Driver

There is no software driver support for the Cherry MX Board Silent, with all functionality being hardware based. As such, I have chosen to combine the Driver and Performance pages into one.

Performance

There is only the native 6-key rollover USB here out of the box, as Aqua's test confirms. You can use the provided PS/2 adapter to get 14-key rollover, which Cherry calls full N-key rollover incorrectly, and I urge them to correct that sooner rather than later. Using Switch Hitter, no key chatter was detected on any of the keys.


Cherry's unique selling point here is the option to pick between two MX Silent switches, especially the uncommonly used MX Silent Black. Cherry offers the MX Silent Black in RGB and non-RGB, and here, we have the non-RGB version with opaque housing, given the lack of backlighting on the keyboard. It employs the tried and trusted Cherry MX stem, a dark silver in color to have it visually differ from the rest of Cherry's MX switches, and has plastic impact absorbers at the top and bottom, which contribute to the quieter typing experience with these switches. Enthusiasts have long since used rubber O-rings of varying thickness to reduce the travel distance and dampen the bottoming-out noise with linear switches. With Cherry having these built into the switch, you not only get a dampened downstroke but also a dampened upstroke. As a result of these absorbers, the total travel distance does get reduced from the usual 4 mm for the Cherry MX Black to 3.7 mm here, and actuation occurs at an average of 1.9 mm vs. the 2.0 mm with the normal version. The force-travel diagram is offset accordingly, but the coil spring used is identical to where these have a rated 60 cN actuation force, which puts them on the heavier side of the more popular switches employed by Cherry's own customers.






Here is a look at the switch in action, as well as a 3D model courtesy of Cherry. There are numbered annotations that detail the functionality of the switch through its parts, and I have also added such a model for the Cherry MX Silent Red switch since this keyboard has that option as well. The 3D models are best viewed on a desktop, so please bear with us if you end up with a less-than-desirable experience on a mobile device.


As always, the sound of a keyboard is based on more than just the switch type. So when comparing sound clips, consider the keyboard as a whole. In this case, I have provided above an example sound clip of me typing on the Cherry MX Board Silent sample at ~120 WPM. Do note that the microphone is compensating for the quieter nature of these switches by picking up ambient noise more. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with linear switches. I did bottom out here, even with the relatively heavy switches employed. I tend to prefer switches that actuate at around 55-60 cN, so these were right up my alley. I have also used the MX Silent Red (RGB) in a Corsair Strafe keyboard before, and it was quieter than the standard MX Red too. That said, there are quieter switches and keyboards out there - lubed Topre with hypersphere rings or even Cherry's own MX Brown/Clear switches if you do not bottom out. These make for a generally quieter out-of-the-box experience for everybody, however, so I can definitely appreciate that.

In terms of actuation and typing, this was actually my first keyboard with medium-heavy linear switches, so I can not compare it to another keyboard with MX Black/linear Grey (or clones) switches. As it is, their average measured actuation force was 59.95 cN across twenty random switches tested, which ended up being very close to the rated 60 cN, though there is a caveat that needs to be mentioned - my tension gauge is not as precise at 60 cN and above as it is at 55 cN and below. Bottoming out felt just fine as well as nothing in particular stood out.