I’m getting an Alice soon… actually it should be on its way to me. I would like to use Tealios V2 for them but I’m looking for an alternative that are similar to them (as in closest thing to feels).
Don’t know how Tealios feel but why stick to them? if there’s one thing the MK community doesn’t lack of is linear switches.
Durock linears (L series for example) are really great, if you’re fine with bottoming out on the pole then the Durock POMs are even better IMO in terms of smoothness.
Black Inks are the smoothest switch I’ve tried.
Alpacas are known to be great, they’re supposedly the same as every other switch made by Durock but I havn’t tried them myself so I can’t comment on that.
Budget option are Gateron Yellows KS8, the smoothest version, IMO the difference isn’t that huge than higher priced switches to justify the huge difference in price but that’s my personal opinion.
The Akko linear switches are fine but Gateron Yellows are better in my opinion.
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I’ve had a bunch of people telling me to try Black Inks so… it seems like its decided between Reddit and Discord and now here on keebtalk (barely use the site unfortunately) most people really like the Black Inks.
Thanks a lot for the recommendations, idk why I want to stick to Tealios I have this “it just works” bias towards them since I’ve used them in some builds and had a great xp but wanted something somewhat different but familiar (nostalgia? hindsight? idk).
If what you’re looking for is a very smooth linear you don’t have to fuss with, I can make a few suggestions.
Tealios (produced by Gateron) have been the gold standard high-end linear for a while now, but as time goes on others have been catching up. The Ink Black (also made by Gateron) is another one that’s hard to go wrong with - and while they are cheaper than Tealios, they’re not exactly cheap.
They are both quite good out of the box, but will need lubing to reach their true potential - and at least some in a given batch will need filming as well. (I’ve heard that last part may not apply to the newer short-travel “Box” Inks but I haven’t verified that.)
Depending on where you live (shipping), you might consider adding TTC ACEs to your list of potentials; most places that carry them have them for a fair bit less than Inks, and IMHO, they’re at least as good when it comes to being silky smooth and solid - and they don’t need any tuning at all.
Cobalts are another silky-smooth and solid linear; they sound a bit deeper than the ACEs but have some metallic chatter to the sound that can be resolved by lubing the springs. (The plastic bits should be good with the factory application; they’re very smooth from the get-go.)
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I can vouch for the cobalts; really smooth when lubed and like @Deadeye said, a bit deeper in sound if that’s a sound profile you like.
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In my opinion, closest switches to tealios that are good are gateron ks3 (all black gaterons).
They are available on taobao for cheap and you can buy an excess amount to cherry pick the good ones.
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KTT Strawberrys are super smooth, and all PC like Tealios. Those are probably the closest you’ll get less than 50cents a piece.
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That’s a pretty low bar for Tealios to have as KS3 Gateron aren’t even the smoothest Gateron version.
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Yeah stock ks3s are quite bad, but when you put time and effort in cherrypicking and then breaking in and lubing , any switch becomes very good. But their biggest strength is that they are so cheap, and you can buy multiple sets for the price of one set of expensive boutique switches.
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Hmm… by that logic, wouldn’t it be less work and time to buy the more expensive switch in the end if you’re buying 2-3-4x the amount of the cheaper switch?
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I’m always down to try new linears (and I enjoy them). But the more I try, the more I feel like I’m pretty ok with Cherry Blacks and Tealios.
But if you are keen on trying something new but same-ish, I have L+F Tealios, Tangerines, and INK Black V2s in a macropad (each switch takes up a row), and I’d be hard-pressed to tell the difference between them.
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Noted, thanks for the input (defo helpful).
Noted, thanks for the input (defo helpful). Surprisingly I’ve never heard of the L+F Tealios. hmmmmm
idk much about switch economics but I guess good switches are worth it in the end (someone told me that 4 year old mx browns with some lube are GOAT).
Thanks for the input, really appreciate it now I have a range of switches to test and probably be biased on xD
My bad, I used shorthand. L+F = lubed and filmed.