Weight
90g
Thickness
6.2mm
Plies
7-ply
Handles
FL / ST
Material
Hybrid
Head Shape
Standard
Balance
Balanced
Roots 9 Z-Carbon Speed
Soulspin Roots 9 Z-Carbon Speed is a high-performance offensive blade engineered for players who demand extreme speed and power. Its construction features Z-Carbon synthetic fibers placed directly beneath the top spruce veneer, creating a stiff and remarkably stable hitting surface. This design facilitates incredibly fast topspins, powerful drives, and aggressive counter-attacks from mid-distance. German craftsmanship ensures high quality and durability. While its demanding nature and lower control rating make it unsuitable for beginners, experienced attackers will find it a formidable weapon that maximizes speed and offers direct, crisp feedback.
This 7-ply construction features Z-Carbon layers adjacent to the outer spruce veneers, creating an extremely hard and fast blade. The Z-Carbon provides exceptional stability and power, while the spruce outer plies aim to retain some elasticity and feeling. This specific arrangement, with Z-Carbon close to the surface, maximizes speed and stiffness for offensive play.
TT Sensei Ratings
✦Our expert analysis of this blade's performance characteristics
Soulspin Roots 9 Z-Carbon Speed is consistently rated as one of the fastest blades available. Our testing shows its extremely high speed makes it ideal for aggressive offensive players who want to overpower opponents with sheer pace, delivering explosive acceleration on every shot.
While exceptionally fast, control on the Z-Carbon Speed is noted as being lower. This decent rating for an offensive blade reflects the trade-off for its extreme speed. TTSensei experts note it's difficult to control and not recommended for beginners, requiring precise technique to manage.
The blade delivers a very hard and stiff sensation with direct, crisp feedback. The Z-Carbon layers contribute significantly to this hard feel, preferred by players who want to feel the ball hit the blade with immediate response and minimal dwell.
The combination of Z-Carbon and hard veneers results in a stiff blade with a low throw angle. This is advantageous for powerful, flat shots and fast topspins, especially when playing close to the table, allowing for direct attack and precise placement.
Given its extreme speed and hard feel, dwell time is relatively short. This allows for quick ball exit and high acceleration, characteristic of blades designed for fast attacking play. Players who prefer longer dwell for spin generation might find it less suitable.
This blade is characterized by extreme stiffness and hardness. The Z-Carbon material and its placement directly under the outer veneers create a very rigid structure, resulting in a stiff feel and low throw angle ideal for powerful, direct shots.
Vibration feedback is decent but sufficient. While the blade is hard and fast, the Z-Carbon and wood combination aims to provide enough tactile feedback for players to feel ball contact without being excessively jarring or numb.
Soulspin blades are known for their high-quality, handmade German craftsmanship. Players report good workmanship and premium materials, contributing to the blade's durable construction and performance. While minor imperfections in carbon inlays have been noted, the overall build quality remains excellent.
Technology
Soulspin Roots 9 Z-Carbon Speed utilizes advanced Z-Carbon composite fiber technology integrated directly beneath the outer spruce veneers. This construction maximizes stability and hardness without significantly increasing weight. Z-Carbon is a high-performance synthetic fiber known for extreme stability and low weight, often used in motorsports. The fusion of wood and advanced synthetic fibers allows the blade to achieve exceptionally high speeds and a hard playing feel. Soulspin emphasizes German craftsmanship, with each blade being handmade to order, allowing for customization of blade size, grip shape, and design elements.
Similar Blades
Butterfly Jun Mizutani SZLC
Players report the Soulspin Roots 9 Z-Carbon Speed serves as a replacement for the Butterfly Jun Mizutani SZLC, targeting a similar player profile seeking high speed and a modern carbon feel. The Soulspin blade is noted as being lighter and faster while maintaining comparable offensive characteristics.
Soulspin Z-Carbon
Soulspin Z-Carbon presents a slightly softer and more controllable alternative to the Z-Carbon Speed. While using the same Z-Carbon fibers, their placement closer to the core veneer along with softer outer veneers results in a more elastic and controllable blade with a softer feel. This makes it suitable for players who find the Z-Carbon Speed too fast or hard.