BSUN Maple Sugar: Review by Vere
Joonhyun Choe
Opening Words:
Hello, today's switch is a recent favorite of mine from BSUN, the Maple Sugar linears.
They seem to use a new set of molds which helps strengthen BSUN's main qualities while tightening their stem wobble. These switches are wonderful but do have some minor issues that I'll go over, but its another good step for BSUN in the right direction.
These switches are very deep, with a nice pop to the classic BSUN bottom-out.
Switch Introduction:
The BSUN Maple Sugar is a long-pole linear with a POM top housing, modified Nylon bottom housing, and a proprietary POM blend called S3.
They come with a 20mm single-stage stainless steel spring with an operating force of 55g and bottoming out at 62g. There is no rated variance, but they feel heavier than normal due to the housing tightness.
They have a travel distance of 3.6mm.
They come factory lubed.
Short Summary
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Volume |
Moderate volume for a long-pole, likely due to a combination of the material composition but also the heavy spring-weight. |
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Pitch |
Medium-Low to Low Pitch, the overall pitch is definitely on the lower end, but the switch doesn't sound fully muted, this is definitely noticeable when bottoming-out and when typing fast. |
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Sound Profile |
The sound profile is very clean and represents BSUN's colors well, by having a deep and vibrant bottom-out with very little transient noise, you can appreciate a naturally "foamy" sound profile thanks to the composition here. The modifications help solidify some of the sound as well and prevents it from sounding too dull or muted. |
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Stock |
These switches are extremely smooth but have some issues regarding spring noise and housing tolerance. The tightness makes the initial keypress feel more stiff than normal which makes the already heavy spring weight feel even heavier. The springs themselves also have a bit of ping to them. Films are not required here due to the tightness, and there is essentially no wobble. |
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Design |
An exciting composition utilizing mostly normal materials that have been modified, though the POM top housing is slightly uncommon. |
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Other |
Based on the main character of "Gushing over Magical Girls", Utena. |
Stock Experience:
The Maple Sugars have a light coating of an oil-like lubricant over the stem rails and legs, there doesn't seem to be any intentional coating over the bottom-housing and the amount of lubricant on the leaf seems minimal as well.
The springs are likely to have some lubricant as well but there doesn't seem to be an adequate amount.
I can imagine that they didn't want to overdo the factory-lubing since these switches are very tight and already sound deep on their own.
The housings require no films and likely wouldn't be able to accommodate them.
Would I modify them?
Personally I would spring swap them, the stock springs are a bit too heavy for my taste and they require some touch ups if you want to fully remove any pinging noise from the switch. It would just be more efficient to simply replace them with the springs of your choice instead of manually re-lubing each spring.
S3 POM Blend and Modified Nylon:
After using these switches for quite some time, I'm seriously impressed by the S3 POM stem. Though I do not know the full composition, it generates such a full and deep sound profile without sounding overly muted or muddied. It also doesn't generate much scratch when paired with the POM top-housing, which means that it's somewhat far from just POM now.
The sound profile still sounds like POM for the most part, having a solidity in the sound and not sounding plasticky. This leads me to believe that it isn't utilizing UPE in the material as the sound profile doesn't carry any traces of UPE which is often recognizable. (Muddy and thinner plastic sound profile)
It definitely sounds deeper and heavier thanks to the stem, but where does the poppy bottom-out come from? I can only guess that the modification made to the Nylon bottom housing is the addition of some fiberglass, a material that BSUN has been recently been utilizing in some releases.
I conducted some tests by franken-switching the parts from other BSUN fiberglass bottoms and the results were as expected. The sound profile was nearly identical, but some of the other bottom housings resulted in a louder volume, likely due to having up to 30% fiberglass added. My hypothesis is that the BSUN Maple Sugars use a smaller amount of fiberglass or at least do not use PA66 as the main nylon base.
Overall Design:
First off, I will admit that these switches caught me off guard when they first came out, they were a simple looking release right after we had the Udons, Ragdolls, Usagi, and I didn't have any particular expectations of them.
However, I was immediately proven wrong when I put them into a board and tested them out, it was extremely surprising since they are quite different from the most recent releases and their tightness reminded me more of HMX and Keygeek. I think that these switches are an important step towards BSUN finding their own direction.
Taking a look at the internal design, I can tell they wanted to produce a truly deep switch that "thocks" harder than the competition. I think that they've figured out that just using LY or UPE isn't going to always produce a full and deep sound profile and will sometimes produce thinner and brighter sounds. This is noticeable when you look at recent releases that just use more standard materials like POM and Nylon with some modifications.
By using some fiberglass in the bottom housing to maintain the poppy and solid bottom-out, they just needed to formulate the right stem to work together with it.
Their Y3X stem wouldn't be the move here since that stem leans more towards the brighter/thinner side of the spectrum, we would just have repeats of the BSUN Usagi/Ragdoll which sit around the Medium pitch.
Whatever they put into the S3 stem seems to work well though, it is definitely firm and doesn't feel soft at all, whilst maintaining good smoothness. The only issue likely arises from the housing tolerance when working together with the stem, as they probably didn't account for the tightness when utilizing mostly firmer materials this time around, and they've only ever used POM top-housings with POM bottom-housings in the past.
All in all, as a BSUN release this switch is a definite winner in my books, it encompasses everything you would expect a BSUN release to be: Deep, firm, and smooth.
Smoothness and typing experience:
As mentioned above, the smoothness is excellent and requires no additional effort to work on. The minimal pre-lube is sufficient enough to help with making the keypress more smooth, but due to the tolerance tightness there is definitely some pressure when you first press down.
In terms of typing experience, it does mean that you will end up needing to apply more force into your keypresses when using these switches, so much so that the 62g bottom-out weight is more like 68g.
If you prefer heavier spring weights and aren't affected at all by this then you will probably enjoy these switches a lot. They have a slightly firm bottom-out by not utilizing any soft materials but they do have a pleasant kind of feedback to them.
Out of all the BSUN releases, this switch has the least amount of wobble, which helps provide a more satisfying typing feel.
Sound Profile:
The Maple Sugar has a very consistent sound profile, deep but not muted or muddy. Low transient noise and a clear bottom-out. A very strong sound profile that can be thrown into any build of your choosing.
Since the core of the composition is a POM stem on Nylon bottom-housing, we can expect a mostly ordinary sound profile where the bottom-out is stronger than the top-out sound. Thanks to the POM top-housing we don't hear much of a top-out but it isn't entirely quiet.
With the modification mostly focused on slightly altering the sound rather than changing it completely, we simply have a full-sounding, deeper, long-pole linear from BSUN.
The BSUN Maple Sugar comes equipped with a full and deep sound profile, consisting of a crisp and poppy bottom-out and mostly clean acoustics with low transient noise and top-out noise. The modified stem helps create a truly deep sound that doesn't start sounding muted or dull, and the nylon bottom-housing grants us a bit of firmness in the sound.
Crisp refers to having a solid bottom-out that is clear and is easy to hear, doesn't necessarily mean loud and bright.
Clean refers to a sound profile that is mostly one-note or consolidated, lacking excess noise from factors like scratch, or having a top-out that is much quieter than the bottom-out.
Full refers to a sound profile that doesn't sound shallow to our ears, or isn't dull and empty. (To be more specific, it has all kinds of frequencies in the sound, lows, mids, and highs.)
Comparative Notes:
I will break down the comparative strength of this switch when compared to other manufacturers and their average switch releases. Keep in mind that this is not a guaranteed guide, this serves to assist those who don't have a general idea of what to expect from this switch or other manufacturers.
Compared to Gateron switches on average:
1. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be more full than most Gateron.
2. The BSUN Maple Sugar is similarly pitched or deeper than most Gateron.
3. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have similar volume to most Gateron.
4. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to feel heavier than most Gateron.
5. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have a better stock experience than most Gateron.
6. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have similar smoothness to most Gateron.
Compared to Keygeek switches on average:
1. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be of similar fullness to most Keygeek.
2. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be lower pitched or similar to most Keygeek.
3. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be quieter than most Keygeek.
4. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to feel heavier than most Keygeek.
5. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have a similar stock experience to most Keygeek.
6. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have similar smoothness to most Keygeek.
Compared to BSUN switches on average:
1. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be more full or have similar fullness.
2. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be the one of the deepest BSUN switches.
3. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be on the quieter end, but not the quietest.
4. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to be the heaviest BSUN.
5. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to one of the better stock experiences.
6. The BSUN Maple Sugar is likely to have similar smoothness to the rest of BSUN.
Flaws and things I didn't like:
The notable flaws would be the overly tight housing tolerance which would lead to some odd feelings during typing.
This isn't a major issue but it does create some additional pressure when typing and can be uncomfortable for those used to lighter spring weights.
The spring noise is also an issue but can be remedied by applying some extra lubricant or spring-swapping and counteracting the extra heavy feeling.
I like everything else about this switch.
PERSONAL BUILD RECOMMENDATIONS: (PREFERENCE/OPINION BASED)
I've used these switches in several different plates and I've settled on using them on an Ultem plate to liven up the sound a bit more.
I had a lot of fun using them on brighter plates to mix up the deepness with some stronger bottom-outs, but they also perform wonderfully on the deeper plastic plates to accentuate their main charm.
I would personally use POM or Polypropylene if you want a deeper and stronger sound, or use Carbon Fiber / Ultem if you wanted them to pop a bit more.
Closing Summary:
The BSUN Maple Sugar is a fantastic release which capitalizes on BSUN's key strengths and overall direction.
By utilizing mostly standard materials to create a normal sound profile, but then adding modifications to alter the sound in the way that they want, they've created a refreshingly deep switch in a world of higher pitched long-poles and/or muted sounding UPE based switches.
As mentioned above, these switches sound good thanks to the fact that they are very full and rich in terms of acoustics, they aren't just deep, they also pop and hit decently hard on the bottom-out.
The only unfortunate quirks would be the housing tolerances being a bit too much, but that isn't a deal-breaker for me, I can only await future releases when they've got stuff on lock-down.
If you're in the market for a deeper and solid long-pole, but you're tired of UPE, LY, or whatever other manufacturers are using to make "thocky" switches, look no further than the BSUN Maple Sugar. Their rich and heavy sound profile will make you addicted to their flavor.
FINAL SCORING: 9.0/10 [Deep and flavorful]
Design: 10/10
[When it comes to design, there is nothing more impressive than making a switch sound unique or wonderful with simple materials. They've utilized proprietary blends and modifications to alter the switch in the way they've wanted, and they succeeded for sure here. The end result is a truly deep switch that encompasses the rich and heavy image of sweetness from maple sap.]
Sound Profile: 10/10
[Clean and crisp on the bottom-out, with a satisfyingly full sound profile that doesn't lean towards the muted end despite being so deep. The Maple Sugar is another strong contender in the space of deep long-poles, an area which hasn't been seeing too much competition until recently. This switch's sound can be appreciated by anyone who likes their builds to be on the lower end of the pitch.]
Stock Experience: 9/10
[Unfortunately there is some spring noise here so I have to dock some points, though the stock smoothness is excellent and is nothing to scoff at. The entire switch itself doesn't have much lubrication in the first place, so perhaps some touch-ups on the spring can solve the issue easily. The stem wobble is nearly non-existent, which makes this one of the best BSUN switches in terms of wobble control.]
Uniqueness: 8/10
[In terms of uniqueness, the Maple Sugar utilize a proprietary POM blend on the stem and have a modification on the nylon bottom-housing, though it's not fully disclosed. They are definitely unique for having such a low pitch despite the ordinary materials and not sounding muted compared to others in the same pitch spectrum. ]
Flaws: 2/10
[The main flaw would be the housing tolerance issue which leads to having a bit of pressure on the initial keypress. On top of that, there is some unfortunate spring noise.]