Sweden Extra is (at least should be on average) lighter, thinner and slower than a Korbel when comparing specimens with the same weight. Korbels can...
There are still some pros that use all-wood, even 5-ply, blades... Simon Gauzy (7-ply), Sabine Winter (5-ply, andro Novacell Off), Emmanuel Lebesson...
If one has never played with H3 or similar rubbers I would nowadays suggest to start with an easier to use hybrid rubber like the DHS Hurricane 8-80...
Just to clarify things: The two month that I got from my backhand ESN rubbers was at a time when I was training around 40 hours per month. If I would...