Quietest Mechanical Keyboards and Switches for Office Use

Overview

Looking for a custom mechanical keyboard build that is quiet for office use? A keyboard itself isn't necessarily quiet, but with the right components it can be built into a quiet mechanical keyboard or a loud mechanical keyboard.

Components: Parts to Consider for a Quiet Mechanical Keyboard

Keyboard Case Chassis Material

Mechanical keyboard case materials could be generally separated into two groups: metal and plastic. Metal mechanical keyboards are usually made of aluminum with some of its components made of other metals like copper or brass. Plastic mechanical keyboards are usually made of ABS or acrylic but can be made with other plastics as well. Mechanical keyboards made of either metal or plastic can be both be built to sound either loud or quiet. However, mechanical keyboards cases made out of plastics are usually slightly quieter than mechanical keyboards made out of metals. This can also be dependent on which switches are used in the keyboard as well. Even a metal keyboard can sound just as quiet as a plastic keyboard with the right silent switch.

Switches

Switches make up most of the sound in a mechanical keyboard. Therefore, when building a mechanical keyboard with the purpose of making it as quiet as possible, it would be recommended to use silent switches. These include, but are not limited to, silent switches like: Outemu Cream Yellow Silent Tactile, Durock Dolphin Silent Linear, TTC Bluish White Silent Tactile, Wuque WS Silent Tactile, Gazzew Bobagum Silent Linear, Akko Fairy Silent Linear, and Gateron Zero Degree Fully Silent. These silent switches have a design, usually around silicone, that help dampen the sounds of the switch, with the exception of some silent switches like the Wuque WS Silent Tactile which uses relief cuts in the switches to absorb the sounds without making the switch feel mushy.

If a completely silent custom mechanical keyboard build is not what you're looking for, but instead a slightly quieter one, then there are some other switch options other than just silent switches. Some switches, like Gateron Oil Kings, Gateron Ink V2, and Gateron Milky Yellow are made of materials that don't make the switches sound as loud as some of the recent switches, like HMX switches, creating a custom mechanical keyboard that still retains some of its sound characteristics while also being on the slightly quieter side.

Keycaps

The choice of keycap materials doesn't have the biggest impact on the volume of the keyboard, but rather the pitch. For example, ABS keycaps usually have a higher pitched sound while PBT keycaps have a lower pitched sound. There are also keycaps made from metal, ceramic, and a blend of plastics that deliver different sound profiles. In addition to the material of the keycap, there are also different keycap profiles, keycaps of different heights and shapes.

For a quiet mechanical keyboard for the office though, it might be beneficial to use keycaps made from a material that lean towards a lower pitched tone, like PBT, so there isn't a sharp high pitched tone that cuts through the sounds in a shared space, and a keyboard profile that doesn't reverberate as much, like a lower height profile such as XDA or Cherry profiles.

Mounting Style

Similar to keycaps, the mounting style of a mechanical keyboard doesn't have significant effects on the volume of the keyboard, but rather the pitch and the typing feel. Although, some mounting styles could help absorb some of the reverberations from typing which could help reduce the amount of sound traveled. Mounting styles like gasket mount and leaf spring mount create a flexible typing experience that helps to absorb impact as well as sound of the sound. In comparison to mounting styles like top mount and tray mount which are directly fixed to the keyboard. If you want to create the quietest keyboard, then a form of gasket mount would be one of the better options.

Foams / Sound Modifications

Foams can be used to modify how a mechanical keyboard sounds as well has the volume. Most keyboard kits and prebuilt keyboards these days come with foam kits to help experiment with. Usually plate foams and case foams will have the most significant impact on the volume of the sound by absorbing individual switch sounds as well as the sounds that would reverberate within the case.

Other materials that have been used to modify mechanical keyboard sounds are: masking tape on the bottom of the PCB (Tempest tape mod), masking tape or electrical tape in-between the top case and bottom case (force break mod), polyfill, shelf liner, silicone molds, and silicone o-rings in-between the switch and keycap.

The force break mod, polyfill, and silicone o-rings from the modifications listed above might make the most difference in volume. The force break mod helps to reduce the metal pinging sounds caused by metal-on-metal contact. Polyfill helps to disperse the sounds within the keyboard case, absorbing some of the volume much like case foam would. And small silicone o-rings in-between the keycap and switch would help to create a dampening effect, similar to the silicone mechanism in silent switches, to reduce sounds from bottoming out a switch or from a keycap making contact with the switch.

Accessories

Other than the actual keyboard components, accessories can also help to create a quieter typing experience for mechanical keyboard. For example, a deskmat could help to absorb some of the sounds that would transfer to the desk while typing.

Example Build

Keyboard Chassis: ND75

Plate: POM (any plastic plate)

Foams: Plate foam and case foam

Switches: TTC Silent Frozen V2 Linear

Keycaps: Wuque WS PBT WOB Keycaps

Mods: Hand lubing will reduce the ping noise from the springs, make them feel much smoother, and typically greatly deepen the sounds of the keyboard.

Accessories: Deskmat

Conclusion

There are many components that can go into creating the quietest mechanical keyboard, however the most important part for a silent keyboard would be the choice of switch at the end of the day. If a quiet mechanical keyboard is what you are looking for, then the simplest way is to find a silent mechanical keyboard switch that you prefer. Otherwise, the best part of a custom mechanical keyboard is the custom part! Feel free to tinker with other components and modifications to best fit your needs!

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