Joola Rhyzen Fire - Short Review

[cruzctrl]

Specs:

The uncut weight of a 2.0 sheet is 68 grams. The surface is very grippy and the pimples are not visible through black or blue sheets. It feels like a 45-47.5 degree hardness rubber. Closer to the 47.5 mark.

Playing:

• Used on a Xiom ZL Pro. In both MAX and 2.0 on both FH/BH at various points.
• MAX thickness did not seem to have a significant speed increase, but instead made the feeling more soft and dwelly whereas the 2.0 felt more direct and woody.
• Everything I said about the Joola Rhyzen Ice I could say about this, just kick the speed up a little more. It’s as heavy as Donic Barracuda at 2.0 mm, so it’s a good ‘lightweight’ medium hardness rubber. It’s very controllable, and the spin generation is immense. I liked this rubber on either FH or BH, both felt good. The short game was a little harder than the Rhyzen ice, but still more manageable than bouncier rubbers like Vega Europe, Vega X, or Barracuda.
• If I had to put the range of speed on a scale of 1-10, I would say it has gears 2-8. Not super slow, but not crazy fast either.

If you want a medium hard rubber with a lot of spin, but isn’t super bouncy, this is a great choice. The relatively low weight and price are also huge bonuses for me.

 

[SKARIZARD]

Great review! In my mind, I was assuming this would be close to Rakza 7. However, with the rubbers you compared Rhyzen Fire to, it seems like Rakza 7 might still be faster and have more catapult. Have you ever played with Rakza ?

 

[cruzctrl]

Great review! In my mind, I was assuming this would be close to Rakza 7. However, with the rubbers you compared Rhyzen Fire to, it seems like Rakza 7 might still be faster and have more catapult. Have you ever played with Rakza ?

I actually tried a sheet of Rakza 7 on the same blade I had Rhyzen Fire on, so I can compare it directly. Rakza 7 definitely had more catapult, but the top speed felt about the same with Fire having more in the lower gears. The grip/spin was about the same though.

 

[Kopp]

This rubber or something similar is just like Rozena. They copied Rozena because they knew the rubber was one of the best selling rubbers in Japan. This rubber and Rozena are probably good choices for advanced recreational and club players. I've seen many advanced players use Rozena on their backhand as well.

 

[Matt Hetherington]

This rubber or something similar is just like Rozena. They copied Rozena because they knew the rubber was one of the best selling rubbers in Japan. This rubber and Rozena are probably good choices for advanced recreational and club players. I've seen many advanced players use Rozena on their backhand as well.

If JOOLA copied Rozena because it was one of the best selling rubbers in Japan, don't you think they would sell Rhyzen Fire in Japan?

The rubber was made to target an intermediate level pricepoint, like many rubbers before it - Rhyzm Tech, Samba, Mambo etc. Brands have been developing rubbers at this intermediate level for decades, if anything Butterfly focused on higher priced rubbers and then developed Rozena to compete in that pricepoint, and then Glayzer after it.

 

[Kopp]

If JOOLA copied Rozena because it was one of the best selling rubbers in Japan, don't you think they would sell Rhyzen Fire in Japan?

I don't. In general, Japanese people would prioritise their own products. I believe this applies to their players at every level as well. They would choose Butterfly or Nittaku over ESN rubbers (even though ESN manufactures some of Nittaku rubbers). IMO

The rubber was made to target an intermediate level pricepoint, like many rubbers before it - Rhyzm Tech, Samba, Mambo etc. Brands have been developing rubbers at this intermediate level for decades, if anything Butterfly focused on higher priced rubbers and then developed Rozena to compete in that pricepoint, and then Glayzer after it.

You made a good point. Butterfly came late to the party, but Rozena is still one of the best rubbers in that range for advanced beginners to intermediate players. And they have secured their share of that part of the market.

 

[Matt Hetherington]

I don't. In general, Japanese people would prioritise their own products. I believe this applies to their players at every level as well. They would choose Butterfly or Nittaku over ESN rubbers (even though ESN manufactures some of Nittaku rubbers). IMO


You made a good point. Butterfly came late to the party, but Rozena is still one of the best rubbers in that range for advanced beginners to intermediate players. And they have secured their share of that part of the market.

I definitely agree with that regarding their market share, but I don't think other brands are necessarily actively trying to copy Rozena, that style of rubber in that pricepoint has definitely existed for some time and those types of rubber with bigger sweetspot and more forgiving are common in that price range already