Guide to cherry mx switches: all the information

General knowledge

All Cherry switches are mechanical. The type of switch is quite personal, but both for durability and for typing mechanical keyboards are unrivaled. Almost all high-end gaming keyboards are also mechanical for these same reasons: precision, feel, and durability.

Currently the company has diversified its original switch catalog extensively, introducing a large number of variants not only in terms of colors and actuation force, but also in terms of profiles and speeds. These switches are classified by the colors that give them their names, each color representing the actuation force, distance and tactile or “clicky” nature of it. In this article, we are going to subdivide them into the following categories:

Original MX: they include from the classics, Speed models and Silent models . MX Special: consisting of green, gray and white switches . MX Low Profile: formed by a variant of classic red and Speed Silver .

It is also possible to find a "variant" called MX RGB. This only changes the plastic structure of the switch (of any color and type) to a white or translucent one to allow light to pass through and achieve a brighter backlight.

It is also recommended that you keep in mind the touch of the keys. They are generally grouped into three categories:

Linear: no alteration is noticed in the route, it is totally smooth. Tactile: a slight depression is noted when pressing the key, but it is not audible. Clicky: It is slightly “sticky” since we notice a greater depth when pressing the key before encountering resistance.

In the case of Cherry MX, a distinction is made between linear, silent touch and clicky touch.

Cherry MX Original

Original category catalog

When Cherry MX was launched, it came with four models: Red (2008), Black (1984), Brown (1994) and Blue (2007). Its two subsequent variants: Silent (2015) and Speed (2016) are included in the original category of the base catalog by company decision.

MX Red (red)

The MX Red was designed with users who complained that the MX Black's mechanism was very heavy in long periods of use due to its high activation force. Since its appearance in 2008 it has rapidly risen in popularity to be even more common than Black today.

The fact that the MX Red are linear and we do not find any resistance in their journey is what, together with their activation distance and necessary force, has elevated them among others in the gaming world.

Strengths:

Very suitable for games because it is one of the fastest to press a key twice or twice. Like other types of linear switches, its life time is very high (50 million keystrokes). For some people, it is comfortable to write at the same level as it is to play.

Disadvantages:

Like all other linear switches, it is easier for a double press to occur by mistake due to spring swaying if the keyboard manufacturer does not include systems to palliate it, so it is still not ideal for typing.

MX Black (black)

The oldest switch. Black switches are the longest-lived and are still in use today. It was released in 1984 and has been used on millions of keyboards since then. Its totally linear character and high actuation force makes it one of the most frequent choices for gaming keyboards.

MX Black switches remain very popular despite having been displaced by Reds due to their toughness and have a very loyal customer niche.

Strengths:

Given its high actuation force, it is a mechanism in which it is difficult to press a key by mistake. Very suitable for games, being one of the fastest to press a key twice or twice Like other types of linear switches , its life time is very high (50 million keystrokes).

Disadvantages:

Like the rest of the linear switches, it is easy to double-push by mistake because of the spring swing if the keyboard manufacturer does not include systems to palliate it. The hardness of the keys can make the fingers appear tired, especially after long periods of typing.

MX Brown (brown)

MX Brown was the first of the tactile switches and as in the case of the MX Black it is a fairly long-lived design. It was introduced in 1994 and has been one of the company's most successful. It is a switch very suitable for different environments, which makes it the choice of many players and many other typists.

MX Brown are considered quite versatile and have a mixed utility between gaming and typing.

Strengths:

Quite suitable for gaming, it is also an easy mechanism to press once or twice in necessary situations. For many people, it is comfortable to type at the same level as it is to play. More difficult to unintentionally double-press than previous ones, although the manufacturer do not implement any option to avoid this effect. For all of the above, it is an “off-road” mechanism, it is a type of switch that defends itself at a non-outstanding level, but it is notable, in all areas, for playing and writing. Same life time less than touch switches . Over 50 million keystrokes.

Disadvantages:

It is not for all tastes. Many users do not like the "sticky" feeling of these mechanisms, due to their touch system.

MX Blue (blue)

The pulsation force decreases markedly once the actuation point is passed, and an audible click is added when passing the point, so in this case the information that the key has been pressed is tactile and audible. Also fairly recent, it was first introduced on Flico keyboards in 2007.

This switch is the favorite of many typists and in general all users who spend their time on the computer more to write than to play.

Strengths:

Very suitable for writing, the favorite of many good typists, due to the totally tactile sensation and its characteristic sound Suitable for some types of games in which precision is more important than speed Virtually impossible to double-click by mistake Same life time less than on touch switches. Over 50 million keystrokes.

Disadvantages:

It is a difficult switch to intentionally double-click, since you have to return the key well above the actuation point to be able to press a second time. This makes it a less recommendable keyboard in games where we need multiple keystrokes at full speed. Particularly noisy. Although all mechanical switches sound to a greater or lesser extent, this is especially so, which makes it a poor choice for some environments (libraries, offices…). For this reason, even with o-rings the noise from these switches is hardly mitigated.

MX Silent

The problem with mechanical keyboards in general is that it seems like we're playing tambourines at a funeral. The fact that they are so scandalous throws many people back when choosing one despite its many advantages such as the variety of switches or their longevity.

Cherry MX developed the Silent line specifically designed to dampen that noise so annoying for some and loved by others.

Some manufacturers and modders have opted for the inclusion of rubber rings (the famous O-Rings) that stop the key casing so that the noise is not so dry. Quite quiet keyboards are achieved with this solution, although membrane keyboards are still the best option if silence is your only priority.

Cherry decided to take action on the matter and launched variants of its two most used switches to date (Red and Black) to test switches that are also linear but much less sonic than their original ones.

MX Silent Red

Obviously given the popularity of the MX Red switch it was impossible that the first candidate for the Silent range was not the red switch. Its acting force is the same, finding with the conventional MX Red only two fundamental differences:

Cherry MX Red original

Cherry MX Red Silent

Shorter activation distance: goes from 2.0 to 1.9 mm. Lowest total distance: 4.0 to 3.7 mm.

MX Silent Black

As we described earlier, although the MX Red has displaced the MX Black from the podium, it is still very popular, which is why it is the brand's second Silent model. As with Red, the differences with the conventional Black model are:

Cherry MX Black original

Cherry MX Black Silent

Shorter activation distance: goes from 2.0 to 1.9 mm. Lowest total distance: 4.0 to 3.7 mm.

MX Speed Silver

The last switch in the original category is the Cherry MX Speed Silver, the only one in its series if we do not count the low-profile Speed (which we will see later). As you can imagine in this model we will find the switches with the shortest activation distance in the entire Cherry catalog without going into low profile. Its acting force is 45g.

He is considered a first cousin of the Cherry MX Red and they are strongly indicated for gaming.

The differences with Cherry MX Red are as follows:

Significantly shorter activation distance: goes from 2.0 to 1.2 mm. Lowest total distance: 4.0 to 3.4 mm.

Cherry MX Red original

Cherry MX Speed Silver

It is clear that they are switches strongly focused on gaming, although they are not yet as popular as the MX Red, time will show how effective they are.

Cherry MX Special

Special category catalog

The Special category has been created by Cherry MX to offer alternative features to the models that we can find in the original catalog. All its members offer subtleties that expand the offer to the user and the possibility of finding a switch in the brand without having to search the competition.

MX Green

Cherry MX's green switch is a rather curious hybrid between Black and Blue models: it requires more force than Black (80g instead of 60) and has the same trigger-click distance as Blue. Basically they are harder to push Blue switches.

Cherry MX Black original

Cherry MX Blue original

Cherry MX Special Green

Strengths:

It makes the accidental double keystroke very difficult. It brings with it a pressure resistance that can remind you of the typewriters of yesteryear. It can be a satisfactory alternative to those looking for switches that are heavier than the Blue ones without losing their characteristic click.

Disadvantages:

It is not a switch to everyone's taste given its very high hardness, its negative aspect is that they are probably the hardest switches that we will use in our life and this makes them highly inadvisable for playing.

MX Gray

The MX Gray, like the Green ones, are heavy switches that need 80g of activation. They are non-click tactile like MX Brown and tough in the style of MX Black. They are therefore much more suitable switches for writing than for gaming.

Cherry MX Black original

Cherry MX Brown original

Cherry MX Special Gray

Strengths:

It makes the accidental double keystroke very difficult. It can be a satisfactory alternative to those looking for switches with more weight than the Brown ones without having the click of the button.

Disadvantages:

It can tire us easily. Very hard switches and not recommended to play.

We can consider it a hybrid switch between MX Black and Brown since it requires enough actuation force but is tactile without clicking.

MX Clear

This is a curious switch since it is almost identical to the MX Black except for the following details:

The MX Clear is a tactile switch (MX Black is linear). It requires 65g of actuating force instead of 60g, making it slightly heavier.

Cherry MX Black original

Cherry MX Brown original

Cherry MX Special Clear

Strengths:

It is an alternative with more hardness than the MX Black. It is tactile unlike Black, which is linear. No click (like Black).

Disadvantages:

They are a little hard.

We could say that it is a hybrid between MX Black and MX Brown , being tactile without clicking but requiring greater strength.

Cherry MX Low Profile

Low Profile Category Catalog

The particularity of manufacturing low profile switches generate two fundamental differences:

The total travel is noticeably shorter. Its activation distance is reduced to less than half compared to its "big brother".

Within this group we find a Red model and another Speed, although we warn you that the real differences between the two are practically non-existent.

MX Low Profile Red

As always, the Red switch continues to set trends and it is that it has earned the leading position of sales. Just as there is a variant of it in the Silent model, we find it here in the low-profile one:

Cherry MX Red original

Cherry MX Red Silent

Cherry MX Red Low Profile

We recognize in it an extremely fast press and activation, so they lend themselves well to gaming environments. However, many players may take some time to get used to their shorter travel distance.

MX Low Profile Speed

The low-profile variant of the Speed Silver tries to emphasize speed given a much shorter ride while maintaining the same actuation force.

Cherry MX Speed Silver

Low Profile Cherry MX Speed

Like its low-profile MX Red brother, the Speed Bass are eminently gaming switches and are specially designed for that purpose. They present an even shorter activation distance (1.0 mm compared to 1.2 Red).

Low profile switches are not yet as widespread as we might expect. In general we can find them in gaming keyboards with a minimum thickness and quite light, but still to this day the MX Red of all life is still the lord and master of the industry.

Conclusions about Cherry MX switches

As we have seen, even within the same manufacturer in which all the switches are of an undoubted quality, the differences between them are very great. It is important to choose a mechanical keyboard well, not only among the infinity of manufacturers and models, but also one that includes the switches that best suit our way of writing. We recommend testing as many switches as possible, either on a large surface area with exposed keyboards, or testing the keyboard of a relative or acquaintance who already has a quality keyboard.

As a final tip: rate the quality of the keys and switches above all else. Too much value the extras (macro keys, extra ports, screen as in the G19…) can lead us to a keyboard with which we are not entirely comfortable, which really is what is important.

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With this, we say goodbye. We hope that the article by Cherry MX and its extensive family has been helpful to you. Until next time!