Is there any way to completely fix the sound of clicky Alps?

[Karmel]

I recently got a Chicony 5161 with "pine" white Alps, although despite how good of a condition the keyboard appears to be in, the switches must have had something sitting on them or they've been heavily used. A lot of the keys have a very loud double click that overpowers the rest of the sound and makes the keyboard overall sound a lot worse.

From what I can see, the reason as to why they are clicking so loud on the upstroke is because the teeth on the leafs slam back into position a little too hard when normally they just go back into position as fast as the slider goes past them. Strangely the teeth on switches that have the issue and ones that don't look exactly the same and have the same angle, and it still happens no matter what angle the leaf is at, which makes it harder to know what is causing the leaf to move forward so fast.

I've tried bending the leafs in different ways and it worked a few times but most of the time it did absolutely nothing or just made the problem worse. I could probably just mess around with the keyboard until I find a way or I could just leave it the way it is, but I wanted to know if anyone has a good method of fixing them.

[Thorogrimm]

There is a somewhat commonly known fix amongst the community called the 'paper mod' where you cut a small square of paper, just under 1cm and insert it behind the click leaf. This seems to completely eliminate the click on the upstroke by filling that small void between the leaf and the housing.

[Karmel]

I have that done on my m0115 but I've never tried it on clicky Alps, ig I'll see what happens.

[Karmel]

I just tried using paper on them, even at different heights it just muffles or completely silences the click, downstroke and upstroke.

[Findecanor]

I think I have a vague recollection of it happening if the slider is in the wrong orientation, but I'm not sure.
I'm not an Alps expert.

[hellothere]

I just tried using paper on them, even at different heights it just muffles or completely silences the click, downstroke and upstroke.

That has been my experience on clicky switches, as well. Works very well on tactile -- well, on the salmon Alps switches I was testing on, at least.

Just as a suggestion, you might want to try a few switches without the click leaf and see if it's still clicking. That'd eliminate the click leaf as the culprit (although it probably is).

[Polecat]

I bought a NeXT keyboard a few years back, and about half the black Alps switches clicked on the upstroke. Those are tactile switches, so they shouldn't click at all. I didn't bother trying to fix them, because black Alps are at the very bottom of my list, but I'm fairly certain that nobody had messed with those switches. I've had white Alps do the same thing, but again I haven't tried to fix them. Opening up Alps switches just isn't my thing. That probably isn't any help, other than to confirm any suspicions that clicky and tactile Alps switches can indeed get that way on their own.

[Muirium]

…other than to confirm any suspicions that clicky and tactile Alps switches can indeed get that way on their own.

With use, I think. I’ve had my hands on 4 or 5 new old stock black Alps NeXT boards, and all of them were fine. The one still in my possession is the best feeling black Alps I’ve ever had, and easily the best looking Alps board of all time.

[thousandperfume]

The upstroke click on clicky alps stems from the bottom tabs of the leaf spring having too much play with the top housing. I used tape to cover ONLY the bottom side of the leaf (as not to silence the click) so that it doesn't move, and I managed to fix it. If it messes up with the sound, try repositioning the tape to have as minimal interference as possible.

[andreas]

The upstroke click on clicky alps stems from the bottom tabs of the leaf spring having too much play with the top housing. I used tape to cover ONLY the bottom side of the leaf (as not to silence the click) so that it doesn't move, and I managed to fix it. If it messes up with the sound, try repositioning the tape to have as minimal interference as possible.

Good insight. Do you have a photo by any chance? I'm currenlty restoring Creams from an AEKII to move to my Planck.

[Karmel]

The upstroke click on clicky alps stems from the bottom tabs of the leaf spring having too much play with the top housing. I used tape to cover ONLY the bottom side of the leaf (as not to silence the click) so that it doesn't move, and I managed to fix it. If it messes up with the sound, try repositioning the tape to have as minimal interference as possible.

I think I found a way similar to this just now. I don't know if it works long term but bending the tabs at the bottom of the leaf outwards can fix the upstroke click, but you have to be careful doing so.

If you bend the tabs too little the issue will not be fixed and if you bend them too much the switch will stop clicking entirely and just become tactile. But you don't really have to worry as you can always just take the switch apart again and adjust them. I experimented with a few switches on my 5161 and managed to get a few perfect.

I genuinely have no idea why this works though, as I always thought the double click was caused by the teeth on the front of the leaf slamming forward too hard on the upstroke, as that is what I could observe when looking at the bottom of some Acer switches which had the same issue. I guess click leafs are just confusing in general as to how they work, as my NEC blue oval switches all double click and consistently, but it's a good sound and not high pitched.

[SK-8K]

For tactile alps switches, what about putting grease on the back of the tactile leaf? It may be easier than the tape mod.

[Karmel]

For tactile alps switches, what about putting grease on the back of the tactile leaf? It may be easier than the tape mod.

For me medium thick paper or tape works just fine and isn't hard at all after the first few switches you do it to. I feel like grease would eventually displace and mess with other parts of the switch, if it would even work in the first place.

[thousandperfume]

The upstroke click on clicky alps stems from the bottom tabs of the leaf spring having too much play with the top housing. I used tape to cover ONLY the bottom side of the leaf (as not to silence the click) so that it doesn't move, and I managed to fix it. If it messes up with the sound, try repositioning the tape to have as minimal interference as possible.

I think I found a way similar to this just now. I don't know if it works long term but bending the tabs at the bottom of the leaf outwards can fix the upstroke click, but you have to be careful doing so.

If you bend the tabs too little the issue will not be fixed and if you bend them too much the switch will stop clicking entirely and just become tactile. But you don't really have to worry as you can always just take the switch apart again and adjust them. I experimented with a few switches on my 5161 and managed to get a few perfect.

I genuinely have no idea why this works though, as I always thought the double click was caused by the teeth on the front of the leaf slamming forward too hard on the upstroke, as that is what I could observe when looking at the bottom of some Acer switches which had the same issue. I guess click leafs are just confusing in general as to how they work, as my NEC blue oval switches all double click and consistently, but it's a good sound and not high pitched.

If I got the idea behind what you did properly, repositioning the tabs can probably help stabilize the leaf spring bottom from not moving on the upstroke. The idea is the same with the paper/tape mod , and the softer surface adds a bit of dampening as well.

I'm (pretty sure) it's actually the flat surface behind the teeth slamming too hard on the top housing after you go up the switchplate. The teeth should help stabilize it from moving too much, but over time they probably get warped and don't do it properly. The teeth slamming forward should happen during the downstroke if my brain is imagining how the click works correctly. It would explain why putting tape on the back side of the click leaf manages to get rid of the upstroke click, it wouldn't be able to do that if it was the teeth creating the upstroke sound.

[Bitteneite]

I know this an old post, but I'd like to contribute with some pictures (In case more people need to fix their upstoke-clicks in the future)

I think I found a way similar to this just now. I don't know if it works long term but bending the tabs at the bottom of the leaf outwards can fix the upstroke click, but you have to be careful doing so.

I've had great results doing this to a couple of SKCM White and Blue Alps boards. Here's what I found...

For some reason, those tabs get "warped" over time... or something. (Obviously)


Take the leaf out, and bend the tabs outwards with a tweezer. (Or just your fingers, if you're feeling clumsy)
By bending them outwards, the entire leaf fits more tightly into the top-housing. Easy!


Here's a video comparing them:

Before:

After:

The upstoke click is softened by a lot, but there's still a veeery faint click when pressing slowly.
During typing however, it's barely audible.

Notes:

• As mentioned by OP, you'll need to find a sweet spot when bending.
• Too much bending, and the leaf won't click anymore.
• Too little bending, and the leaf will still double-click.
• When done right, the leaf should have a teeny tiny amount of resistance when re-assembled into the top-housing. (After a while, you can get a feel for this)
• Although it's not perfect, you can kinda "test" it before assembling:

• With some practice, you can hear the distinct sound of under/overbent tabs.
• You might still need to re-adjust the tabs, but this is a quick-and-dirty way to check before assembling.

I hope this helps!

[inozenz]

I know this an old post, but I'd like to contribute with some pictures (In case more people need to fix their upstoke-clicks in the future)


I hope this helps!

awesome resource!

[Muirium]

Absolutely! Bookmarked for future use.

[darkcruix]

Absolutely! Bookmarked for future use.

Same here -thanks!

[zhoulander]

The upstroke click on clicky alps stems from the bottom tabs of the leaf spring having too much play with the top housing. I used tape to cover ONLY the bottom side of the leaf (as not to silence the click) so that it doesn't move, and I managed to fix it. If it messes up with the sound, try repositioning the tape to have as minimal interference as possible.

This works great! Bending the bottom is too inconsistent. Bending the ears didn’t work. Paper or tape behind it dampens it to be tactile. Just taping the bottom is perfect!