Dampened Clicky switches - do they have any practical use?

[AlpsComeback]

I just got an AEKII that I've been using as my daily driver. I decided to swap some parts with my Focus FK-2001 SKCM Whites, and I tried the SKCM White click leaf with the SKCM Cream Damped housing, slider, etc. It made a decent clicky sound. It made me wonder if there would be any practical use in a switch like this.

The main reason dampened switches exist is because the undampened versions are too loud for some people. However, tactile switches don't always give the same type of tactility as clicky switches do. So a dampened clicky switch might be as loud as an undamped tactile switch, but with a different type of tactility that might be to more people's liking. Then you could have a true "quiet click" type switch.

Would you buy a keyboard with dampened clicky switches as an alternative to undampened tactile switches?

[mcmaxmcmc]

I personally wouldn't buy a dampened clicky switch over a tactile switch, but in some cases that would make a better choice. I can see the dampening as more of a cushion; perhaps you want a softer bottom out.

[Muirium]

The main reason dampened switches exist is because the undampened versions are too loud for some people.

And some environments. One of the best things about my HHKB Type S is that I can use it while calling people, I can type away in the library without irritating anyone, and generally not attract attention to all my typing the way a louder keyboard would. Helps that I adore the feel of it, as the HHKB is no compromise for me!

Anyway, regards damped clicks: Matias makes those. Here’s a thread all about that.

keyboards-f2/matias-mini-quiet-pro-what ... 19813.html

Alas, Matias switches have real reliability problems. All of them, not just the quiet clicks. But the idea is out there and people have their impressions.

[Findecanor]

Right now, I would prefer switches to be as silent as possible.
But I think that if a switch is clicky, then YES it should be dampened! The point of the click is to provide precise aural feedback on actuation, and for that to be precise then that sound should not be mixed with extraneous similar noises.
All my keyboards with Cherry MX Blue have O-rings and years ago I also modded a Dell AT101W to have clicky dampened switches (Black lower part, Cream slider, White click leaves).

BTW. Matias "Quiet Click" switches aren't really clicky switches, are they? A switch can not be quiet and clicky — that is a contradiction in terms.

BTW 2. The best way to get a dampened clicky Cherry MX-style switch right now would be to add a QMX clip to a Gateron Blue switch. The clips don't fit on Cherry MX Blue or on most clicky clones.

[Myoth]

I just got an AEKII that I've been using as my daily driver. I decided to swap some parts with my Focus FK-2001 SKCM Whites, and I tried the SKCM White click leaf with the SKCM Cream Damped housing, slider, etc. It made a decent clicky sound. It made me wonder if there would be any practical use in a switch like this.

The main reason dampened switches exist is because the undampened versions are too loud for some people. However, tactile switches don't always give the same type of tactility as clicky switches do. So a dampened clicky switch might be as loud as an undamped tactile switch, but with a different type of tactility that might be to more people's liking. Then you could have a true "quiet click" type switch.

Would you buy a keyboard with dampened clicky switches as an alternative to undampened tactile switches?

I have made a keyboard like that, also with an AEK2, and they're great, for me the point is to have a clicky sound without the bottom out sound, kind of a solenoid, but without the sound of the switches. It makes for a crisp sound which I really appreciate, I wish MX switches with such a design existed, maybe Kailh and their clickbar switches could make something similar without too much hassle.

[AlpsComeback]

BTW. Matias "Quiet Click" switches aren't really clicky switches, are they?

You're correct, Matias Quiet Click switches do not click. They are dampened tactile switches with an awful name. I think Matias was trying to make it easier for the casual customers, by trying to say that they're similar to their Click switches in feel, but don't click, hence the "Quiet Click" name. But as mechanical keyboard enthusiasts, it's more confusing, because we know it as a dampened tactile switch (which is what it is), and it doesn't click at all. So they really should switch the name of it to Matias Quiet Tactile or something similar to avoid confusion.

[Hypersphere]

When I refurbish Alps-switch keyboards, I sometimes put a damped slider from a Matias "Quiet Click" switch into the spacebar switch. If the original spacebar switch was clicky, I sometimes also put the tactile leaf from a Matias Quiet Click into the switch. These maneuvers result in successive levels of quietness for the spacebar.