Update on 4th April 2024 : The Vibration Indices of V1 and Stradivarius have been corrected.
Work of TTGearLab for theses equipments :
(1) The concept of blade family
(2) Designing the constructions of plywoods (except for one model)
(3) Providing the early performance indices for performance graph
(4) Naming of some models (Fuga, Aria, Solo, Diva, Aria Lite, Axelo and Ignito)
Note : All the pictures in this article are newly drawn by TTGearLab. TTGearLab tried to draw the blades as close to the real blades as possible, but it isn’t perfect. The shapes, the printings and the lenses may be different from those of actual blades produced by Xiom.
Xiom Novus series is the first blade family that was developed by A.R.T.E. (= The old name of TTGearLab that had been used until 2010). Xiom helped the early stage of the research of A.R.T.E., and A.R.T.E. led the development of new Xiom blades as engineering consultant. The early form of performance indices were heavily utilized in the development. The result is the ‘Novus’ which consists of six blades announced in 2008. In 2010, one model was discontinued and 10 new model were added to Novus series. Further, one old Xiom model was updated and added to Novus series. As a result Novus series became a big blade family that consists of 16 models (= 7 fiber blades and 9 wood blades). The blade constructions except of one model were developed by A.R.T.E. The characteristics chart printed on the blade head is based on the early version of performance indices provided by TTGearLab. And, because Xiom processed the data and expressed in in a bit different way, it looks differet from TTGearLab’s original data.
Following are the blades developed by TTGearLab. Graphic design wasn’t done by TTGearLab. (Graphics in this article are not the original ones by Xiom but newly drawn by TTGearLab. Therefore those can be a bit different from those of actual blades.)
‘Speedwood’ series launched in 2008 is the first blade family in Novus series. TTGearLab tried to make the all-wood blaes those can be the ‘standard’ blades. ARIA and FUGA shares the concept. ARIA is a very fast 5-ply wood for topspin players. FUGA is 5-ply blade with moderate speed but gives very sharp feeling and good ball keeping for agressive close-to-table topspin. And, ARIA LITE is a lighter and slower version of ARIA. Originally there was one more model at the beginning – JAZZ which is a thick 5-ply wood blade whose top layer is Hinoki. But, afterwards JAZZ was discontinued and instead ARIA LITE was announced.
‘Tourwood’ series was launched in 2010 to reinforce the all-wood blade range of Xiom. SOLO is a 7-ply wood blade for topspin players who want a blade harder than offensive 5-ply wood blades. DIVA is a 5-ply wood offensive blade for continuous and safe topspin. And, ACRO is a 6-ply wood all-round blade which can be the best one for beginners.
‘Classic’ series was developed to replace some famous blades in the market. For that reason ‘Classic’ series is not as unique as ‘Speedwood’ series or ‘Tourwood’ series. Classic EXTREME S is a thick blade with traditional 7-ply wood construction. Classic OFFENSIVE S is a 5-ply wood offensive blade whose construction is very popular for top players. And, Classic ALLROUND S is a 5-ply wood all-round blade which is similar to a very popular classic all-round blade.
‘Hinoki Carbon’ series was develped for Asian market in which very hard and very fast blades are preferred. AXELO, STRATO and IGNITO are typical Hinoki Carbon blades whose construction is 3+2 ply (3 wood + 2 fiber). Woven 3K carbon is the finber for three models. TTGearLab tried to make the three blades of three different speed levels. AXELO is the fastest one which is extremely fast. STRATO is the standard Hinoki Carbon blade which can compete with many existing Hinoki Carbon blades. IGNITO is the slowest one in this family. But, it is faster than most of fiber blades and all-wood blades. Afterward ZETRO QUAD was added to this family. But, ZETRO QUAD has very unique 5+4 ply construction (= Quad Fiber construction). It has PBO fiber under top layer, and Carbon Fleece between middle layer and center layer.
‘Tour Carbon’ series was launched in 2010 as the family of standard fiber blades. New STRADIVARIUS, V1 QUAD and V1. Original STRADIVARIUS which has 5+2ply outer fiber construction had been launched in 2005, and was one of the major model of Xiom blade range. It is refined as a ‘New’ STRACIVARIUS. Head shape and handle shape were changed, and the parameter graph provided by TTGearLab was newly printed on the head. V1 QUAD and V1 were purely engineered by TTGearLab. V1 is a thin carbon blade with typical 5+2ply outer fiber construction for very aggressive playere. And, V1 QUAD is a ‘Quad Fiber’ version of V1. Woven carbon fiber is placed under its Walnut top layer, and carbon fleece is inserted between middle layer and center layer.
After above 16 models, TTGearLab planned new ‘inner fiber’ blades and some ‘outer fiber’ blades those were not in Xiom range at that time. But, those were not launched.
Some blades among 16 models became best sellers of Xiom, and are still being sold well. Currently those blades have different appearance because Xiom once refined the design of Novus series. (TTGearLab is not involved in that update because TTGearLab started the work with adidas table tennis from 2011.)
PERFORMANCE INDICES
Novus Speedwood series
ARIA (avg. 86g) : Ep = 1.80, Ec = 1.79 (Ec/Ep = 1.00), Vp = 1.29, Vl = 1.29 (Vl/Vp = 1.00)
FUGA (avg. 86g) : Ep = 1.58, Ec = 1.32 (Ec/Ep = 0.84), Vp = 1.11, Vl = 1.30 (Vl/Vp = 1.17)
ARIA LITE (avg. 78g) : Ep = 1.36, Ec = 1.29 (Ec/Ep = 0.95), Vp = 1.16, Vl = 1.30 (Vl/Vp = 1.12)
Novus Tourwood series
SOLO (avg. 88g) : Ep = 1.76, Ec = 1.67 (Ec/Ep = 0.94), Vp = 1.23, Vl = 1.24 (Vl/Vp = 1.01)
DIVA (avg. 85g) : Ep = 1.48, Ec = 1.39 (Ec/Ep = 0.94), Vp = 1.15, Vl = 1.21 (Vl/Vp = 1.05)
ACRO (avg. 80g) : Ep = 1.19, Ec = 1.22 (Ec/Ep = 1.03), Vp = 1.12, Vl = 1.02 (Vl/Vp = 0.91)
Novus Classic series
Classic EXTREME S (avg. 93g) : Ep = 2.54, Ec = 2.57 (Ec/Ep = 1.01), Vp = 1.48, Vl = 1.32 (Vl/Vp = 0.89)
Classic OFFENSIVE S (avg. 86g) : Ep = 1.60, Ec = 1.54 (Ec/Ep = 0.96), Vp = 1.20, Vl = 1.25 (Vl/Vp = 1.04)
Classic ALLROUND S (avg. 82g) : Ep = 1.19, Ec = 1.24 (Ec/Ep = 1.04), Vp = 1.11, Vl = 1.00 (Vl/Vp = 0.90)
Novus Hinoki Carbon series
AXELO (avg. 88g) : Ep = 3.49, Ec = 3.46 (Ec/Ep = 0.99), Vp = 1.77, Vl = 1.62 (Vl/Vp = 0.91)
STRATO (avg. 88g) : Ep = 2.86, Ec = 3.15 (Ec/Ep = 1.10), Vp = 1.69, Vl = 1.49 (Vl/Vp = 0.88)
IGNITO (avg. 80g) : Ep = 2.23, Ec = 2.51 (Ec/Ep = 1.12), Vp = 1.61, Vl = 1.49 (Vl/Vp = 0.93)
ZETRO QUAD (avg. 88g) : Ep = 2.17, Ec = 2.44 (Ec/Ep = 1.13), Vp = 1.51, Vl = 1.23 (Vl/Vp = 0.81)
Novus Tour Carbon series
STRADIVARIUS (avg. 86g) : Ep = 1.99, Ec = 1.59 (Ec/Ep = 0.80), Vp = 1.24, Vl = 1.51 (Vl/Vp = 1.22)
V1 QUAD (avg. 88g) : Ep = 2.50, Ec = 2.21 (Ec/Ep = 0.88), Vp = 1.42, Vl = 1.61 (Vl/Vp = 1.13)
V1 (avg. 80g) : Ep = 2.20, Ec = 1.92 (Ec/Ep = 0.87), Vp = 1.38, Vl = 1.60 (Vl/Vp = 1.16)
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TTGearLab 
Can you report on the new Xiom Novus indices?
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Yes. I will soon update this article. I’m currently arranging the data.
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Thank you!
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Hello, been really eyeing the Xiom Offensive S, looks like a good alternative for 5ply all wood blades.
Is the data coming soon? Or can you give me an idea on where this blade lands compared to other blades you have reviewed? For example acoustic, primorac or korbel? Speaking of speed.
Thanks!
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Just updated.
Offensive S is the blade that was developed for the contract players who had used Butterfly Korbel. Of course It isn’t 100% same as Korbel. It gives more kick than Korbel when the player hits ball very strongly.
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Excellent work and report,especially indices data !
Can you please explain why manufacturers are more focused on the blades with more ‘hold’ characteristics than ‘kick’ ? Is this something also preferred by professional players?
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I think that it is because the ‘Hold’ characteristics is preferred by professional players. And, it is also concerned with the trend of modern table tennis – continuous topspin is the mainstream technic of current table tennis, and ‘Hold’ characteristics makes the continuous topspin easier. But, we can’t say that the deeper that characteristics the better.
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Thank you for that explanation !
I presume that blades like Amultart, Tibhar Fortino pro, VS unlimited and hinocarbon power can generate similar amount of spin in the hands of pro players, but I can understand the ‘hold’ characteristics are more preferred.
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You are right!
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Can the low value Ec/Ep ratio be used as an indication of the ball arching (dip) down factor ?
Ec/Ep = 0.85
Ec/Ep= 1.00
The 0.85 value, does the ball dip down sooner ? where the value 1.00 is more of a hitting blade or flatter trajectory or ball going long ?
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It differs by how we hit the ball. And, the values are more concerned with the ease of performing specific hitting method.
For example, if Ec/Ep is much lower than 1.00 more aggressive hitting (direct hit or topspin) at extremely close area to the table is easier because the player will feel that the blade keeps the ball deep. On the contrary, if Ec/Ep is much higher than 1.00 that kind of playing will be difficult because player will feel that the blade doesn’t hold the ball.
In the former case, the player doesn’t need to carefully adjust angle to make the trajectory safe. In the latter case, the player should carefully adjust racket angle to draw arch trajectory. However, we can’t say that the latter always draws flatte trajectory. We can make good arch by the careful adjustment of racket angle or swing angle.
In the former case, the precise ‘adjustment’ or selecting technic is difficult, and as the result the main technic tends to be only continuous topspin. On the contrary, in the latter case, player can ‘select’ technic among topspin, smash, block and so on ……
Further, even though Ec/Ep is much lower than 1.00, the trajectory can be also flat if the player hits the ball flat.
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Hi,
For the STRADIVARIUS you say :
“Ep = 2.20, Ec = 1.02 (Ec/Ep = 0.87)”
Yet 1.02/2.2 = 0.46, this is far from 0.87.
Which value is incorrect here ?
I imagine Ec is not 1.02 and is 1.91 ?
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Oh! It’s just mistyping. And, the data is totally wrong. I think that some things were mixed when I arrange the data. I totally revised the data.
Please refer to right data.
Ep = 1.99, Ec = 1.59 (Ec/Ep = 0.80)
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I have see your review for a long time but until now i know the Novus of Xiom is series made by ttgearlab. It is so pretty. Before i have play with Xiom stradivarius with the same appearance to the xiom stradivarius in this article. But know have see a different Stradivarius with the more round handle and different color of handle. I wonder if performance indices is different? Thank you very much.
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In fact there are four versions of Stradivarius. The first version is announced in 2005, and that wasn’t developed by TTGearLab. Afterwards it was incorporated into Novus series in 2008, and TTGearLab worked for its renewal. (So Stradivarius isn’t the one developed 100% by TTGearLab.)
The second version has very thick handle. However, in 2010 it was once more renewed. And, the handle shape was changed to normal shape at that time. That is the third version.
And, the fourth version is current version. New design theme of Xiom was applied to fourth version. TTGearLab isn’t concerned with that renewal.
Is it written as ‘NOVUS’ on your Stradivarius? If not, it is the first version. And, if the handle is very thick, it is the second version. But, there isn’t significant difference in performance indices through 1st version ~ 4th version. (Of course there is always the difference by piece.)
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thank you very much
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If possible, please send the photo of your blade to ttgearlab@gmail.com or ttgearlab@hotmail.com. This will give us a better idea of which version it is. 🙂
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Thank you very much, i have just send photo of my blade to your mail
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I checked your e-mail and sent reply. Your Stradivarius is the newest one. 🙂
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Don’t you have measurements for lighter samples of Xiom “Fuga”? I have one sample with mass of 81 grams and thickness of 5,7 mm. It is very interesting for me to know how much indexes of my sample differs from listed “Fuga” with average mass of 86,4 grams.
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That is out of the weight range of measure pieces. But, the Ep is expected to be in the range 1.45~1.55. Probably around 1.5.
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Do you have the indexes of the feel xiom ax?
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Unfortunately I couldn’t get the sample before it is discontinued. But, I don’t think that it will be much different from Stradivarius.
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Thank you for another great overview.
How would you compare Xiom Strato to Butterfly Amultart, are they similar blades?
Also are the different properties (like speed, arc etc) in carbon used: Woven 3k energy carbon vs ZLC?
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The fiber of Strato is pure woven carbon fiber while the fiber of Amultart is ZLC. That makes the overall feeling of Amultart much softer. Strato gives hard feeling at any time, and the feeling becomes even more fiercing when we hits the ball very hard. The feeling of Amultart is more comfortable than that of Strato. However, some players may feel that the feeling of Amultart is somewhat strange. They will feel that Starto gives much harder but more natural feeling.
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Thank you for the clarification!
Is there any blade similar to Amultart today? By similar, I mean with soft outlayer, softer carbon (like ZLC) and harder core (like Kiri). I really enjoyed in the past the speed and springiness of Amultart, but cannot find it anymore in the market unfortunately
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It seems that there weren’t many players who liked the characteristics of Amultart. I wanted to recommend you Gareydia ZLC because it is similar to Amultart. But, it has also been discontiued.
Then Tibhar Fortino Pro may be considerable. Fortino Pro is a very unique blade, and it shares some characteristics with Hinoki Carbon or Hinoki ZLC blades. I’m not sure whether it will be satisfactory for you or not because it isn’t Hinoki ZLC blade. It is a very thick 5+2 ply outer fiber blade whose fiber is Dyneema Carbon. So it isn’t similar to Amultart. But, there is something in common between Fortino Pro and Amultart. For example springiness you mentioned.
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