Topre all-35 g feel

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I've noticed with my variable Realforce that the 35 g keys are mushy and barely tactile, while the 45 g keys are very tactile. It feels like they've softened the key by removing the tactility rather than having a lighter yet still tactile dome.

This is fine for a variable weight keyboard (for whatever reason you don't notice – variable weight Topre works perfectly), but it would seem to me that an all-35 g Realforce would be absolutely horrible with mushy centre keys.

Are all-35 g Realforce boards really just all mush, or do they have a more tactile 35 g dome than the one used on the variable?

[reaper]

Wait..  There's a uniform 35g Topre out there?  I must be living in a cave. lol

[Daniel Beardsmore]

I thought I saw one mentioned the other day, one of the special edition ones. Maybe I just dreamed it up ..... wouldn't surprise me honestly. I am going to end up like samrod .....

[khaangaaroo]

There are all-30g boards available in Japan and China. I don't think there's an all-35g.
When coming from 45g, the lighter switches do feel mushy. But after using exclusively 30g for while and getting used to the lightness of the keys, they definitely start feeling more tactile. I can feel the bump pretty well, and usually don't bottom out any more. Once the fingers adapt to them, lighter topre domes can feel pretty snappy too.

[raisinbun]

I've noticed with my variable Realforce that the 35 g keys are mushy and barely tactile, while the 45 g keys are very tactile. It feels like they've softened the key by removing the tactility rather than having a lighter yet still tactile dome.

This is fine for a variable weight keyboard (for whatever reason you don't notice – variable weight Topre works perfectly), but it would seem to me that an all-35 g Realforce would be absolutely horrible with mushy centre keys.

Are all-35 g Realforce boards really just all mush, or do they have a more tactile 35 g dome than the one used on the variable?

To me, mushy does not equal lightness... 30g RF are light and has lower tactility, but the characteristics are similar in that the key press is smooth, tactility is soft but present, and the landing is firm. The common mushy feeling associated with lower quality rubber domes is not there at all.

[trentva]

i cant decide if i like 30 or 45g more with the 30g its almost as if the keys are so light the board is broken... with the 45 i feel like i am at least pressing something

[Daniel Beardsmore]

To me, mushy does not equal lightness... 30g RF are light and has lower tactility, but the characteristics are similar in that the key press is smooth, tactility is soft but present, and the landing is firm. The common mushy feeling associated with lower quality rubber domes is not there at all.

Except that's what Topre have done: the 35 g switches are mushy instead of being light. The problem with many rubber dome boards is that they have a very poorly-defined tactile point, to the extent that they can be mistaken for being linear. If you push the switch lightly, it just squishes without a sharp tactile bump. I think this is what's given rubber domes such a bad name for most people. The AppleDesign Keyboard is one of these squishy boards.

That's what's happened to the Topre 35 g domes – they don't feel lighter, they're just not really tactile. The 45 g switches have a very sharp tactile point. However, for whatever reason it doesn't seem to matter if you weaken the outer keys, and I don't know how much worse it would be if the centre (45 g) domes were just as smooshy as the outer ones. 45 g Topre domes are exceptionally good.

I'd be intrigued to try an all 55 g board, as the 55 g dome feels almost as stiff as blue Alps. (Vintage blue Alps is only something like a 45–50 g spring, but it does have a very sharp, strong tactile point.)

[khaangaaroo]

...key press is smooth, tactility is soft but present, and the landing is firm...

+1

That's what's happened to the Topre 35 g domes – they don't feel lighter, they're just not really tactile.

From my personal experience, I would have to disagree with you and agree with raisinbun. 35g (and even 30g) are very tactile for how light the keys are. Like I said in my previous post, once you get used to the 35g or 30g, the tactile bump is definitely well-defined and becomes easier to feel. And if you're using 45g a lot or in combination with 35g, you likely won't ever feel the tactility in 35g since your fingers won't have time to adapt.

It's all personal preference of course. If you think heavier topre could be your thing, you should give it a try. There seem to be a lot of people here that are bigger fans of 55g than they are of the lighter domes. Or maybe lighter boards are just harder to come by, I dunno.

[jackstar7]

Seems like both lighter are harder to come by AND people seem to crave the heavier feel. No idea why, personally as I enjoy a lighter actuation and smoother experience, but this whole thing is so wildly subjective.

[Rinsaku]

35g sounds so amazing... US keyboard companies need to get on it! T.T