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geekhack Community => Keyboards => Topic started by: Riverman on Wed, 18 March 2020, 12:30:01

Title: Silent Black Break-In Period and PCB vs. Plate Mount Questions
Post by: Riverman on Wed, 18 March 2020, 12:30:01
I have a Cherry G80-3494 with silent black switches that I love the feel of, but I wanted the same feel in a more substantial-feeling keyboard with a completely standard layout (i.e. no stepped caps lock key).  I bought a pile of silent black switches from KBDFans, and replaced all of the original switches in a Das Keyboard 4 with them.  For whatever reason the Das Keyboard's switches feel slightly heavier, and a good amount scratchier.  Are the switches likely to soften up and smooth out with use?  I'm also wondering if it's possible that the switches feel softer due to the G80's PCB-mounted switches.  So far I'm only on day 4 of using the Das Keyboard, so I may be expecting too much too soon.  I'm not sure how used the G80 was since I bought it on eBay. 
Title: Re: Silent Black Break-In Period and PCB vs. Plate Mount Questions
Post by: Sup on Wed, 18 March 2020, 13:04:19
I am using MX silent black spring swapped to 58.5G  for 2 months now as my daily driver.

About the smoothness between two keyboards with the same switch its mostly about when the switches are produced. The first or early batches of a switch will be smoother then later ones since the mold gets worn after a while giving you a scratchy feeling also feel of a different weight if you compare it to the same switch from earlier batches.

The MX blacks i got where okay not super smooth but not so scratchy that it annoyed me. But i always lube the switches to still make it smooth and nicer to use when i break them in. I can confirm these switches do get smoother after a few weeks of use everyday.

Also yes the G80 doesn't have a plate just a PCB holding the switches as you type it will flex giving you a softer bottoming out then a keyboard with a plate.
Title: Re: Silent Black Break-In Period and PCB vs. Plate Mount Questions
Post by: Riverman on Thu, 19 March 2020, 16:44:58
I'll have to give this keyboard a little more time, then, and hope that it starts to feel a little different.  It's funny that I originally swapped out the silent blacks in my G80 with browns, and felt like I made the wrong choice, so I switched them back.  I feel completely the opposite about this Das Keyboard, that maybe silent blacks weren't the right choice for it and I should have stayed with the original browns.

What springs are you using that have a 58.5g weight?  I assume they feel just a tiny bit lighter than the stock springs?
Title: Re: Silent Black Break-In Period and PCB vs. Plate Mount Questions
Post by: Sup on Fri, 20 March 2020, 03:01:16
I'll have to give this keyboard a little more time, then, and hope that it starts to feel a little different.  It's funny that I originally swapped out the silent blacks in my G80 with browns, and felt like I made the wrong choice, so I switched them back.  I feel completely the opposite about this Das Keyboard, that maybe silent blacks weren't the right choice for it and I should have stayed with the original browns.

What springs are you using that have a 58.5g weight?  I assume they feel just a tiny bit lighter than the stock springs?

The springs I use bottom out at 58.5g instead of the mx black 80g much more comfortable to type on for me