Can blade and rubber be too forgiving of mistakes?

titanium wrote: Some equipment makers boast that at least some of their blades and rubber are more "forgiving" of beginner's mistakes than comparable models (see, e.g., Andro's descriptions of their Titanium CF blade and Plasma 380 rubbber)?  Assuming that this isn't 100% pure marketing hype, does the forgiving nature of the equipment do a disservice to beginners in the sense that it deprives them of valuable "negative feedback" which can be useful in the development of their stroke and footwork techniques? I honestly don't have an answer to the question and and seeking the opinions of those who have lots of experience playing and coaching tt. Thanks

There may be several different views concerning this, I will attempt to present one take on this.

If a developing player is under the watchful eye of a competent coach "forgiving" equipment may be a boon the players development.  The player may suffer less frustration in developing proper form, more shots will go in, and the coach might enjoy a student who is less hindered by performance obstacles.
With more balls going in the student may be able to progress into more powerful shot making at an earlier stage (providing he is mature enough, i.e., physically strong)

Also, if the student has been properly instructed, the forgiving equipment may allow the beginner to more easily retain the correct form while away from the coach.  This could apply to a player who might attend a training camp, but not have a regular coach.  This would depend somewhat on the discipline of the player and his ability to retain what he has been taught.

Without proper coaching form always suffers, but the forgiving equipment may allow for a minimum of compromises.  Again, the mentality of the player is a factor.

I would say that it is more important that the blade and rubber match up well, that is to say that the equipment performs correctly.  It should allow the player to use a 45 degree blade angle while looping against blocks, and it should block and counter against top spin consistently without suffering from stalling.  The player should be able to create a high arcing ball when looping pushes and chop so that he can learn to create strong and safe top spins, and the equipment should provide stable, secure pushes.
Also key is that the equipment provides good ball feel (feedback).

If the equipment set-up fails in any of this, it is not good.  A good coach should be able to determine whether the equipment meets these standards from the outset.