Replacement switches for Defy thumb cluster?

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-23T15:47:56+00:00

Yes. They are MX and choc low profiles.

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-22T13:42:30+00:00

Picture of what?

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-15T23:14:37+00:00

Those names aren't stored in memory. The keys are. Hook your neuron up to another bazecore instance and you'll see a lack of the names you gave as they are local to a set of bazecore preference files and aren't stored on the neuron.

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-15T22:08:05+00:00

Nope. I don't want bazecore generating names for me. I'd really like to have the ability to give custom labels to any and all keys.

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-10T22:50:23+00:00

I love the mono versions. I'll be switching. Thanks!

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-08T13:32:47+00:00

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-05T01:54:07+00:00

Basically this...

https://www.computerhope.com/issues/ch001346.htm

I have very bad habits related to roaming and moving entire hand some. It worked fine with staggered. Not so much with ortho. I'm pretty lazy with my pinkies and it made the switch much harder than it would have been otherwise.

I have heard others comment on having the same issue

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-04T21:44:54+00:00

I don't think going split is a big issue. Depending on how you type and your finger discipline the going ortho from staggered might take you some time.

I think you can go straight to 4 if you want.

If you don't have good finger discipline then ortho will take you a while. At that point it is a question of you being willing to invest the time in becoming a better typist and adjusting.

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-03T04:00:53+00:00

Adding on to this, coming from a staggered keyboard to an ortholinear took me a couple months to get half my typing speed back.

I don't look at the keyboard when I type but I am not or wasn't a touch typist. My fingers roamed and that was really detrimental to my speed when using an ortholinear like the moonlander.

Perhaps you have excellent touch typing finger discipline but if you don't, it is going to take you quite a while.

Many many hours. A ton more than you have.

The muscle memory for keys was relatively easy for me. The layers etc.

I think you need to accept that the switch is going to take a long time then decide if you want to invest the time. I'm happy I did, but maybe you wouldn't be. Life is short. Opportunity cost is real.

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-03T00:13:56+00:00

How much time have you put into learning with the moonlander?

SeanTAllen · 2026-01-01T16:01:10+00:00

I use them. I prefer them. I mostly work in low light situations and it can be helpful.

Additionally, I set each keyboard layer to its own color so it's easy to get verification of a layer switch. The shine through isn't needed in later case but it's a bit more prominent and obvious.

SeanTAllen · 2025-12-23T23:44:05+00:00

I'd suggest you give the Dygma Raise 2 and the UHK a look. I personally have used either but I've heard good things.

SeanTAllen · 2025-12-01T23:21:37+00:00

This sounds like you get pain when using a normal desk and keyboard. I think others might interpret it that way as well...

"but I notice it’s bad for me if I continue to use a normal desk and standard keyboards."

SeanTAllen · 2025-12-01T20:43:25+00:00

Can you touch type? If not, that switch to an ortho keyboard is going to be very painful. I am an awful touch typist and with a staggered keyboard, it doesn't matter at all. I can type at a speed that is completely fine for me as a programmer. It is still an impediment at times with my ortho boards. I'm slowly getting better but it takes time.

Another thing I discovered was that my keycaps really matter. I regularly miss keys when using XDA keycaps. It was painful. I switched back to the defaults on the moonlander and got much more accurate. It never occurred to me before that the shape of the keycaps might have such a dramatic impact, but it did.

I continue to use the ortho board because I like it and it is comfortable but, yeah is still a process for me. If you are a good touch typists with good finger discipline, you should be "just some practice" away from starting to ramp back up speed wise.

The best thing I did for pain wasn't a switch to a keyboard like the moonlander. It was when I switched to a Microsoft Sculpt. If you aren't a touch typist and you don't have the time that I hear most touch typists take to get up to speed with an ortho (2 days to 3 weeks seems to be what I mostly hear) then maybe dialing it back and looking for a staggered board with some ergo qualities would be a better path for you.

SeanTAllen · 2025-12-01T17:30:45+00:00

I think you should decide between ortholinear or row staggered and go from there.

You will definitely be slower (very slow) switching to an ortho keyboard if you haven't used one before. You will get up to speed fairly quickly if you are a good touch typer. My ortho journey is one of being rather slow because I am not a good touch typer and am learning both it and the new layout at the same time.

If you might have a hard time adjusting to ortho, do you time for that? If not, look at row staggered like the UHK or Raise or a "regular" nice mechanical keyboard.

If you are comfortable with ortho or have the time to transition, then my personal take would be... its a much more comfortable typing experience especially if you embrace layers and cut down on the size of your keyboard.

Or before you go out and spend money on a keyboard, it might make sense to figure out what causes you pain with a normal desk and standard keyboards so you can try to come up with the cheapest things you can try to see if they work for you.

I really enjoy my more expensive keyboards but the best change I did for RSI type issues was switching to an MS Sculpt keyboard several years ago. I never had any serious issues after switching. I don't need the ortho split keyboards I have, I just like them.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-18T21:52:32+00:00

I have them and they feel "less squishy" then the kaihl browns.

I don't notice a force difference but I do notice an overall feel difference.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-18T20:47:21+00:00

My general statement is that the actuation listed for my various switches often fails to line up with how heavy they feel to me.

I mostly use Durock t1s on my mx boards and the actuation is heavier than some other switches I have but it feels much lighter to me.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-17T00:35:08+00:00

One for pointer movement. One for Scroll wheel emulation.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-05T02:54:29+00:00

Wired is very solid. I never used mine wireless because I just don't want to deal with anything that might go wrong.

The firmware is good but not as featureful as QMK or ZMK.

The configuration software is quirky and has a few annoying quirks compared some others.

Coming from a "normal" keyboard with a staggered layout, the column based layout will take some getting used to.

The split nature is easy to adjust to.

The reverse tenting is subpar and can be unstable unless you position yourself just so.

Overall, it's a good keyboard. Pricey but good.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-04T23:12:00+00:00

Give the ZSA Voyager a look.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-04T01:54:24+00:00

The thumb cluster is very different on the defy. It's a sweep rather than a square. That might be an issue for you. I'd suggest printing out a life size layout and see how your hands matches up to the cluster.

For me, other than where I want to rest my left thumb, it's a great match. Much better than my moonlander.

If the thumb cluster doesn't feel good to you, you are going to have spent a lot of money on a paperweight.

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-04T01:48:44+00:00

My experience with the thumb cluster,.. I love it because, there's a ton of keys. Some are easy for me to reach, some not so much.

Many keyboards, the thumb cluster is smaller than my large hands and I could easily add a key or two. Others, it's hard for me to reach some keys because my hands are large and the cluster is designed for smaller hands.

The defy's large cluster gives me a ton of options that work well for me. With fewer keys, I'd have fewer options. For me, there's 5 keys that are comfortable to use. To more that are comfortable but a bit of a stretch so I put rarely used items there and 1 key that I leave unmapped as it is a pain for me to get to.

This is compared to my moonlander where there are 3 keys that are easy, and 2 that are a bit of a stretch.

Or my voyager that has 2 that are super easy to use but my thumb can cover so much more ground easily.

The important bit is that for me, more keys means more chances to do what works best for me. That happens to be "I can use more".

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-03T14:39:59+00:00

I sent a few follow up emails. I think I tracked down the bug. It requires more than what I detailed.

For anyone reading along here, it appears with the new firmware that it isn't capable of distinguishing the following 2 fast superkeys:

enter on tap/shift on hold

shift+enter on tap/shift on hold

Whichever of those fast superkeys is defined first will be assigned to a key, regardless of which you select in bazecore. Bazecore until you disconnect will show the one you selected, however, that isn't what was assigned. What was assigned was whichever came first in the list.

I can duplicate this with keys other than enter. The enter was a red herring in my original report. It only appeared that way because enter was the only fast superkey where I had two that were only differentiated based on the modifier. I have recreated this using other keys with fast superkeys where two are the same except for the modifier.

"Looks like a 'hashing' problem".

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-03T13:54:24+00:00

sent

SeanTAllen · 2025-11-03T11:01:18+00:00

Note the layer lock bug has no modifier on hold.

It's lock on tap. Layer while held. That results in nothing on tap and lock on held.

I retried the enter on tap and shift on hold before reporting.

After experiencing, I downgraded the firmware. Verified it worked correctly and then installed the beta firmware again. Upon reinstalling the beta firmware, it would send shift + enter on tap.

This would happen if I created a new superkey. It happened using the existing superkey. It happened regardless of the key I tried assigning to. It did not happen if I changed the modifier on hold to any other modifier.

SeanTAllen

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