Ahhhh, ok, anti-spam makes sense. At least it let me quote you. People just hit the anchor link and look at the link in your post.
Fantastic thread. I’m also a silent tactile obsessive collector, and wanted to share my experiences about a few switches that hadn’t gotten as much coverage here, but that I’d recommend. All are on the heavier feedback, and thus slightly louder, end of the spectrum. I’ve arranged them from quietest/lightest feedback to loudest/heaviest feedback.
Redragon Stars
There’s sometimes “A120” I see with these – no clue if that’s a product number or what? Seem to be a fairly recent release, also fairly cheap. Decently quiet, with only a little housing collision noise, much like Outemus with a slightly higher pitch. Slightly stronger feedback, as well. One downside I’ve run into is the lack of the extra plastic pins for stability does limit what boards I can use them in. That said, they are pretty great in a rehabilitated/retrofited Das Keyboard I made recently.
Lichicx XCJZ Crimson Red / Invokeys x Alas Daydreamer
Originally found in a sample from someone on eBay, tracked down more via mkzealots and kprepublic. Then Invokeys dropped their version which is honestly a lot easier/faster to get a hold of (also more colorful, if you’re into it).
As TheraminGoat noted, the Crimson Red and Daydreamer are practically the same switch. There IS a difference in spring weight, and I find I much prefer the heavier weight of the Daydreamer. The Crimson Red has caused me some headaches in a few boards with finicky stabilizers – the spring return is so light, the stabilized key will get stuck sometimes.
Lichicx Raw Silent Tactile
Comes in two versions, “big” and “small” bumps. The small bump is on the MX Brown end of the spectrum, but there if I look for it. Big bump has strong feedback, though it almost feels like there’s more on the up stroke than the down? Slightly louder than Boba U4’s, probably due to the stronger feedback, especially on the end of the upstroke where it slaps against the top of the housing.
Big bump one is my current favorite for installs that need transparency for backlighting and require 5 pins for stability. (For stuff that can get away with 3 pins, the TTC Bluish-White is my favorite.) I actually prefer these over the Boba U4 RGB’s, though it’s close.
I took some apart and I honestly could not tell the difference between the stems for the two tactile versions – maybe the bump difference is in the contacts?
These are only slightly louder than the Crimson Red/Daydreamer, likely due to the top housing being polycarbonate instead of nylon.
Haimu x Geon Yellow Silent Tactile
These were mentioned, I believe, but most folks didn’t seem that interested, which surprised me. These are currently my favorite opaque silent tactile. They are some of the loudest due to their dampening system (uses plastic flanges instead of silicone), but also has some of the snappiest feedback. Also cheaper – not as cheap as Outemus, but much less than their cousins the Whisper.
zFrontier Rem
More “muted” than silent, but still quiet enough I’d consider it a “silent tactile.” On the higher pitched end of things, as well. For all the extra noise, you get a lot of tactile feedback for it. Most of the noise seems to be from housing collision? The LED condenser is nice, but it doesn’t let as much light through as the Lichicx Raw’s.
Hope that info is helpful for folks!