WIsh there was a Topre switch tester.
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Hahaha, +1.
So fresh so clean
Thanks. I just put the Leopold darker grey space bar on it and now it truly looks like a Lego scheme. I love the look for sure.
I'm really trying to love this switch but I'm making a lot more mistakes on this FC660C than I make on my cherry brown board. I feel the keys are a bit too stiff on topre and the switches are not as consistent throughout the keystrokes as are cherry browns. It seems like they take a lot of force to get started and then less as you press down the key, kind of like a standard rubber dome. I'm averaging about 1-2% higher error rate and about 6-10 wps slower in my typing test.
The keyboard FEELS great and sounds really nice to type on but I don't know that I will ever get as good typing on it as I can with a cherry brown board. If you have to make longer key strokes then that is going to slow you down a little I think. I'm glad I didn't spring for the 55g weight board as the keys are already stiff enough to noticeably slow me down with the 45g weight. On the Blackbird with cherry browns I can literally just lightly tap each key and not worry about it registering or not plus you get a little feedback unlike the topre. Although topre switches register the keystroke closer to the top the extra force required makes it seem the opposite, and the need to bottom the keys in order to avoid making mistakes by hitting a key too lightly takes over. This might also be due to the keys resistance throughout the keystroke becoming less as you press which almost forces you to bottom out when you type even though they do not need to be bottomed out to work.
I love the sound though, no question topre sounds the best when you type on it and I think it is more fun to type on it as well, but I'm not thinking it is worth the cost over a good board with cherry switches. Maybe it will grow on me. Is there any plans to make a lighter say all 35g topre board? There's no way this thing requires the same force as standard cherries. Maybe the rubber domes are too stiff or something, and only the springs are 45g weighted?
Anyone else's Delete key easier to press than the rest of the keys? Do your shift keys stabilizers sound kinda clankey compared to the other long keys? Well at least this board drops the volume a little and is something different to type on so that I won't get bored.
I am actually going to bring this up in my video. Where I do not feel a difference in any of the keys on my Leopold, I can see where you might feel like it is stiff. Especially coming from Cherry MX browns. I came from Reds which has the same actuation force as Browns and loved it because I was looking for a stiffer switch for a better typing experience.
However, with the Type-S the keys feel MUCH lighter. I would go as far as to say just as light as my reds but without the ability to actuate without pressing the key all the way down. Now I don't know if this is the case only with the Type-S or with HHKB boards as a whole so if you are interested in a lighter switch you definitely might want to try out either the regular HHKB and report back or spring for a Type-S. To be honest, if I had to compare the Type-S to a Cherry MX board (keep in mind if I
had, it is still very different) I would probably say it is most like Browns but even quieter.
HHKBs, even Type-S' go super quick in the Classfields -- so if you are like me and won't be satisfied until you try it; you can rest assured you will be able to sell it if you don't like it. I fell in love with Topre the minute I felt the tactility because that tight tactile feel is exactly what I was going for. Now I have my Leopold for the typing experience and the Type-S for the silencing experience with a little light actuation which I feel is better for gaming. The cushion the silencing gives also feels really nice for typing but like I said, it is definitely not as tight feeling as the FC660C.
I will likely include all of this in the comprehensive video review.
As for the Shift key sounding more 'clanky', I can definitely hear what you are saying. But it just seems to be the stabilizer rattling on the upstroke. Some of the other keys do not have the rear stabilizer or a stabilizer at all like the 'Shift' keys and 'Backspace' keys do. Topre stabilizers are like costar stabilizers but the bar is behind the metal plate (the HHKB does not have a metal plate) that holds the switch housings. The switch housing are like the black thing around Cherry switches that holds the plunger. The plunger functions like a Cherry MX stem. Nevertheless, applying some stabilizer grease should definitely help to reduce that rattle. However, I think it rattles a bit because of the plate being metal. I am not sure, I would have to open up the keyboard again.
When I first felt Topre I liked it and was intrigued, but it didn't take me until a day or so to really fall in love with it. Especially when I tried to go back to a Cherry board.
P.S. The reason longer plungers are mentioned is because of the way silencing is applied to Topre keyboards. The silencing comes from dampening the upstroke of the keys so a thin circular pad is put on the plunger but under the plate. Because of this, the actuation is slightly reduced. Realforce's silenced Topre boards have longer, purple plungers that are slightly longer to compensate for the thin pad so ideally, the stroke of the key is exactly the same without the silencing. I think one or two people on here took the plungers from the Realforce and put them on their custom modded HHKB and reported that the feel is like a regular HHKB just with the silencing of a Type-S. Custom modded HHKB or FC660Cs with ironed landing pads, dental bands or cut rubber is reported thicker than a stock Type-S and a stock Type-S has been reported to have the best silencing with the most reduction in travel due to it being done stock and at the factory. Personally, I attribute it to the fact that the plungers don't have to be poked out because when I poked mine out, I feel like it gave the keys a bit more play on top of it. However, I am not 100% sure because I don't have a stock Leopold to test it and I don't remember if it has the exact same play as it did.
If you've made it this far, I hope this explains things and helps you on your journey to your end-game board.
