How do I choose switches and keycaps?

Which switch types is more popular?

If you're just starting out with mechanical keyboards, or have a strong preference you may already be familiar with MX switches. There's a great variety of switches to choose from, and you can choose from most keycaps available on the market today.

If you're looking for the lowest profile and the lowest possible actuation force, you can't go wrong wih Kailh Choc Low Profile switches.

All in all, MX switches are most popular overall, but when it comes to ergonomical keyboards, the popularity is divided roughly even!

What are the most important differences between the switch types?

First of all, the keyboard height: a keyboard with MX switches will be roughly 32mm tall, keycaps and case included. A keyboard using Kailh Choc Low Profile switches will be roughly 10mm lower at around 22mm tall. Using the low profile switches will make your keyboard slightly more portable, too.

Second, it's switch variety and keycap availability: with MX switches having been available for longer, there's more choice in both switch variety and keycaps for them, though we primarily stock low profile items at splitkb.com. With Kailh's Choc switches you'll most often see 'blank' keycaps, where nothing on them is printed, though a small but growing number of keycaps with legends on them is available.

Can I change my switch type later?

While you can change your switches, you cannot change your switch type: A Halcyon keyboard only supports one kind of switch, such as MX or Kailh Choc Low Profile. It comes outfitted with a specific kind of hotswap socket that only allows for one type to be installed.

How do I choose between tactile, linear or clicky switches?

It's very much down to personal preference. However, we do see a few trends.

Tactile switches are the most popular for general use. They're fit for your everyday typing, but they're also used by gamers. Tactile switches offer feedback: they have some resistance right at the point where a switch "actuates", so you can feel when a character was typed.

Linear switches are most popular with gamers. They don't give feedback during the press, only after, when the switch was fully pressed. Because of the missing tactile bump, they allow for lower spring weights, which makes them popular with power users and for use with stenography.

Clicky switches are similar to tactile switches, but with one big difference: the mechanism makes audible sound while pressing it. They're less common, because their noise makes them less suitable for office use, but they're often seen in home use and by gamers.

You might be thinking, "Am I a power user? Do I game enough to get linear switches?" There's really no hard or fast rule to that. We usually recommend starting out with tactile switches, and then develop your taste from there. There are plenty of office users who prefer linear switches, and plenty of gamers on tactile switches.

How do spring weights work?

The spring weight is usually the force at which the switch actuates, also known as the actuation force.

The actuation force is usually different from the bottom out force, which is the force required to fully press the switch to the point where it can't move further.

In keyboard switches, it's common to see forces expressed in gram-force, which is (though technically wrongfully) displayed as grams, ommitting the "force" part of the unit "gf".

Which spring weight is right for me?

Switches come in various weights. We can divide them into a few classes to make it easier.

25gf and under: Ultralight. These switches are the lightest you can get, and are usually only seen in low profile switches. At the lower end, which can require custom springs, even breathing hard on a switch can be enough to actuate it. The light weight makes them ideal for chording, which is when you press multiple keys at the same time to achieve a different output. These switches are often seen in smaller keyboards and for use with stenography.

26gf to 45gf: Light. Where ultralight switches can be somewhat harder to use because it's easier to accidentally press them, this class of switch provides a more stable balance between lightness and usability. It's most often seen in low profile switches. We recommend these if you're interested in lighter switches, but don't yet know if ultralight works for you.

46gf to 70gf: Normal. Most switches sit in this category. They're the most common range for MX switches, and are also common for low profile switches. We recommend these for just about any typing: there's a reason this class is called "normal", after all.

71gf and above: Heavy. A rare sight, heavy switches can quickly become tiring on your fingers. Some do prefer the heavier weight: they mute the tactility of switches because of the force required by the spring itself, and some are "heavy typers" who ram down on their keys to type. If that's you: give these switches a try!

If you're unsure still, we recommend going with a normal or a light switch to start with. You can also purchase individual switches on our shop, so you can sample the ones you're interested in.

What does it mean when a switch is "silent"?

Silent switches will have a mechanism applied to them which dampens the sounds. Some of them have dampening only on the upstroke, others have them on both the down- and the upstroke.

Do mind that regardless of dampening techniques, switches can never become truly silent: there will always be some amount of sound coming off the switches.

Which keycaps do I need?

For keyboards using MX-compatible switches, you'll need MX-compatible keycaps. Likewise, for keyboards using Kailh Choc Low Profile switches, you'll need Choc-compatible keycaps, too.

There are many keycap profiles which are compatible with switches, though they're always compatible with only one type of switch. For example, for MX-switches, you can choose from various profiles such as DSA, Cherry, MT3, XDA and a great many other profiles.

For Kailh Choc Low Profile switches, fewer profiles are available. The low profile switches are more commonly used in ergonomic keyboards like the ones we sell, and are less popular with those using 'normal' keyboards.

Can I use blank keycaps?

Yes, you can use blank keycaps. The Composer doesn't yet support them, but you can manually add blank keycaps to your cart before checking out.

You'll be able to find which keycaps you need on your chosen keyboard's product page. Generally, for profiles that have them available, we recommend using:

• Two homing keycaps, which make it easier to find the home position with your fingers;
• A few convex keycaps for the thumb keys, which can feel more comfortable due to pressing them with the side of your thumbs;
• A 1.5u keycap for keyboards that need them, which are the Corne, Lily58 and Sofle;
• And then fill the remaining spots with 1u keycaps.

Of course, if the profile has them available, you can mix and match colours as you please!

What's the difference between the various keycap materials?

There are a few materials commonly used for keycaps. ABS, PBT and POM are the most common.

ABS is the most common material for keycaps. It's tough, impact resistant, and relatively affordable. ABS is one of the few materials which can be manufactured in very vibrant colours. ABS is usually opaque, but can also be made translucent, which allows for RGB backlight to shine through. ABS keycaps have a smooth surface. The drawbacks are that ABS is prone to "shining", making the surface slippery with extended use. Prolonged exposure to sunlight can also cause them to fade or yellow over time. Despite the drawback, ABS remains the most common keycap material today.

PBT is known for its durability and matte finish. They're also less prone to becoming slippery over time. PBT keycaps are usually thicker, improving their feel and sound. PBT keycaps are usually more muted in colour than their ABS counterparts, getting a more pastel-like appearance. It's worth noting that while many keycaps are advertised as being PBT, they're more often made as a mixture between ABS and PBT, as manufacturing keycaps out of pure PBT is quite difficult and makes the material more brittle.

POM keycaps have a unique feel: they're quite smooth! They are resistant to wear and tear, and the material is also the least prone to shine. POM doesn't take well to being dyed, though, so it's available in a limited number of colours, and if they are coloured, there can be more variance in them. POM keycaps are usually a litle more expensive than their counterparts.

Where can I find compatible keycaps for my keyboard?

With so much variety in keycaps, it can be hard for us to stock all of them. Keycaps are usually sold by keyboard vendors, but can also be found on marketplaces. We have good experiences with vendors like Oblotzky Industries and Drop, but there are many more vendors.

For split keyboards, it's usually easiest to look for an ortholinear set. Such a set only has 1u keycaps, which fills most split keyboards. On many split keyboards, only the thumb keycaps have a different size: usually 1.5u, for keyboards like the Lily58, Corne and Sofle v2.

Keycaps are sometimes sold in so-called "group buys", which is a business model where you pay upfront and receive the goods later, much like crowdfunding. You can usually not cancel a group buy order,and there can be delays in getting your items. We recommend paying with PayPal or a credit card so you can raise an issue if the vendor of choice is not responsive.

We don't often run group buys at splitkb.com. When we do, though, we make sure to communicate about their progress, and honor cancellations. If you have any questions, you can always reach us at support@splitkb.com.