Gazzew Boba U4 vs Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A
The Gazzew Boba U4 and the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A are not the same kind of switch, so this comparison is settled by which stroke you want before a single number matters. Our switch library already points each of these at the other. Hear them back to back below with the trims matched before you read a single number.
Hear them back to back
simulated from real specssound loads on your first tapShortcuts: press A or B anywhere outside a text box to fire that burst. Use the volume trims to loudness-match the pair before judging which sounds better.
Spec by spec
| Spec | Gazzew Boba U4 | Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Tactile (silent) | Linear (silent) |
| Brand rates force at | bottom-out | actuation |
| Actuation force | not published | 60 g |
| Bottom-out force | 62 g | 80 g (our estimate) |
| Pre-travel | 1.7 mm | 1.9 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 3.7 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | Yes | Yes |
| Factory lubed | Yes | Yes |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| Price tier | Premium | Mid-range |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Gazzew advertises a bottom-out force for the Gazzew Boba U4 and Cherry an actuation force for the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A, so the two headline numbers are not measured at the same point. Compare row by row, not brand claim to brand claim. Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure for the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A, so the figure marked "our estimate" is our own derivation from the forces that are published rather than a rating. How that derivation works .
Verdict
These two sit in different camps, with the Gazzew Boba U4 built as a tactile and the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A as a linear, so decide which stroke you want before anything else. 18 g at bottom-out is a bracket apart, not a shade, and it is the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A carrying the heavier end at 80 g. Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure, so treat that 80 g as our estimate. Budget also has a say, since the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A is mid priced and the Gazzew Boba U4 is premium priced. Our picks: the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A for gaming, the Gazzew Boba U4 for typing and a shared office.
- Gaming pick
- Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A
- Typing pick
- Gazzew Boba U4
- Office pick
- Gazzew Boba U4
Force curves
Gazzew Boba U4
Gazzew rates this switch at its bottom-out and publishes no actuation force, so the marked bottom-out is the spec and the dashed line into it is an illustration of the stroke, not measured data.
Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A
Cherry publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 80 g at the end of the stroke is our estimate and the run into it is dashed. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers. How we derive it.
Gazzew Boba U4 or Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A: the long answer
Specs first, since the feel gap is what you notice in the first minute of typing. Start with the stroke, because the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A runs smooth the whole way down while the Gazzew Boba U4 raises a bump at the point it registers. The springs are a long way apart: 80 g against 62 g at bottom-out, so the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A asks noticeably more of your fingers across a long session. Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure, so treat that 80 g as our estimate. Neither the trigger point nor the depth matches: 1.7 mm to actuation on the Gazzew Boba U4 against 1.9 mm, and 3.7 mm of total travel on the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A against 4.0 mm. Settle the stroke you want to live with first and treat everything below as a tiebreak.
Sound is where most people finally pick a side. Two different voices: near-silence with a firm tactile knock underneath on the Gazzew Boba U4, dampened and deeper; a muffled, weighty press on the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A. Dampening pads are on both, which puts the whole comparison inside a narrow band of volume and moves it onto tone. Both packs are synthesized rather than recorded, so read the comparison as a faithful sketch of each voice and not as a measurement of it.
On price and practicality, the Gazzew Boba U4 is premium priced, while the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A is mid priced. Both arrive lubed from the factory, which is one project you can skip either way.
All three questions get different answers on this pair. Fast inputs: the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A, because a linear stroke puts no bump between you and the next press. A long draft: the Gazzew Boba U4, since the bump tells your fingers the key registered, which is most of what typists want. A room with other people in it: the Gazzew Boba U4, as a dampened bottom-out is the only version of this that a shared room forgives. Do the listening first. It costs nothing and it changes minds more often than a spec table does.
Want the full story on either switch? Read the dedicated Gazzew Boba U4 page and the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A page. If you are here to check the board you already own, use our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Gazzew Boba U4 or Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A for gaming?
We pick the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A for gaming. A linear stroke means nothing sits between one press and the next, and rapid inputs are where that pays.
Which of the Gazzew Boba U4 and the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A is quieter in a shared room?
This is a tie at the quiet end. With two pad-dampened switches the case and the keycaps are louder than either one, and the choice between them is a choice of tone.
Is the Gazzew Boba U4 heavier than the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A?
The Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A on the figures this page carries, 80 g to 62 g at bottom-out, but the comparison is not manufacturer against manufacturer: Cherry publishes no bottom-out figure, so the 80 g we list for the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A is our own derivation from the forces it does publish rather than a manufacturer rating.
Which is cheaper to fill a board with, the Gazzew Boba U4 or the Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A?
The Cherry MX Silent Black MX2A sits in the mid priced bracket and the Gazzew Boba U4 in the premium priced one. We do not hold a reliable per-switch price for both, so the bracket is the honest answer rather than a total.
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