Has Tenergy been surpassed?

Clarence247 wrote: So, what are your opinions? Are there any rubbers out there which for you are more advantageous to play with than a Tenergy (taking price completely out of the equation). Most players still swear by Tenergy, but this could easily come down to force of habit, marketing, reluctance to try something new, hype. I personally play with Adidas P7 and when I had the chance to spend a few 3 hr training sessions with Tenergy 05 and 05FX - I felt the Adidas P7 was more reliable and would not switch. There are several players who have spoken highly and switched to the Tibhar Evolution series (which is possibly Tenergy's main rival). Donic Bluefire (M series and JP series) also have gathered good following as do XIOM Omega and Sigma series.  Yasaka Rakza series has to be considered too. Joola MAXXX and Rasant maybe but I think Rasant is not as good (don't know about Joola Maxxx) So what's your take, which of the alternatives do you like and do you prefer any rubber to a Tenergy (omitting price concerns) ?

Clarence247 wrote: right2niru wrote: Depends on the individual , and in my personal opinion there are are variety of rubbers similar or better quality than Tenergies as long as you can find the right sponge density and feel.  Agreed, and which would they be for you? As I said for me Adidas P7 is better than Tenergy and I would never switch, Rassant Stiga Calibra or XIOM Vega for example are NOT.

All the ESN rubbers come off the same line with minor variations between rebrandings. Even the one that have highish throw don't spin quite as well as Tenergy, not that it really matter for the mostly amateur who're overly concerned about this stuff.

If you've ever looked at these high end ESN rubber closely, they're clearly made in the same vein as the rubbers in the Tenergy family for example. That's why they do play fairly closely same as the various Tenergy no matter whatever narrative EJ "connoisseurs" concoct to distinguish themselves.

Or do you really believe Xiom, Tihbar, etc have their own rubber scientists working on distinct formula as their ad copy want to make it seem?

AgentHEX wrote: If you've ever looked at these high end ESN rubber closely, they're clearly made in the same vein as the rubbers in the Tenergy family for example. That's why they do play fairly closely same as the various Tenergy no matter whatever narrative EJ "connoisseurs" concoct to distinguish themselves. Or do you really believe Xiom, Tihbar, etc have their own rubber scientists working on distinct formula as their ad copy want to make it seem?

You pose an interesting question.

ESN basically has their one good "fast" formula, ie as elastic as they can make it, though it seems to be gradually revised. There's no reason to go worse except potential cost savings and ESN's all come in ~same price and release schedule. All their customers rebrand with some pick-n-choose of hardness/geometry/etc, and of course most important of all sponge color.

Tenergy has geometry/hardness variation. Yinhe for example also has that plus tackiness variation and chinese random QA. And that list goes on.

I'm using Omega Pro 4 right now, and compared to colleague's Donic Bluefire M(1?) it looks and plays about the same. Personally I like the slight more stick in the Tenergy topsheet; the fast ESNs can be very bouncy/touchy. I played better with Yinhe's which typically have slight tack and Tenergy doesn't really do anything for me on top. Easier to topspin but pops higher sometimes in short game. The esn's in comparison are not only worse in short play but also worse for opening, and sometimes loops fly off more than they should with minor miscue.


Edited by AgentHEX - 02/25/2015 at 10:29pm

They're consistently fast perpendicular to the blade face, and bit of a crapshoot for the other (spin) direction which is why some of them are known for "low throw". I also suspect a lot of the difference between versions comes down to the tune/boosting they do. Regardless, ESN can boost the hell out of their sponge at the factory and it still doesn't change the fact the Tenergy *topsheet* is just that little bit better. Same or better elasticity despite more grip.

But when it comes down to it there's going to be more change in the rubber in their first few months of life than between rubbers.

> Their sponges are deader than ESN, but livelier than Chinese.

XIOM is ESN.

wankhao wrote: I have to repeat myself. Razka 7 on my BH put my opponents to bed with a nightmare.

Victor_the_cleaner wrote: Tenergy is still VERY VERY different than anything else. T05 and T64 feel very different, one going straight and the other curving like crazy, and yet they both feel like tenergy. Same great top sheet bite, same unique sponge sling. I don't know about surpassing, and it depends on personal preference, but one thing is 100% sure: you remove Tenergy from the market, and there will be a big hole. No, there are no clones yet, nothing feels like tenergy.  Rhyzm, Tenzone, Evolution, Bluefire are all great rubbers, in all of their million flavors. But you can remove any of them and nobody will notice. Please.. they all so the same.  XIOM is one level lower than the above list, and without lower price i don't think anyone would buy them. Their sponges are deader than ESN, but livelier than Chinese. Chinese rubbers.. without tuning are a tough challenge. Unless you are a chinese and are used to this masochism :)

Sir, have you ever used an Omega IV pro ?  

out of 3 tenergy users that have tried my paddle. 2 2200+ and one 2300. All of them have complemented me on my Omega IV. I just can't believe how someone can find xiom's sponge to be between euro and chinese sponge. Perhaps you've tried a wider range of rubbers. If you don't mind me asking, do Andro rubbers have a better selection of sponges? and , do they last as long as Omega IV's ? I've just read online that Andro was the first brand to start selling ESN rubbers, hence they have 'dibs' on esn sponge.

Omega pro doesn't feel anything like chinese rubbers. It's the exact same ESN as any other ESN. "Korean" here means nothing any more than Palio's ESN rubber.

If anything Tenergy plays more like the chinese rubbers (esp the newer crop a la sun/moon) with a high grip surface than ESNs.


Edited by AgentHEX - 02/26/2015 at 1:05am

asifgunz wrote: Victor_the_cleaner wrote: Tenergy is still VERY VERY different than anything else. T05 and T64 feel very different, one going straight and the other curving like crazy, and yet they both feel like tenergy. Same great top sheet bite, same unique sponge sling. I don't know about surpassing, and it depends on personal preference, but one thing is 100% sure: you remove Tenergy from the market, and there will be a big hole. No, there are no clones yet, nothing feels like tenergy.  Rhyzm, Tenzone, Evolution, Bluefire are all great rubbers, in all of their million flavors. But you can remove any of them and nobody will notice. Please.. they all so the same.  XIOM is one level lower than the above list, and without lower price i don't think anyone would buy them. Their sponges are deader than ESN, but livelier than Chinese. Chinese rubbers.. without tuning are a tough challenge. Unless you are a chinese and are used to this masochism :) Sir, have you ever used an Omega IV pro ?

Victor is talking out of his ass. Xiom, the company as a whole, are not any "steps" up or down from any other company. Omega 5 and Sigma 2 are on an equal playing field in terms of performance and with even better durability to boot.

There was a time prior to the Rakza generation, where most ESN rubbers were well below the standards set by Tenergy 05 and 64. The reign of Tenergy lasted from 2008 - 2012/13. After that point, all of the above mentioned companies began releasing rubber that has matched Tenergy's performance.

Yes, nothing FEELS like Tenergy but at the same time, nothing FEELS like Bluefire, nothing FEELS like Omega, etc. For any upcoming youths and novice players who will eventually become the future 2600s in the US or anyone in let's say the future top 300 ITTF world rankings, using these rubbers will leave them at ZERO disadvantage compared to using Tenergy. At this point it is just a matter of preference for feeling.

Has Tenergy been surpassed?

NO!

comparing esn to tenergy is like comparing apples to oranges!!! They are different rubbers!