Topre 45g Electrocapacitive vs Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)
Only one of these is dampened. The Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) is a silent switch and the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive is not, which decides most rooms before the spec sheet gets a say. Our switch library cross-links them because this matchup keeps coming up. Start with the A/B bursts below, then take the spec table and the picks in order.
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 | Topre 45g Electrocapacitive | Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) |
|---|---|---|
| Type | Tactile | Tactile (silent) |
| Brand rates force at | actuation | actuation |
| Actuation force | 45 g | 45 g |
| Bottom-out force | not published | not published |
| Pre-travel | 2.2 mm | 2.2 mm |
| Total travel | 4 mm | 3.8 mm |
| Silent (dampened) | No | Yes |
| Factory lubed | Yes | Yes |
| MX-compatible stem | No | No |
| Price tier | Premium | Premium |
| Street price | varies | varies |
Both of these are rated 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.
Verdict
Both the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive and the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) are tactiles, so this matchup comes down to weight, travel and sound rather than feel. The Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) is also the dampened one of the pair, which makes it far easier to live with in a shared room. Both are rated 45 g at actuation, the only measuring point with a published figure for each, so the spec sheet will not settle weight. Split by use: the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive for gaming and typing, the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) for a shared office.
- Gaming pick
- Topre 45g Electrocapacitive
- Typing pick
- Topre 45g Electrocapacitive
- Office pick
- Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)
Force curves
Topre 45g Electrocapacitive
Topre publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the dashed end of the curve is an estimate, not a spec. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers.
Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)
Topre publishes no bottom-out force for this switch, so the dashed end of the curve is an estimate, not a spec. Everything up to actuation comes from the published numbers.
Topre 45g Electrocapacitive or Topre Silent 45g (Type-S): the long answer
Noise is the headline on this pair, so start there. Put them through the player above and the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive lands as the iconic HHKB thock: deep 'toc' with a pillowy landing where the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) lands as muted 'puc': the thock, whispered. Only the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) is pad-dampened. That removes the top of the bottom-out entirely, which is a bigger change than any number in the table above, and it is why the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive is the one people hear through a wall. Worth repeating: the audio here is a simulation built from specs and community descriptions, not a recording of either switch.
Now the part the spec table measures. Both are tactiles, so both give a finger something to aim at on the way down and the argument moves to the numbers. Weight looks like a tie, 45 g each at actuation, but without a bottom-out figure for each of them there is nothing to check it against. They register at the same 2.2 mm, then part company on depth: 4.0 mm on the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive against 3.8 mm on the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S). Neither one out-feels the other on type, so the small differences in the table are where the decision lives.
On price and practicality, both are premium priced. Both arrive lubed from the factory, which is one project you can skip either way. Worth knowing before you order: neither of these uses an MX style stem, so neither will drop into a standard hot-swap board or accept ordinary MX keycaps, and they do not share a mount with each other either.
The split is simple. Buy the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive for how it plays and how it writes: the two are close enough here that either works, and our scoring gives it the nod by a hair, and at the keyboard all day, it holds the same feel from the first hour of writing to the last. Buy the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) if other people have to sit near it, as the pads stop the bottom-out from traveling past your own desk. 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 Topre 45g Electrocapacitive page and the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) page, or test how your current keyboard performs with our free keyboard tester.
Frequently asked questions
For gaming, should I buy the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive or the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)?
We pick the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive for gaming. Honestly either is fine here. It takes the nod once the scoring is added up, and only just.
Which of the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive and the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S) is quieter in a shared room?
The Topre Silent 45g (Type-S), by a margin no other row on this page can close. Pads take the hard edge off both ends of the travel, and the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive keeps its clack when you bottom out.
Is the Topre 45g Electrocapacitive heavier than the Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)?
Neither, as far as the published numbers go: both are rated 45 g at actuation, the only measuring point with a published figure for each. Bottom-out is where two switches matched at actuation often diverge, but neither switch here has a published bottom-out figure at all. Treat this as a tie on the spec sheet rather than a proven match in the hand.
More comparisons
More vs Topre 45g Electrocapacitive
More vs Topre Silent 45g (Type-S)
Or browse every switch comparison on the site.