WASD Keyswitch, keycap, and o-ring sampler kit review

[TimIsABat]

Hey there guys!

This is my first review so please be gentle.

In the new beginnings of my journey through the addiction of mechanical keyboards I need to be able to get a feel of the different switches. Thus, I bought the WASD switch, cap, and o-ring sampler kit that has been suggested to me by many others. This is a good teaser as I wait for two MX Red boards.

Anyway onto the review...This is what comes in the mail when you purchase from WASDkeyboards:



You get 5 keyswitches, 5 of each of the three different o-rings, and 11 different keycaps.

I like how fast it got to me (although USPS delayed my package because they are buns), and I really like how it comes with the MX clear now.

MX Switch Review
This is going to be incomplete due to the fact that the switches are unmounted which doesn't give the proper feel as to how it will feel on a keyboard.

Reds
So far, this is my favorite switch. I like the light airy feeling it provide. The linear feel felt right as I know that I am a light touch typist. I can't wait to have my two mx red boards.

Black
This is my second favorite switch, if there was a poker x on ebay with a black switch for the same price that I found mine, I would've gotten this instead of MX Red. It feels like how a brown is described because you can feel that resistance as you pressed down. What I like about the mx black is that started to get resistant as you got further to the bottom. I know I couldn't test the actuation point and the resistance, but it still felt great.

Clear
This switch had me think a bit. Tactility in general I found to not be my thing. The bump in all the tactile switches were all mushy to me. I hardly felt the bump more so just whether there was resistance or not. With that, if I had to pick a tactile switch I would pick the clears because it was the most resistant. The resistance was like the black in that it is not overwhelming but felt it more as I passed the bump. I would probably go ergo-clear if I had the choice.

Blue
I can actually write a bit about this keyswitch because I tried it out on a Razer Blackwidow Ultimate at the Windows Store at my local mall. I felt the tactility as I heard the switch (just like those pictures that make you hear a thump when it lands on the ground). I thought I would enjoy typing on these but rather I didn't when I tried it. It felt rough and sometimes (idk if it was just the BWU or what) even though I pressed passed the bump, it wouldn't read it. This made me realize that I type lighter than I thought. I didn't like how it just felt rough to me and felt imbalanced with the resistance.

Brown
This is my least favorite switch. As I have read a lot on GH, it felt like a scratchy linear switch. I felt the bump, but it felt more like a stuck keyswitch. I tapped on the keyswitch as if I was typing (although not the same), and I realized that I still didn't go past that bump at times. It feels like it would get in my way rather than guide me.

O-Ring Review
This review will also be incomplete and fixed later when I get my keyboard (FC660M).

Blue
I enjoyed this on the linear switches, I didn't feel a hard clack when I played with the switches on this, it felt soft and not too squishy. It just felt like a softer bottoming out.

Black
I enjoyed this one on the linear switches as well. It wasn't necessarily "hard" like they described it to be on the website, but rather it felt like a thicker blue o-ring. I wanna try the two when my keyboard comes in.

Red
There wasn't too much of a feel with this o-ring, so I can't really tell. I will test them with my future keyboards.

TL;DR
I thoroughly enjoyed MX Reds and Blacks...Clears are my only favorite tactile switch...Blue and Black o-rings are really nice as well, but will need further testing when I get a keyboard

[CPTBadAss]

Short and sweet. Not a bad review. Shouldve posted it in the review section though .

Fix your underline code in the Brown section by the way. You used a } instead of a ].

You should also go to the MicroCenter near you. If you really go to Seton Hall, there's one 20 minutes away from you. I tried a ton of boards at MicroCenter. Ducky Zero, Levetron with Clicky White Alps, and QFR are just some examples.

[TimIsABat]

Short and sweet. Not a bad review. Shouldve posted it in the review section though .

Fix your underline code in the Brown section by the way. You used a } instead of a ].

You should also go to the MicroCenter near you. If you really go to Seton Hall, there's one 20 minutes away from you. I tried a ton of boards at MicroCenter. Ducky Zero, Levetron with Clicky White Alps, and QFR are just some examples.

What's funny is that I always forget about that Microcenter. I have to go check it out sometime. Just hate driving through Paterson (Most Wayne and Paterson drivers can be a nuisance).

[rowdy]

Damn, I only got 4 switches in my Sampler Kit (granted this was quite a few months ago).

Wonder if they will include an MX green switch one day.

Nice review

[TimIsABat]

One thing that I may add, is that if you know what you are doing, you can take apart each switch and mix and match springs.

Right now I tried an ergo-clear with MX Reds, and even though it is meant for heavier springs...the Ergo-Clear with a red spring isn't too bad. It feels like a better brown.

also tried Panda-clear. That too is pretty good. Felt a little like rubber dome, but rather the force was just right to reach the actuation.

[rowdy]

One thing that I may add, is that if you know what you are doing, you can take apart each switch and mix and match springs.

Right now I tried an ergo-clear with MX Reds, and even though it is meant for heavier springs...the Ergo-Clear with a red spring isn't too bad. It feels like a better brown.

also tried Panda-clear. That too is pretty good. Felt a little like rubber dome, but rather the force was just right to reach the actuation.

Oh yes, and switch top removal tools designed (?) and sold right here on Geekhack are recommended for switch disassembly

[CPTBadAss]

One thing that I may add, is that if you know what you are doing, you can take apart each switch and mix and match springs.

Right now I tried an ergo-clear with MX Reds, and even though it is meant for heavier springs...the Ergo-Clear with a red spring isn't too bad. It feels like a better brown.

also tried Panda-clear. That too is pretty good. Felt a little like rubber dome, but rather the force was just right to reach the actuation.

I just did a similar test with a bunch of springs I had. The review is in my signature. Ergo-clears were ok but I loved Panda-clears

[Polymer]

OP: 

A bit confused...you weren't hitting the actuation point on brown/blues but you were ok with clears?  Same with Blacks vs. Browns/blues....

[TimIsABat]

OP: 

A bit confused...you weren't hitting the actuation point on brown/blues but you were ok with clears?  Same with Blacks vs. Browns/blues....

The pronounciation of the clear's bump made it more noticeable thus subconsciously pressing the right amount of force to hit the actuation point. The browns and blues felt more like an uncertainty to me. Again it's all incomplete because I don't have a proper mount

[TimIsABat]

One thing that I may add, is that if you know what you are doing, you can take apart each switch and mix and match springs.

Right now I tried an ergo-clear with MX Reds, and even though it is meant for heavier springs...the Ergo-Clear with a red spring isn't too bad. It feels like a better brown.

also tried Panda-clear. That too is pretty good. Felt a little like rubber dome, but rather the force was just right to reach the actuation.

Oh yes, and switch top removal tools designed (?) and sold right here on Geekhack are recommended for switch disassembly

Awesome to know! I used the nail file of a nail clipper to open it up lol

[Jack Karneval]

Short and sweet. Not a bad review. Shouldve posted it in the review section though .

Fix your underline code in the Brown section by the way. You used a } instead of a ].

You should also go to the MicroCenter near you. If you really go to Seton Hall, there's one 20 minutes away from you. I tried a ton of boards at MicroCenter. Ducky Zero, Levetron with Clicky White Alps, and QFR are just some examples.

What's funny is that I always forget about that Microcenter. I have to go check it out sometime. Just hate driving through Paterson (Most Wayne and Paterson drivers can be a nuisance).

Good review Tim! Also, I've been to MicroCenter, it's basically on the edge of Paterson, so there's not much to worry about. Parking lot is huge too, and nobody really parks in the back so I always park there to keep my car away from all the other cars.
 
Microcenter is literally the only place in NJ that I know of that caters to the PC enthusiast at all, I love going there, and when there's no traffic it's a really nice drive as well.

[TimIsABat]

Short and sweet. Not a bad review. Shouldve posted it in the review section though .

Fix your underline code in the Brown section by the way. You used a } instead of a ].

You should also go to the MicroCenter near you. If you really go to Seton Hall, there's one 20 minutes away from you. I tried a ton of boards at MicroCenter. Ducky Zero, Levetron with Clicky White Alps, and QFR are just some examples.

What's funny is that I always forget about that Microcenter. I have to go check it out sometime. Just hate driving through Paterson (Most Wayne and Paterson drivers can be a nuisance).

Good review Tim! Also, I've been to MicroCenter, it's basically on the edge of Paterson, so there's not much to worry about. Parking lot is huge too, and nobody really parks in the back so I always park there to keep my car away from all the other cars.
 
Microcenter is literally the only place in NJ that I know of that caters to the PC enthusiast at all, I love going there, and when there's no traffic it's a really nice drive as well.

I'll probably go there sometime either before or after my summer class.

[Sifo]

Hey man, nice review Glad you're figuring out what you like ^_^

[TimIsABat]

Hey man, nice review Glad you're figuring out what you like ^_^

Thanks to you directing me here to geekhack, I kinda know what I am actually doing.