If your mechanical keyboard is very loud, then in the library, office, student apartment and other places that need quiet, the noisy keyboard will make others feel very irritable. To solve the problem of noisy mechanical keyboards, we’ve rounded up 9 ways to make your keyboard quieter. However, before looking at specific solutions, understanding the reasons for the noisy mechanical keyboard can help you choose a better way to solve it.
Why does my mechanical keyboard sound so loud?
The reason mechanical keyboards are so loud is their unique working mechanism.
There are 3 membranes inside the membrane keyboard, the upper and lower are elastic membranes, and the middle is a non-conductive plastic sheet. When we press the keys of the membrane keyboard, the upper and lower membranes will contact and electrify, and the two elastic membranes will contact each other, and the sound produced is very small. The main sound is the friction sound between the keys and the keyboard.
Mechanical keyboards work completely differently than membrane keyboards. The mechanical keyboard has an independent switch under each key, which consists of multiple parts. Taking the black shaft and red shaft of a linear switch (silent switch) as an example, its composition includes a spring, a lower cover, an upper cover, a switch cap, a static piece and a moving piece. When pressed, the two spring sheets are contacted and energized, the switch cap contacts the lower cover, and the contact between the switch cap and the lower cover will produce a certain sound. Therefore, even the silent switch produces a slightly louder sound than a membrane keyboard. In addition to the linear switch, there is also a paragraph switch (click switch), which represents the axis as the green axis. When the green axis is pressed halfway, the two metal sheets inside will collide, resulting in a loud click sound. This is a mechanical keyboard. The main reason for the noise.
So, in general, the biggest reason for mechanical keyboard noise is the loud sound of the metal pieces of the click switches. The second is the impact sound produced by the switch cap of the linear switch touching the lower cover. Then it includes some other noises, which will be mentioned later. After knowing the reason why the mechanical keyboard is noisy, we can find a solution according to the reason.
9 ways to make your keyboard quieter
1. Use a desk mat
When we hit the keyboard, the keyboard may vibrate your desktop, creating other new noises or amplifying the original noise, so you can buy a desk mat. Of course, there are also a lot of oversized mouse pads, such as 900*400*4cm rubber mouse pads, which can completely put down your keyboard and mouse, and have a good effect of reducing vibration. This method is not necessarily very effective for you, you can try it if conditions permit.
2. Add foam
Adding sound-isolating foam to the keyboard can also reduce the noise or echo generated by the keyboard vibration to a certain extent, which requires you to buy a foam or rubber used for the keyboard, and then disassemble your keyboard and install it between the keyboard case and the PCB board. . If you have a suitable material nearby, you can also use common foam rubber instead.
3. Install the mute ring
Installing the mute ring is also a good way to reduce the overall noise generated by the keyboard to a certain extent, and the installation is very simple. Use the keycap puller to remove your keycap, fit the mute ring into the base of the keycap, and then press the keycap back into the keyboard.
It is worth noting that this method will reduce the feel of the keyboard and make the keyboard feel soft and weak. So choose between noise reduction and key feel.
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4. Install the switch pad
Installing a silent pad under the mechanical card can reduce the keyboard to a certain extent. Use the keycap puller and switch puller to remove the keycap and switch, remove the shell, stick the mute pad on the keyboard hole of the PCB board, assemble the shell, put the switch and keycap in, and you’re done . Compared with installing the keycap keycap mute ring, it is more responsible, but it has less impact on the hand feel.
5. Lubrication switch
Lubricating switches is a great way to reduce keyboard noise. Lubricating the switch can reduce the friction between the spring and the switch cap, which not only reduces the noise caused by friction, but also increases the smoothness of pressing.
- Buy lubricating oil for lubricating switches online
- Then use the keycap puller to pull out the keycap
- Pull out the switch with the switch puller
If your keyboard is not a hot-swap keyboard, you need to remove the case and remove the solder from the PCB with a soldering iron and desoldering. - Disassemble the switch
There are two upper cover flaps on both sides of the switch, fasten the upper cover to the lower cover, turn the switch upside down, use the light opener to insert the tabs into the flaps, and apply a slight downward force to the right to disassemble the switch. spread out all the accessories. - Lubrication switch accessories
Brush the spring, shell, switch cap and other accessories of the switch with lubricating oil in turn with a brush to remove excess lubricating oil. - Assemble the switch
After lubricating, assemble the switch according to the original structure. - Install the switch
Install the switch to the PCB board, remove the tin in step 3, you need to use a soldering iron and solder to re-solder the switch to the PCB board, and install the case. - Install the keycaps
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6. Modify the stabilizer
This method is suitable for the large keys of the keyboard, which are different from the abnormal sound of other keys. The keyboard stabilizer is located under the large keys such as space, enter, and shift, and can stabilize your large keys, preventing them from shaking, tilting or making strange noises during pressing. If your big keyboard keys creaky when pressed, it’s time to revise your stabilizer. Modification Stabilizers can be modified in 3 ways: Band-Aids, Clips and Lube.
- Band-Aid: After removing the stabilizer, cut the Band-Aid into a long strip with scissors, place the Band-Aid directly under the stabilizer, make sure the Band-Aid is flat, and then put the stabilizer back on. The presence of a Band-Aid suppresses the sound produced when the keys are tapped.
- Lube: After removing the stabilizer, use a brush to apply lube on all stabilizer parts that need to be moved, such as metal rods, switch caps. This will be very effective and will greatly reduce the noise caused by the friction of the moving parts of the wiper stabilizer.
- Clips: Use clips to stabilize the stabilizer, then use scissors to cut off the two small feet of the stabilizer to make the surface of the stabilizer more smooth. The flatter surface of the stabilizer makes the stabilizer more stable and reduces the strange clicking sound when hitting.
7. Replace the keycaps
PBT keycaps are the best quality keycaps, but due to the very high hardness of the material, the sound when pressed is also louder than other keycaps. The keycaps made of rubber are softer in material, and the noise generated during typing will be greatly reduced.
If you are used to hard keycaps made of PBT, then replacing soft keycaps made of rubber will make you feel uncomfortable.
8. Replace the switch
Replacing the switch This method is suitable for the original use of click switches and tactile switches.
Common click switches are blue switches that produce a loud clicking sound when pressed, similar to the sound produced when pressing a ballpoint pen. The common tactile switch is a brown switch, which also produces a click sound when pressed, but the sound is much smaller than that of the click switch. You can replace them with silent linear switches, including red switches, black switches and some other silent switches.
If it is a hot-swappable keyboard, take out the original switch with the switch puller, put in a new silent switch and install the keycap, it is very simple. If it is a non-hot-swappable keyboard, the switch needs to be removed after removing the solder on the PCB. After putting in a new switch, it needs to be re-soldered, which will be a lot of trouble.
It is worth noting that there is no sense of paragraph when the linear switch is pressed, and it goes straight up and down. For users who are used to paragraph switches, the use experience will be greatly reduced. Some users respond to presses that feel very similar to a membrane keyboard.
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9. Replace the quiet keyboard
This may be out of the original intention of reading this article, but if you have tried the above methods and still can’t solve it, you can only buy a silent keyboard. The factory has rich production experience, and they will have an advantage in building silent keyboards. So, try buying a silent keyboard.
FAQ:
Does lubing your switches make it quieter?
Yes, lubricating your switch does make it quieter. The key sound when typing comes from many aspects, the collision of the metal sheet, the contact between the switch cap and the bottom of the switch, the friction between the switch cap and the spring, etc. Lubricating the switch can reduce the friction between the spring and the switch cap, making the key press smoother and reducing shaft wear, which is a good way to make the keyboard quieter.
What keycaps make your keyboard quieter?
Compared to PBT hard keycaps, rubber soft keycaps will make your keyboard quieter. In addition, a mute ring can also be installed under the keycap, which can also reduce the sound of keystrokes to a certain extent.
How can I make my keyboard quieter for free?
If you want to make your keyboard quieter for free, putting a desk pad under the keyboard is a great option. The keyboard vibrates when we hit the keyboard, and the table directly connected to the keyboard or amplifies the noise, so using a table mat is a feasible attempt, and it is also the easiest way to make the keyboard quieter.
Can I make my keyboard quieter?
Yes, there are tons of ways to make your keyboard quieter. If you want to know how, check out the 9 methods documented in this article.
Are Loud keyboards annoying?
Loud keyboards are not annoying to users who like them, but for people who hate loud sounds or need a quiet environment, Loud keyboards are really annoying. Like in the library, or when your roommate needs a break, your keyboard makes a lot of noise, which will seriously affect their feelings.
What are the loudest key switches?
The loudest switch is the blue switch. Due to its special paragraph structure, when pressed, the metal pieces will collide with each other and make a loud sound, which is far louder than switches of other weights. If you want a quieter flick of the switch, then the red switch is a better choice. The red switch is currently the quietest switch. In terms of the sound produced by the switch, blue switch > tea switch > black switch > red switch.
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