Recently, mechanical keyboard articles have been published frequently. After switch types and hot swapping drew attention, mechanical keyboards, which had no issues, were introduced one after another, and there is a reason for that.
As those in the know already know, mechanical keyboard makers have found a new issue. In fact, it is a part that has been dealt with in the custom keyboard market rather than new, so it is a part that has been ignored in the general mechanical keyboard market, which is focused on gaming.
That’s right, noise.
Noise is something we take for granted when it comes to mechanical keyboards. Rather, it was an atmosphere where such noise was required to be recognized as a mechanical keyboard. However, not everyone enjoys the noise, so there are people who turn to custom keyboards, and it is the recently released mechanical keyboards that have caught such a change belatedly.
Although not at the level of customization, these are products that have accepted changes in their own way, so I would like to introduce one of them today.
Tochef D&T Collaboration Cherry Keyboard, created by Waycos’ gaming gear brand Thinkway in collaboration with Dugard, is that product.
■ Keyboard noise, sound absorbing material is the answer
There are two ways to reduce keyboard noise. It is a method that reduces the noise of the switch itself or reduces or absorbs the vibration transmitted to the inside of the keyboard. It has become common for custom keyboards to use both of these methods, but there are many cases where only switches are changed for general mechanical keyboards.
Tochef D&T Collabo Cherry Keyboard, introduced today, is a mechanical keyboard designed with the latter in mind.
A sound-absorbing pad cut to the size of the entire keyboard is placed between the lower body and the PCB to prevent the vibration transmitted from the switch to the PCB from vibrating the housing and to absorb even the high-peak sound range.
This structure has less ringing sound and there is no typing noise that irritates the nerves. Compared to general mechanical keyboards, the difference is very large. This difference is compared in the video above.
As you can see from the video, the Tochep D&T collaboration cherry keyboard did not reproduce any high-pitched noise, such as the sound of an empty can, beyond the click sound unique to the switch.
■ Dye-sublimated key caps with different textures
PBT keycaps have become common in high-end mechanical keyboards. PBT keycaps are a much preferred method because they have better heat resistance and durability than ABS.
In addition, since LED lighting is widely used, the double injection method has become common to transmit light, but the keycaps made by the dye sublimation method, not double injection, are applied to the Tochef D&T collaboration cherry keyboard.
This keycap has the advantage that the durability of the engraved letters is as good as the double injection method, and the surface texture is very good. Since the engraving itself is printed with dye at high temperature, the overall texture of the key is the same and there is no sense of heterogeneity.
In fact, if you press the key cap of Tochef D&T Collaboration Cherry Keyboard, you can see that the surface is smooth and you can feel the fine texture. This texture is very fine, but it makes the typing position feel accurate, so it has the effect of increasing stability compared to using a normal keycap that is only slippery.
■ Adoption of cherry-type stabilizer for added stability
Not only the texture of the key cap, but also the fact that the key does not shake from left to right when pressed helps to improve stability.
For this reason, the application of a stabilizer to the space bar, enter, shift, and control keys has become common, but a cherry-type stabilizer has been adopted for the Tochef D&T collaboration cherry keyboard.
Cherry-type stabilizer has a structure in which the iron core holding the keycap is placed inside the reinforcement plate. This structure has no choice but to be preferred by users because the difficulty of removing and attaching the key cap is no different from that of ordinary key caps.
The structure that needs to be connected to the iron core like the horseshoe type is inconvenient to attach or detach, so even though it has a lubrication advantage, it is not widely adopted.
■ Chery’s low-noise red axis, how’s the feel?
The Tochef D&T Collabo Cherry Keyboard I used was a product with low-noise red keyboard from German Cherry. This switch features a linear key feeling without a click like the existing red axis, but it is an improved version of the general switch feel.
So the name of the switch was also named as a low-noise red switch. The switch structure is the same as the existing red switch, but it is explained that the noise-controlling structure was added to the stem to capture the feeling of a normal switch. Looking at the fact that two metal pins are added while the overall structure of the stem is the same, I think that the weight of the stem itself has been increased to capture that feeling.
Anyway, thanks to the adoption of Cherry’s low-noise red axis, I was able to feel the key feel with less rattling than the general red axis. Should I say that the weight when pressing the key has increased a bit… It’s not as good as a lubricated switch, but it’s a pretty good choice for those who want a soft feel with low noise.
■ If you want a quiet keyboard with a soft key feel…
Tochef D&T Collaboration Cherry Keyboard is a product with low noise and soft key feel.
It seems to be more so because it is a low-noise red axis, but anyway, if you choose this combination, it is an attractive product that will make you think about what you have experienced with existing mechanical keyboards.
It can be the best choice for those who want a quiet and smooth keyboard, erasing all the feelings that were possible because it was a mechanical keyboard.
If you don’t necessarily want a metal housing or a multi-layered sound absorption and damping structure, you can be satisfied enough with the Tochef D&T collaboration cherry keyboard line. In addition, there is no need to worry about playing with keycaps as the switch direction is forward as no LED lights are included. In that respect, it is a recommended product for maniacs who pursue their own color.
