Ma Lin Soft Carbon (Yasaka)

MA LIN SOFT CARBON has the same outer veneer as the famous EXTRA blade. Its medium soft characteristics is appreciated by players who want increased ball feel.

In SOFT CARBON Yasaka is using a special, very thin Carbon fibre to improve the speed and enlarge the Sweet-spot.

Together with the thicker wooden middle veneer it gives good power.

The combination of the “power part” (carbon+thicker middle veneer) and the softer outer veneer makes Ma Lin SOFT CARBON the perfect choice for power players who need a good ball feel for best performance.

Speed: 92
Control: 83
Ply: 7 (5+2)
Weight: 89 g

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Average user rating from: 7 users

Overall rating		4.1
Speed (7 ratings)		4.1
Control (7 ratings)		4.1
Hardness (7 ratings)		3.4
Stiffness (1 rating)		3.0
Weight (7 ratings)		2.7
Build quality (7 ratings)		4.1
Value for money (7 ratings)		4.0

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Saturday, 12 November 2011

Written by Anonymous

Overall rating		4.2
Speed		4.0
Control		3.5
Hardness		3.0
Stiffness		3.0
Weight		2.0
Build quality		5.0
Value for money		4.0

Balance carbon with medium speed.

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful

Monday, 29 March 2010

Written by Anonymous

Overall rating		5.0
Speed		4.5
Control		5.0
Hardness		2.0
Weight		4.0
Build quality		5.0
Value for money		5.0

this blade has a soft feel and blade is good for looping and blocking with great control and feeling

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7 of 10 people found the following review helpful

Wednesday, 10 March 2010

Written by Spidy - Top 50 reviewer - View all my reviews

Overall rating		2.7
Speed		3.5
Control		3.5
Hardness		3.5
Weight		0.5
Build quality		3.0
Value for money		1.5

What a bummer! I was in the market for a new blade after many years. After trying a few blades, I decided to buy this blade because I wanted more control and speed than what I previously had. So I chose a Yasaka Ma Lin Soft Carbon blade. I was sure those names were supposed to be a guarantee of quality, but I was fooled. For over 50 euros, this blade has lousy value.

The blade has horrid speed/control. Yasaka says the blade has an extra-large sweet spot, but it feels to work as it should only when the ball hits pretty much the middle of the blade. The whole blade vibrates nastily and it feels sluggish if one doesn't hit the sweet spot. There is very little dwell-time, so generating a sizzling spin on the ball is pretty difficult unless you have excellent timing, technique and a proper rubber. Tenergy 64 should be good on the fh, since the dwell-time is decent and the speed is more than adequate. On the backhand, I would recommend some very light rubbers, otherwise the weight will skyrocket. The Dawei Inspirit Quattro UL H35 or H40 max or 2.0mm should be just fine. I also experimented briefly with a soft (H35) attacking pips-out rubber, but it just wasn't for me.

Last, but certainly not least, my blade weighed in at a whopping 96 grams, although it was rated at 85 grams. I've contacted Yasaka on several occasions both in Japan and in Sweden about this defect, but haven't got an answer from their contact emails posted on their website. If I don't hear back from them soon, I'll never buy Yasaka products or recommend them anymore. This blade could have had it all for me, but in fact it offered very little. I read that e.g. Mattias Karlsson, world #361 Dec.2009 used this blade at one point, but it's hard to imagine that they had used my blade very successfully.

Pros:
-blade is factory-sealed
-the finishing is ok

Cons:
-superheavy, +11g compared to rated weight
-lousy speed to control ratio
-very little dwell-time for a Soft Carbon
-sweet spot smaller than marketed
-(flared) handle is too thin
-customer support is non-existent

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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful

Wednesday, 29 July 2009

Written by Anonymous

Overall rating		4.0
Speed		4.0
Control		4.5
Hardness		4.5
Weight		4.0
Build quality		3.0
Value for money		4.5

Can produce good power for loop, and great for blocking as well. It feels soft on the touch, and the blade is thin enough for loop on the table. I question the built quality as I bought one from Asia and one from reputable US on-line vendor. I am sure these two paddles came from different batches, but for some reason the one from Asia has less vibration and feels softer on the touch. The one from the US is missing JTTAA imprint and Yasaka tag on the bottom of the handle. Go figure...

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9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

Wednesday, 15 April 2009

Written by Anonymous

Overall rating		4.2
Speed		4.0
Control		4.0
Hardness		4.5
Weight		3.5
Build quality		4.0
Value for money		4.5

Ma Lin soft carbon is a good offensive blade with lots of control, it does not feel hard at all, but has ample power to put a fast drive. Another good aspect of this blade (unlike many carbon blade) is its relatively thin blade, make it easier to do a top spin off the bounce. At around $60, it is a great blade for medium to expert players.

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