Performance

The Cooler Master SK630 supports N-key rollover USB out of the box, which tested successfully using Aqua's test. Switch Hitter confirmed no chatter with these keys either.


When first connected, the SK630 lights up with all keys set to a static pink as seen in the driver on the previous page. There are plenty of onboard controls to get you going with lighting effects, static or dynamic, as described in the manual. The first custom effect includes per-key lighting, which helps test for light bleed, and it was definitely present at the common edges because of the floating keycaps. I then set all the keys to white using the software driver to test for color fidelity since RGB LEDs have a hard time depicting white, and it was a white with a light pink hue in this case. A close-up reveals the R/G/B channels doing their best to reproduce white, and the backlighting effect is brighter here than with a typical RGB mechanical switch as a result of the shorter distance between the LEDs and the keycaps, as well as Cherry's new horseshoe-style design on the switch housing to let more light through. This also helps normalize the backlighting between primary and secondary legends more so than most RGB switches today.

Here are some of the dynamic lighting effects demonstrated, including a rainbow wave, color flash, and rainbow spiral. The transition animation is smooth, and the effects are a good demo to also show off the capabilities of the keyboard.

For those who would rather not use the software driver a lot, the onboard functionality with four profiles to choose from comes in handy. Nearly everything from the software driver can be done without it, albeit to a lesser degree. For example, we can set lighting based on 8 brightness steps for the R/G/B channels, which amounts to a total of 256 colors as opposed to the 16.8 M colors from the driver. Similarly, we can choose between different dynamic and even reactive lighting effects as well as the direction and speed of said effect. Macro recording is possible as well, including selecting loop playback for the macros when executed, but we can't customize the delays between keystrokes or edit a macro if incorrectly recorded—you will have to do it all over again. There are pre-programmed functions tied in for volume control and media playback, and using the SK630 is also fairly easy given the smaller-than-average form factor that takes up less room on your desk and also means less travel for your fingers. Portability and ergonomics are inherently tied in with this low-profile, low-mass keyboard.


The Cooler Master SK630 keyboard only comes with the Cherry MX Low Profile RGB Red switches. This switch, as Cherry puts it, "has a very shallow profile and is specially designed for flat desktop applications as well as notebooks." It attempts to best replicate the typing feel of the popular Cherry MX Red switch by using a steeper force-travel diagram as seen above. We have a 1.2 mm rated actuation distance with 3.2 mm of total travel as opposed to the more typical 2.0/4.0 mm respectively. Actuation force is rated the same as for the Cherry MX Red at 45 cN, although the heavier spring used here means you need to apply more force to fully bottom out. You can find more information on the official product page, and these are among the smoothest linear switches Cherry has ever made. The overall effect does not leave you wanting for travel distance, especially since you will likely not bottom out. The flat, low profile keycaps used here influence the effect as well, and not necessarily positively, at least for me.


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 Cooler Master SK630 sample at ~90 WPM as it comes out of the box. For context, you can find sound clips from other keyboards here, including those with linear switches. It is on the quieter side of average, especially since you can get used to not bottoming out the switches once you spend some time with the switches and their specific force profiles.