than SKCM black - moreover the symptoms you describe are typical symptoms of ****ty switches. As I always keep hammering on, condition is EVERYTHING with Alps. SKCC are buttery smooth and Alps in good condition don't bind in the slightest. SKCM black aren't bad at all, possibly the most versatile switch in the entire series, but all the others feel much more refined. Keep a lookout for some mint salmon/orange/white Alps boards, shouldn't be too expensive and I suspect you'd like them hugely .

[Hypersphere]

As a general rule, I do not like linear switches. However, having tried the Cherry mx clone, Gateron, I find that I actually like Gateron Yellow switches. They have an ideal weight, and they are exceedingly smooth.

In addition, recently I have acquired some excellent Alps keyboards with SKCM blue and white switches. This has raised my esteem for these switches relative to others.

I've previously posted in this thread my ratings of a number of switches based on the degree to which the switch proviided excellent tactile or tactile + auditory feedback that coincided with actuation:

IBM capacitive buckling spring (Model F) = 10.
Topre 55g silenced and lubed = 9
Topre 45g silenced and lubed = 8
IBM membrane buckling spring (Model M) = 7
Blue Alps = 6
White Alps = 5
Brown Alps = 4
Matias Click = 3
Matias Quiet = 2
Hi-Tek Space Invader = 1
Cherry mx and clones = 0

Based on my recent experience with Blue and White Alps along with Gateron Yellows, I would amend the above rankings to put blue and white Alps above IBM Model M, and to put Gateron Yellow above other Cherry mx and clones.

[E3E]

As a general rule, I do not like linear switches. However, having tried the Cherry mx clone, Gateron, I find that I actually like Gateron Yellow switches. They have an ideal weight, and they are exceedingly smooth.

In addition, recently I have acquired some excellent Alps keyboards with SKCM blue and white switches. This has raised my esteem for these switches relative to others.

I've previously posted in this thread my ratings of a number of switches based on the degree to which the switch proviided excellent tactile or tactile + auditory feedback that coincided with actuation:

IBM capacitive buckling spring (Model F) = 10.
Topre 55g silenced and lubed = 9
Topre 45g silenced and lubed = 8
IBM membrane buckling spring (Model M) = 7
Blue Alps = 6
White Alps = 5
Brown Alps = 4
Matias Click = 3
Matias Quiet = 2
Hi-Tek Space Invader = 1
Cherry mx and clones = 0

Based on my recent experience with Blue and White Alps along with Gateron Yellows, I would amend the above rankings to put blue and white Alps above IBM Model M, and to put Gateron Yellow above other Cherry mx and clones.

You were really quite taken by Topre, eh? I'll have to try them out for more than just a day sometime. I had a variable Realforce 104 gained in trade for some work I had done for someone and sold it the day after.

[czarek]

Alps SKCC in Apple M0110: 1/10 (gritty and scratchy, gives me creeps when I try to type on it)
Alps SKCM White: 3/10 (feel good only when hit in center)
Alps SKCM Black: 7/10 (got it in a NIB board, best feeling Alps I've tried)

Your SKCC and SKCM white switches were in awful condition. If you'd had them in NOS condition you'd almost certainly rate them much higher than SKCM black - moreover the symptoms you describe are typical symptoms of ****ty switches. As I always keep hammering on, condition is EVERYTHING with Alps. SKCC are buttery smooth and Alps in good condition don't bind in the slightest. SKCM black aren't bad at all, possibly the most versatile switch in the entire series, but all the others feel much more refined. Keep a lookout for some mint salmon/orange/white Alps boards, shouldn't be too expensive and I suspect you'd like them hugely .

I admit that, however the white Alps were not really that bad condition. The thing is getting them in NIB condition is a miracle, and as they age badly, it means they're not as durable as Cherry MX or Buckling Springs.
I am a curious man and a fan of mechanical keyboards so my search for a good Alps continues. I know for a fact they will never be my daily driver though. Mostly because of durability issues and their weight (for me 55G Topre is too much, even though I love the feel), the other factors like wrong layouts and ****ty keycaps I can cope with by building my own keyboard (or modding KBP) and reusing Apple Extended II keycaps (which are decent dye sub PBTs). Still if I ever find a nice Alps they will land in a very nice keyboard I will almost never use

[kasakka]

Cherry MX Red	4/10	They are ok but not that great to type on. Noisy because of constant bottoming out.
Cherry MX Brown	5/10	Better than reds but have a "scratchy" feel to the tactile bump, which is not that pronounced to begin with
Zealio 65g tactile R2	7/10	Very nice to type on but had some chatter issues and they are definitely more wobbly than MX Browns on my Pok3r. Got 67g R4s coming in and I hope they improve on the wobble.
Topre variable weight	8/10	The best switch out there, but one point deducted for poor keycap compatibility and another for limited board options (most are full or TKL and the smaller ones have layouts I don't like that much)

[chyros]

Alps SKCC in Apple M0110: 1/10 (gritty and scratchy, gives me creeps when I try to type on it)
Alps SKCM White: 3/10 (feel good only when hit in center)
Alps SKCM Black: 7/10 (got it in a NIB board, best feeling Alps I've tried)

Your SKCC and SKCM white switches were in awful condition. If you'd had them in NOS condition you'd almost certainly rate them much higher than SKCM black - moreover the symptoms you describe are typical symptoms of ****ty switches. As I always keep hammering on, condition is EVERYTHING with Alps. SKCC are buttery smooth and Alps in good condition don't bind in the slightest. SKCM black aren't bad at all, possibly the most versatile switch in the entire series, but all the others feel much more refined. Keep a lookout for some mint salmon/orange/white Alps boards, shouldn't be too expensive and I suspect you'd like them hugely .

I admit that, however the white Alps were not really that bad condition. The thing is getting them in NIB condition is a miracle, and as they age badly, it means they're not as durable as Cherry MX or Buckling Springs.

Alps don't age at all and white Alps are not hard to get in great condition. You can buy NOS white Alps ffs xD .

[yowaffle]

MX Brown - 6.5/10
MX Red - 2/10 [linear feels so empty]
MX Black - 2/10
MX Blue - 2/10 [</3 clicky]
MX Clear - 6.5/10 [Thought it was too heavy with DCS caps, SA is fine]

Zealios 65g - 8/10  [too light, +1 for zeal and I like purple]
Matias Quiet Click - 8/10
Gateron Brown - 1/10
Gateron Yellow - 4/10 [felt great at first, but learned I'm just not a fan of linear]

Edit: new ratings lol

[Hypersphere]

@E3E: Yes, Topre switches are near the top of my list. I am no doubt influenced by the keyboards as well as the switches. I like the solid elegance of the RF87UB and just about everything about the HHKB -- 60% form factor, intuitive and efficient layout, design/styling, dye-sub PBT caps that form functional units with the switches, and the Topre switches themselves. To me, these boards and Topre switches are at their best with Silencing Rings and proper lubrication (stabilizers and switch guide rails lubed with Superlube 51010 oil applied sparingly with a small paintbrush). I appreciate switches that employ a catastrophic collapse mechanism, such as the collapsing dome in Topre and the buckling spring in IBM capacitive or membrane buckling spring switches (the capacitive BS switches in Model F boards are much nicer than the membrane BS springs in Model M boards). There's something intriguing about harnessing chaos under your fingertips.

[dgneo]

Topre
HHKB - 45g Stock - 8/10
HHKB - 45g Lubed w/ Rings - 8/10
HHKB - 45g Purple Slider - 10/10
RF87 - 55g Stock - 10/10

Cherry
MX Blues - 4/10
MX Reds - 5/10
MX Blacks - 7/10
MX Clears - 8/10
MX Ergo-Clears - 9/10

IBM
Model M - 5/10

[Screwdriver]

Not going to number rate, as I found I like some switches after hating them at first. Willing to revisit switches again.

MX Reds - Hated them when I first tried them. Love them on my KUL...it is my daily driver for now. Really want to try Blacks.
MX/KBT Browns - Loved them for a long time, now I find them meh. Tactile is not enough, so might as well use Reds.
MX Blues - Hate the noise. Like sitting next to a little kid at a quiet restaurant playing with the silverware and glasses.
MX Greens - Nope....no no.
MX Clears - Now this is a proper tactile switch from MX. Love my CODE, but it is in limbo atm

Topre 55g - Do not care for it. Feels like popping a zit on my back, but not as satisfying. Would like to try the 45g.

Matias Quiet Clicks - Love the feel, hate the QC. Just find me a board that does not have key chatter and I will buy it. Also want to try Matias linears and other ALPS switches.

[Shikarikato]

30g Topre(realforce) 8/10 - I like it, kind of similar to 45g topre but maybe more linear a bit hard to tell since its so light but surprisingly not so light that I am consistently bottoming out
45g Type-s topre 10/10 - no need to say anything other than its perfect
Gateron Blacks 8.5/10 - Really great just a tad too heavy for my tastes
MX Blues 9 - Probably my favorite MX switch if it didn't make noise but to be fair I only like how they feel in my QFR that is about 2-3 years old I really don't like it in my friends Shine 3 or 5 or G710+ they just don't feel right in them
MX Clears 7.5/10 - Great feel just too heavy to be a daily or to be perfect
MX Browns 5/10 - When they're brand new they feel worse but if you wear them in they're not as bad, still a switch that reminds me of something that's trying to be tactile and linear all at once and does neither of them right

If anyone has a suggestion for something essentially identical to Gateron Blacks just slightly lighter that would be great, I think MX reds are too light and Gateron Reds are supposed to be lighter than CMX
Maybe Gateron yellows?

[Hypersphere]

@Shikarikato: Gateron Yellow should be about right. They are approximately the same actuation force as Gateron Black, but the bottom-out force is slightly less than Gateron Black. Generally, I do not like Cherry mx or clones, but within this category, Gateron Yellow is my favorite.

[Marutks]

Topre 45g  8
Zeal 67g    8
MOD-M      7
Zeal 65g    6
Clear         4
Matias Quiet   4
Brown          3

[balotz]

Here's my take:

Clicky:

Mx Blue: 7/10
NEC blue oval: 6/10
White Alps (SKCM): 6/10
Blue Alps (SKCM): 8/10
Membrane buckling spring: 8.5/10
Futaba clicky switch: 9/10
SMK round clicky: 8/10
Black clicky space invaders: 5/10

Tactile:

Salmon Alps: 5/10
Orange Alps: 9/10
White damped alps: 6/10
Topre 55g: 6/10

Linear:

Yellow Alps: 9/10


I dislike switches which actuate noticeably before the click (isn't the point of the click to audibly signal activation?)
Examples are NEC blue oval and clicky space invader switches. You can make Alps switches do this if you press down very slowly but it's very difficult and unnoticeable in general use.

The first time I used blue Alps, I thought it was the perfect switch, but after a while the hard bottoming out began to bother me. Futaba switches, once restored to their original clickyness / tactility, are really nice for extended typing sessions - they are light at 50g, extremely smooth, impervious to dust, and bottom out gently.

[THEGUY69]

Cherry Switches
Mx reds- 3/10
Mx blue - 6/10
Mx brown - 3/10
Mx clear - 7/10
Mx sliver- 5/10(for whatever reason, the decreased travel distance makes linear switches much more tolerable for me)

Alps
Complicated White alps 8/10
Complicated Black alps 2/10

IBM
MBS 7/10
CBS 10/10

[_haru]

New MX Whites (with 45g springs): 9.5/10 - have these in my daiyl driver and they feel AMAZING.
SKBM White Alps: 3/10 - the force curve is trash, the click sound is annoying and the tactility is in the wrong place.
Topre: -1/10 - ew. Just ew.

[klennkellon]

Kailh Black "Box" switches: 

As far as linears go they're a 9/10. Very smooth out of the box and not wobbly.

[ander]

I can't believe I never posted here. Make fun of me if you must (you didn't have anything useful to do anyway, right?)—but the topic seems timeless, and too important to ignore.

 - - -

MX Blue: 6
The classic clicker. Clickety, tickety fun, but I wish they felt more substantial.

MX Red: 4
Pleasant enough, and I'm nostalgic about them because they were in my first MK. Very little character though. After 10 or 15 minutes, you start feeling how you feel when you're halfway through a giant-size McDonald's shake and you realize you should've ordered the normal one.

MX Brown: 0
Yup, "MX Reds with sand in them." Scratch, scratch, ick, yick. They're silly, anyway—why on earth do you need a tactile bump every time you press a key? If you're touch typing, you're going much too fast for little bumps to give you any kind of useful feedback. And hey, look—the characters you're typing are actually appearing on the display in front of you, which confirms that you're typing them! Gee, I wish I'd realized that before I bought this dumb "tactile" keeb. This must be what 50,000,000 other people are thinking, too—otherwise Cherry couldn't have sold so damn many Browns, enabling them to claim they're the "most popular mechanical switch" and gull even more people into buying boards with the silly, scratchy things. Focusing on this rational-seeming explanation keeps me from imagining that Rod Serling is about to step out from behind the drapes and start narrating.

MX Green: 7
It probably all comes down to weight, but they're what Blues should be, IMHO.

MX Clear: 4
Don't ask me why, but I vastly prefer the somewhat heavier Clears to Browns, even though they have the same silly, apologetically clickless bump.

MX White (AKA Milk): 6
Yes, they're monstrously heavy, but I dig 'em—until I start moaning and groaning and switch back to buckling springs, which then feel like sproingy cotton candy (sweet!).

Topre: 8
I don't have a variable Realforce, just a uniform 45 and 55; maybe variable is even better. Topres are unlike any others, though, a contrast that keeps the ol' keeb rotation stimulating. And what other switches make their best sound when you release them? Okay, there's another one that does that, but I don't remember which one it is. But still.

Hansung Topre knock-offs: 10
They're in my wonderful Hansung (Gtune) CHF7 (AKA Office Master), a greatly overlooked board in the West. Shamelessly derivative Korean Topre-esque capacitive dome/spring hybrids, but with a shorter, more effective travel, a tighter feel, and a softer, more tasteful sound. They don't bother my family, which is really saying something for an MK. And though it's quiet, the springs on some of the larger keys sing, like little fairy voices off in the distance; there's nothing like it (except maybe the Pingmaster—but that'd be jolly dwarfs or trolls, not fairies). I can type on Topres for a while, but I can type on Hansungs indefinitely. The only other switches I can say that about are buckling springs—and did I mention that, unlike BSs, Hansungs don't drive my family nuts? It's too bad you haven't tried them. Really, you should. Everybody should. Let's organize a GH trip to Seoul. The japchae is on me.

IBM membrane buckling springs (Model M): 10
Perfect—consistent, clacky, springy, pingy, everlasting. The M's build has a lot to do with it too, of course; a board that heavy and solid makes everything feel good.

IBM membrane buckling springs (Model F):
Same sentiments as above; add treble.

Romer-G (Logitech): 3.5
Meh. They're okay.

Kailh Box Pale Blue: 9
The only Kailh switches I've used. Impressively smooth due to the clever, utterly logical improvement on Cherry's relatively wobbly stem. Pleasing pings from the unique "tone bar" on each one. A winner. I have a feeling all Kailh Boxes improve on their MX counterparts; I'd like to test that theory someday.

Gateron Blue: 7
The only Gats I've used. Faster than MX Blues, brighter sound (you use clicky switches because you like the sound, right?). Fun. I have a feeling all Gats improve on their MX equivalents. Oh, I said that about Kailh Boxes too, didn't I? How about that.

Matias Clicky, Alps SCKM White: 6.5
Satisfyingly chattery. Harmless enough.

Alps SCKM Blue: 9
If I say good things about them, I'll feel like I'm just going along with the hype. But yes, Alps hit the sweet spot here. Too bad they've become so ridiculously inflated. They're good, but the hysteria over them is, well, hysterical.

Alps SKCC Green: 8.5
Eccentric, delightful, unique. I wouldn't want to use them all the time, but I could. I'm still not sure if that wonderful singing, pinging sound comes from the switches, or my IBM Pingmaster they're in, or both. Since it's the only board I ever expect to have with them, I'll lump it all together, appreciation-wise.

Monterey Alps Mount: 8
Vastly underappreciated. Almost as good as Alps Blues. Not quite as defined—like a friendly Golden Retriever to Alps Blues's show poodle—but still great. They make a resonant bloop, like dropping pebbles in a well. Entirely likable.

Mitsumi Miniatures: 8
I found an almost-new Monterey board with these, and thought (and still think) it was terrific. I've since read that they don't age well, which must be why people don't like them. If they could try newer ones, they probably would.

Futaba MA (Clicky): 3
Most peeps would give these a 1 or a 0. Along with Peerlesses, they're the switches people Love to Hate. But I was fortunate to receive a NIB Futaba board, and it's not bad at all. Obviously some switches last longer than others—that is, they keep working (they are mechanical switches), but they stop feeling good. Apparently Futabas are one of these, but I guess I haven't used mine enough to experience that. So here I am in the goofy Futaba-liking minority.

Fujitsu Peerless: 0
Mushy, icky, slow, characterless. I'd rather type on a $10 membrane board, and so would you. What was Fujitsu thinking? Maybe, "Let's slow everyone down so they'll pay... more... attention... to... what... they're... typing." How zen. Pass.

Good rubber domes (IBM RD Model M and KB- series; BTC and NMB sliders over domes; Thailand-made HP C3758A; Microsoft Natural Keyboard Elite): 4
I don't mind a good RD, which usually means one that hasn't been typed on for more than a month. If they're robust, they can even sound good. And they don't make people shut you in a separate room and put in earplugs. And they make MKs feel even better when you go back to them.  :?)

[CarlQs]

1a. Cherry MX red[3], speed silver[4], red silent[4].
     gaeteron red[6], blue[2]
     flaretech red[8]
     Kailh speed silver[7]
     romer g tactile[1]
     Kailh low profile blues (ml)[8]
     healios (stock/55g springs)[6/9]
B. Ill try to make this concise
 -Cherry: Im a linear fan myself so I started on a corsair board with reds. Once I tried "cheaper" knockoffs i found them nicer. Cherrys are a bit too loud during travel and feel pretty scratchy, even
              silent ones (3/4/4)
 -Gaeteron: My first board Ive modified was my anne pro with gaeteron reds. I have a soft spot for them, especially in milky housings due to a slightly warmer sound and nicer bottom out, but
                  anything with a click jacket sounds like loose stabs so thats a no from me.(6/2)
 -Flaretech: Im a little biased against these switches.They really should be 9s because they are so reliable and smooth and offer a lot of functionality in an accessible software. What kills these
                  switches for me is that they cant be put on cherry style pcbs, obviously, but much more than that is thier stem design. It uses a brittly plastic that snaps Into whatever expensive caps you
                  put on them. If you dont want to use your own keycaps then these are amazing switches on a beautiful board (wooting) but seriously theyre construction is infuriating.(8.5)
 -Kailh Speed silver: these switches are my favorite base switch. They have a pleasant medium high sound and relatively smooth travel stock. from my experience the weakest point of these switches
                  is that they dont take well to different springs or silent stems. If you go any lighter or try silent stems the housing mnakes the switch sounds very high pitched.(7)
 -romer g tactile: if you want a tactile switch get a tactile. these switches are just demo reels for thier rgbs and dont haveany keycap variance. I havent tried the linear but they should be alright since
                  the centered design of the stem should give it very little wobble.(1/?)
 -Kailh Low Profile blues: I love these clickys. they are very snappy and have a beautiful clean sound. Theyre the only clickbar Ive tried but I like them very much.(
 -Healios stock: Theres a reason I have these seperate from 55g. Like I said I really like light linears but my kailhs were a medium weight so I thought these would be aight. My problem with stock
                  healios, besides coming in a clear housing and not a milky one (I prefer the softer plastic, especially on silent switches) Is that they are a bit scratchy and feel like rubber domes TO ME.
                  this is an opinion but the wieghting on the spring definitely feels like it came off a tactile spring. Its very heavy at the top of travel, noticeably so, and then fall very quickly to a slightly
                  fluffier bottom out. The spring also has a pretty sharp bump above the slider. Some combination of these factors make them feel like fancy domes to me, in fact I would even say theyre
                  more tactile than romer gs. One good thing about them stock though, is thier sound. Sub sonic thumps when you bottom out makes them sound glorious, though a bit scratchy for my
                  batch.(6)
 -Healios 55g: This is It for me. This is going in my tokyo60. these switches are very nice. very smooth fast silent linears (after lube). This may not be my endgame though, these stems and springs in
                  a gaeteron milky housing or even POM housings may make my personal favorite switch Ive tried to date, or at least favorite that wont snap in an expensive set of keycaps...(9/?)
 

[ArchDill]

I did not account for lube. I usually lube everything though.

MX Blues-4

MX Browns-3

MX Reds- 6

Jailhouse MX Greens- 6

Gateron Browns- 3

Gateron Blacks- 7-8

Gateron Yellows with gold 67g springs)- 7-8 (Pretty much same as Blacks)

MX Zilents- 8

Topre 45g- 6

OG BKE- 6

Zealios 67g V1- 7

Topre 55g- 9-10

62g Vin Blacks in Gat Housings- 9-10 (I used SS springs and thin lube on these. Smoothest switches I have ever tried. Thinking about desoldering and using these on my next build.)

Tealios- 9-10


I have tried more than this but these are the ones that I used for an extended amount of time. ( I am counting a day as "extended".)

[jamster]

Would reply, but am too bemused at the word 'godlike' being applied to a keyboard switch.

[ollir_]

Alps SKCM White (Pine) 9
Topre 45g 9

Alps SKCM salmon 8
SMK 2nd gen clicky (both Alps & MX mount) 8
IBM buckling spring (non-capacitive) 8
Matias Clicky 8

Linear Space Invader 7
Matias Quiet Click 7 (while they work without problems)
Alps SKCM Black (Bamboo) 7

Cherry MX Black vintage 5
Cherry MX Black 4
Cherry MX Brown 4

- Obviously I like clicky switches and Topre the most. I'm not a snob, so bit of roughness in the
key feel doesn't affect my scores too much. For example, I like black Alps and the Matias switches
just fine.

- In Topre I like the round tactility and smoothness + of course the sound.

- White Alps (and this score is for the switches in good condition in an Acer 6012) sound super
nice, they guide your finger firmly downwards after going past the tactile bump and they
are just fun to type on.

- If my space invader board had its switches lubed or something I'd probably rate the switch one point higher.

[abrahamstechnology]

Cherry MY (modern, lubed)- 4

MX vintage black- 6

Linearized black Alps- 5 (too light for me)

Black Alps with Matias click leaf- 8

Matias clicky- 7

BOX Navy -7

Hua-Jie AK-CN2 - 8

Tai-Hao APC Blue - 7

Buckling springs (Unicomp) - 8

[frydaja]

Switches I've tried: Various rubberdomes, Kailh Reds, MX Browns, retooled MX Reds, Romer-Gs, Razer Greens

NMB rubberdome: 8/10, very tactile yet light, crisp, feels so non-rubbery, "very dry and mechanical". Slightly scratchy and little binding on the edges.
CoolerMaster dome with slider ("memchanical"): 9/10, slightly stiffer and with very soft landing on the downstroke, but nearly frictionless, doesn't bind and the tactility is weaker yet still noticeable and pleasing to fingers. Upstroke is very crisp. No wobble or binding.
Logitech rubberdome: 5/10, after 5 years of use it's got really stiff and mushy, but still usable. Tons of wobble, but doesn't bind. Really good when brand new though, much less mushy, crisper and ligter.
Kailh Reds: 4/10, scratchy even after a year of use. Lots of wobble too. And they ping a lot, but maybe it's just the plate.
MX Browns: 4/10 I'd give them a 7 if a Logitech rubberdome didn't beat them in the amount of feedback. Otherwise very meh to subpar.
Retooled: MX Reds: 7/10 and it'd be higher if I didn't introduce myself to actually tactile keyboards again. Smooth, not too wobbly.
Romer-Gs: 3,99/10. Like MX Browns but even worse and tiny bit more tactile.
Ornata rubberdome: 3/10 if we ignore the price. Feels quite similar to a brand new Logitech rubberdome, but at the price it's hard to find any positives about it. The soundtrack isn't even that great, it's like a pen sound with sounds of pressing a rubber mat in the background.
Razer Greens: 1.99/10. Because a linear switch that 300% louder than an entire Kailh Red keyboard was a great idea.

[actualglacier]

cherry mx brown - 10/10

[AJM]

I can't give just one rating for a specific switch.
From my experience it's a huge difference if a switch feels good, while you "fondle" it - slowly - moaning ecstatically (chyros-style) 
or if you can actually (touch)type efficiently and fast with it.

So I give three ratings: 1) the feel, when playing around 2) the feel, when typing fast 3) efficiency, when typing fast:

MX Brown: 3 / 7 / 9
IBM M: 6 / 5 / 5
IBM F: 8 / 6 / 5 (Space bar (Model F XT): 4 / 2 / 1)
IBM Beamspring: 10 / 9 / 8
rubber dome (Lenovo KB1021 for example): 5 / 4 / 9

[mattlach]

• Model M Buckling Spring (two piece keys) - 9/10 - The Gold Standard to me.   Only reason I didn't give them a 10 is because I have heard the Model F is nicer, but I have never tried them, so I am keeping an extra available number just in case.
  
• Model M Buckling Spring (One piece keys) - 8/10 - A little less play than two piece keys, but they can be a little more tiring and harsh on the fingertips after a long day of typing.
  
• Cherry MX Blue - 4/10 - Too soft for me, and the clicks are weird to me compared to the brilliant "clack"'s of the buckling spring boards.
  
• Cherry MX Brown - 3/10 - Similar to the blues.  I know they are supposed to be tactile, but I don't get much of that tactile feel from them.
  

Once you have gotten used to buckling spring, it is difficult to be truly happy with anything else.   I have two boards coming though, one with MX Clears and O-rings for work (open office environment, needs to be quiet) and one with MX Greens for home.    I hope I'll wind up liking the MX Greens better than the Blues or Browns.

I have this key tester, but in retrospect I don't find it very helpful.  It's tough tot know what typing on them will be like by just repeatedly tapping the same key.   That said, even though they are supposedly very different switches, compared to buckling spring, they all feel almost the same.

I'll come back and rate the greens and clears when I get them  (If mechanicalkeyboards.com ever gets their act together and actually ships them, that is)

[GlennL42]

*Incoming long ass write up that nobody asked for*

Now that I felt like I’ve tried enough switches/has enough experience to truly form an opinion that hold some weight to them, here are my 2cents on the various switches I’ve tried. Will categorize switches into clicky, tactile and linear, with a short description of my opinion towards each switches (shorter description for switches I’ve only tested on switch tester/short test, denotes by ‘ST’), also TL; DR in the end for each category

  Clicky

• IBM Buckling Spring (Membrane) 8/10 – While pretty smooth, the slightly shorter than usual travel feel a bit weird to type on, could use a more substantial feedback as well
• IBM Buckling Spring (Capacitive) 9.25/10 – overall the more well-balanced BuS typing experience – crispier, better sounding, and with a  more substantial feedback, though inconsistency (off-centre smoothness and sound) kind of bring down the score a bit
• IBM Beamspring 9.75/10 – I was lucky enough to have tried a full board once and is the most unique typing experience I have with clicky switches, feels almost like a very light ball-pen clicking. Best clicky for me, aside from their sound
• Cherry MX Blues/Green/other derivatives 7/10 (5/10 just for the sound when in bad mood) -- Ah yes, the clicky switches everybody loves to hate, though I think they are not bad at all and is, ironically, the smoothest switches out of the main Cherry line-up, not as good as the better modern clicky, but still. Also **** their clicky sound
• SKCM Blue Alps 9.5/10 – Funnily enough, they are the only SKCM clicky I’ve tried so far, very nicely balanced, smooth (for clicky) and sounded heavenly, a shame they command such a high price/hard to come by in good condition nowadays
• Matias Clicky (newer batch) 5/10 – Super bad QC (some switches will get stuck), and the very apparent secondary bump completely throw off the switch balance; a terrible Alps imitation, you are better off with other good modern clicky
• SMK 2nd gen (Monterey (ST) & NOS Cherry mount) 6.5/10 – The biggest let down in this list for me, similarity in tactility compare to Kailh Click bar switches are uncanny (seriously go compare the force curve and see) and actuation that occurs nearly at the end of the travel just feel awkward, pretty inconsistent with off-centre smoothness (for Cherry mount at least) and their smoothness is nothing to write home about. Only merit over Kailh click bar is their slightly better sound
• Kailh Box White(ST)/Pale Blue (ST) 8/10 – crisp and delicate, sounded nice too
• Kailh Box Noble yellow 8.5/10 – pretty much a Box White with punchier tactility, which I prefer better
• Kailh Box Jade 9/10 – The definitive modern clicky for me, super crisp and broken in Jade has the perfect amount of tactility for me, swapping in a heavier spring (60/67G) may potentially improves them further
• Kailh Box Navy 5/10 – RSI, nuff said
• Kailh Box ‘Franken’-Navy 3/10 (Navy with Jade spring) – are you a masochist who enjoys the feeling of pain on your fingers tips every time you are forced to bottom out hard onto a stainless-steel plate? I’m not so this is trash switch concoction
• Milkstotle (67G spring) 7/10 – very similar to Cherry MX Blue, aside from slightly sharper tactility, not as big of an improvement as I’ve hoped, pretty much a MX Blue without its horrendous rattly sound.
  

TL; DR – my favourite category of switches, sharp tactility of clicky is right up my alley.

  Tactile

• Average rubber dome 2.5/10 – most have decent tactility, but the absolute horror of their mushiness ruins it for me; some board seem to have weaker tactility (like Sk-2880), which alleviated the mushiness a bit, though not by much
• Cherry MX Brown 4/10 – tactility is too weak for my liking and is very itchy feeling
• Gateron Brown 5/10 – much smoother than MX brown, but still not a big improvement in key feel
• Romer-G (revised ver. with black housing) 5/10 – better than MX Brown IMO in most aspect, and sounded better, though 3mm travel is pretty pathetic for a switch
• Cherry MX Clear (ST) 6/10 – tactility is stronger and more drawn out compare to Browns, a much better switch than Cherry Brown IMO
• Kailh Box Brown/Burnt Orange (ST) 6/10 – weak tactility, though devoid of the scratchiness in Cherry Brown
• Kailh Box Royal (ST) 5/10 – too much of a tryhard switch trying to imitate Thick Clickbar, in the end Novelkeys just ended up creating a half-ass tactile switch with a stupidly strong tactility that hurts the fingers and is nowhere as good as their clicky counterpart
• Zealios 62G/65G/67G/78G (ST) 6.5/10 – strong tactility like Clear but much more instant, thicker contact leaf meant the upstroke is a bit ‘draggy’ feeling, decent overall
• Aliaz 60G/70G/80G/100G(!) (ST) 6.5/10 – aside from slightly weaker tactility and more silenced, they are pretty similar to Zealios to my fingers
• Hako True/Clear (ST) 5/10 – feels like an amalgamation between weighting of MX clear and tactility of Box Brown/Burnt Orange, don’t really see the appeal in them
• Hako Violet (ST) 6.5/10 – pretty much as above but with much better weighting, lighter spring weighting brings out the tactility as well
• SKCM Orange Alps 7.5/10 – one of the better tactile switches with sharp tactily, feels and sound nice, but nowhere as good as their clicky counterpart in most other aspect
• BKE Redux Light (45G) 7.5/10 – mounted on Plum Nano 75, very tactile dome mod for Topre and Topre clone, short travel of Noppo capacitive is actually better for BKE IMO as it reduce harshness of BKE by a lot and is much more pleasant; test mount them on unsilenced HHKB and they are very unbalanced like Novelkeys Royal (5/10)
• Noppo capacitive 45G ‘Topre clone’ 8/10 – these switches have such weak tactility it really blurs the line between tactile and linear, other than that good smoothness, shorter travel and silenced upstroke really distinguish them from regular Topre, very nice
• Rubberh Domeh Topre 45G 9/10 – the only 'round tactility' tactile switches I’ve tried so far, and they are fantastic; they feel substantial without the need to resort to strong tactility and doesn’t feel draggy like most other tactile switches on the list, the relatively weak and rounded tactility also reduce the mushiness to minimum

TL; DR – most tactile switches are hit or miss for me and I like them a lot less than clicky, though I expect other round tactility tactile switches will be to my liking (SKCM Neon Green/Brown, ITW magnetic valve).

  Linear

• Cherry MX Red 3.5/10 – you know its bad when your clicky switches in your line-up is smoother than your linear
• Cherry MX Black 3/10 – you know its bad when your clicky switches in your line-up is smoother than your linear + wrist pain
• Zorro Black 5/10 – pretty run of the mill linear, smoother than Cherry Black but less so than Gateron linears, has pretty bad spring crunch and inconsistency in smoothness
• SKCC Green 6/10 – on paper, they should’ve been a lot better (smooth, lovely ping), in practice however, heavy weighting and secondary bump from switch plate contributes to the unbalanced key feel, and is bad enough to give me wrist pain after  a short typing session
• Gateron Clear (67G) (ST) 8/10 – good smoothness and weighting, pretty much an antithesis to modern Cherry Linear
• NovelKeys/Kailh Cream (ST) 8/10 – same weighting as Gateron Clear, has some leathery sensation that is somewhat mitigated once broken in, pretty smooth overall

TL; DR – still a largely uncharted territory for me, I found weighting to be a more important factor for linear than the other switch type

[killyou]

[...]

• Kailh Box ‘Franken’-Navy 3/10 (Navy with Jade spring) – are you a masochist who enjoys the feeling of pain on your fingers tips every time you are forced to bottom out hard onto a stainless-steel plate? I’m not so this is trash switch concoction

[...]

Navy with Jade spring is essentially Jade. Housings and click bars are the same, the only difference is the spring. This is strange since you rated Jade 9/10 and franken navy switch 3/10 and they are both the same after your mod except the colour of the stem.

[GlennL42]

[...]

• Kailh Box ‘Franken’-Navy 3/10 (Navy with Jade spring) – are you a masochist who enjoys the feeling of pain on your fingers tips every time you are forced to bottom out hard onto a stainless-steel plate? I’m not so this is trash switch concoction

[...]

Navy with Jade spring is essentially Jade. Housings and click bars are the same, the only difference is the spring. This is strange since you rated Jade 9/10 and franken navy switch 3/10 and they are both the same after your mod except the colour of the stem.

Jade's clickbar is actually .28mm (according to Novelkeys) while Navy is .30mm according to Thomas' measurement (can't find other sources for the thickness), the difference is really apparent once you got to trying them out.

[natAT]

Topre 45g     (Type Heaven, ABS caps)                                   8/10                             (Nice feel and sound, not to hard on the fingers)   
Fujitsu Peerless    (FKB4725 Non Stabilized keys)                  4/10                             (More interesting than nice)
Fujitsu Peerless   (FKB4725 Stabilized keys)                          Screaming/10               (*muffled sobbing*)
Buckling Springs  (Unicomp)                                                   9/10                              (Favorite to date, very crisp switch that's firm yet not hard on the fingers. Don't mind the noise either !)
Kailh Blue   (Tesoro tizona)                                                     3/10                             (Loud in a bad way, keyfeel more messy than others)
Romer-G's "Tactile"  (G910)                                                    4/10                              (Disappointing for a recent switch that's designed from scratch. Not interesting or tactile)
MX-Red  (Some board)                                                           5/10                              (Inoffensively okay. Don't mind a nice linear switch)
Alps SKCM Black    (Dell at101w - linear mod)                        8/10                              (Absolutely nicer than MX Red, yet weirdly can't 100% place why)   

[killyou]

Jade's clickbar is actually .28mm (according to Novelkeys) while Navy is .30mm according to Thomas' measurement (can't find other sources for the thickness), the difference is really apparent once you got to trying them out.

Well that's news to me. I'll try treaching out to NK to confirm. Thanks for letting me know.

[rajendra82]

• Kailh Box Noble yellow 8.5/10 – pretty much a Box White with punchier tactility, which I prefer better
• Kailh Box Jade 9/10 – The definitive modern clicky for me, super crisp and broken in Jade has the perfect amount of tactility for me, swapping in a heavier spring (60/67G) may potentially improves them further
• Kailh Box Navy 5/10 – RSI, nuff said
• Kailh Box ‘Franken’-Navy 3/10 (Navy with Jade spring) – are you a masochist who enjoys the feeling of pain on your fingers tips every time you are forced to bottom out hard onto a stainless-steel plate? I’m not so this is trash switch concoction

The Kailh box clicky switches have the most interesting possibilities to me due to the interaction of the different weight springs and different clickbar thickness. I haven't tried Noble Yellow, but looking at the claimed force curve it appears to either be the same as box pink or a switch with the medium thick box pink clickbar and a box white spring. On paper the box pink sounded the most promising, but I was disppointed when testing in person. They seemed to give up too much of the box jade and navy tactitility and sound, while the medium stiff spring felt too floaty to me. A better compromise  would have been a slightly lighter spring and a slightly stiffer clickbar. I was not aware the clickbar between the box jade and navy was different as your testing of the franken navy seems to suggest. I do like the jade best of all at this time, and it is a 9/10 for me.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

[Sintpinty]

Cherry MY (modern, lubed)- 4?

I think it deserves a much lower rating.

[Sintpinty]

I have tried many rubberdomes, but no alps yet ): .

10/10= Cherry MX Reds. These are my primary switch and i love them especially for typing and gaming. I can get very fast speeds with these and they are light, and also have no tactility.

1/10 = HP Rubberdomes: Never going back to those things again. They are pretty awful, lack a good tactile bump and the glossyness of the keys is disgusting.

4/10= Logitech Rubberdomes. These are okay and actually make a decent keyboard.

2/10: Razer Chroma switches. I can feel the difference with these ones now that they're putting it on their new products. They feel quite rubbery and really aren't good for gaming.

8/10: Cherry MX Blues. The click of the switch lightens out the heaviness of it, plus it has great tactile feedback as well. Great typing switch.

3/10: Cherry MX Blacks. These are okay, but they are just too stiff not making it as great as it should.

7/10: Coolermaster Novatouch: The lack of audible feedback and the light and soft bottom out makes this a great switch and is actually comfortable to press.

3/10: Cherry MX Greens. In my personal experience, these are just too heavy and my fingers get tired after a couple of keypresses.

[typo]

Pretty much everything. At least that I know of. Topre is always daily driver for me.

[frydaja]

Switches I've tried: Various rubberdomes, Kailh Reds, MX Browns, retooled MX Reds, Romer-Gs, Razer Greens

NMB rubberdome: 8/10, very tactile yet light, crisp, feels so non-rubbery, "very dry and mechanical". Slightly scratchy and little binding on the edges.
CoolerMaster dome with slider ("memchanical"): 9/10, slightly stiffer and with very soft landing on the downstroke, but nearly frictionless, doesn't bind and the tactility is weaker yet still noticeable and pleasing to fingers. Upstroke is very crisp. No wobble or binding.
Logitech rubberdome: 5/10, after 5 years of use it's got really stiff and mushy, but still usable. Tons of wobble, but doesn't bind. Really good when brand new though, much less mushy, crisper and ligter.
Kailh Reds: 4/10, scratchy even after a year of use. Lots of wobble too. And they ping a lot, but maybe it's just the plate.
MX Browns: 4/10 I'd give them a 7 if a Logitech rubberdome didn't beat them in the amount of feedback. Otherwise very meh to subpar.
Retooled: MX Reds: 7/10 and it'd be higher if I didn't introduce myself to actually tactile keyboards again. Smooth, not too wobbly.
Romer-Gs: 3,99/10. Like MX Browns but even worse and tiny bit more tactile.
Ornata rubberdome: 3/10 if we ignore the price. Feels quite similar to a brand new Logitech rubberdome, but at the price it's hard to find any positives about it. The soundtrack isn't even that great, it's like a pen sound with sounds of pressing a rubber mat in the background.
Razer Greens: 1.99/10. Because a linear switch that 300% louder than an entire Kailh Red keyboard was a great idea.

Bumping MX Browns to 7/10. Still a little scratchy and it feels a bit scratchy, but it's the type of tactility that is noticeable but doesn't get in the way. It's just the right amount to prevent mistyping. They're also more comfortable to type on than Reds.

Also adding Outemu Reds:
6/10. They feel very silky, almost like lubed. Very stable, too. But I don't like the bottom-out feel. I like soft landings, but Outemus don't have a soft landing, or hard landing. It's somewhere in between and it ends up feeling werd. Maybe I'm used to MX Browns, but they feel stiff, too.

[swedishpiehole]

I'm not a gamer nor a coder. I just write a lot.

Topre HHKB with BKE Redux Ultra Lights: 10/10
Topre HHKB stock domes: 9/10
KBD T1: 8.5/10 (great tactility, sounds nice and crisp with the right plate/case combo)
Zilent 67g: 8/10
Aliaz 70/80g: 8/10
Kailh Box white/pink: 7/10 (feel good but the click annoys me after a while)
Gat Silent Red (lubed): 5/10 (good weighting, nice and smooth, but I miss the tactility)
Zilent 78g: 4/10 (great tactility but way too tiring to type on)
Kailh Box jade/navy: 4/10 (too heavy for typing)
MX brown: 2/10
MacBook Pro 2018 keyboard: 0/10 (I hate that keyboard with a passion I can hardly describe)

[Sintpinty]

MacBook Pro 2018 keyboard: 0/10 (I hate that keyboard with a passion I can hardly describe)

Can agree and confirm. I lose at least 20/40 wpm when typing on that thing.

[swedishpiehole]

MacBook Pro 2018 keyboard: 0/10 (I hate that keyboard with a passion I can hardly describe)

Can agree and confirm. I lose at least 20/40 wpm when typing on that thing.

Not only do the keys feel awful, with basically zero travel, but the proximity of the massive trackpad means I'm constantly brushing it with my thumbs and causing the cursor to jump elsewhere while I'm typing. I HATE IT SO MUCH.

[appaboy]

MacBook keys 1/10
Kailh red 2/10
Kailh box black 2/10
Ergoclears 9/10
Retooled blacks 9/10
Vintage blacks 10/10

[mlev6]

Has anyone tried the Varmilo EC switches and can give a reference comparison vs other switches out there. I heard they where pretty good being ec capacitative but that the 55g Rose and the tactile? heavier Ivy stand out. Thanks!

And another question and seeking advice: what switches should I try as I am considering making a second custom? I am using ergo clears at work right (keyboard came with nos clears that I lubed/ replaced spring) now and got them to a place I like the weighting and tactility but sometimes I miss a nice sharp click about a 1/4th or 1/5th  of the way down after a switch is pressed.  Is there a switch with such a click but afterwards still with heavier/ smooth tactility on the way down that does not bottom out. For practical purposes would want to stick with MX stems, but some customization is an option. Much appreciated.