HMX Butter

Quick Summary

The HMX Butter is a silent tactile that addresses the usual problem with the genre: most silenced switches mute themselves into a mushy feel. This one keeps a genuine tactile bump and a firm, responsive bottom-out while dampening the noise on both ends of the stroke. If you want a quiet board that still types like a real tactile, it is one of the easier picks in the category.

Specs and Feel

Butter is a medium-light silent tactile with a rounded, early-ish bump set against 2.5mm of pre-travel and 3.3mm of total travel, a slightly shorter throw than the MX standard, which suits the silenced format. Springs come in two weightings: roughly 37g actuation / 42g bottom-out for the lighter option and 43g / 50g for the heavier, both on a 22mm KOS single-stage spring. The silencing comes from mute pads on the top and bottom of the stem rail, so the topping-out clack and the bottom-out thock are both softened without the dead, padded feel of weaker silents. POM stems in a PA66 housing keep things smooth, and HMX’s factory lube application leaves the travel free of grain or scratch. Stem wobble is well controlled for a tactile. The tactility itself is modest: present and consistent rather than a sharp, aggressive snap.

Tuning

Run them stock. The factory lube is already dialed, and the silencing pads mean hand-lubing risks dampening the action further or fouling the mute material, so leave it alone. Films are unnecessary given the tight housing tolerances.

Verdict

Pick this if you want a quiet keyboard without giving up the feel of a tactile switch. The HMX Butter is one of the few silents that stays composed and responsive, with a clean stock experience that needs no mods. Skip it only if you want a loud, sharp tactile bump: Butter is smoother and softer than that.