Influence of keycaps on switch feel?

[evoman]

I am not experienced with swapping keycaps - I have spent a decade using Model Ms with their original IBM keycaps - so I have a naive question. How do caps typically influence the feel of a switch? (and sliders for that matter?). I have ordered my first set of SA caps (the Dasher set from MD) and I am wondering if I should expect these to make a switch feel heavier, lighter, or no different? I am likely to use them with Topre switches, either on a NovaTouch or a RealForce with replacement MX sliders. The RF is the 55g version, which I find heavy, so I am especially interested in whether it is likely to feel very different?

I also wonder about how the new caps typically influence key rattle. The NT keys feel like they have a lot of rattle to me, whereas the RF seem pretty solid (no wobble). Is that likely to change with different caps?

[ohaimark]

I think that caps influence sound more than they influence feel.

If you had extreme, metal caps they might make the switches feel lighter. Some massively thick space bars make switches noticeably lighter, for example.

I doubt that the rattly feeling will change, though its sound (if there is one) will be altered by the thickness and structure of the caps.

[Matt_]

I'd say that different keycaps won't affect the feel of the switches themselves. But they will affect the way your keyboard feels. Not heavier, not lighter, not more tactile, but different to type on.

[evoman]

Interesting. I was hoping that the taller SA caps might make the 55g Topre switches feel a bit lighter. Neither of these Topre boards is ideal to me - the NT feels wobbly and the keycap profile is too flat for me, and the RF is just too heavy (which is weird since the switch logically shouldn't feel much heavier than a Model M)

[ohaimark]

I guess taller stems/caps could cause worse off center presses, but that would just make the switches scratchier and heavier.

[sungwon]

Of course, There is a lot of difference depending on height and material.

[sungwon]

Even the color of the keycap seems to affect the feel
Maybe it's because they have different materials.

[ideus]

The way you perceive typing on a board is a very personal aspect of this common activity. The profile, material and surface finishing of the keycaps are the actual things that you interact with, firstly. Those surface will convey you the final effect of your entire keyboard, including switches, plate, case and so on. I'd say that most people would sense a slight change in feeling when they change a key cap set on a board, of course, it is a holistic thing, that depends on many factors not just one.

[THATGUY69]

It does change the sound of the key. I put model F keys on a model m just for giggles and it makes it sound a bit more solid and give a more pinging sound to the keys. So I would say that keys do make a difference.

[czarek]

Oh definitely. Matching keycaps to switches is very important. And it doesn't mean you always go for PBT dye subs, or double shots, cherry profile vs OEM, or DSA, or SA. That means you can make an awesome switch (like Topre) feel crap by putting thin pad printed OEM profile ABS keycaps on it. Same way you can make stock MX Reds or Browns (not liked much in general) feel very cool with ABS SA profile double shots.

To me a nice matches are also:
- GMK Double Shots (thick ABS) with MX Blacks (even better with vintage ones)
- Thin ABS OEM profile caps (like stock Filcos, or Tai Hao double shots) with MX Browns or MX Blues
- Thin PBT OEM profile with MX Blues (super crisp but not too loud, one of my favourite combos)
- Thick PBT Gaterons (aka Enjoy PBT) with 62G Zealios (this feels fantastic actually, very similar to Topre, just snappier, louder and with clack instead of thock)

IMO bad mixtures are:
- MX Browns with PBT double shots (like stock Ducky, they feel literally like broken reds)
- MX Blues with thick PBT caps (they're deafeningly loud and high pitched)
- MX Reds with thin ABS caps (those rarely feel good, hard to get this switch feel nice)
- Zealios feel very wobbly with SA profile caps

That being said, Topre feels best with stock Realforce/HHKB keycaps. Those are really fantastic. White HHKB keycaps are probably my favourite looking and feeling ones out there. I also enjoy original IBM keycaps and GMK double shots on linear cherries.

Also, note that a lot of people around here love vintage Alps switches, which were sporting thin OEM profile ABS keycaps in most cases, very often made by Tai Hao, and those caps are rather disregarded nowadays

[Findecanor]

Yeah, I do find that the sound of typing on a keyboard definitely can influence how you type on a keyboard, and how you type does of course influence how it feels typing on that keyboard.

Personally, I don't like to hear when I am bottoming out hard. If it sounds hard, it feels hard and that makes me type a bit more gently than I might have done on a keyboard with the same switches that is not as loud.

[h3ll0]

One thing I can say for sure: The same switch can feel drastically different on different keyboards. I had the chance to type on a Varmilo VA87M and a Poker 3 and although both had MX-Browns, one felt scratchy and light while the other felt much smoother and "fuller". Can't remember which was which unfortunately

Not sure if the caps made a difference or whether it was something else in the construction, but there was a noticable difference. Also it was certainly not related to the sound, because the location was so loud you never even heard the switches.