Butterfly Maze Performance
Blade description:
Blade Characteristics
The Maze Performance is an all-wood offensive blade known for its soft, velvety feel and high-quality Japanese craftsmanship. It is categorized as a medium-fast blade that balances speed with exceptional feedback. While it lacks the rigid stiffness found in many carbon-composite blades, it provides a distinctive, soft sensation upon contact, often accompanied by a clean clicking sound during smashes.
Performance and Balance
One of the defining features of this blade is its weight distribution. It is widely noted for feeling light and well-balanced, avoiding the head-heavy sensation common in many offensive setups. This design choice enhances maneuverability, making it highly effective for close-to-the-table play, blocking, and driving. While it performs reliably at mid-distance, players requiring significant power for long-distance looping may need to pair it with faster, medium-to-hard rubbers to compensate for the blade’s inherent softness.
Playability and Feel
The blade offers a generous sweet spot for an all-wood construction, providing high levels of control in the short game and on service returns. Its flexible nature and tactile feedback make it an excellent choice for players transitioning from beginner all-round blades to more offensive equipment. The handle design, particularly the straight version, is frequently highlighted for its comfort and ergonomic fit, allowing for easy transitions between forehand and backhand grips.
Submit a Review
Recent Reviews
#1 — April 2024
Excellent feel in the blade. Great control and nice speed. You will probably need fast rubbers to require less effort in long-distance play. However, close to the table and mid-distance play is excellent.
I use it with Rakza 7 on the forehand and Rakza 9 on the backhand, a nice combination.
UPDATE: I was sad to hear this blade was discontinued. Maze Advance is the replacement. I hope it is as good as the Maze Performance. I’ve tried a few Yasaka blades already (Goiabao 5, Falck W7, and Battle Balsa), and all those are great blades, but for some reason, I still come back to this one.
To be honest, I am a Yasaka fan. I use Rakza 7 (2.0mm) on both sides and have been looking for a Yasaka blade that meets this blade’s criteria, but I haven’t found one yet. I’m going to try Sweden Extra, and after that, I’ll know what to do.
This blade is really, really good! I love the speed, the control, and the freedom that I get using it. I play lots of blocking, looping, and occasional chopping and sidespin, and with this blade, I can do everything.
In the end, I would love Yasaka to have a blade like this, but if that’s not possible at the moment, I’ll keep using the Maze Performance until then.
#2 — March 2024
First, I used Butterfly Tackiness Chop and Sriver FX on these blades. I didn’t get the feel playing table tennis. Then I bought Palio Medium Pips and Reactor Corbor. My smashing was 70% in, and I could control the games. Overall, this blade is good for amateurs. It is medium-fast and easy to control. It is also lightweight.
#3 — March 2022
En general, es una hoja muy buena. Pasé de una hoja de control lenta a esta Maze para aumentar mi nivel y velocidad, lo cual logré. Me parece que es una hoja para subir de nivel de amateur a un nivel medio, aunque también depende mucho de las gomas que se utilicen.
Al principio, usé una Dignics 09C, pero no me convenció el golpe ni el juego lejos de la mesa. Luego, cambié a una Dignics 05 en el forehand y una Tenergy 05 Hard en el back, encontrando así un mejor equilibrio para el juego dentro y fuera de la mesa.
Me gusta la sensación de la madera en la mano y el golpe depende mucho de tu fuerza.
Get Notified of New Equipment and Reviews
༼ つ ◕_◕ ༽つ No spam or other useless stuff. We plan to send out some newsletters from time to time with the latest reviews and project updates. Feel free to unsubscribe at any time.