Rubber Reviews!!!

[kaikaz]

This thread is made for everyone who wants to make a review about any rubber so other people have all the information they want if they are considering to buy a new rubber so I hope you guys wont let this thread die.

So I'll start.

I played with Donic silver and nimbus sound before.
I'm not going to review the silver because they dont make the one I played with.

Nimbus sound:

Soft/Hard: Its the softest rubber I have ever played with.

Spin: Pretty spinny, not like tenergy but it has decent spin.

Throw: I found it was pretty high.

Pro's: Good control, pretty spinny, not too fast. I could play any stroke with it without much effort (block, push, topspin). Good control for blocking and pushing and topspin like timo boll.

Con's: It lasts like 2 months max. (playing 4 times a week).
It's slow so powertopspin like ma long wont work with this rubber.

If you have other things to add for this rubber, you can always say it in a new post so others can read it.

 

[kaikaz]

Xiom omega 4 europe

Soft/hard: its hard but not like asian rubbers but definetely harder than any other rubber. Probably the same as tenergy.

Spin: Very good spin, better than tenergy rubbers.

Throw: Low throw

Pro's: Decent control, very spinny, very fast. This rubber is great for powerlooping, also a great feel for short game, mine lasts already for 4 months and I think i can still play 2 more months with it.

Con's: If you are not used to fast rubbers it might be a little too fast, but thats the only thing I can think of.

Conclusion: Fast rubber for attacking players, you can play close to the table and far away from the table. It has lots of spin, durability is great, control is also ok. And the sponge is black which looks very cool

Price: 39.90 euro

 

[kaikaz]

Xiom vega elite

Soft/hard: its soft but not as soft as nimbus.

Spin: decent spin, not as much as the omega 4 europe, but still more than other rubbers like nimbus, genius,...

Throw: medium: its higher than omega 4 europe but lower than the nimbus rubbers.

Pro's: Very good control, feeling and fast. This one is great for looping with spin and medium fast loops to score the point. Durability is also great, playing with it for 4 months now and I can still play with it for a few more months. Spin is ok.

Cons: Short game is difficult because the rubber is kind of springy? It bounces pretty fast, so you will need great feeling. The spin is ok, little less than nimbuss I think. But not close to tenergy rubbers.

Conclusion: Good rubber, medium fast, decent control when looping but not so good control when playing short game. Spin is ok but could be more. Good for players who like to play slow topspins with control and dont want to spent much money on a rubber.

Price: 29.90 euro

 

[kaikaz]

Tibhar genius sound

Soft/hard: medium

Spin: The spin is ok but nothing special. Less than nimbus I would say.

Throw: medium, higher than omega 4 europe and tenergy rubbers but lower than nimbus.

Pro's: Good for fast and hard topspins, short game is decent, spin is ok. Control is also very good, blocking is great.

Con's: durability is really crap (1 month playing 4 days a week), pretty pricey forthis rubber.

Price: 40 euro

 

[Steve23]

-Stiga Boost TS-

Soft/Hard: Very soft

Spin: Lots of Spin

Throw: medium - low throw

Speed: Fast with a nice catapult effect

This rubber is a bit bouncy so the blocking and pushing takes some adjustment. Flat hitting isnt as good because of the soft sponge, but looping is loaded with spin. Lower throw so loop drives are better than looping underspin. Overall a nice rubber!

Durability: Still plays great after months ...rubber itself is somewhat brittle and may chip easy if u hit it on the table but this doesn't affect play

more rubber reviews to come soon...

 

[azlan]

Stiga Boosts TP

Medium to Hard

Spin : Good spin but not as spinny as TS

Throw : Low

Speed : Very fast, ideal for power spin (speed & spin)

Pros : Excellent for fast attack close to table( bcoz of its low throw) and extremely good for far from table attack. I don't have to open up the racket so much to produce loops to clear the net from far.

Cons : I only advice the rubber to those are good technically. It's not forgiving. If you miss hit or miss time the shots, it'll go everywhere except landing on the table.

Durability : For power players, it won't last. It wears out rather quickly (i've changed mine 6 times ever since it was 1st launched). Brittle & easily chipped.

 

[olvarox]

First some general info:

Name: Tibhar Aurus Sound
Price: € 36.90 (Which is cheaper than the 'older' Genius Optimum+ Sound and Primus at €41,90, and the new Tibhar IQ at €46.90)
Thickness: 1.7, 1.9, 2.1 (I tested 2.1 on FH)
advertised specs:
* speed: 100
* control: 105
* spin: 114
(each category lying about 3-4 points higher than the more expensive optimum+ sound!?)
Hardness: Soft (about 38° in my humble opinion)


My verdict:

I must say my opinion can be quite a little bit biassed as I tested the rubber on a brand new blade and I was in a quite euforic mood tonight.

-The throwing angle is spectacular. After I hit a first heavy topspin, my adversary put a heavy chop on it, and it seemed like I could keep it on the table in slow-motion. I just gently brushed the ball and it went exactly where I wanted it. Needless to say, it is a very forgiving rubber. I sometimes felt I'd mis-hit the ball, where it landed on the table after all!

-When it comes to blocking or driving, the throwing angle seems to have vanished. As I am a notorious too-long-a-ball-blocker, I was pleasantly surprised to see my blocks land ON the table instead of just long. (dunno if the English expression's right here)
A nice sound is produced especially in drive-mode

- As the rubber is seriously spinny, it meant my serves were harder to control for my adversary. I must say I didn't notice any difference here (of course the lad knows how to 'ping a pong'). I DID notice a bit more trouble to push back a chopped ball. The ball tends to go too long as the rubber's surface is grippier than what I'm used to.

- Away from the table, I noticed a very nice control when overspinning with a lot of spin, but felt a little bit annoyed when just hitting the ball at mid-distance. Maybe I'll have to adjust myself to that.
When (over-)spinning, you get a tremendous window - because of the throwing angle -, but hitting mid-distance often results in the balls going into the net ;(
Luckily I'm more a spinning type of guy instead of a hitting kind of guy, so I wasn't too annoyed by this.


Overall, I would conclude that I like this rubber and its price.
I love the throwing angle and the forgiveness that comes along.
I love the control during driving and blocking.
I don't like the reaction of the ball during hard-hitting (allthough I think it's a problem with all sound/soft rubbers)

I think it just surpasses the Nimbus soft, being a little bit faster and having higher dynamics.
It seems to play different from Tenergy, but I just can't put my finger on it.
It is advertised that it would last longer than a Nimbus (Thank God!), but I'm curious on how much longer that'll really turn out to be)

It is definately my new FH rubber.
Depends on the mood of my wife wether I get a 1.9 black on my BH

 

[YosuaYosan]

Great initiative starting this thread kaikaz !
Will be back with reviews !

 

[kaikaz]

Great initiative starting this thread kaikaz !
Will be back with reviews !

Thanks mate.

If anyone could do a review on the tenergy rubbers, please do. I dont want to do it because I dont like the rubbers at all so my review would be a little biased.

 

[TTOski]

Soft/Hard: Soft

Spin: Lots of Spin

Throw: Don't know what that is...

Speed: A lot !

This rubber is very popular! Is very tacky and got a great feeling. I've heard that this is one of the closest options to the speed glue!

Durability: Approximately 2 month( playing with it 5-6 times a week)

 

[YosuaYosan]

Guys, I think with the new review section implemented, you guys could make your reviews on a new thread
This is going to be great.

 

[azlan]

Btw Kaikaz, since you at it, why don't you include review for blades as well??....as we all know. all rubbers behave differently with different blades

 

[Wannes]

Andro Hexer duro

medium soft

very good control

lot's of spin able to play with 'feeling'

able to play every stroke

 

[kaikaz]

Btw Kaikaz, since you at it, why don't you include review for blades as well??....as we all know. all rubbers behave differently with different blades

I usually keep playing with the same blade for years.

I want to review blades aswell but I dont use much different blades. I got a primorac off- blade and a persson carbon blade so i dont really have much to offer.

Every rubber Im testing right now is with the carbon blade.

But if you test or tested lots of blades, feel free to post reviews.

 

[Steve23]

-Donic Epox Power Allround-

Very nice smooth handle and edges make it very comfortable! Not like some blades I have sanded down for comfort.
Nice feel, decent dwell time, not much vibration, pretty stiff blade. About 85 gms weight

 

[kaikaz]

Here's a new review.

Haifu shark rubber

Spin: alot of spin

Soft: I would say medium but it feels more like a hard rubber then a soft.

throw: medium to high throw.

Speed: Slow

Pro's: The only good thing I can say about this rubber is the spin and the price

Con's: slow, no control, short game is ok but still hard to do, blocking is hard but with a little practice I think it will be ok.

Price: 12.95 euro

Conclusion: If you dont want to waste much money on a rubber and you are not very competitive and dont really care about losing and you only play once a week this could be something for you. But other players shouldnt use it, it was rubbish but what can you expect for this price.

 

[kaikaz]

Donic desto F3 big slam

Spin: Decent spin, more than nimbus but little less than tenergy

Soft: Very soft. Comes very close to the mambo/samba rubbers glued.

Throw: Medium

Speed: its ok but nothing special.

Pro's: A very good rubber with decent speed and good spin, loud click sound, good control, great short game.

Cons: A little slow for me, but people shouldnt worry about it, because its still fast enough to score points.

Price: 30 euro

Conclusion: A very good BH rubber for players who are looking for control and spin but dont want to lose much speed. Short game is very good, blocking is great, I can really recommend this rubber for everyone who likes to play with soft rubbers and likes a loud click sound when they play.

 

[kaikaz]

Andro impuls speed

Spin: good spin

Soft: very soft, I think even softer than donic f3 big slam.

Throw: high

Speed: Its pretty decent for a soft rubber.

Pro's: Good control when blocking and pushing, topspin with spin and control is very good.

Con's: durability is very bad (1 month, plaing 4 times a week), no powerlooping with this rubber, its very slow, short game is not easy (bounces alot).

Price: 30 euro

Conclusion: Again a good BH rubber for players who like to play with soft rubbers. People who like to play with controlled topspins will love this rubber. Powerloopers dont use it, its a little too slow

 

[Steve23]

-Yasaka Rakza 7 -

Spin: Alot of spin on this one...sidespin is crazy!

Hardness: Hard sponge

Throw angle: High

Speed: Very Fast

This rubber is great for Power looping! Soft loops are okay and sidespin is great! chopping and pushing is pretty good overall, blocking took a slight adjustment but the ball seems to automatically land with spin which is nice! So far it's the best rubber I've tried! Recommend it! I use it with a Stiga Offensive NCT on the forehand and its great!

 

[WiWa]

Here's a new review.

Haifu shark rubber

Spin: alot of spin

Soft: I would say medium but it feels more like a hard rubber then a soft.

throw: medium to high throw.

Speed: Slow

Pro's: The only good thing I can say about this rubber is the spin and the price

Con's: slow, no control, short game is ok but still hard to do, blocking is hard but with a little practice I think it will be ok.

Price: 12.95 euro

Conclusion: If you dont want to waste much money on a rubber and you are not very competitive and dont really care about losing and you only play once a week this could be something for you. But other players shouldnt use it, it was rubbish but what can you expect for this price.

There are different Haifu Shark rubbers. I am currently using Haifu Shark Speed on my FH and it works very well for me. It is not very fast indeed, but neither too soft for me. I prefer this rubber on my FH above any of the Tenergy series (Maybe with the exception of 64). I think you can get okay speed with it and it is very good for serving and a short game as well. However I should note that my FH is not my strongest side, which is the reason I don't use a very hard/fast rubber there.
Haifu Whale seems to be the harder/faster version of this rubber family, some of my clubmates use it and are very excited about it. As far as I know the Haifu rubbers are like € 25 though, so maybe we are talking about different Haifu's . But just so you know certainly not all Haifu's are bad rubbers.