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Switches in 2025 – i am deeply impressed

As I ordered my Neo60 CU from monacokeys.de, I came into discussion with the owner kaperl. He offered me a switch sample to get some up-to-date switch impressions of the year 2025 as my know-how was outdated.

Spoiler: As my last switch ordered were some time ago, I can say. that the current “cheap” switches which come already factory lubed in a great quality are absolutely crazy.

In the sample set, I received the following switches:

linear:

  • BSUN Roselle V2
  • Durock Mocha Silk
  • Gateron Smoothie
  • Gateron Sea Salt Smoothie
  • Gateron Smoothie Silver (Linear)
  • JWK JWICK Full Nylon Black V2 (Linear)
  • HMX Sillyworks Hyacinth V2
  • MMD NP V4 (Linear)
  • MMD Princess Linear V4 (Linear)
  • MMD Princess Ultra (Linear)
  • MMD Vivian V2 (Linear)
  • Neo Azure
  • Outemu Cream Pink
  • Zuoce Macaron
  • HMX Canglan V3 Linear
  • Neo Oat Linear

tactile:

  • Duhuk Lumia Bitter Tea V2 58g
  • MMD Princess Tactile V4 (Tactile)
  • Haimu Mulberry
  • Durock Mocha Chocolate T1
  • MMD Holy Panda

Out of the past I knew Gateron, JWK and some Outemu switches. All other vendors are completely new to me in 2025.

I don’t want to go into too much details here but can give you my first impression about the switches:

Clacky

Higher-pitched, crisp sound, often associated with polycarbonate housings and thin POM stems

  • JWK JWICK Full Nylon Black V2 – Full nylon tends to be a bit deeper than polycarbonate, but JWICK switches are usually on the clacky side. Unlubed stock. Good after lubing, slight scratch in stock form.
  • MMD NP V4 – sharp, high-pitched sound.
  • MMD Princess Linear V4 – Similar to NP V4, a higher-pitched sound signature.
  • MMD Princess Ultra – quite clacky.
  • Gateron Smoothie Silver – Full POM, but generally lighter and higher-pitched.
  • Outemu Cream Pink – clacky

Balanced

Clack-Thock Hybrid

  • Gateron Smoothie – POM switches can go either way, but this one is fairly balanced, buttery smoothness.
  • Gateron Sea Salt Smoothie – pretty deep. Lighter than the regular Smoothie.
  • HMX Canglan V3 Linear – A middle-ground sound profile, neither too clacky nor super deep. Great sound profile and lube quality.
  • BSUN Roselle V2
    High-end factory lubing, great stem tolerance. Smooth and low-pitched. Can lean slightly clacky but has some depth.

Thocky

Deeper, lower-pitched sound, often associated with long-pole stems, nylon housings, and dampened acoustics

  • Durock Mocha Silk – One of the smoothest stock switches, deep thocky sound.
  • HMX Sillyworks Hyacinth V2 – Tends to be on the deeper side, amazing factory lubing.
  • MMD Vivian V2 – Nylon housing with a deeper sound.
  • Zuoce Macaron – deep thock.
  • Neo Oat Linear – A deep-sounding linear switch. Soft feel, smooth from top to bottom, high-end sound signature.
  • Neo Azure – One of the thockiest on the list, rich and deep sound profile. High-end boutique switch, very good stock experience.

Tactile

  • Duhuk Lumia Bitter Tea V2 58g – Medium bump, quiet bottom-out, solid stock performance.
  • MMD Princess Tactile V4 – Medium tactility, no harshness, well-lubed stem.
  • Haimu Mulberry – Big rounded bump, unique feel. Slight ping but smooth travel.
  • Durock Mocha Chocolate T1 – T1-style bump. Slight scratch on upstroke, lube helps a lot.
  • MMD Holy Panda – Classic Holy Panda feel, but factory version tends to be unlubed and a bit rougher.

Some words about smoothness: Most of the switches are extremely smooth – which is insane when you compare with the past. There are some switches which are more like good smooth (Macaron, T1[weakest], NP4) but even that level is good enough.

These results will lead to an updated personal preference switch ranking.

After comparing that switch selection from monacokeys.de, I ordered the following switches directly:

  • MMD Princess Linear V4
  • MMD Princess Silent Pink Linear 
  • HMX Canglan V3
  • Neo Oat Linear