Der_Echte Review... Dawei Inspirit Quattro

[Der Echte]

I got Quattro from Rob a couple months back and it is due time for a review. This review will be slightly more serious than my others, but not by much. I tried this rubber out on an ALL+ Galaxy wood blade (N-2 also from Rob) in 2.2 black 35 degree. It was my first built-in rubber besides BTY Catapult. This rubber quickly become my FH rubber of choice and has been the X-factor in improving my FH looping consistency in matches from a liability into a legitimate weapon. 35 degrees is the softest and I prefer soft sponged rubbers for control and spin.

Dawei's marketing machine says:
High performance pimple-in rubber by EDCS (Energy Deactivation Control System). The new Dawei Inspirit Quattro Allround
***Note this rubber is definitely not allround – this is obviously a mistake in the translation.
Quattro allround technique take New Inspirit around the World.

Der_Echte's real No-Shit observations...
The marketing statement… What a lame marketing statement! This is one of the best advances in technology since sliced cheese and Dawei chooses some highly ineffective marketing! Well, I guess TT forums and my own lame attempts at reviews will have to carry this product along its path to profitability.  I shall have to retire from the military and take over the marketing for some of these TT companies – ought to get me 4 times the income I got now.

Speed: Fast enough. 35 degree sponge cuts down on the speed. Hard to compare to other rubbers. Tibhar Rapid is one that comes to mind. I have never hit with regular Inspirit, but it has to be noticeably faster than unglued Inspirit. You can hit with a full swing and still land the shot with good pace due to the excellent control factor.

Control: Superior. Top-class. Extraordinary. You run out of adjectives to describe it. None are adequate. Quattro simply has the “feel” and the ability to control your shots – all shots, especially loops.    

Spin: Good on serves with the right stroke and feel for the ball.  Good on topspin drives. Good on chops and pushes. Good ability to control the spin to make errors from opponents. Absolutely rip the cover off the ball kind of spin on loops with a full swing. The ball WILL land safely after you get used to the proper blade angle and stroke – then spin quickly towards the floor before your opponent can fish or counter if he stepped back too far.

Thickness: I used 2.2 Black

Tackiness: Some at first then totally non-tacky. It is a very grippy rubber.

Sponge: I used 35 degree – very soft. It gave me great feel for the ball on loops and incredible control.

Weight: Felt average to me. Take a look at Silver’s rubber mass database for yourself for a professional analysis.

Price: $15 - $20 USD retail. That is insanely inexpensive for a rubber that could last 2-3 months of medium to heavy hitting before it tanks. Heck, you couldn’t get a sandwich and a tall Cappucino for you and your attractive date at Starbucks for that price – and your chances of continuing your mission and getting any further lasting value for your money are zero. With Quattro, you know you have made a good call that lasts every day. I will order my next batch of stuff about a month after the wife gets over seeing my first TT purchase over here on the bank statement.

Durability: Good. I have hit real hard with this outfit for two months and it zero tears and less than average chipping on the edges.  

Packaging: Nice and professional. They did a good job.

Throw Angle: Medium to medium high.

Power: Speed was limited with the soft sponge and the ALL+ blade, but on full swings, the ball still moved out like it was on am mission of its own. You don’t buy this rubber for all out speed – you are not trying to shoot 40 mm projectiles through your opponent’s body. You buy it for control and the ability to hit hard and keep it on the table.

Ball Feeling: Best on full swings on loops against bottomspin, but great everything else too.

Who this rubber is for: Anyone wishing to benefit from a rubber that has great feel and control with acceptable speed AND wants to keep the ball in play. That places it anywhere from a beginner to a borderline advanced player with any playing style. This is clearly an offensive rubber, but can do every defensive stroke well.

Match Performance: You put the sheet on your favorite blade and go to work. You can make acceptably deceptive serves and make the opponent pay for his mistake. You notice right away on loops the great feel and spin. You can loop all day with this rubber as hard as you want and still place the ball deep. You can hit every shot with control, but the rubber is not the top performer in each department, except the loops. You can easily change the spin on your loops and really mess up your opponent during rallies – that is if you didn’t decide to end the point decisively with a 3rd ball kill. You don’t have to rush to the 3rd ball kill to succeed using this rubber. You can take a step back after your opening loop and punish ball after ball with loops or drives to pressure the opponent to setup your finish. The extra spin you generate from the sponge allows the control and placement. The confidence you get after using this rubber simply grows on you. Your increased confidence becomes a point winning asset during your matches. You are not worrying about whether you can make the shot or not – you execute your stroke and strategy without hesitation. That decisiveness proves invaluable. Confidence in your training and equipment lead to success in tight situations and propel you to the next level. (After you devolop your technique through practice, of course.)

Have at it with your comments and hope you got something or a laugh from it.

[Skippy]

I have only hit with the regular Inspirit, and I really do like the rubber.  It's got good speed/spin/control/DURABILITY.  I think it's important that you bring up the durability factor as it's going to become the trait that sets rubbers apart from others now that the tensor age is coming full force.  I figured the Inspirit Quatro would be pretty durable as the regular Inspirit can really take a punishing without any real consequence.  I'm glad you like the rubber Der Echte!  Thanks for the review!

[Peter C]

2mm 39% Dawei Inspirit Quattro is a good performer on the backhand of a Timo Boll Spirit and Michael Maze. It also performed well on the Michael Maze forehand, but I did have to adjust my game to get the best out of it.

There is plenty of spin for serves and a controlled service return. I found it easy to do backhand topspin drives; keep pushes short and low, but was less impressed with it than regular Inspirit, when it came to forehand looping, particularly at mid distance.

The reason for that is the loop length of Quattro is shorter than Inspirit, making it fine for close to the table loops, but a less impressive performer than regular Inspirit from 3 ft or more back from the table, in my opinion.

A teammate has also told me I play better against him with a Timo Boll Spirit, fitted with 2mm 44% Inspirit on both wings, than a Michael Maze with Mark V and 2mm 39% Quattro backhand. Why? because it's a faster set up and I can apply more pressure with the use of speed. Even though Quattro has more control and a less livelier bounce than Inspirit, I feel my short game with 2mm 44% Inspirit is nearly as good, as when I use 39% Quattro. I put that down to familiarity with the rubber and a deftness of touch; which is definitely an asset for playing the short game with Inspirit or any other fast rubber for that matter..

He also mentioned that I hit harder and faster with 2mm 44% Inspirit on the backhand of a Timo Boll Spirit, than with 2mm 39% Inspirit Quattro on the backhand of a Michael Maze.

2mm 44% Inspirit definitely feels faster and more powerful when forehand looping/driving and smashing on the Michael Maze, than 2mm 39% Inspirit Quattro on the same blade.

I've only tried 2mm 35% Inspirit Quattro on the Michael Maze for a short period and was disappointed I didn't play as well with it, as I can with 39% Quattro on the same blade. Part of that I put down to not being familiar with the 35% version and the extra bit of speed the 39% version has.

A friend in Yorkshire has mentioned that 35% Inspirit Quattro is proving a popular choice on the Galaxy T4, with some good English players in his local Division 1.

I'm coming to the conclusion that I like 39% degree Quattro, on low throw blades like the Michael Maze, Timo Boll Spirit and the Galaxy K series, whereas 35% would probably be better on a blade with a higher throw than these blades.

Weight : 2mm 35% Quattro is around 41/42 grams a sheet cut to fit a Michael Maze,
               2mm 39% Quattro is around 47/48 grams a sheet, cut for the same blade.

[RebornTTEvnglist]

Wow, 2 good reviews for the price of one. Thanks guys!

Peter I like your review as I have bought a sheet of 39 degree Quattro and I play close to the table usually, so it sounds like it will be good for me. I have a K3 on order and I'll use it on that. So it sounds like you'd agree this is a reasonable setup. I am going to try the XP2008 on the other side. It will be interesting to see how this goes. Its also good to know from Der that if I feel I need more control I'll drop back to the 35 degree, but if I feel control is good at 39, I might go up to the 42.

[Der Echte]

Thanks Peter C, for the weight as I have no scale. Also for the different sponges, as I have only tried 35 degree. I switched the 35 Deg Quattro to a VSG 1000 and had immediate troubles getting the blade angle and feel correct. (I wanted to try it out on a faster blade) I try it one more round before throwing it back on the N-2. Good insight on how it fits your game.

[Peter C]

On saturday, I tried 35% Inspirit Quattro on the backhand of a Timo Boll Spirit and found it doesn't suit my game on that blade either..

So I've transferred it onto a Petr Korbel, to see how it performs on that blade. If it works out as I hope it will, i'll probably leave it in the TT bag; ready for other players who come to coaching without a bat, to use.

In the meantime the 39% version continues to perform well on the backhand of my Michael Maze, with an anatomical handle.

I bought an almost new Michael Maze with a straight handle, for £35 (ca. US$70) off Ebay two weeks ago.

i put a sheet of 2.1mm Sriver G2 FX on the backhand and it felt comfortable very quickly. it reminded me of 2mm 39% Quattro in some ways i.e. throw angle, control and spin. It has the lowest throw of any Sriver i've used, more akin to Bryce FX and Inspirit Quattro; than Sriver L and EL.

[Der Echte]

Good deal Peter. I have hit with 40 degree Quattro on a Dawei GTS OFF carbon for a week and really love the power, especially on BH. My brush loops are just as consistant, but I have to take some power of some FH loops close to the table to keep the same landing percentage of my FH loops. At 1-2 meters back, this outfit makes me feel like Superman. I can counterhit, counterloop, or powerloop with authority, much more than my N-2 outfit. I am getting use to the throw angle change a bit, but it comes a a small cost, as I was a better player close to the table with that N-2 outfit. Amazingly, Kokutaku Tokyo 2.2 38 degree on a Galaxy 896 was real mice at mid distance for a spinny loop off of topspin, my consistancy jumped today hitting with that outfit topspinning against topspin. The rec players don't give me much topspin to practice against and today I had someone much better than a rec player.

[RebornTTEvnglist]

OK I joined the quattro team and am loving it. The power and control of the 39% Quattro on my K3 forehand is pretty awesome and the K3 is only an OFF- blade. But looping from close or mid distance is great. Haven't tried from far back yet. Smashing is also awesome. I'm thinking of getting a sheet of red to see the difference. Is it better to go for the 35% in the red to account for its natural loss of spininess?

Another small point, but I spinmaxed the black quattro a few times now and I've noticed its got a bit tacky    I didn't think this was supposed to happen.

[pingpongrob]

OK I joined the quattro team and am loving it. The power and control of the 39% Quattro on my K3 forehand is pretty awesome and the K3 is only an OFF- blade. But looping from close or mid distance is great. Haven't tried from far back yet. Smashing is also awesome. I'm thinking of getting a sheet of red to see the difference. Is it better to go for the 35% in the red to account for its natural loss of spininess?

Another small point, but I spinmaxed the black quattro a few times now and I've noticed its got a bit tacky    I didn't think this was supposed to happen.

But thats what spinmax is supposed to do. Make the rubber tacky.

How many Times did you apply the Spinmax?

[RebornTTEvnglist]

I've applied the spinmax about 4 times now over successive applications. I know that's what spinmax does to tacky rubbers, but I was under the distinct impression it wouldn't make non-tacky rubbers even slightly tacky. Isn't Quattro a non-tacky rubber?

[Skippy]

I've applied the spinmax about 4 times now over successive applications. I know that's what spinmax does to tacky rubbers, but I was under the distinct impression it wouldn't make non-tacky rubbers even slightly tacky. Isn't Quattro a non-tacky rubber?

No it will add a little tack to anything.  It adds less to non tackies, but it adds a little something to everything if you don't wipe it off completely.

[Peter C]

I played with 35% quattro on a Petr Korbel on saturday and it definitely felt better than it did on the Butterfly arylate carbons. I was looping consistently with it at mid distance.

The Korbel feels like it has the ideal throw to make it a good match with this rubber. The good thing is the Korbel's higher throw makes the loop length longer, than on the arylate carbons and a length that suits me for mid distance looping.

I liked the spin when it kicked off the table too.

[asr1990]

the Korbel is a great looping blade and is great with almost all rubbers except super soft rubbers because it is a med-soft blade

   it will be nice with Bryce glued

  asr1990

[ckhugo]

Good that there are other people who likes Quattro coz I am sick of Rob and Wiz telling me that I should go with tensor.

Anyway, I being playing Quattro on and off since the day it arrived in Aust, and after recent EJing I have gone back to Quattro on my FH (shakehand).

IN short, I would say the characteristic of the Quattro are:

Good:
- Grippy Chinese rubber that produce decent spin on everything, from serve, push to topspin

- It has a shorter arc on its topspin that I dont know if any of you have noticed, but next time try using the same blade and same swing with different rubber then u would notice Quattro's ball tend to land a bit shorter

- Surprisingly good for flat hit, the main reason why I end up coming back to it

Bad:
- with the shorter arc similar to some tacky chinese rubber, it really doesnt have an apparent kick (or 2nd gear) after landing on the table as say H2 would do

- this rubber isnt all that light, in fact abt the same weight as H2 or even heavier if u go with the 42% version

Feel:
- The speed glue effect isnt as apparent as the tensors such as plasma or Omega, in fact, no where close to it. But it does have some in build speed glue effect in that, that it is quite a bit faster and spinner than say the unglued original Inspirit or Saviga.

- The beauty abt this rubber is,,, you can glue the hell out of it and it only makes it better    , its one of those Chinese rubber that takes glue well, and if we say an unglued sheet has 30 to 40% speedglue effect then once u glue it up,,, it in a way gets to the 100% gauge.

Lastly:
- If you are playing with tensor right now, then this is a different animal to it, it doesnt have the bounce and spring like the tensor (and thats why I like it) nor the speed and longer arc.

- If you coming from gluing, then this rubber would be just fine for you, but of coz its still a Chinese rubber that plays a bit more like the Japanese rubbers, but still not like the German rubbers

- Finally, a very durable rubber, played with it for half a yr now,,, and the 1st 35% quattro after all the things I have done to it,,, its still playing good.. reminds me of those rubbers that were produced 10, 15 yrs ago that last forever,,, but just faster..

PS> This rubber being faster still have a rather good control, good at close to table, and still powerful enough when away... the firmness is really up to each one's preference.  

Pete C: 35% on Timo or maze probably wont work,,, try the 42%, glued,,, it will work better. but probably a bit hard to control,,, since timo has a fast 1st speed so does Quattro, might work better on maze...

[Peter C]

The 39% Quattro works better on the Michael Maze backhand and it's great for chopping, as well as flips, pushing and backhand drives.

The Michael Maze has a lower first gear than the Timo Boll Spirit and is a more versatile blade because if it. It's got more control too and I notice opponents who can handle the Timo Boll Spirit well, have a harder time playing me when i use the Michael Maze.

35% Quattro didn't suit either Arylate Carbon, it's one for a blade with a higher throw. That's why it works better for me on the Petr Korbel.

I reckon 35% Quattro could also work well on the Dawei Navigator and Galaxy M6, which strike me as interesting blades.

[ckhugo]

thats what I thought initially, but since I have used  35. 39 & 42% quattro on Wavestone (5ply arylate-carbon) & my own custom - 5ply arylate carbon as well.

So I wouldnt rule out quattro for that reason, but as both Timo & Maze are both 7ply and a bit stiffer bcoz of that, they really play better with german/Jap rubbers, as far as how I felt. But who knows, soemone uses maze and has H3 on both side kicks my ass anyway...

[Wiz]

But who knows, soemone uses maze and has H3 on both side kicks my ass anyway...

Hugo - that someone kicks most peoples asses lol...

and yes you should be using a tensor on your FH. You don't like to glue / preference is not to glue, you prefer something light but yet gives good speed. Thats got Tensor description written all over it :p

I really liked and wanted to use the Quattro - but its just too heavy

[RebornTTEvnglist]

I really liked and wanted to use the Quattro - but its just too heavy :lol:  :roll:

[Silver]

nope, you don't. Takes a while to readjust. Main problem I had when going from a light to heavy bat was loop timing.

[priior]

ive seen people have problems with timing going from heavy to light as well..

i don't think weight is a problem.. it's balancedness that matters.

[Wiz]

In that case Wiz, its time for you to check out the weights section at the local gym!  :lol:

The only bicep curls I'll be doing is at the local pub  :)

[Der Echte]

I am glad more of you all like the Quattro. I am hitting with a Dawei GTS and 40 degree Quattro and am really getting used to it. It even feels like the sponge is getting softer, which it probably isn't, but an indicator of my comfort level with this harder sponge. If I keep improving like this, I will slap on a sheet of 42 degree Quattro I still have left from my last Affordable purchase. I did some drills with a Romanian Captain for a few days and liked the practice. Here is a short vid on looping kinda close to the table with the 40 degree version on an OFF blade.

http://http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z_5dqEFAPfI

Feel free to tell me how much i suck, or how inefficient I use my feet/weight transfer/rcovery/blah blah blah. I do indeed need to hear that stuff to get better.

[ckhugo]

I think typically blade that has solid handle can take heavier rubbers,, coz they tend to be less head heavy.. but the overall weight still could slow down the swing speed.

but ya, quattro isnt a light rubber, its abt the same as H2, so the only rubber that I know is heavier is the Globe 999 Nat and the good old 729 super fx.

So, considering on an already head heavy bigger blade weight around 90g and then 1 side h2 & 1 side quattro,,, the total weight would be over 190g while most towards the head,,, this would extend ur swing, so u would swing longer, takes longer to recover... more powerful provide you can generate the speed.

Now, comparing to a balanced blade (85g) with 2 lighter tensor, total weight about 165/170, given u can flick easier and recover quick with smaller swing,,, while the tensor already provides the punch,,,

If both budget and style allows, which would you prefer?

[priior]

niiice der_echte...  very nice 3rd ball kills.. very impressive !

also.. is it me or are u getting more in shape? (physically i mean).. u look like uve lost weight and ur upper body's strenghtened..

also.. is that video in some bunker in iraq?!

[Der Echte]

Yes Priior, I believe I was noticeably heavier back in Dec 2007, when I last put up a bunch of vids. I have lost several cm from the waistline - the uniform pants are now looser. It wasn't like I was borrowing the Jaws of Life to open my mouth wide open to pour in case after case of Twinkies and Swiss Cake Rolls, but I sure was bigger then and still have another 7 or 8 cm of progress to go. The only exercise I have done here is walking and playing TT. With that Romanian CPT, I played until 3 AM, 2 AM and 1 AM on successive nights and will hit the hay early tonight. The place we played is small like a bunker, but is a junkyard wooden add-on to the rec center building. It is hot garbage, but all there is here and I am thankful enough for it.

If I can get a decent training partner every other day to block and fed me topspin, I can work out more weeknesses of mine - like timing FH hits aginst incoming topspin and continuing the attack after my opening fast loop is blocked.

[RebornTTEvnglist]

How could you avoid losing weight living in 45% conditions every day, not being able to drink beer, having a flu that probably stopped most eating occurring for several days at least and to top it off playing TT in a sweatbox!? Did I miss any of the other weight loss treatments available there in Ku-lose-weight?  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:  :lol:

[Der Echte]

Right now temps are very reasonable 6 in the morning and 15-25 in the afternoon.  It won't last long and temps will reach 45 by April and keep climbing to 55 and stay that way 3-4 months, before it slowly tapers down. There is pretty much an all you can eat dining facility with tons of fatty foods. All kinds of soldiers get fat over here and all kinds get cut (lose fat). I try to one of those who get real cut. it might happen in two more months. The size of the alien baby I have been harboring in my abdomen is shrinking.

[RebornTTEvnglist]

Wow if it shrinks to a small enough size you might cough it up and use it as a TT ball  

[Der Echte]

Cute, I was thinking more of Epicicac in hte final stages to get him out...

[pokerpete]

has anyone noticed any slipping of the ball on the top sheet ?

i gave someones 40* quattro a try today, and it seemed that the ball slipped on some serves or if someone gave u a real high spinny loop

the ownwer also has noticed this too ...what about anyone here ?

(the rubber was only 2 months old)