Hello everyone, my question is pretty much what the title of this post is. I'm thinking of picking up a mechanical keyboard sometime in the near future and was wondering what are some of the best options out there for silent gaming. I watched a few videos about the different sounds the cherry MX switches make, and so far I have narrowed it down to Blacks and Browns (no racism intended). The problem I am having is, I can't seem to decide between the two and seeing as how I have NEVER used a mechanical keyboard, this is quite a tough decision. Both switches seem to be fairly quiet, so I was just wondering, on a noise scale, which one is quieter? I need it to be as quiet as possible because I record gameplay and such, and my mic is incredibly sensitive and picks out every little detail.
Also if anyone knows of any quiet mice, please leave a suggestion, unless it's ridiculously expensive!
A little side note, I live in Canada and prices here are a bit higher than most places, and we don't have such a huge variety of stuff to choose from. Anyways, thank you in advance for the help!
The Majority of Key Switches are going to make noise regardless. however that can depend on hard you press the keys. honestly however i would go for the browns cause they are tolerable if noise REALLY is an issue or something like pressing a key switch is going to make your dog bark or something.
Also Quiet Mice dude? I don't think there is a mouse that makes an noise that is unbearable.
Thanks for the reply, and yes a quiet mouse, I have one already, it pretty much doesn't make a lot of noise when you click the buttons, made by a company called Nexus.
To my understanding, reds would be the most quiet, and blacks are basically just stiffer versions of reds, so of the two you mentioned, blacks would be the way to go if sound is your primary concern. Browns would likely be better to type on while still being relatively quiet (or at least lacking the high pitched clicky noise), but it's such a subjective thing. What I prefer may be different from what you prefer.
If possible, head out to a store that carries keyboards with the various Cherry MX switches and try the out. See what you prefer to type on and balance that with the sound they output.
I went to a store before here and all they had were blue switches, they feel good to type on but that clicky noise they make annoys the hell out of me. I will keep looking, might go for the Cooler Master QuickFire Rapid-i but that shit is expensiiiive!
I have the Nexus mouse, it's actually not bad but lately the buttons have been not really clicking too well, if that makes sense. I also have the Blue Yeti non pro mic, I have used headset mics that are better...
Well, both Browns and Blacks (and Reds for that matter) will lack the high pitched clicky noise (with the Reds and Blacks being the quietest due to being completely linear in design). So as far as noise goes, you should be fine with any of those. The question just comes down to what feels the best to you to type on. You might prefer the tactile feedback of the Browns (which feel similar, though not identical to the Blues you tried, just without the audible click), or the smooth all the way through feel of the Reds/Blacks.
I watched Logan's buyer guide video for mechanical keyboards, and judging from that, the reds and browns sound almost the same, yet there is another video, where the person goes through each switch and clicks them a few times, it's like a 2 minute video, and in that one the blacks and browns are the quietest. This whole thing is confusing as hell, so I think I will put it off for a little, try to find a not so sensitive mic and then delve into this once more.. Thanks for all the help!
The Reds and Blacks should be the same, since they share the same design (the only difference being the amount of force required to actuate them):
That design is also what makes them the quietest. It's just one smooth motion.
The Browns have an extra piece that gives you a tactile feedback when you press the key:
Because of this, it's a little louder than the Reds and Blacks. Of course, if you're a heavy typer and bottom all three out, the sound level will be fairly similar since most of the sound is coming from the act of the key slamming into the base rather than the motion of the key.
Blues add another step to the design, giving you the clicky sound in addition to the tactile feedback:
This makes them the loudest of the three designs, but again, if you bottom them out, the sound level will be similar to the rest, just with a high pitched click added in. The Clears share the same design as the Browns (only stiffer), and the Greens share the same design as the Blues (again, only stiffer), so their respective sound levels should be similar.
I am going to look through the reds, blacks and browns and whichever keyboard ends up being cheaper with the things I want included, I will buy it, I am tired of looking through this crap over and over again lol
Thanks to everyone's comments here, I too have now been able to decipher what I want to buy. I'm going for the Blue's since I really don't mind the clicky noise and actuation is a must for me.
That leads me to my question... Does anyone know of any good Tenkeyless designs that have a curved contour and uses PS/2? I know I'm being picky but I want what I want and if I'm going to get a nice keyboard, it might as well have ALL of the features I want (or at least most of them).
