just how loud are mechanical keyboards?

[Easy Rhino]

i would like to buy one but i am afraid they will be too loud to use at night. my office is right next door to my son's room and i don't want to wake him with furious typing at 11PM.

 

[TheMailMan78]

i would like to buy one but i am afraid they will be too loud to use at night. my office is right next door to my son's room and i don't want to wake him with furious typing at 11PM.

Depends on the keyboard man. DECK makes a quiet one but you gotta come out the pocket. My Razer sounds like bag of spoons in a metal trash can. But it was cheap.

 

[brandonwh64]

I can hear mailman pounding on his during BF3 sessions through teamspeak so yea he is a hard typer or his keyboard is like a old typewriter.

 

[TheMailMan78]

I can hear mailman pounding on his during BF3 sessions through teamspeak so yea he is a hard typer or his keyboard is like a old typewriter.

Honestly I think its a mix of both because Dave doesn't have that issue and he has the same one as me.

 

[brandonwh64]

Honestly I think its a mix of both because Dave doesn't have that issue and he has the same one as me.

Maybe mic sensitivity as well. I also have been thinking of mechanical KB and ebay has some for around 39$ cheap but how well the switches are is the thinker.

 

[Jstn7477]

Honestly, my $130 Gigabyte Aivia Osmium (Cherry MX Reds) is relatively quiet, quieter than the keyboard on the IBM Wheelwriter 2 I still use at work to type up certificates. The noise seems to come mostly from the keys bottoming out and slamming against the bottom of the tray, versus the typewriter I use where you hear that as well as the switches "pinging" when they are actuated.

 

[Kaynar]

I got a Filco Majestouch 2 with MX Black keys, pretty loud but certainly not hearable over a wall (even slim wall) or closed door. Sound comparable to normal typewriter. However when i am playing online games with friends and talking on skype, their heads are about to explode after an hour or so. There are many different types of keys, try to pick one that is known to be quiet. The blacks are between the loudest.

 

[ERazer]

really depends on the switch you pick, mine is not that loud i have cherry mx brown

 

[Jetster]

I have Cherry mx Blue and they are loud. Sound just like a typewriter but actually its kinda soothing

Here is how the colors work
http://www.pcworld.com/article/242037/mechanical_keyboard_faq_pick_the_right_switch.html

 

[Fourstaff]

Heard blacks, over closed door, its quite hard to hear unless you are specifically trying to pick up that sound. Easily gotten used to, sometimes my friend will just smash his black away next to a sleeping me and I continue sleeping.

 

[sneekypeet]

Any keyboard can be "dampened" with a set of rubber o-rings. Reds are likely the quietest, but to me have a muddy feel. Anything other than those will be louder, with Cherry MX green, and Alps switches being the loudest.

I would look at something like the Matias Quiet Pro...http://www.matias.ca/quietpro/
..or you can grab any board and use these...http://www.wasdkeyboards.com/index.php/cherry-mx-rubber-switch-dampeners.html

Also if you are a "key pounder", any mechanical is going to be loud. If you are a touch typist and only go to the actuation point and not bottom the caps on the steel plate, all you should get is a click and not the clack of the cap bottoming out.

 

[brandonwh64]

What type switches does this one have?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Cherry-...23?pt=PCA_Mice_Trackballs&hash=item5652c690a3

 

[sneekypeet]

What type switches does this one have?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/NEW-Cherry-...23?pt=PCA_Mice_Trackballs&hash=item5652c690a3

I looked around and all I can find is a newegg review that claims they are not tactile switches, even the manufacturer page doesn't lay claim to which are inside of it, and reviews are not out there it seems. Since there is a claim of the lack of a tactile feel in the switch, I would guess blacks or reds.

 

[brandonwh64]

I looked around and all I can find is a newegg review that claims they are not tactile switches, even the manufacturer page doesn't lay claim to which are inside of it, and reviews are not out there it seems. Since there is a claim of the lack of a tactile feel in the switch, I would guess blacks or reds.

Only thing I could find says it has Cherry ML switches?

 

[sneekypeet]

Only thing I could find says it has Cherry ML switches?

I would assume ML is for mechanical, no color associated. Also after looking at the pdf for that keyboard it states they are in fact linear switches, so again reds or blacks.

 

[Phusius]

I love my blues, ftw!

 

[brandonwh64]

If anyone wants to take a gamble on these mechanical keyboards, here are some quite cheap!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CHERRY-NEW-...67?pt=PCA_Mice_Trackballs&hash=item20ceb42273

 

[erocker]

If you find whatever you choose to be too loud, you can get an o-ring kit.

 

[sneekypeet]

If anyone wants to take a gamble on these mechanical keyboards, here are some quite cheap!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/CHERRY-NEW-...67?pt=PCA_Mice_Trackballs&hash=item20ceb42273

Why not message the seller and ask

If you find whatever you choose to be too loud, you can get an o-ring kit.

added a link in my original post for those

 

[brandonwh64]

Why not message the seller and ask

I probably will. I have found other links saying they are a Cherry MY switch.

 

[sneekypeet]

no idea man. As far as I can see there is no reference to the actual switches, and I'm just assuming since it is a Cherry board they are at least using their own switches.

In reality, a bit of Google-ing shows that ML are poopy...http://www.cherrycorp.com/english/switches/key/ml.htm

and the MY are also cheap switches...http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cherry_MY basically a rubber dome with a spring under the key cap.

I assumed this whole time that they were making typo's on MX switches This would also help explain the $13 price point.

 

[brandonwh64]

no idea man. As far as I can see there is no reference to the actual switches, and I'm just assuming since it is a Cherry board they are at least using their own switches.

In reality, a bit of Google-ing shows that ML are poopy...http://www.cherrycorp.com/english/switches/key/ml.htm

and the MY are also cheap switches...http://deskthority.net/wiki/Cherry_MY basically a rubber dome with a spring under the key cap.

I assumed this whole time that they were making typo's on MX switches This would also help explain the $13 price point.

Yea was looking up the keyboard and on the Cherry website they state is has "FTSC technology" which points to MY switches sux.

 

[sneekypeet]

@ Easy Rhino, you can also visit youtube to "listen" to them all and get a better feel for what you are looking for. mechanical keyboard switches - YouTube

 

[MxPhenom 216]

If you want quiet keyboards stay away from ones that have Cherry MX blue switches. They are the clicky ones. Red, Black, and browns are quiet, unless you bottom them out in which case they will make a little noise, however with the blue switches that make a click through the stroke unlike others.

Heres a thead at OCN with animated pictures and decriptions for every switch.
http://www.overclock.net/t/491752/mechanical-keyboard-guide

 

[Easy Rhino]

wow, i have a lot to think about now. i definitely want that mechanical feel of punching the keys (your the man now, dog!) but don't want the entire house to know when it's happy time.