For many, mechanical keyboards are not just functional tools but a true hobby. Beyond the comfortable typing experience and satisfying tactile feedback, enthusiasts care deeply about their keyboard’s appearance — and especially its sound. While you can use a keyboard straight out of the box, in many cases the typing experience might feel basic, and the sound might not be ideal — hollow, harsh, echoey, or simply unpleasurable. To enhance both typing comfort and sound, there’s a wide range of improvements, or Mods (short for modifications), you can apply to tailor the keyboard to your preferences.
Don’t be intimidated by the long list — feel free to pick and choose which mods appeal to you, or skip this section entirely. It’s worth noting that many modern keyboards, especially those priced at $70–$80 and above, already come with most of these mods pre-installed, so additional manual work might not be necessary.
Case modding
Whether your case is made of plastic or metal, if it’s too hollow, the sound of keystrokes can bounce off the sides and bottom, creating an unpleasant, often loud, echo. The solution is to add sound-dampening materials to the bottom of the case. You can use almost any material you can think of, with the thickness and density of the material affecting the resulting sound. Common materials include EVA foam, Polyfil, Poron, or silicone. Most keyboards these days come with pre-included foam kits, but you can always experiment with different materials, remove some layers, or add others until you achieve your desired sound profile.
Force Break Mod: This popular mod is designed for keyboards with metal cases. If the top and bottom parts of the case make direct contact without any insulation, it can create an unpleasant metallic “ping” sound during typing. The solution, despite its dramatic name, is quite simple: add a few layers of insulating tape (such as electrical tape) at strategic points between the case parts. This creates the necessary isolation and significantly reduces or even eliminates the ping sound entirely.
Plate and PCB Modding
As mentioned earlier, the material of the plate significantly affects both the keyboard’s sound profile and typing feel. If your keyboard came with a plate that’s too stiff or too soft for your liking, or you want a different sound signature, the solution is to replace the plate with one made of a different material. Not all keyboards have alternative plates available, so if swapping plates is important to you, make sure the model you’re considering offers compatible options for purchase.
PE Foam: Between the plate and the PCB, most keyboards include a layer of foam to improve acoustics. Many users choose to replace this foam with one or two layers of PE foam — a thin, white foam often used in packaging for electronics and appliances, which can also be purchased separately. PE foam is known for producing a distinctive, desirable creamy sound that many enthusiasts seek.
Tape Mod: This popular, simple, and effective mod involves applying up to three layers of painters tape to the underside of the PCB. Be sure to cut out openings where needed, such as for the cable connection to the USB port or battery (if present). This straightforward modification results in a more focused and deeper typing sound.
Stabilizers Modding
Stabilizers are one of the keyboard components that almost always require attention, as they rarely come optimized from the factory. Due to their moving parts, metal-to-plastic contact, and their interaction with the plate or PCB, they often produce unwanted rattling or ticking sounds that can be difficult to eliminate.
If you’re working with a budget keyboard that has low-quality stabilizers, you might want to replace them entirely with a high-quality set from brands like Durock, C³ Equalz, TX, Owlabs, or others. Even with new stabilizers, it’s essential to perform at least some modding to ensure they perform and sound their best.
Lubing: To eliminate dry, noisy friction between components, you’ll need to lube the stabilizers using a thick, long-lasting lubricant that won’t evaporate or degrade quickly. The process typically involves lightly brushing the inside of the plastic housings and applying a generous layer of grease to both ends of the stabilizer wire where it inserts into the housings. Popular lubricants for this purpose include Krytox 250G0 for general lubing and Dielectric Grease for the metal wire.
Holee Mod: For slightly more advanced users looking to minimize rattling as much as possible, the Holee Mod involves cutting a thin strip of medical tape and using tweezers to insert it inside the stabilizer housing. This acts as padding, adding a soft layer between the plastic and metal components. While this method is highly effective, some users report that the tape may wear down over time and require replacement.
Stabilizer Padding: This relatively simple mod is specifically for screw-in stabilizers. It involves applying small adhesive pads around the screw holes where the stabilizers are mounted. This prevents direct contact between the stabilizers and the PCB, adding extra dampening and potentially improving the sound.
Clipping the Stem Feet: On some stabilizers, the back of the stem (the part that touches the PCB or plate when typing) has tiny protruding feet that can cause unwanted ticking sounds. Most modern stabilizers no longer have these feet, as the stem ends are flat, but if they do, you can carefully clip them off with scissors.
Switches Modding
Beyond the simple option of swapping out your keyboard’s switches for a set with a different typing feel or sound, you can enhance your existing switches as well. The two main methods for this are Lubing and Filming, often referred to together as L+F.
Lubing: Lubing is a time-consuming and meticulous process, especially if your keyboard has a lot of keys, but the results are absolutely worth it. Each switch is opened with a specialized tool, and the following steps are performed: Lightly lube the bottom housing’s interior, lube the stem for smoother motion (commonly done with Krytox 250G0), and then Lube the springs using a “bag lube” method: place the springs in a small plastic bag, add a few drops of Krytox GPL 105, and shake vigorously to coat them evenly.
Once reassembled, the switches will have noticeably smoother motion, free of scratchiness, along with a deeper, more pleasant sound profile.
If you don’t have the patience or equipment needed to lube your switches, you can purchase factory-lubed switches instead. Nowadays, brands like BSUN and HMX offer excellent pre-lubed switches at affordable prices.
Filming: Before reassembling your lubed switch, you can insert a thin film made of foam or another material between the top and bottom housings of the switch. This tightens the fit, prevents unwanted wobbling of the stem, and further enhances the sound.
Frankenswitch Mod: Like Frankenstein’s monster — but in a good way — this involves combining parts from different switches to create a new, custom switch. This mod is ideal for advanced or professional enthusiasts who are familiar with their switches’ properties and can design a new switch tailored to their preferences by mixing and matching components.
Accessories and add-ons
Many enthusiasts don’t settle for just their keycap set, no matter how refined or stylish it may be, and often add Artisan keycaps — uniquely designed keycaps intended purely for aesthetic purposes, rather than functional use.
The keyboard cable is another important detail. If a plain black or white USB cable doesn’t satisfy you, you might consider investing in a coiled cable. These cables are significantly more expensive than standard ones and come in a wide range of colors, finishes, and materials to complement your keyboard setup.
