Are new Cherry MX switches really a lot worse than old ones?

[lisq199]

I've seen time and time again people saying that the quality Cherry MX switches has decreased dramatically over the years. Is it true? If so, how much worse exactly has it gotten? And if old Cherry MX switches are really that good, what do they feel like?

[klennkellon]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

[rxc92]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

 
 
So theoretically just using them more would smooth them out, no?

[nmur]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

 
 
So theoretically just using them more would smooth them out, no?

yes, but that generally take years

the shortcut/workaround is to lube the stems

[klennkellon]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

 
 
So theoretically just using them more would smooth them out, no?

Yes.

Some people like Gaterons because the plastic used on (the slider?) is smoother, so brand new Gaterons will feel smoother than MX's.

My MX Blues I used daily for three years straight are incredibly smooth, I don't think it's possible for any Cherry switch to be smoother.

[falkentyne]

I've seen time and time again people saying that the quality Cherry MX switches has decreased dramatically over the years. Is it true? If so, how much worse exactly has it gotten? And if old Cherry MX switches are really that good, what do they feel like?

Only the case for MX blues, usually.  New blues tend to be much more inconsistent and sometimes not clicking than older blues.
Other than that, just some switches being not as smooth.

[jacobolus]

I've seen time and time again people saying that the quality Cherry MX switches has decreased dramatically over the years. Is it true? If so, how much worse exactly has it gotten? And if old Cherry MX switches are really that good, what do they feel like?

Cherry MX switches were never very good. They were always the cheapened 80s version of nicer linear switches from the 70s.

But yes, older ones (from the 80s and maybe the early 90s?) are noticeably nicer than recent ones.

You can make MX switches somewhat nicer through careful manual labor, swapping out the springs and adding lubricant to friction points inside the switch. It’s a lot of work though.

[hwood34]

I've seen time and time again people saying that the quality Cherry MX switches has decreased dramatically over the years. Is it true? If so, how much worse exactly has it gotten? And if old Cherry MX switches are really that good, what do they feel like?

The actual composition of the plastic was changed (around the same time in the late 80s, early 90s for each switch). Only really noticeable in MX Blues and MX Browns. Besides that, just the years of wear make for a smoother swich. New Cherry switches are horribly scratchy.

[hwood34]

I've seen time and time again people saying that the quality Cherry MX switches has decreased dramatically over the years. Is it true? If so, how much worse exactly has it gotten? And if old Cherry MX switches are really that good, what do they feel like?

The actual composition of the plastic was changed (around the same time in the late 80s, early 90s for each switch). Only really noticeable in MX Blues and MX Browns. Besides that, just the years of wear make for a smoother swich. New Cherry switches are horribly scratchy.

[ideus]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

 
 
So theoretically just using them more would smooth them out, no?

yes, but that generally take years

the shortcut/workaround is to lube the stems

Lubing changes their feeling a bit too far than extended constant use.

[FoxWolf1]

The frequency of bad batches of clicky switches seems to have increased rather dramatically over just the last few years. Basically you do not want a keyboard with switches from one of those batches-- the feel and sound are very inconsistent, and some of the switches will fail to click entirely. You get better reliability and consistency with Kailhs than you do with Cherry switches from a bad batch.

MX White (milk) switches were always kinda risky, but it used to be that you could feel pretty safe buying MX Blue or MX Greens. Nowadays? I wouldn't buy something with blues or greens unless the shop has a really solid return policy.

[rxc92]

Brand New Cherry switches can feel rough and scratchy, vintage switches or switches that have been used a lot are much smoother in comparison.

 
 
So theoretically just using them more would smooth them out, no?

Yes.

Some people like Gaterons because the plastic used on (the slider?) is smoother, so brand new Gaterons will feel smoother than MX's.

My MX Blues I used daily for three years straight are incredibly smooth, I don't think it's possible for any Cherry switch to be smoother.

 
   
Yeah, I agree. I used an MX Blue board very heavily over a year and noticed that all other Blues felt pretty awful in comparison after that. Would love to try Gateron clicky sometime, though.

[chyros]

The quality of any MX switch is pretty pants compared to what Cherry used to make before. I'd very much love to try a board with M5s in, they feel very nice indeed!