Cherry MX Red MX2A vs Outemu Red
The Cherry MX Red MX2A and the Outemu Red match on every force figure either brand publishes, which makes this a comparison of everything the spec sheet does not measure. Our switch library links the two to each other for that reason. Play the A/B bursts below to hear them back to back, match the volumes, then read the spec table and the verdict.
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 | Cherry MX Red MX2A | Outemu Red |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Linear | Linear |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 45 g | 45 g |
| Bottom-out force | 60 g (our estimate) | 60 g (our estimate) |
| Pre-travel | 2 mm | 2 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 4 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | No |
| Factory lubed | Yes | No |
| MX-compatible stem | Yes | Yes |
| Price tier | Mid-range | Budget |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Both makers rate these at actuation, which is the one case where the advertised numbers compare directly. Every other force row still has to be matched basis to basis. Neither Cherry nor Outemu publishes a bottom-out figure, so the two figures marked "our estimate" are our own derivation from the forces that are published rather than a rating. How that derivation works .
Verdict
Cherry and Outemu are selling the same stroke here, and on paper they are selling it at the same weight. Every force figure either brand publishes lands on the same number, so the spring is not the tiebreak here. Budget also has a say, since the Outemu Red is budget friendly and the Cherry MX Red MX2A is mid priced. Nothing here separates by use case: the Cherry MX Red MX2A is our pick for gaming and for typing, and it is the one that carries less across a room. Take the Outemu Red only if you specifically want light thin clack with a whisper of spring ping.
- Overall pick
- Cherry MX Red MX2A
Gaming, typing and a shared office all point at the Cherry MX Red MX2A, so printing the same name three times would tell you nothing. One pick it is.
Force curves
Cherry MX Red MX2A
Cherry publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 60 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.
Outemu Red
Outemu publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the 60 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.
Cherry MX Red MX2A or Outemu Red: the long answer
Specs first, since the feel gap is what you notice in the first minute of typing. Every force row in the table above reads the same on both sides, 45 g at actuation and 60 g at bottom-out. Neither Cherry nor Outemu publishes a bottom-out figure, so both of those are our estimates. Both are linears either way, so both give you spring resistance and nothing else. Distance is not the difference: both register at 2.0 mm and stop at 4.0 mm. On paper these are the same switch. The difference has to be somewhere the spec sheet does not reach.
Sound decides more of these arguments than force curves do. Two different voices: neutral mid-pitched clack with a faint scratch on the slide on the Cherry MX Red MX2A, light thin clack with a whisper of spring ping on the Outemu Red. 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 what they cost to fill a board, the Cherry MX Red MX2A is mid priced, while the Outemu Red is budget friendly. Factory lube is on the Cherry MX Red MX2A alone. Budget the extra time if you pick the Outemu Red and want it at its best.
So who should buy which? The same switch wins every way we score it: the Cherry MX Red MX2A is our pick for gaming, for typing and for a shared desk. On speed, this axis is nearly a tie, and it comes out ahead only once the scoring is added up. On typing feel, it holds the same feel from the first hour of writing to the last. On noise, it is the quieter of the two once the room is listening. That leaves the Outemu Red to anyone who preferred its voice in the player above, which is a good enough reason on its own. Whichever way you land, listen to both above with the volume trims matched before you spend anything.
Want the full story on either switch? Read the dedicated Cherry MX Red MX2A page and the Outemu Red page. If you are here to check the board you already own, use our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
Is the Cherry MX Red MX2A or the Outemu Red the better gaming switch?
We pick the Cherry MX Red MX2A for gaming. The two are close enough for gaming that either works; our scoring defaults to it by a small margin.
Which is quieter, the Cherry MX Red MX2A or the Outemu Red?
They are close. Neither is a silent switch and neither clicks, so loudness depends mostly on how hard you bottom out and the board they sit in. Their character differs though: the Cherry MX Red MX2A leans toward neutral mid-pitched clack with a faint scratch on the slide, while the Outemu Red is light thin clack with a whisper of spring ping.
Which has the heavier spring, the Cherry MX Red MX2A or the Outemu Red?
Neither: they match at actuation and at bottom-out alike (45 g at actuation), so any difference in feel comes from the stroke rather than the spring. Neither Cherry nor Outemu publishes a bottom-out figure, so both of those numbers are our own derivation from the forces they do publish.
Which is cheaper to fill a board with, the Cherry MX Red MX2A or the Outemu Red?
The Outemu Red sits in the budget friendly bracket and the Cherry MX Red MX2A in the mid 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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