Thoughts on Gateron Milky Yellow switches

This article has been a long time waiting. I previously have had Gateron Yellow switches but only recently got a set of full Milky Yellow switches. These are well-known in the mechanical keyboard community as having a reputation of being one of the best budget linear switches on the market. They aren’t fancy by any means, but they are a solid linear switch with mid-weighting that puts them between the lighter Red linear switches and heavier Black linear switches.

Firstly, a bit of background on Gateron switches and why Yellow switches came about, and have since been duplicated by other manufacturers. Gateron’s first switches were Cherry MX clones, maintaining the same colors to differentiate between switches. That means that they had Red linear switches with a 45g actuation and 55g bottom out and Black with a 60g operating force and 75g bottom out. Yellow switches were introduced to be a middle-ground between them with 50g operating and 60g bottom out. It was a wise choice on their part as they quickly became popular for being a “sweet-spot” between the two options making them a great option for people starting, due to the low cost, but also enthusiasts for their properties compared to other switches on the market.

That price has been key to the success of Gateron Yellow switches of all flavors. They tend to be offered for $0.20-0.25 a switch depending on vendor but will regularly go on sale for as low as $0.10-0.15 a switch. In my case I got them for $0.125 a switch which was frankly fantastic. But, even at their typical pricing they are still very affordable switches and are readily available almost everywhere. The combination of wide-availability and low cost make their popularity continue with newcomers and veteran enthusiasts alike.

They are also available in many variations of housing. The all-black version utilizes a POM stem with solid-black nylon top and bottom housing. Others feature a nylon, black bottom and clear polycarbonate top and are marketed as RGB switches. But the ones that tend to get the most talk are the ones featuring the all-milky housing which is a translucent white housing made of a nylon mix. The combination of all-milky housing and POM stem gives them their characteristic feel and sound that have made them as popular as they are.

Something to keep in mind is that black nylon housing was the default option for years. There was no need for other housing colors because they started with no LED lighting, then would go on to mounting LEDs to the switches themselves. The advent of hot-swap sockets and SMD (PCB surface-mounted) RGB LEDs changed that very quickly. There was a need for more of that light to flow through the switches. RGB pass-through channels where the housing was changed to have a hollow section for the light to pass through was one option. Another option was to change to polycarbonate housing that was completely clear. But another option still is to use a translucent, milky nylon housing that lets through a lot of light but also acts as a diffuser letting the entire housing glow with the RGB as well. Doing that with both top and bottom housing gives a cloudy appearance to the lighting below the keycaps, making it less direct and harsh than fully polycarbonate switches, or switches with an RGB channel or RGB diffuser. It’s a bit like putting a frosted globe on a lamp. It more-evenly distributes the light and reduces the direct harshness of the light at a slight reduction of brightness.

But how does that affect the feel and sound of the switches? Firstly, they retain a very similar feel to the other flavors of Gateron Yellow switches. Compared to my Yellow RGB switches, with white nylon lower and polycarbonate upper, they are noticeably smoother in stock form. The Yellow RGB switches have a distinct scratchiness to them that is between the Milky Yellows but noticeably better than other stock linear switches such as Cherry Red (pre-retooling) or Kailh Speed Silver that I have. I’m curious to see how they would fare against Cherry’s new Hyperglide switches and know those are also on my future list of switches to buy. But, back to the Milky Yellows, they are quite smooth without lubrication. I think they feel only marginally scratchier than my stock Gateron Ink Red V2 switches which are a far more expensive at $0.75 per switch. That they are within striking distance at ⅓ the price is commendable.

One of the weaknesses of the Gateron Ink switches is their stem wobble. As much as I do love mine, I also admit that they have some of the strongest stem wobble of any switches I own. The Milky Yellow switches on the other hand are much less wobbly. They have more wobble in the east-west directions than with north-south. The difference between the two isn’t great but it is distinct enough for me to notice it. That said, the wobble is relatively minimal and shouldn’t pose an issue even with higher profile keycaps. I think for most people they have an acceptable amount of stem wobble and that would largely go unnoticed.

Onto other factors, they do have a fair amount of spring ping. They’re not distractingly pingy, but you will likely hear it, especially with more energetic typing or with a hollower keyboard. In my case, I’m testing them out on my Tofu 60 that I also just got back into working order. The basic sound of the Gateron Milky Yellow on the Tofu 60, paired with double-shot ABS Cherry profile keycaps is good even with the switches in stock form. I have the under-PCB foam as well as the foam sandwiched between the polycarbonate plate and the PCB. I also put additional foam in the hollow upper portion of the case bringing the overall reverberation of the switches down dramatically. However, I think the Milky Yellow switches would still benefit greatly from being lubricated to reduce the spring ping that is prevalent with these switches. They may sound better in an even more dampened keyboard but it is something that stands out from what are otherwise a great experience.

And, ultimately, that is what makes these such a solid choice for such a large portion of the keyboard community. They’re affordable, easily bought almost anywhere that sells keyboard parts, and they are a solid choice even in stock form. They have a smooth feel in stock form and only improve with some lubrication to eliminate what little scratch they do have and the prevalent spring ping. I don’t think it is necessary to lubricate them to enjoy using them but I do think that doing so only improves their already solid performance. Given their low price, easy acquisition, and ease of modifying them to improve them, they are a great choice for every keyboard enthusiast to have in their inventory. They don’t have the most exotic materials or unique sound signature but they punch above their class and are a worthy choice even for more expensive builds so long as you put in some care to tweaking them to match. In the end Gateron Milky Yellow switches are one of the most easily recommended switches on the market. And I have absolutely no qualms about being yet another voice to add to that list of recommendations.