Easiest transition from rubber domes

[daniel.ocarroll]

Hi Guys,

I know that starting a few threads and not contributing much is considered bad etiquette, but as I haven't seen a discussion on this point I thought it would be okay to add it for the benefit of others.

Basically I was wondering what the closest mechanical board to rubber-domes / scissors would be?

Most people looking to try out a mechanical for the first time seem to want to know what's the best for typing or gaming, but what if, say, you're perfectly happy with the weight and feel of rubber-domes, but you want something without the mushiness, of higher build quality (and longevity), and just want to get yourself a decent piece of equiptment to type / game with?

From ripster's force diagram the closest in terms of actuation force (to rubber domes, I realize that scissors are slightly heavier) would seem to be white clicky alps, but this seems to be quite a 'difficult' switch from what I've read. Buckling springs and linear cherries seem to also be about 10g heavier than what you'd generally encounter on a RD, while all the cherries, with the exception of the blacks are considerably lighter.

Hope this doesn't seem like a pointless question.

[woody]

Basically I was wondering what the closest mechanical board to rubber-domes / scissors would be?

Best, and most expensive, choice to rubber domes is .... Topre - still rubber domes, but with proper sensing.

You should consider putting less energy reading about switch "feel" and more trying them out in reality. Cherry MX blue, brown and Buckling Spring make for nice typing switches in general.

[Tony]

Any mech keyboard transition would have the same effect on you. You will never touch a rubber dome again. Just like this.

[daniel.ocarroll]

haha nice, that actually looks kinda cool (the keyboard).

Woody, that would certainly be ideal but unfortunately every return costs me about €50 with the shipping back and forth, so given a fairly tight budget that's not much of an option. It's a real pity that there aren't any stockists around here (well, seemingly just about anywhere), so I think reading threads on Geekhack is, at least for the time being, pretty much the only option I have.

Think that seems to be a consensus for Topre, but wow, those things really cost!! Unless I win the lotto sometime over the next few weeks I think a BS might be the first board to buy, even if its going to feel a little stiff and heavy, and then when I get a bit of cash together I can invest in a nice realforce.

Thanks for the help as usual guys. I wish there were a bigger market for these things and they were stocked in retail outlets, that would be very convenient!

[keyboardlover]

Needs reds and clear variants too.

[daniel.ocarroll]

actually i already got a blue cherry, ripster, but it felt way too light, so I imagine a brown cherry would be even worse!

Given my typing style i think i'd rather something a little heavy than a little light.

Doesn't really sound as if there's anything that would be more or less directly equivalent to rb's resistance bar the topres.

[Surly73]

My initial suggestion is MX browns.  They're "easy to find" (at least from a mech board perspective), easy to resell, and can be found on many quality boards.  I see that you felt blues were "way too light".   I'm not a light typer, but you must really bang on those rubber domes.  I know that my typing will adapt to the switch I'm using.  I can pound away on a model M all day long with no discomfort, but then I will glide more gently (still bottoming out, though) on my MX brown board at home.  You may find that if you give it a couple of weeks that your muscle memory will adjust too when you stop feeling like you need to pound the key in order to get it to register.

MX Clears are heavier versions of the browns but are much harder to get (i.e. far fewer boards are offered with them).  Topre's a good choice and top quality, but you'd be jumping straight to the top of the price heap without trying anything else.  Whether you want to do that or not is up to you, of course.

[keyboardlover]

What? You created the image.

[pitashen]

I don't think there is such thing as "transition" from rubber dome to mechanical switch. You simply switch to it without looking back.

Cherry MX Black if you are heavy handed. Plus they are quite easy to find.

[daniel.ocarroll]

Almost forgot that I had your diagrammed bookmarked, Ripster.

Took another look and I see what you mean. In the upper left quadrant (quiet and high force), the black cherries seem to approximate the force of the lighter rubber-domes. In the upper right its BSs, white alps, and montereys.

I guess black cherries might actually be the one to consider trying, as they're easier to find for me that either the alps or the montereys, but all I've heard about them so far is that they're very stiff and aren't really suitable for typing, which put me off. if they're the same force roughly as rubber domes that doesn't really make a lot of sense, as I don't find rubber domes - even the heavier ones - tiring in the slightest, but perhaps it has something to do with the mechanism as well as the force that's requried to depress the keys.

Lots of choices.

[pitashen]

Almost forgot that I had your diagrammed bookmarked, Ripster.

Took another look and I see what you mean. In the upper left quadrant (quiet and high force), the black cherries seem to approximate the force of the lighter rubber-domes. In the upper right its BSs, white alps, and montereys.

I guess black cherries might actually be the one to consider trying, as they're easier to find for me that either the alps or the montereys, but all I've heard about them so far is that they're very stiff and aren't really suitable for typing, which put me off. if they're the same force roughly as rubber domes that doesn't really make a lot of sense, as I don't find rubber domes - even the heavier ones - tiring in the slightest, but perhaps it has something to do with the mechanism as well as the force that's requried to depress the keys.

Lots of choices.

The thing about all those mechanical switches is that you don't need to bottom out to register the keys stroke. So black and dome may be similar in "force" but they are still completely different. Look at those force diagram closely again, there should be label saying to what point the key is registered and reset, it is some what important as well, especially for gaming.

[daniel.ocarroll]

Pitashen,

Unless I'm mistaken I can't see that anywhere on Ripster's diagram -- all I'm seeing is force (on the Y axis) and clickiness / noise level on the X, but I do know what you're talking about.

actually I'm looking for a board with the minimum tactility. I'm not a fan of the bump in the mx blues. I'd prefer something that was closer to the feel of a scissor / rubber dome.

As far as I can recall from the few times I've tried out an M2, the buckling springs pretty much fit this bill, ie they don't have that clicky / tactile point before the switch actuates.

[daniel.ocarroll]

Ripster,

Thanks: activation point matches tactile point. That's what I have to remember to look for.

yeah, clears seem appealing, but they'd be a little harder to come by for me than the Unicomp. I actually pretty much have my mind made up for them so just have to wait for return to clear and I'll order.