The Cherry “Nixie” linear switch is one of the most sought-after vintage switches in the aftermarket for their smoothness and deep, “thocky” sound profile, but it is also very hard to come by. Thankfully, Cherry is reviving the legendary switch with the Cherry MX Black Clear-Top – a rather confusing name, given that it actually has a milky top housing.

Nonetheless, Cherry says that the MX Black Clear-Top retains the characteristics of the original Nixie switch with “modern production optimisations.” This should translate to good quality control to ensure there’s no huge inconsistency between different switches.

Of course, the MX Black Clear-Top also has the same colour scheme as the Nixie with a milky top, black bottom, black stem, and gold-coloured stainless steel spring. It also has an actuation force of 63.5g (80g bottom out) and is available with or without factory lubing.

The Cherry MX Black Clear-Top will be released sometime in early 2023 next year. It’ll be interesting to see just how similar it would be to the original Nixie, and we’ll definitely put it through its paces once we have the MX Black Clear-Top in for review!