Alright, so a lot of people have asked my opinion of the switches. Once I get my hands on the tactile version (I hope before the drop ends, but that's probably not likely), I'm planning to release a more in-depth review of them on r/mechanicalkeyboards. Anyways, the 3 version I do have are pretty neat.
- The Silver linear is actually fairly smooth. Not quite as smooth as Gateron, but the trade-off is the decreased wobble, in comparison. The spring is also quite interesting. It's probably due to the pre-travel, but it feels like it ramps up a lot faster, giving it that "cushion-y" feel that I enjoy.
- The Bronze clicky is one of the more unique switches I've used in a long time. It's absurdly smooth and the click is very bright and crisp. The click is actually not achieved by normal means. Instead, there is a thin metal pin on the opposite side of the switch (from the leaf) that gets triggered almost immediately in the press. This results in a click that basically lacks all tactility, so you end up with what is essentially a clicky linear switch. As a fan of linear and thing that are different, I enjoy this one a lot.
-The Gold clicky is a bit more "normal". It sounds and feels more akin to what you'd expect from a clicky MX clone. The click sounds fine, but not impressive. The tactility is okay, but oddly enough it's more tactile on the upstroke. It's pretty smooth, however.
These have been linked here before already, but HaaTa has been kind enough to measure these on his force curve machine. You can find those in here: https://plot.ly/~haata/152
One of the first things you'll notice is how light the spring seems. One the linear, for example, the switch actuates with only 27g of force, while the peak force is a measly 53g. While I'm not 100% sure, I think these numbers are skewed slightly, due to the "pre-travel". Comparing them side-by-side with Gateron Reds, the Kailh Silver actually feels a tad heavier to me, even though the Gateron Red is heavier on paper. In fact, the Silver feels heavier than all of the Red switches in my collection, from Cherry, Gateron, Kailh v1, and Outemu. So take that as you will. I'm not claiming HaaTa's graphs to be wrong, but just know that, with these particular switches, the shown weights might not tell the whole story, in terms of feel.
Overall, I'm pretty happy about the switches. I will definitely be ordering some. Kailh is here and they can finally compete with the likes of Gateron, because this new line-up is very interesting. This isn't the Kailh we knew from years ago.
QuakemzFor the linear silver switches, how much less wobble would you say it has than Gateron? Are we to the level of Cherry's lack of wobble, or somewhere in between?
QuakemzYeah, the comparison between Gateron and Kaihua speed switches isn't exactly apples to apples.
The main difference is that the speed switches are 3.5 mm of travel, vs Gateron Red switches being 4 mm.
However, the bottom out force is around 50gf on each (with different preloads). This would indicate that the Kaihua speed switches are using a heavier, shorter spring vs. Gateron Reds using a longer, lighter spring.
https://plot.ly/~haata/150 Gateron Red
https://plot.ly/~haata/320 Kaihua Silver
So yes, the Kaihua Silver switches *feel* heavier in terms of the gradient. But in terms of actual energy, Gateron Red switches are more work. (touch wise, I think human hands are better in tune with changes in force rather than how much work you've done; think 1 km run vs. 100 m sprint)
It's rather high-pitched, though very crisp. It also clicks on the upstroke. It's not much louder than a normal clicky switch, but I feel like these might hurt my ears after a while of use. lol
EELAmbienseWhen you say actuation, do you mean weight or travel distance? These switch have shorter travel than Gaterons, and a lot of that comes from the "pre-travel". So these switches will actuate sooner/faster than Gaterons. In terms of overall weight, the Gateron Black is noticeably heavier.
QuakemzI'm curious what point there is in giving a click to a linear switch the way they are supposed to have done so with the bronze... If the click is at the very beginning of the keypress, it sounds as if it isn't tied to the actuation point of the switch. For Cherry MX Blues the click and tactile feedback is supposed to notify you that the keypress should have been registered by the computer. If that is not the case for the Kaihua Speed Bronze switches then I don't understand the point, unless you just like bothering your officemates/family.
TipsyMacScotchslurpenI do believe the switch actuates with the click. All of these Speed switches have "pre-travel", meaning they are already compressed a little bit, so you can theoretically hit the switch faster. For example, I recently got the Copper (Tactile) switch, and the bump is also immediate, right at the top. So, they should actuate almost instantly.
QuakemzAhh, ok. That makes more sense. I might have to grab some of the bronzes at some point then, just to try them out. I chose the golds for my K-type order because I really like Cherry MX Blues (the bronze switches aren't an option for that KB, anyway).
Thanks
QuakemzHaha, yeah. I see myself grabbing a couple of these sets next time around. I actually got swayed by all the Halo True vs Topre talk and switched to the Trues. I will definitely order a set of the Golds while I'm waiting for November to get here. I like the idea of the Trues' "cushiony" feeling help prevent bottom-outs, hopefully making o-rings unnecessary. I kinda worry that thick o-rings (I love MX Blues with thick 50A o-rings) might cause problems with the speed switches.
QuakemzTotally. I got completely sucked up into the hype. If it hadn't been for the posts by Input Club explaining the feel of the two Halo switches to the constant onslaught of community questions I never would have thought twice about them.
QuakemzSorry for resurrecting the old discussion, I was googling and this came up. So would you say the only difference between the Silvers and Coppers are the bump in the Coppers? Have you compared them for typing? I'm deciding between the two for the Preonic drop.
_rayNo problem, at all!
The bump is the main difference, yeah. Not much difference, other than that. I don't think either switch is very good anymore, by today's standards. There are better options, depending on what you're looking for. Though, I guess if a speed switch is what you're after, they're some of the better ones. I made way too many mistakes on them, due to the super early actuation.
QuakemzAh I didn't realize there are better switches, I'm not as experienced with them at all. I've onlye used Gateron Brown and Black. I'm looking for something close to the older Macbook keyboards, pre-butterfly nonsense, like I've gotten used to my 2012 Macbook Air's keyboard and found the Gateron Blacks a bit too heavy and too much travel.
- The Silver linear is actually fairly smooth. Not quite as smooth as Gateron, but the trade-off is the decreased wobble, in comparison. The spring is also quite interesting. It's probably due to the pre-travel, but it feels like it ramps up a lot faster, giving it that "cushion-y" feel that I enjoy.
- The Bronze clicky is one of the more unique switches I've used in a long time. It's absurdly smooth and the click is very bright and crisp. The click is actually not achieved by normal means. Instead, there is a thin metal pin on the opposite side of the switch (from the leaf) that gets triggered almost immediately in the press. This results in a click that basically lacks all tactility, so you end up with what is essentially a clicky linear switch. As a fan of linear and thing that are different, I enjoy this one a lot.
-The Gold clicky is a bit more "normal". It sounds and feels more akin to what you'd expect from a clicky MX clone. The click sounds fine, but not impressive. The tactility is okay, but oddly enough it's more tactile on the upstroke. It's pretty smooth, however.
These have been linked here before already, but HaaTa has been kind enough to measure these on his force curve machine. You can find those in here: https://plot.ly/~haata/152
One of the first things you'll notice is how light the spring seems. One the linear, for example, the switch actuates with only 27g of force, while the peak force is a measly 53g. While I'm not 100% sure, I think these numbers are skewed slightly, due to the "pre-travel". Comparing them side-by-side with Gateron Reds, the Kailh Silver actually feels a tad heavier to me, even though the Gateron Red is heavier on paper. In fact, the Silver feels heavier than all of the Red switches in my collection, from Cherry, Gateron, Kailh v1, and Outemu. So take that as you will. I'm not claiming HaaTa's graphs to be wrong, but just know that, with these particular switches, the shown weights might not tell the whole story, in terms of feel.
Overall, I'm pretty happy about the switches. I will definitely be ordering some. Kailh is here and they can finally compete with the likes of Gateron, because this new line-up is very interesting. This isn't the Kailh we knew from years ago.