6 Reviews for Sanwei Gear Hyper

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Review by yogi_bear for Sanwei Gear Hyper on June 3, 2020

Glue: 2 layers of Revolution No. 3 normal viscosity.
Blades used: Butterfly Balsa Carbo X5, Stiga Arctic Wood, Yinhe 970xx-K (KLC)
Weight: (Uncut) 68.5g (Cut) 50.6g
Thickness: 2.1mm

The overall surface of the Sanwei Gear Hyper looks high quality with a matt-like finish to it. It had a light tack to it but shouldn't be regarded as a tacky rubber. I don't have specific details of the sponge hardness yet (though Sanwei has said that the samples should be 37 degrees) but it feels medium-hard to touch in my unscientific pinch test. It's softer than the Tibhar Hybrid K2 and slightly softer than the Donic Bluefire M2.

Two word summary: Controlled power

Right from the start, I could feel the rubber was very forgiving with shots. Across the blades used, only minor adjustments were needed to keep the ball on the table. A couple of my friends who tried it out even commented it felt a bit like Tenergy/Dignics though I'm sure they're talking about the ease of using it!

I'll add my thoughts on the performance on the three different blades at the end of this review

Power
One of the things I liked best about the rubber was it had a more linear nature compared to some of the ESN rubbers I've used like the Donic Bluefire M2 and the Rakza 7. I've struggled to use them on my forehand since switching over to mainly Chinese rubbers there about 3 years ago.

Recently, I've been using a Tibhar K2 and found I needed softer hands when blocking and to slow down my drives to keep the ball on the table. Not so with the Sanwei Gear Hyper. My offensive shots were more controlled and I felt I could better direct where my shots landed compared to the K2. I also tried it out against the Tibhar Evolution EL-S and found the Sanwei easier to use.

Speed-wise, I feel the Sanwei Gear Hyper has slightly less speed than the Donic Bluefire M2 and the Xiom Omega V Asia but had more control than both of them.

Power - 8/10

Spin
The Gear Hyper is capable of very high levels of spin, especially when brushing. The high levels of spin also kick in when serving the ball and, thanks to the linear nature of the sponge, it was also easier to keep the service low.

My regular playing partner uses the Bluefire M2 pretty much exclusively and he was able to execute the same amount of spin using the same strokes. He was impressed enough that he wanted to switch away to the Gear Hyper for his forehand.

Happily (for me!), I was able to impart similar levels of spin with the Gear Hyper compared to the K2 so, for me, this is my new favourite forehand rubber.

Spin - 9/10

Control
This is where I feel the rubber shines. It has enough elasticity to give the rubber speed but the level of catapult is low enough to make it a very forgiving rubber.

Other friends who've tried the rubber all commented on how forgiving it was.

Compared to the Bluefire M2, the K2, the Omega V Asia, and the Tibhar EL-S. This has higher control than all of them

Control - 10/10

Smashing
Perhaps due in part to the level of control, I felt this rubber was also good for smashing. Once the sponge kicks in, the ball gets spit out with great force but also, with good levels of accuracy. My playing partner commented that he always felt in control of his smashes with the Gear Hyper and was able to direct his shots with greater accuracy.

I felt the same too and had a more consistent third-ball attack through this rubber.

Not quite as deadly as the MX-P, Tenergy, Dignics and other speedy high catapult rubbers, but is still very capable at causing difficulties.

9/10

Chopping/Pushing
I was consistently able to handle chopping rallies and easily varied the amount of spin with this rubber. Shots that were usually harder to return with the K2 and the H3 were much easier to get over the net.

However, this rubber is still fairly spin sensitive so some care needed to be taken when chopping.

I'm not a defender but I also tried some deep, long defensive chops from further back and found it offered a good level of safety while generating enough spin to make it harder for opponents to loop the ball back.

9/10

Throw angle
This rubber has a medium-low throw angle. Higher than the Sanwei Target National but lower than the Bluefire M2, the K2, Omega V Asia, and the EL-S. As such, I feel this is more suitable as a forehand rubber. Players who prefer lower throw angles on their backhands could well consider the Gear Hyper as a controlled option.

Blade comments
Butterfly Balsa Carbo X5 - 3 ply blade with a balsa core and 2 carbon layers
The Sanwei Gear Hyper offered good amount of power and control for offensive strokes despite the typically bouncy nature of this blade. Initially, I was wondering whether there'd be too much spring considering the blade but my concerns were put to rest once I started using it.

Stiga Arctic Wood - 5 ply all wood blade
This is my blade and the Gear Hyper was much easier to use than the K2 I had on. At the same time, it was still capable of very high levels of speed when driving and smashing. My game is largely built on third-ball attack and blocking and the Gear Hyper suits me wonderfully.

Yinhe 970xx-K - 5+2 composition with 2 kevlar carbon layers
This is my playing partner's blade and he found the Gear Hyper more controlled than the Bluefire M2 he usually uses. His slow brush loops were still loaded with tremendous amounts of spin that were hard to return and his smashes were still very speedy.

Other thoughts
I'd reiterate my two-word summary - controlled power. For me, this will immediately replace my K2 as my forehand rubber once it gets released on the market.

Durability
Topsheet is still in great condition despite being used outdoors throughout the entire review period.

Shrinkage
The sponge had little to no shrinkage after the first cut. This is good news to players who like to move rubbers between different blades.

Who is this rubber for?
I hesitate to say it's an allround rubber as that doesn't seem to do it justice. It's not as powerful as some of the current and even older generation ESN rubbers but I feel it makes up for it with the level of spin and control it offers.

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External Review for Sanwei Gear Hyper on May 10, 2020

Condensed version of the review I originally posted in Table Tennis Daily on 17 December 2019 - https://www.tabletennisdaily.com/forum/showthread.php?22383-New-Sanwei-rubber-first-look

Two word summary: Controlled power

Power: -
One of the things I liked best about the rubber was it had a more linear nature compared to some of the ESN rubbers I've used like the Donic Bluefire M2 and the Rakza 7. I've struggled to use them on my forehand since switching over to mainly Chinese rubbers there about 3 years ago.

Recently, I've been using a Tibhar K2 and found I needed softer hands when blocking and to slow down my drives to keep the ball on the table. Not so with the Sanwei Gear Hyper. My offensive shots were more controlled and I felt I could better direct where my shots landed compared to the K2. I also tried it out against the Tibhar Evolution EL-S and found the Sanwei easier to use.

Speed-wise, I feel the Sanwei Gear Hyper has slightly less speed than the Donic Bluefire M2 and the Xiom Omega V Asia but had more control than both of them.

Power - 8/10

Spin: -
The Gear Hyper is capable of very high levels of spin, especially when brushing. The high levels of spin also kick in when serving the ball and, thanks to the linear nature of the sponge, it was also easier to keep the service low.

Happily (for me!), I was able to impart similar levels of spin with the Gear Hyper compared to the K2 so, for me, this is my new favourite forehand rubber.

Spin - 9/10

Control: -
This is where I feel the rubber shines. It has enough elasticity to give the rubber speed but the level of catapult is low enough to make it a very forgiving rubber.

Other friends who've tried the rubber all commented on how forgiving it was.

Compared to the Bluefire M2, the K2, the Omega V Asia, and the Tibhar EL-S. This has higher control than all of them

Control - 10/10

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External Review for Sanwei Gear Hyper on February 3, 2022

I tried this rubber in 37, 38 and 39 deg on a couple of Sanwei blades. The 37 deg on a fast Sanwei V5 PRO (wooden blade) gave me lots of control without any loss in speed. It works really good as an offensive weapon, looping fast and easy to place the ball where I want to. The 38 and 39 deg I glued on a Sanwei HC-5S (Soft carbon blade). This setup is so nice. Even though I'm used to faster blades and H3N etc. this setup gave me sufficent speed and is a controlled looping machine. Even though the rubbers are a bit harder, on a slower blade they really shine in the offensive play. They are not as bouncy as regular tensor rubbers like Tenergy, DNA etc, so the control in the short game is great, and when I want to attack both the speed and spin is there. Even chopping works really well :) The speed, spin, control is for the 38deg. Add and remove about 0.2 in speed and control for the softer and harder versions. Weight around 50g cut to a normal blade.

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External Review for Sanwei Gear Hyper on August 31, 2024

First of all why noone is talking about this rubber?
Got this in the blur color and looks amazing. 39 is almost like 47 ESN.
1.) At first the top sheet looked dead during the first session and the sponge felt really really hard like a brick
2.) After reglueing it, played like a charm. Control is 10/10. Speed is enough and generates a lot of spin.
3.) The 39 is really grwat for bh as well as fh.
4.) The half tacky topsheet doesn't appears to be tacky at all at first and feels like it wouldn't grip the ball but it went on like a charm. Durability is really great with the 3nd Generation protective film that comes with the rubber.
5.) I tried it on OFF+ Blade (Yinhe V14-Pro) and it is quite linear which is really good. Blocking is great. Drives are spinny and fast. Serve is really good. Pushes are a bit difficult. Topsheet is insensitive to spin. Throw angle for backhand is really good. Rubber is really Forgiving in shots
7.) Tried it on DHS PG7 all wood and this is very very spinny on it and feels really soft but didn't put out any speed. Worked great on and OFF+ stiff Blade. Great sound great feel. Not much catapult as it is linear. You can drive your shot as you want.
Tried many many rubbers including Rakza 7, Stiga Genesis S, Loki Rxton 3, Xiom Omega 4 pro Europe, Fastarc G-1. This suited me the best.
Should give it a try.

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External Review for Sanwei Gear Hyper on June 28, 2024

Hi,
I've got the gear hyper 37 on my jpen, xiom hibi o 1 ply hinoky. I am very happy with it. It is close to nittaku G1, but with more controle, still plenty of power and very spinny. IT is very very good for service. I can play close, mi distance, attack or dfense. I do less direct errors or forced errors. I am very happy with it.
I ve got it in a nice blue color.

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Review by ajben (Verified Customer) for Sanwei Gear Hyper on October 7, 2021

Red 2.0
Incredibly low arc with slow speed makes looping difficult, I had to change because it had started messing with my swing. It does exhibit that 'diving' top spin affect, where the ball stays low off the bounce, but that won't matter because you need to lift anything with backspin nearly straight up for it to even go over the net. Even tried boosting it, to minimal effect. Only positives are good touch and high feedback on pushes, and decent spin on serves. Maybe there is a customer for it, but everyone that tried it, from beginners to 2k+ elo experienced players, hated it. Far too slow for higher level players, far too hard to use for those without perfect technique.

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