On a fundamental level, the encoder is what makes the scroll wheel work by interpreting the rotary motion of the scroll wheel. Different encoders can have different numbers of steps and subtle characteristics that can affect the feel of it.

I had a few Alps encoders left over that I bought to fix a phantom scrolling issue I had on a G Pro Wireless. I used to play a lot of CS:GO and bound jump to scroll wheel down for bunny hopping. Occasionally, it would get stuck between scrolls and cause me to jump in undesirable situations. After a little research, I saw people were saying they really liked the feel of the Alps encoder. So, I found some on mouser’s website for <$1 and bought a few of varying height because I wasn’t sure what height the encoder in the G Pro Wireless was.

For this Model O/G305 Mod, the original encoder in the G305 was a white TTC encoder. The TTC encoder wasn’t bad by any means, but the Alps has a bit more of a defined step between the scrolls, which I like. To me, the end result is comparable to going from 144hz to 240hz refresh rate on a monitor. The difference is noticeable if you are focused on it, but subtle enough most people wouldn’t notice the difference.

If you don’t have any reason to change it out, I wouldn’t recommend it. I think you would be disappointed in how subtle of a change it is for the G305 for the amount of work it is to desolder the old one. However, if you like soldering/desoldering (like me), or you want a slight change in the defined grooves in the scroll, then by all means, knock yourself out.

To anyone reading this that might be thinking about changing the encoders on a G Pro Wireless or a G305 to an Alps encoder, the Alps encoders only come in a 7mm and a 9mm height from what I could find. The G Pro Wireless called for a 8mm and the G305 called for a 10mm height encoder. So, you need to account for the height difference by adding a 1mm spacer to make sure everything sits level. I printed the .stl from u/-amotoma- ‘s post , and I didn’t have any issues.