Key switches vs. 9 Mics (#666.014)
[In progress…]
Why is this important?
Well, in the grand scheme of things, it really isn’t, but due to keyboard-elitism and marketing mis- and disinformation, it is important to point out that more transparency is needed.
BACKGROUND - I’ve recently done some research on DIY keyboards, incl. custom backboards, switches and keycaps, for someone’s birthday present. During this research, I found a big problem wherein people posting comparison videos, or companies themselves posting how their switches sound on their websites, would post unscientific comparisons. By this I mean that more than one variable was changing, rendering conclusions about how a keyswitch sounds unreliable at best.
This makes it misinformation by the posters of these comparisons who have little to gain (or have speculative gains: future followers, future sponsors…) and might not know better when measuring changes, but worse, this makes it disinformation by these companies as they only stand to gain by increasing how clicky a clicky switch sounds, just for example.
It is not transparent that the information presented is unreliable unless you have experience in taking and evaluating measurements. This is where this video and post comes in.
VARIABLES - The reason changing variables is bad, is that you don’t know what you’re hearing. This sounds really silly because you know exactly what you’re hearing, it’s a keyboard switch being pressed. So what? Well, you don’t know which of the variables you’re hearing.
MICROPHONE CHOICE - Let’s say you’re using the very trendy SM7B. This microphone is firstly very low output (not sensitive; 1.1 mV/Pa) and is a dynamic microphone. In my video, the SE V7 is a good analog to the SM7B in terms of sound, sensitivity (SE V7: 2mV/PA) and that they’re both cardioid + dynamic microphones.
Meanwhile, a microphone like a C214 is, partly due to the fact that it’s a large diaphragm condenser, far more sensitive at 20mV/Pa, which is exceptionally good for detailed recordings. However, is a poor choice for measurements as it is so colored. It is not made for measurements, but for enhancing recordings. Enhancing is the wrong word as it doesn’t actively add to a recording, but
Don't trust isolated sound clips in marketing materials because you don't know how they recorded or post-processed them. Your playback set-up will also impact how you perceive how a switch sounds. With the physical recording, less distance to the source will often yield an increased bass response, so it will make switches sound more thock-y; This proximity effect is reserved for (semi-)unidirectional microphones like cardioid, less so with hyper- or super-cardioid types. In post, there is really no limit, where the clickiest switch could be made to sound like the thockiest of thocky switches with very basic EQ, transient processing, etc. I wanted to demonstrate that, depending on the mic, the switches can sound drastically different. The biggest differences to me are the following:
the v7 at 0:08 where it almost sounds like a silent switch
the Halo at 0:44 where it almost chocs
the STC10 at 1:58 where it clearly sounds clicky
and the measurement microphone at 2:35, which best represents what I actually hear in the real world.
Mics used (all cardioid, except the hyper-cardioid atm650, and omni 5024 and Sonarworks
__Dynamic Microphones__
0:00 SE V7
0:18 Audio Technica ATM650
0:36 Sontronics HALO
__Condenser Microphones__
0:56 AKG C214
1:16 Sontronics STC3X
1:33 Sontronics STC10
1:50 Sontronics STC1
__Electret Microphones__
2:09 EMR 5024 (my own DIY, make it here: EmiRizzi.com)
__Measurement Microphones__
2:26 Sonarworks Mic
Other info:
Keyboard: fnatic STREAK65, with their own low profile linear switches
My audio is raw, just normalized clip to clip. I tried to have the mic CAPSULE (not the chassis) consistently approx 15cm from above the GH keys.
