Summary

The author strongly criticizes Cherry MX Brown switches as the worst among mechanical keyboard switches due to their lack of a pronounced tactile bump and prefers other tactile switches such as Kailh Box Royal, Kailh Hako Royal Clear, and Zealios PC 65g.

Abstract

The article presents a critical view of Cherry MX Brown switches, commonly praised in the mechanical keyboard community. The author, an enthusiast of mechanical keyboards, argues that the popularity of these switches is undeserved because they fail to deliver a satisfactory tactile experience. Instead, they are described as feeling like faulty linear switches, with a tactile bump that is too subtle. The author suggests that truly tactile switches should have a more pronounced bump close to the activation point, offering a clear and precise typing experience. Despite the abundance of alternative tactile switches that meet these criteria, availability remains a challenge for those who are new to the mechanical keyboard hobby. The article recommends using switch testers to explore different options and highlights the Kailh Box Royal, Kailh Hako Royal Clear, and Zealios PC 65g switches as superior tactile alternatives. The author emphasizes the subjective nature of keyboard switch preferences but maintains that Cherry MX Brown switches are not the best representation of tactile switches.

Opinions

Cherry MX Brown switches are overrated and provide a subpar tactile experience.
The tactile bump in Cherry MX Brown switches is too subtle, making them feel like scratchy linear switches.
Tactile switches should have a distinct bump near the activation point for a precise typing feedback.
Alternative tactile switches, such as Kailh Box Royal, Kailh Hako Royal Clear, and Zealios PC 65g, are superior to Cherry MX Browns.
Availability of better tactile switch options is limited, often requiring custom keyboard builds.
Switch testers are invaluable tools for discovering one's preferred switch type.
The mechanical keyboard community may favor Cherry MX Brown switches due to their popularity and accessibility, rather than their quality.
The author's preference leans towards heavier switches with a more pronounced tactile response and a "thuck" sound profile.
Personal experience and exploration are key to finding the right mechanical keyboard switch.

Cherry MX Browns Are Terrible!

Why I think the most popular mechanical keyboard switch is actually the worst

I am really into mechanical keyboards and urge everyone to at least give it a try. I keep exploring more and more switches as I delve deeper into the wonderful world of mechanical keyboards. Maybe I am obsessing over it, who knows. Anyways, while I think that Cherry MX mechanical keyboard switches offer a great “allround” selection of capable switches and a solid entrypoint for anyone interested, I absolutely don’t get why the Cherry MX Brown switches are so popular.

Unpopular opinion

They are supposed to be tactile switches. That means, somewhere halfway down when pressing the key on your mechanical keyboard, you’re supposed to feel a little “bump” or some kind of resistance you push through, when you reach the activationpoint. That’s supposedly “tactile”.

But in reality the Cherry MX Brown mechanical switches just feel like “broken” or “scratchy” linears, like Cherry MX Red switches that got sand into them. They’re way too light and don’t offer much of a resistance, the tactile bump is just too subtle.

They are truly so awful, I even prefer (well done) rubber domes over them.

Why even use tactile mechanical keyboard switches?

Tactile mechanical keyboard switches are supposed to make good allrounders and offer a not-so-annoyingly-loud alternative to clicky switches for typists. The whole thing about a clean, neat and precise typist’s switch is the tactility. The ability to feel with your fingers when the keypress was registered. For that reason the activation point and the “bump” should be as close together as possible and the “bump” should be really pronounced. Cherry MX Browns fail at both these features.

Valid alternative options to Cherry MX Brown switches

The sole problem with alternatives to Cherry MX Browns is not choice but rather availability. There are a few switches that do “tactile” right, but they usually don’t make their way into mainstream pre-built keyboards. Thus they’re mostly hidden behind the gate to custom keyboards, which understandably is a route not many newcomers want to take early on. The mechanical keyboard world is confusing and scary enough to get into, no need to start to complicate things further by going full custom from the start.

I can’t recommend highly enough to get a mechanical key switch tester early on to see what else is out there besides Cherry. You may even decide that Cherry Switches are just right for you and that’s perfectly fine, of course.

This is my large switch-tester I often use to compare and explore different switches. I keep it in it’s packaging as it isolates the sounds of the switches nicely and reduces vibration.

Such switch testers come in varying sizes, I recommend getting a larger one to cover as many different switches as possible. They can easily be found by doing a websearch for them or if you check out eBay and Aliexpress. Compare prices though, as they vary wildly.

After extensive research, I found that these switches offer the best experience that’s actually is tactile:

Kailh Box Royal
Kailh Hako Royal Clear
Zealios PC 65g

My professional rating of the four tactile switches mentioned in this article.

While the Kailhs offer a clear improvement over the Cherry MX Browns the Zealios ones (manufactured by Gateron) go even further. Not only are they available in different weightings from 62g to 78g, with 65 being a nice middleground for me, they also offer the crispest and most pronounced tactile bump of them all.

All of them make great switches for typing and offer a nice variation even in sound, as they’re more of a “thuck” kind of thing when the key hits the top of the switch housing than a “click” that is artificially created by a click-jacket like in the Cherry MX Blues. They’re much less noisy as a result but at least as “precise” and “snappy”, if not more so. I think, they would even work really well in conjunction with soft O-rings.

But please, always acknowledge that everything mechanical keyboard is highly subjective, so you might come to different conclusions.

Conclusion

I feel, that the Cherry MX Brown mechanical keyboard switches are only so popular, because they are, or have been, the first mechanical switch for many people coming over from flat laptop keyboards or cheap rubberdomes. Comparatively the Browns will still offer much improvement and without knowing the vast amount of other options in this sector, it may be easy to fall in love with them at first sight.

From my own experience and from what I know about the mechanical keyboard scene, once you fall in love with a mechanical keyboard, you won’t settle for just one switch type for long. Experimentation is part of the fun in all of this. So if you prefer tactile, there’s actually the most room for improvement compared to all other Cherry MX switches, in my opinion.

Thank you for reading this far. I hope you found some useful information in my article. I’m not in any way connected to any of the brands mentioned, also this articles does not contain any affiliate links. It is purely based on my personal tastes, opinions and experience. If not otherwise stated, all photos used are mine.