Versions:
The Silent Peach V2 will be an improved variant of Silent Peach V1. So you don’t need to try V1.
The same is true for Silent Lemon/Lime V2. You just need V2.
[And Silent Lemon and Lime are the same switch, labelled differently sometimes.]
Yellow:
OUTEMU has gone through a lot of revisions with the Silent Yellow, and it’s a similar [but more complicated] situation than with the Silent Peach.
The first I think was the Silent Cream Yellow [V1], but they didn’t really get the lubing right until V3 or so.
So you would want to buy the “Silent Cream Yellow Pro,” which may also be called V3. “Pro V3” is sometimes associated with the latest variant.
There is a similar spin on the switch called “Jade Yellow,” which uses a transparent housing. I have tried them both, and they are both pretty decent. So it is hard to choose. I guess the Jade would be better for RGB. The spring weight might be ~5 gf different between them. Maybe.
So your list should look like this:
Linears:
Silent Peach V2
Silent Ocean
Silent White
Tactiles:
Silent Cream Yellow Pro / V3 / "Butter Yellow"
Silent Jade Yellow A.K.A. "Topaz"
Silent Lemon or Lime V2
Silent TOM
As for Silent Gray, I think it’s just an earlier Silent TOM / Lemon, so maybe skip the gray [unless you can get a freebie].
Also, really most people just use the following: Silent Peach V2, Silent Lemon V2, Silent TOM, and one of the silent Yellows. Not sure about Silent Ocean, might be good.
Samples:
Here’s an example of something advertised as Silent Cream Yellow Pro, which I guess is desirable:
Here’s a big sample pack, the 16-piece one in particular seems to contain silent switches:
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005002427848379.html
The 18, 24 and 27-piece seem to cover a lot of bases [of the same types] as well.
I would buy one of those packs, containing most of the OUTEMU switches you want to try, and ask INEDA Digital Store if maybe they could throw in a TTC Silent Bluish White or some missing OUTEMU switch. [Like Silent Jade Yellow].
When buying samples - it doesn’t matter if they are Silent Lemon / Peach V1 or V2. They are almost identical. It’s only when buying a full set of them that you want to make sure they are V2.
Disadvantage of the sample packs is that they likely contain an earlier revision of Silent Cream Yellow, which are louder. Maybe verify with INEDA that the packs at least contain the silent yellow.
So, to reiterate, you could just buy one of the big packs from INEDA store. Verify the contents with them if you are unsure about anything. And ask them nicely to include a Silent Jade Yellow “Topaz” or Silent Gray or whatever is missing.
For reference:
Here are some of the latest Silent Cream Yellow Pro [“Butter Yellow Pro”]
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006103120241.html
Here is a Silent Jade Yellow [“Topaz”]
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/1005006119943987.html
It’s hard to pick between the two, as I found the samples last year to be enjoyable.
And, as said earlier, I’m not sure the Silent Gray are worth trying.
Silent Cream Yellow and such nomenclature is confusing, so I recommend consulting the silent tactile thread:
Basically, you want the latest Cream Yellow, which are listed as being “Pro” or “V3” or “Butter Yellow.” These seem to be the latest.
Plus the “Jade Yellow” or “Topaz,” which is also good.
Cases:
Deadeye is probably the guy to talk to. Most of the decent TKLs are fairly heavy. If I was moving it around I’d get an Aurora!
Seriously, though, I wonder about the Cycle7. It’s an FRL TKL. Do you need the function row?
I would avoid FR4 plates. I seem to see people using them to get louder sound, on purpose!
Yeah, the Tiger Lite might have been perfect for you! Maybe there are used ones for cheap or something.
I like the suggestion of the GMK87. It’s cheap, and they have really good sound. If it can be made silent as well as it can be made to sound good, then it would be a good choice. And it’s probably light.
Dampening:
You can use a lot of things for dampening. People were using shelf liner from Amazon during the pandemic supply disruptions.
There’s various types of foam. Poron is common. You can even use tissues.
You can even use sticky tack in particularly roomy / echoey cases. Filling up much of the space with tack!
Somebody actually wrote about the foams:
One of the reasons I like the idea of the Keychron Q-series is because I believe you can order them with dampening materials.
However, because of the Q-series weight, you might want to consider the Keychron V-series. It is like a Q-series, but plastic-case. Unfortunately, I think V-series lacks the Q-series gasket-mount. You could still use it as a silenced keyboard, but Q-series mounting should be a little nicer.