Keyboard Noise Cancelling

[Aqo]

Hi Geekhack, how's your typing?

Short backstory (skip if tldr):
Been using second-rate keyboards for years, until about half a year ago (more or less) decided to buy a 6Gv2 for purposes of gaming (first priority) and typing (too much time on irc!).
The 6Gv2 is great and all, and I've had a lot of fun using it with great results. The / key issue is a slight bother though, even after all of this time. Been reading a lot about Ducky and Filco which both look attractive (120usd for a tactile filco on amazon. good deal?).

However, here's a big problem: I live with roommates, and mechanical does a lot of noise while typing, especially if it's a steady 300apm for several hours as a result of gaming. I have a silicone keyboard (not sure about model, not at home right now. Bought it randomly for like 10 bucks) which I use at hours past-11PM when roommates go to sleep for purposes of noise-cancelling, as silicone does absolutely zero noise when typing. This is nice, except my apm and wpm on it are almost 1/3 as much as I get on the 6Gv2. I don't mind to compromise at some hours, but this is ridiculous.

So basically, the question is: Is there a good keyboard for noise-cancelling that can still have somewhat of the quality of a mechanical? Main purpose is gaming, as I do a lot of cross-continent play with people at different time zones and thus staying up at 3AM is often mandatory to get a match. And I simply can't compete at max capacity with a terrible silicone keyboard (have to apply a lot of force for reliable keypresses, this is a serious slowdown).

A compromise between silent and efficient is not exactly what I'm looking for, since even if it only does a little noise it's probably still too much (unless it's, like, very very quiet?) but I would like to know my list of options on this, to be able to pick the best mid-point between typing speed / ease of key pressing and noise-silencing.

Anybody with experience on this matter who might be able to throw a word or two (keyboard options for a buyer interested in quiet yet powerful)? I'm about to start a long journey on google, but I heard the people here on geekhack are a more reliable source. Thanks for your time reading.

[fossala]

Have you looked into something like cherry reds or browns with o-rings installed?

[volund]

Even cherry blues with dampeners are pretty quiet, at least to me

[Aqo]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=79rWQ-CU9Lw
Would this be a good example of what o-rings or dampenes sound like? Like I said I'm still new to this area so I'm not sure if I'm looking at the right thing.
Either way, that still is way too noisy for my needs. I need something that you wouldn't hear at all with a wpm of about 90 from across an inner wall of a house, with about 5 meter range between the typist and the other person (the wall inbetween).

[RiGS]

Try these on your keycaps, and stick with your 6gv2.

[Aqo]

Thanks for the quick responses, I'm currently going over the sound-comparison for those dampeners you offered.
Still need to populate a large list of options to be sure I'd go for the right choice on this before purchase;
From my own lookup over this duration, it seemed like scissor switches might suit my needs and keyboards like the Zippy BL-741 which have both scissors switches and anti-ghosting started to spark my interest. Anybody ever had experience with those versus others and has experience to offer an unbiased opinion?
Like I said, I'm going to stick with my 6Gv2 as main keyboard anyway, unless choosing to buy a Filco on a whim at some point; but I need an alternative keyboard that emphasizes silencing with minimal loss of press quality/speed for certain hours (those times when I don't want my typing to interrupt roommates' sleep). From what I've seen so far, dampeners on mechanical are still too noisy for my needs, but I still need to check multiple comparsions for all the options you offered.

Again, thanks for the quick feedback.

[Edit] Woah, according to the sound comparison in the URL you provided, RiGS, the o-rings seem a lot more effective than how other videos portrayed them. Since the cost of those is very low I'll have to try it out immidiately as soon as I get home, thanks for the great reference.

I'm still curious to know, though; I'm aware scissor switches are of much lower quality as far as typing goes, but from a sound perspective, are they quieter than this or not?

[Soarer]

You could also try putting something between the keyboard and your desk, to stop the desk acting as a sounding board for any sounds. Try a few things out to find a balance between noise reduction and feel - thick foam will stop the most noise, but will feel a bit squishy! Old cloth mouse mats, or similiar, might work well.

[TopazPie]

You could also try putting something between the keyboard and your desk, to stop the desk acting as a sounding board for any sounds. Try a few things out to find a balance between noise reduction and feel - thick foam will stop the most noise, but will feel a bit squishy! Old cloth mouse mats, or similiar, might work well.

That's a great idea. I didn't even think of the desk adding to the sound. My keys get picked up on teamspeak while I talk. Luckily I have been able to configure the mic to not pick up the keys while I am not talking. I will try different foams tonight and see which is the best.

[hasu]

If main purpose is gaming the problem is not only your keyboard but also your screaming and swearing, right?
You should use a noise canceler for your roommate.

This is my cheapo noise canceler on Pd. Feel free to use.

I hope good sleep visit to your buddy.

[roknir]

Have you considered getting new roommates?

[lowkey]

I had some 40a o-rings from wasdkeyboards on my quickfire which worked pretty well, but I recently switched my keys over to a set of cheap cherry profile caps to see how I liked them (and I do--the lower profile is a lot nicer to type on IMO), but unfortunately the stems seem to be a bit short on some keys for the wasdkeyboards o-rings.  The keys felt very mushy and I was even making typos because of it.  The o-rings from wasd seem to be about 1.5-1.75mm thick, so I figured something smaller might work on the cherry profile keys.

I do like the feel of the keys bottoming out, so I'm really just looking to dampen the noise a bit.

I found some 1mm thick (5mm ID) 70A orings on mcmaster that I should be receiving shortly.  They were only $4 so if they're too hard/don't fit properly, no big deal, but I'm hoping they'll be small enough to fit the cherry profile keys properly and dampen some of the noise of the keys bottoming out at the same time without really messing up the feel of the keyboard.

[lorem3k]

Have you considered getting new roommates?

Probably the more satisfying option.

[sordna]

I found some 1mm thick (5mm ID) 70A orings on mcmaster that I should be receiving shortly.

Let us know how that goes!

[Surly73]

I've O-ring modded my Filco w/browns and it really hasn't removed any of the clacky quality of the switch.

A Topre Realforce (particularly the silent edition) would fit the bill.  You might even find you like it better than the Cherry switches.  Of course, O-rings are way cheaper.  Obviously buying a RF board in the buy sell here will save some bucks over new.

[Encryptor]

I have a silicone keyboard (not sure about model, not at home right now. Bought it randomly for like 10 bucks) which I use at hours past-11PM when roommates go to sleep for purposes of noise-cancelling, as silicone does absolutely zero noise when typing. This is nice, except my apm and wpm on it are almost 1/3 as much as I get on the 6Gv2. I don't mind to compromise at some hours, but this is ridiculous.

Is it one of those floppy silicone keyboards?  I had a glowing one that was absolutely awful to type on for the first few months, but the keys seemed to loosen up (or my hands developed more muscles, idk)... but yes ridiculous to type on.

From my own lookup over this duration, it seemed like scissor switches might suit my needs and keyboards like the Zippy BL-741 which have both scissors switches and anti-ghosting started to spark my interest. Anybody ever had experience with those versus others and has experience to offer an unbiased opinion?

I haven't personally tried a Zippy, but I use a scissor switch, Logitech Illuminated keyboard K800, occasionally, which feels way better than this cheapo Microsoft rubber dome my job gave me.  Either way, any scissor switch is going to be better than the floppy silicon keyboard.

[DesktopJinx]

I can't imagine why anyone would want a keyboard to be quieter. I find that my keyboard noise drowns out people blathering away nearby so that I can concentrate.

[spdx]

I can't imagine why anyone would want a keyboard to be quieter.

CASE
   WHEN a group of sensitive colleagues yell at you....
   OR your manager gets upset due to complaints from co-workers....
OR a facility manager asks you to isolate yourself in a conference room...
OR a sleepless wife screams out...  THEN
   you may want a quieter keyboard
ELSE
   keep banging on keyboard
END CASE;