Xiom Aigis

Many references exist, but they are often vague. Direct comparisons between blades are necessary for accuracy. The Aigis blade is fast. When comparing it to the Victas Koji Matsushita Offensive, I found the Aigis to be slightly faster, despite using Tackiness Chop 1.5 on the Aigis and Tackiness Chop 1.7 on the Koji. Both blades were covered with plastic foil to minimize the effects of tackiness. The 1.7 rubber was glued with Revolution 4, while the 1.5 rubber was glued with Cement. I will provide updates after further training.

After two hours of training, I noticed significant improvements in passive returns under pressure. The Aigis allows me to keep the ball on the table more than I could with the Koji. However, the tackiness effect slows the paddle, providing more control. This will likely diminish over time as the tackiness wears off. Blocks were excellent, flat, and easy to execute, surpassing the performance of the Koji. Chops, serves, and service receives were also improved, especially when using Dr. Neubauer Domination 1.5mm. The combination of the Aigis and Domination was particularly impressive, offering great control, strong chops, effective blocks, and surprisingly good attacking capabilities. While attacking, the paddle is less flexible than desired.

After several months, I have found that the Aigis blade offers the best balance of control and speed I have experienced. This is its greatest strength. I can effectively employ a defensive chop style to close out games, waiting for my opponent’s mistake or an opportunity to execute an offensive topspin attack. However, prolonged offensive exchanges require significant physical effort. Blocks, serves, and service returns remain excellent and effortless. The passive returns are a key advantage, as the ball maintains good control and generates effective spin.

Novus Tourwood version is very bad. Thickness: 4.9.

(Straight Handle Version):

By far, the GREATEST defensive blade I’ve ever used. Just wonderful… I’ve played with the Joo Se Hyuk, Defplay Senso, Matsushita Pro, and Vioncello just to name a few, and the Aigis surpasses them all.

Control is incredibly high, which is a bit hard to believe since this blade is capable of some great speed.

Chopping and blocking are done with great ease as the enlarged head leaves you with no question on whose fault the point loss was. It’s going to be human error.

I’ve personally used this blade with Donic Slice 40 and TSP Curl P4 Chop. Even though both rubbers are generally considered slow/defensive, the blade still has the potential to unleash quick kill shots.

The handle is awesome and feels very comfortable in my hand, easy to twiddle, easy to serve.

Lightweight, excellent feel, constructed beautifully, versatile, great dimensions.

--THE supreme defensive blade–

There are no cons — I was looking for such a blade for a long time. On the forehand, one can use really spinny and quick rubber without losing even a single bit of control. You can use counter topspin 2-3 meters away from the table, and there’s excellent control on the backhand with long pimples, although smashing and pushing is really easy. Smashing close to the table requires good force, and probably thus is the only weak side of this blade.

Very soft blade with high flex and lots of vibrations. The mushy feeling is noticeable with OX pips. It excels in control, but lacks speed and sharpness.

Superb control with LP-out/OX produces very flat flight curves and a rapid sinking of the ball on the opponent’s side. Blocks tend to be very short with sudden stops. These characteristics are perfect for a passive and destructive game. However, LP-attacks lack power.

This blade is more of an all-rounder, but it still offers excellent control. I have it equipped with Xiom Omega IV Asia on the forehand side and Tibhar Grass DTecs 1.5 on the backhand side. On the forehand, this setup provides exceptional looping capabilities, thanks to its incredible dwell time. On the backhand, both push-blocking and classical defense chops perform flawlessly.

I have tried out various defensive blades, including the Andro Fibercomp, Bty Matsushita Pro Model/Special, Defense I/II/Alpha, Joo Se Hyuk, Cutlass, Donic Defplay Senso, Joola Cwx, Stiga Tube Def, and Yasaka Sweeper. After evaluating each blade, I have concluded that the one that best suits my playing style is the defense I/II/Alpha.

I employ a modern defensive game, using long pips on my backhand and inverted rubber on my forehand. The defense I/II/Alpha blade has proven to be an excellent match for this strategy. It allows me to generate an effective amount of backspin when chopping and excels in topspin play. Overall, I highly recommend this blade to players looking for a quality defensive weapon.

The blade offers sufficient speed for attacking shots while being slow enough for defensive play. This makes it similar to the Joo Se Hyuk blade but with a slower pace.

Straight handle version:

Very nice handle. Comfortable and easy to twiddle.

The head is slightly over-sized, but the overall weight is still fairly light.

Both short and long pips worked wonderfully on this gem. Definitely not a slow blade, yet not a rocket launcher either. With the right rubber, you can chop very well and also return fast, powerful topspin counter-loops or smashes. Not a tremendous amount of dwell time, especially depending on your rubber. I used Harder Chinese sponges without problems. This comes down to personal preference.

Overall I am highly pleased with this little guy. I often carry it around in my hand because the grip is so spectacular.

For the modern defense game, this blade will definitely get the job done. I’d say it leans slightly more toward speed/power than most other defensive blades. As a result, you lose a small amount of chopping ability to allow for the devastating counter attacks!

One of the most beautiful defensive blades in the world! It provides excellent control with enough speed for attacking.