New Xiom Blades Series: Hugo Calderano and Lee Seungsoo (TMX / ALX)

[Yurifi]

I wanted to get HAL. but there isn't one to be bought. not even used one (in region or at least in Europe). so I went for AJH TMXi ... and maybe, that is even better, because it suits me really really well. I am just thinking about pulling the trigger for Xiom Hugo ALX Pro, but it is a completely different blade ... I don't need a fast blade, TMXi is plenty fast for me. Hugo ALX Pro seems to be faster ...

and, to finish with - there are no detailed pics of Hugo ALX to at least be able to compare if construction is at least remotely similar to the Hugo HAL blade …

 

[disaster3]

I’m playing with Golden Viscaria but I got HAL recently and I’m really happy. My friend keeps persuading me to sell it🤣

 

[Creek]

Quite interesting that everyone thinks that he plays HAL… his blade is clearly visible oversized and therefore no Standard HAL beside the handles

 

[neon]

OK! We can clearly see the differences between them!
It looks just like DHS's W968 and S968!

Tks, looks great. New Hugo TMXi pro remind me ... about ... hmm about Tibhar Felix Hyper carbon. Two thin layers (limba and samba - as thin as possible), composite mesh and thicker core - samba. Harmonious workmanship.

 

[Yurifi]

any idea what the top wood veneer on Hugo ALX Pro is? looks like limba, but it's hard to tell ...

 

[doppelmoral]

any idea what the top wood veneer on Hugo ALX Pro is? looks like limba, but it's hard to tell ...

alx is koto. its like a viscaria with a bigger head

 

[Taikone]

Luckily i bought an used HAL in very good condition 2 months ago
Will try it with c55.

 

[Yurifi]

did anyone play HAL and TMXi? is HAL faster or slower?

i mean, don't know why I am even thinking about this as I am super satisfied with TMXi, but on the other hand ... I am still looking for a blade that resembles BTY Moonbeam the most ... HAL looks pretty close ...

 

[doppelmoral]

did anyone play HAL and TMXi? is HAL faster or slower?

i mean, don't know why I am even thinking about this as I am super satisfied with TMXi, but on the other hand ... I am still looking for a blade that resembles BTY Moonbeam the most ... HAL looks pretty close ...

I can write a short comparison, but you can find enough info online already to be honest.
I played HAL for 1 year, and TMXi Pro for 6 months. Both blades are totally different.

First, understand that HAL is a Viscaria-type blade but without carbon. It still has a fiber (they call it hyper axylium) so it has extra gears in comparison to an allwood blade. HAL is a very soft blade with great feeling. It has a long and high arc and good speed and catapult. It is very easy to use and easy to produce fast shots with good spin. I used H3 and C55 at some point on forehand, and Omega 7 Asia and MX-s on backhand.

TMXi Pro is a very different blade. It is a W968-type of blade. It has a large head and its quite slow in passive play without significant catapult. The power output is very linear and you get what you invest into the shot. The blade has enormous power because of its large headsize and core, which sends the ball over with a low and deadly arc and amazing spin.

So for me, HAL is build for speed, and TMXi Pro is build for power. Lets say you have gears from 0% to 100%. With the HAL, you can only play 30%-70% power shots. It is very difficul to play very slow shots or slow down fast balls because the blade has this catapult. I noticed this especially in short game and when blocking. This is not bad though, just a feature of this blade. With TMXi Pro, lets say you can play 20%-90% power shots. It is easier to access the different gears because of the linearity of the blade. It is easier to slow down balls when blocking, and the potential for powerful shots when looping is higher.

If I was to use my HAL again, I would not use Hurricane 3 Neo this time around. I dont know why I used to play H3 on that blade for almost a year. I think HAL works alot better with hard and fast tensor rubbers because the blade doesnt have enough support for H3.

If you would make the change, the biggest difference will be the feeling of the blade (koto vs limba) and the different headsize (completlely different feeling when just swinging the racket). Both are great blades and I would argue that HAL is easier to play and all around a fantastic blade for amateur level.

 

[disaster3]

Quite interesting that everyone thinks that he plays HAL… his blade is clearly visible oversized and therefore no Standard HAL beside the handles

Yeah, for sure it can be noticed in TV during those secs of zooms from different angels when he plays….You made my day!!!🤣

 

[Creek]

Yeah, for sure it can be noticed in TV during those secs of zooms from different angels when he plays….You made my day!!!🤣

If you’re not able to, then you made my day…

 

[disaster3]

I’m not able

 

[Yurifi]

there was a closeup yesterday, during one of the serve preparations. it looked like HAL, but to say more than that, you cannot, because ... it's impossible, the movement, the framing, following action, and knowing how camera works, picture is just not sharp enough to see the details to say anything conclusive ...

 

[disaster3]

But he is able to judge and assess and measure that it is bigger than normal HAL…. Don’t be so rude!!! 😉

 

[Yurifi]

I don't want to be disrespectful, but ... my TMXi is 158x152 ... my other blade is 157x150 ... also one other is 160x152 ... and when I put them side by side I can hardly see the difference in size ... it's impossible to see 2mm size difference on youtube stream. maybe on good 4k live TV, but not on youtube stream ... to add 1/50 or 1/60 time of camera exposure time (speaking in photography terms, video calculates it a bit differently) it is impossible to have a detailed sharp picture of a motion. to shoot table tennis you need at least 1/400, 1/500 shutter time to freeze the action. and even if there is a super sharp moment ... youtube stream compression walks in and wants a chat with you ...

trust me. I am a photograhper. 🤪

 

[K.K]

the only thing we know for shure is that hugo plays the HAL in a heavy weight around 92g with a picture of him in the down part of the handle instead the xiom logo. everything else is speculation and since nobody has any proof we should stay with what we know

 

[Yurifi]

this was posted on official Xiom Global instagram account … apparently he was using J&H 57.5 and 52.5 …

 

[You're Tacky & I Hate You]

During the YouTube live feed available in UK for the Harimoto match the commentator said he's using O7 Tour 😅

this was posted on official Xiom Global instagram account … apparently he was using J&H 57.5 and 52.5 …

Nice to see them confirm this, other marketing makes it seem he's just using C55.

I find it quite funny they don't mention what blade he used though. Because.... Ahem...

Definitely not a TMXi or ALX.

Perhaps he's waiting for a break between target events to switch blades? If he plans to switch at all.

 

[K.K]

During the YouTube live feed available in UK for the Harimoto match the commentator said he's using O7 Tour 😅


Nice to see them confirm this, other marketing makes it seem he's just using C55.

I find it quite funny they don't mention what blade he used though. Because.... Ahem...

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Definitely not a TMXi or ALX.

Perhaps he's waiting for a break between target events to switch blades? If he plans to switch at all.

if he actually just played with what we know i definitely see no reason for a change. a lot of control in short game and open up and enough power beyond the table to let every professional choose him as an example for a player with the most power

 

[K.K]

i really hope that it really is just an supply problem and they bring the blade back at one point. but let’s see what happens over the summer