Leopold FC660M Cherry MX Clear

Just received this today from Qtan keyboards. I'm typing this post on it. Shipping only took 4 days which is very fast. Usually items shipped from China will generally take 2 weeks to more than a month when the shipping is free or cheap. The shipping for this is quite reasonable.

This was an impulse purchase. Before I got into Topre switches, I actually wanted to try the Cherry MX Clears after buying the Armageddon Cherry MX Blues. I almost bought the Browns instead of the Blues when buying the Armageddon. I liked the Browns a lot but felt that they were kinda shallow. More research points to the Clears being a deeper version of the Browns but with more tactility and equally as quiet.

I did not expect the Clears to be so stiff especially when bottoming out. Other Cherry MX switches gets quite hard when bottoming out but the Clears due to their stiffness towards the bottom makes it less likely for you to bottom out hard.

Initial impressions of the keyboard itself.

It has the exact same layout as the Leopold FC660C. Not as well built but generally still very very good. Somewhat lighter and it also comes with gold letterings but this time on white keycaps. I got this in white because the Leopold FC660C in black was hard to see with its gold lettering on black keycaps. I thought this would be easier to see but I find this even harder to see with the gold lettering on white keycaps. Damn.

A visual comparison of the Leopold FC660M and its cousin, Leopold FC660C.

Typing on individual keys gets an average feel and feedback. But once you start typing proper it's actually not too bad. I like the tactility and I prefer it over the Armageddon's Cherry MX Blues. I still have to get use to the stiffness. The Buckling Springs are not as stiff on entry as these are. My fingers are also more fatigued on these. Due to the stiffness I am having problems pressing the left shift key which I use my left pinky to trigger but due to the stiffness, I'm not pressing it hard enough which results in more mistakes being made.

I'm still quite conflicted on the Cherry MX Clears. I like the way it types but I'm making way too many mistakes primarily due to the hard to see keys and tripping on the left shift key. Its stiffness are also killing my fingers. I hope I get use to this fast.

Sigh.

I think I am meant more for Topre.

UPDATE 1 : I'm still adjusting to the keyboard. Typing is not too bad now. The stiffness is still there but I'm slowly but surely adjusting to it. Typing speed is much improved. The tactility is very very good. I just wish it is not so stiff on entry and on bottoming out. I think my fingers will be fingers of steel at the rate I'm going.

UPDATE 2 : I have found a way to type comfortably on this keyboard. The key thing is to type softly without bottoming out. Due to the stiffness towards the end, this is easily achieved. This will definitely take some getting use to. I'm so used to bottoming out especially when typing fast that I don't know whether I will be able to adjust. We'll see how it goes. One thing is for sure. This definitely makes for a very different typing experience. Very unlike the other Cherry MX keys that I've tried.