Viscaria vs Timo Boll ALC

Hello all, I was just wondering for anyone that has both of these blades what is the difference between the two in terms of speed, control, and spin. I know that the new Viscarias play a little different or thats what i have heard so if you could compare the new viscaria to the boll ALC that would be great

If possible as well, if anyone could compare the blades whilst using the Tenergy rubbers with them that would be great ;)


Thanks for any replies in advance ;)
 
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I own a TB ALC and play with my friends Viscaria quite often (Silver tag but before the gem was implemented). Both blades play very similarly. The viscaria is a tiny bit slower, flexier and softer than TB ALC. The big difference between the 2 is that the Viscaria has significantly more feel. I dont know why this is, could be just my own TB ALC blade which has less feel. Another observation I made was that TB ALC plays very well with harder euro/Jap rubbers. It also feels very wierd with chinese rubbers. This is not the case with Viscaria which in my opinion has a wider range of rubber synergy. My friend who only uses H3neo also commented on this after trying it on my TB alc. Again this was specificly tested on my blade, Ma long once used H3 on a TB alc so it may not be true in most TB ALC blades.

I personally recommend a Viscaria over the TB ALC. Hope this helps

Edit: Both blades work wonderfully with Ternergy. More so with the TB than Vis
 
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I have owned a bunch of each.

The main difference is the handle shape and length (TB-ALC handle is a little longer, more square). TB-ALC on average is a little harder, I think because they do something to the outer ply, maybe UV light, that makes it slightly harder. On average (meaning if you examine several examples of each blade) you would not say that one model is systematically faster than another. Of course if you compared just one of each you could easily decide that one is faster than another (hence a lot of confusion and arguing about this on threads from people who have only ever tried one of each), but if you compare two Viscarias you might well conclude the same thing. These things are made of wood, each model comes in a weight range, and no two are identical. Some people say that Viscaria has a "better feel". I agree, at least most of the time, but I would be unable to tell you what I even mean by that, and so it is a pretty useless statement. Who knows if you feel things the way I do or would like the same thing?

Don't get one that is too light, for either one, they lose a lot of what makes them good if they are much below, say, 86 grams, and they are at their best right around 90-92. A lot of the newest ones are in that weight range and I think they are excellent. Light Viscaria blades tend to be more head-heavy (the weight loss is usually carved out of the handle I think) and that is less of an issue for TB-ALC because the handle is slightly longer.

The handle that works best for your game maybe should be the deciding factor. Viscaria only comes in FL, TB-ALC comes in ST also. It is definitely more squared and the wings are a little different. So your preference may depend a bit on your grip, how high or low you like to hold the paddle, how much you change your grip from FH to BH, and things like that. Only way to know is to hold them and kind of get a feeling for it that way, or better yet, hit with a clubmate's blade if possible.


Oh one last thing. Words like "control" are like "feel". Pretty much meaningless (or mean different things to different people). Control of what? Something that helps with one shot may be worse for another. Or do we just mean slower? But I can say this, there is no obvious advantage of one over the other in my experience in terms of being able to play short game, serve, or return.

Also, if you are lucky you will get one (of either model) that is truly amazing, but given sufficient weight, you will almost never get one (of either model) that is bad. They are meant for the same kind of player. Timo Boll started his career with Viscaria.
 
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Dan is right about that. I should have mentioned it above. In addition to the handles, the wings are a little different. More feeling? I love Viscaria and prefer them to TB-ALC but I wouldn't go along with that, especially since the question is, feeling what? Again, more than anything it is handle preference. By the way, that is not a trivial thing at all. People maybe don't pay enough attention to that and the different handles and wings are quite sufficient to justify the two different models. I just don't see a lot of value in looking for some deeper difference, especially when people try to draw conclusions from small sample sizes (comparing ONE Viscaria to ONE TB-ALC that they may own or have tried). And that is what about 95% of the people who compare these blades do on internet forums. I have owned an embarrassingly large number of each. If you've done that, than you realize how much the playing properties of these blades can overlap.
 
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I have owned a bunch of each.

The main difference is the handle shape and length (TB-ALC handle is a little longer, more square). TB-ALC on average is a little harder, I think because they do something to the outer ply, maybe UV light, that makes it slightly harder. On average (meaning if you examine several examples of each blade) you would not say that one model is systematically faster than another. Of course if you compared just one of each you could easily decide that one is faster than another (hence a lot of confusion and arguing about this on threads from people who have only ever tried one of each), but if you compare two Viscarias you might well conclude the same thing. These things are made of wood, each model comes in a weight range, and no two are identical. Some people say that Viscaria has a "better feel". I agree, at least most of the time, but I would be unable to tell you what I even mean by that, and so it is a pretty useless statement. Who knows if you feel things the way I do or would like the same thing?

Don't get one that is too light, for either one, they lose a lot of what makes them good if they are much below, say, 86 grams, and they are at their best right around 90-92. A lot of the newest ones are in that weight range and I think they are excellent. Light Viscaria blades tend to be more head-heavy (the weight loss is usually carved out of the handle I think) and that is less of an issue for TB-ALC because the handle is slightly longer.

The handle that works best for your game maybe should be the deciding factor. Viscaria only comes in FL, TB-ALC comes in ST also. It is definitely more squared and the wings are a little different. So your preference may depend a bit on your grip, how high or low you like to hold the paddle, how much you change your grip from FH to BH, and things like that. Only way to know is to hold them and kind of get a feeling for it that way, or better yet, hit with a clubmate's blade if possible.


Oh one last thing. Words like "control" are like "feel". Pretty much meaningless (or mean different things to different people). Control of what? Something that helps with one shot may be worse for another. Or do we just mean slower? But I can say this, there is no obvious advantage of one over the other in my experience in terms of being able to play short game, serve, or return.

Also, if you are lucky you will get one (of either model) that is truly amazing, but given sufficient weight, you will almost never get one (of either model) that is bad. They are meant for the same kind of player. Timo Boll started his career with Viscaria.

Baal, U would absolut LUV Ur light Viscaria if you did a light Beast Mod of 12 grams...
 
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I have owned a bunch of each.

The main difference is the handle shape and length (TB-ALC handle is a little longer, more square). TB-ALC on average is a little harder, I think because they do something to the outer ply, maybe UV light, that makes it slightly harder. On average (meaning if you examine several examples of each blade) you would not say that one model is systematically faster than another. Of course if you compared just one of each you could easily decide that one is faster than another (hence a lot of confusion and arguing about this on threads from people who have only ever tried one of each), but if you compare two Viscarias you might well conclude the same thing. These things are made of wood, each model comes in a weight range, and no two are identical. Some people say that Viscaria has a "better feel". I agree, at least most of the time, but I would be unable to tell you what I even mean by that, and so it is a pretty useless statement. Who knows if you feel things the way I do or would like the same thing?

Don't get one that is too light, for either one, they lose a lot of what makes them good if they are much below, say, 86 grams, and they are at their best right around 90-92. A lot of the newest ones are in that weight range and I think they are excellent. Light Viscaria blades tend to be more head-heavy (the weight loss is usually carved out of the handle I think) and that is less of an issue for TB-ALC because the handle is slightly longer.

The handle that works best for your game maybe should be the deciding factor. Viscaria only comes in FL, TB-ALC comes in ST also. It is definitely more squared and the wings are a little different. So your preference may depend a bit on your grip, how high or low you like to hold the paddle, how much you change your grip from FH to BH, and things like that. Only way to know is to hold them and kind of get a feeling for it that way, or better yet, hit with a clubmate's blade if possible.


Oh one last thing. Words like "control" are like "feel". Pretty much meaningless (or mean different things to different people). Control of what? Something that helps with one shot may be worse for another. Or do we just mean slower? But I can say this, there is no obvious advantage of one over the other in my experience in terms of being able to play short game, serve, or return.

Also, if you are lucky you will get one (of either model) that is truly amazing, but given sufficient weight, you will almost never get one (of either model) that is bad. They are meant for the same kind of player. Timo Boll started his career with Viscaria.

good review like this always give me clear view, thanks baal
 
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You can buy a TB ALC in FL
 
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Thanks alot SilentRain! Appreciate the reply. Would you say the Viscaria has more control then as its softer?

The difference in control is so small it wont make a difference. As Baal clearly puts it, every blade is different. Playing with 10 different blades of the same model will produce different results. Ideally you will want to test a few and pick the best one but most people dont have the luxury of knowing a shop owner who will allow this or have enough money to buy 10 different blades of the same model. Alternatively you can try some1 else's blade and purchase it if you like it as you would have tested the blade, this however is only if you know some1 who has the blade of choice and is willing to sell it. My assessment of the difference between the 2 is based on an average basis. I tried 4 different TB ALC and 2 Vis. But because every blade is different. You need to take my assessment with a grain of salt .
 
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i believe taht the viscaria is better as more better players use it so it must be good though i have never really used either soz
 
i believe taht the viscaria is better as more better players use it so it must be good though i have never really used either soz

Top players use it doesn't mean that it's good for many of the lower level players out there. Your playing style and preference determines which is right for you.
 
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Because SOMEONE WAS WRONG ON THE INTERNET!!!!!!!!!

Therefore the thread revivification is perfectly understandable. Think of all the people who failed to correct the wrongness back in 2017? It makes one fear for the future of humanity. But the necessary correction was made, belatedly, and we can all breathe a little easier as the Natursl Order has been restored.

Indeed.
 
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