Loki RXTON 9 new sponge.

[Kilogramme]

I think you can get away with not boosting if you choose the softer sponge version, up to about 40 degrees 🤔🤔 With the harder rubbers however (40.5 degrees - 42 degrees) boosting is virtually a must, unless you hit the ball like a sledgehammer.

The spin and playing feel of the OS versions reminds me a lot more of Nittaku's H3 Neo rather than the traditional chinese DHS H3.

Admittedly I havent played with the H3N in a good long while, but from memory the softer H3Ns are the same -- you can get away with not boosting them, so long as you choose the softer version, use a proper kinetic chain during shots, and don't mind a really firm and unyielding playing feel to the sponge.

On reflection, I found with the R9 OS red in 37.5 degrees, I had a lot of trouble engaging the sponge on my BH side. I use a fair bit of wrist with my bh drive & loop through years of habit, but can still manage a more orthodox BH loop I I remember to stiffen up my wrist a bit. But no matter how hard I tried, engaging the unboosted sponge on BH was genuinely difficult for me.

On my FH however (and on my linear chuditch blade) engaging the sponge was quite manageable and the spin and speed on the ball was massive. On the FH side the 37.5mm red R9 was a genuine beast once you engaged the sponge... but attempting that on my BH side risked me blowing out my elbow.

This OS version has a very different feel to the previous sponge -- like I said in my earlier post, to my hand at least this rubber has a real two-speed feeling going on. When pushing and serving you can feel the ball dig into the top sheet and the upper surface of the sponge, but the ball itself still moves slowly as the rubber just feels a bit dead. When you're opening up or looping / driving on your forehand however, your strokes are genuinely quick, despite me only driving the ball slightly further into the sponge.

If you want to use the R9 OS on your blade hor its massive spin levels (but dont want to boost), then I advise you use the 37.5, 38 or 39 degree sponge on your FH, and use something else entirely on your BH.

They're all genuinely great rubbers, but they need to be thought of as a H3N substitute. Only the Red version really suited my current game and conditioning down to the ground, and didn't require me to boost at all.

The 37.5 exist in black and red ? Or only red ?

 

[Wakkibatty]

The 37.5 exist in black and red ? Or only red ?

I bought mine about two months back. At the time, it was only available in red -- the softest Black R9 they sold was 39 degrees.

That being said, this is also Loki we're talking about, so who knows what they'll be offering in 6 months time 🤷‍♂️😂

 

[victormanriquey]

Thanks for the extra info @Wakkibatty , I will test very soon boosted and unboosted and let you know, it feels to me like both need boosting, one layer probably, but let's see, now I have all info from you guys so let's see how it feels, I'm very curious! More on this soon

 

[Grumms]

After the aborted trial 2 weeks ago, I finally could test the Rxton 9 Neo (40,5º) tonight. For the context, it's in an insanely fast gymnasium. Usually I don't feel the difference between them, but there, I feel like I play with the old balls... I don't know to what extend it can influence the test, but I just can't play the same game here.

So, verdict : R9 Neo is not that different from former R9 BS, or Battle 2 BS, or Target National. Arc is low, speed is there. I'm in conquered territory here. And to be honest, I don't feel the difference with the ones above. So, good rubber, but it's not worth the extra buck compared to Target National 3.

 

[Haito]

After the aborted trial 2 weeks ago, I finally could test the Rxton 9 Neo (40,5º) tonight. For the context, it's in an insanely fast gymnasium. Usually I don't feel the difference between them, but there, I feel like I play with the old balls... I don't know to what extend it can influence the test, but I just can't play the same game here.

So, verdict : R9 Neo is not that different from former R9 BS, or Battle 2 BS, or Target National. Arc is low, speed is there. I'm in conquered territory here. And to be honest, I don't feel the difference with the ones above. So, good rubber, but it's not worth the extra buck compared to Target National 3.

You mean the same Target National that Victor reviewed? I did never dig in their lineup I must admit. I once tried Target 90, after @yogi_bear review and I was not really impressed. Any EJ guidance on which version is good?

 

[Archo]

You mean the same Target National that Victor reviewed? I did never dig in their lineup I must admit. I once tried Target 90, after @yogi_bear review and I was not really impressed. Any EJ guidance on which version is good?

All of the Target rubbers are junk, but the National in the purple package with the blue sponge, and probably the white "National team" or whatever edition are the best of them.

Maximum numbers wise Target doesn't even perform that badly, but there's just something wrong with it. I think the average ball quality is low in real situations.

 

[Colestt]

 

[Archo]

How do you recognize what is the new and old RXTON 9? Different package?

 

[Haito]

How do you recognize what is the new and old RXTON 9? Different package?

Sponge and package

 

[Grumms]

You mean the same Target National that Victor reviewed? I did never dig in their lineup I must admit. I once tried Target 90, after @yogi_bear review and I was not really impressed. Any EJ guidance on which version is good?

No, I use the dark blue sleeve Target National.

 

[Grumms]

All of the Target rubbers are junk, but the National in the purple package with the blue sponge, and probably the white "National team" or whatever edition are the best of them.

Maximum numbers wise Target doesn't even perform that badly, but there's just something wrong with it. I think the average ball quality is low in real situations.

I beg to differ.

 

[Archo]

I beg to differ.

Maybe you can make it work, but I couldn't. Ball quality is noticeably lower than H3 on average. It's just slightly faster when doing mid-quality strokes. It plays about how much it costs to be honest.

 

[Grumms]

Maybe you can make it work, but I couldn't. Ball quality is noticeably lower than H3 on average. It's just slightly faster when doing mid-quality strokes. It plays about how much it costs to be honest.

None of the H3 I had, Nat/Prov/Com, were as amazing as I heard compared to other Chinasium rubbers. Honestly, after so many years, why only DHS would have the recipe to that kind of rubber ? I've been very happy with replacing my H3 with the Target National 3, for 18 months. TN even had a more satisfying sound. But I'm not a national level player, I just struggle in the upper regional divisions, so my skills might not benefit from the amazing qualities of some rubbers.

 

[Haito]

No, I use the dark blue sleeve Target National.

This one? If so it seems to be discontinued.

 

[Grumms]

View attachment 44074
This one? If so it seems to be discontinued.

No, this one :

 

[Haito]

@Andrea Jiang Is this rubber still in the roster? I do not see on your website.

 

[Kilogramme]

View attachment 44068

That is an old R9. Btw reviewer said this one sucks. This is a specific version for a reseller. But Loki stopped to do such customer specific version now.

 

[Grumms]

That is an old R9. Btw reviewer said this one sucks. This is a specific version for a reseller. But Loki stopped to do such customer specific version now.

It's in the official Loki catalogue, it's not for resellers. And it's still available on Alibaba on the official Loki store.

 

[Kilogramme]

None of the H3 I had, Nat/Prov/Com, were as amazing as I heard compared to other Chinasium rubbers. Honestly, after so many years, why only DHS would have the recipe to that kind of rubber ? I've been very happy with replacing my H3 with the Target National 3, for 18 months. TN even had a more satisfying sound. But I'm not a national level player, I just struggle in the upper regional divisions, so my skills might not benefit from the amazing qualities of some rubbers.

On which blade did you glue the R9 NEO ? Me, I feel the difference to H3. Especially the sponge. Less power/capacity to generate high speed with high impact. To me, it felt softer than the number stated. Like for a 40deg, it felt closer to a 39 (both boosted ofc). How about the 40.5 ? The topsheet felt nice, and somewhat softer than H3 topsheet too.

When I tried the target on your racket, I think I mostly felt the blade difference than the rubber. The cybershape, and the softness of the touch is what I remember most from the setup. But, it felt decently dynamic, contrallable much more than my current boosted state R9 NEO (not uncontrollable like tensor my rubber is, but considerably more dynamic than my previous setup). Perhaps, someday, I might give it a go. The thing is, ordering from Loki factory on Alibaba is so cheap, tough to beat. If you find a seller on Alibaba, I might go there.

 

[Kilogramme]

It's in the official Loki catalogue, it's not for resellers.

Maybe not this one, but clearly it sucks apparently. Incredibly dead and hard.