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Licensed Products: eFX Collectibles, Master Replicas, Hasbro and more => MR Force FX Reviews => Darth Maul TPM Reviews => Topic started by: PLO KOON on April 11, 2006, 07:28:46 PM
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The original Anakin ROTS had more plastic parts and MR improved it by making it more solid and more metal. The Mace ROTS was more purple and louder than the original (AOTC) version.
Are there anything that can be improved in this year's Maul FX lightsaber? If not, and the thing is absolutely perfect. Then I just may consider getting myself one right now (the lure of the dark side is very strong!)
The more comments on this the better. I don't mind waiting if there can be improvements in the future.
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the only thing I dont like is the AAA batteries to weak for the saber
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The double Maul is a must have. Dueling with it is awesome, but be prepared to buy a lot of batteries. I ran mine out in one day, but I had it on constantly, and carried it around all day at work.
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Yeah. I saw it in the shop and I must say that I am extremely tempted! I held it and it is rather heavy and solid. i dun think the batteries would add much weight to it. I didn't swing it around cause there wasn't any room in the shop.
For those of you having the maul... is there anything you'd wan to improve?
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Yeah. I saw it in the shop and I must say that I am extremely tempted! I held it and it is rather heavy and solid. i dun think the batteries would add much weight to it. I didn't swing it around cause there wasn't any room in the shop.
For those of you having the maul... is there anything you'd wan to improve?
I'd want them to do away with the dark spot in the center of the blade. I don't understand why it has it when the Vader ESB didn't. The instruction manual Q&A even mentions it and says it's normal and that it doesn't detract from the performance of the blade. I find it a bit annoying, though. Aside from that I don't think there's much else they can do to improve this saber. It's awesome all-around.
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I want different sounds.
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Not to be unpopular, but I rather like the loud deep-pitched sounds. But I can absolutely see the accuracy/recyling issues.
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What I mean is I would like the real Maul sounds ;).
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i actually did not like the on/off switch, you have to turn it...so cant have the cool one-handed ignition effect like in the movie. But everything else is awesome!! ;D
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Yeah. I saw it in the shop and I must say that I am extremely tempted! I held it and it is rather heavy and solid. i dun think the batteries would add much weight to it. I didn't swing it around cause there wasn't any room in the shop.
For those of you having the maul... is there anything you'd wan to improve?
I'd want them to do away with the dark spot in the center of the blade. I don't understand why it has it when the Vader ESB didn't. The instruction manual Q&A even mentions it and says it's normal and that it doesn't detract from the performance of the blade. I find it a bit annoying, though. Aside from that I don't think there's much else they can do to improve this saber. It's awesome all-around.
My Vader ESB has the dark spots on both sides. :-\
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i actually did not like the on/off switch, you have to turn it...so cant have the cool one-handed ignition effect like in the movie. But everything else is awesome!! ;D
If you are dueling then it is quite good becuase it means that you can't accidently turn of the saber :).
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My Vader ESB has the dark spots on both sides. :-\
Interesting. ???
f you are dueling then it is quite good becuase it means that you can't accidently turn of the saber.
Yeah, I liked the on/off switch myself. Not once has it turned off on me by accident, even with both blades connected. :)
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Aayla, the darks spots aren't very dark at all, if the blade was brighter, you wouldn't see them at all.
I have seen much worse dark spots on blue blades...the red color helps to hide them. ;)
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My maul doesn't have the dark spots. ;D
At least, I don't think so. Well, I don't remember seeing them, but I didn't really look for them....
oh geesh, now I don't know...
I'm so confused... ???
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You will post a review of the maul won't you Ayala?
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Aayla, the darks spots aren't very dark at all, if the blade was brighter, you wouldn't see them at all.
I have seen much worse dark spots on blue blades...the red color helps to hide them. ;)
Hmm... they're quite noticeable on mine. Not as much as say my plastic Anakin ROTS, but they're noticeable. My metal Anakin ROTS, however, has dark spots that are very, very faint. Barely noticeable unless you really squint for them.
[quote authoer=Qui-Gon Jinn]My maul doesn't have the dark spots. Grin
At least, I don't think so. Well, I don't remember seeing them, but I didn't really look for them....
oh geesh, now I don't know...
I'm so confused...
Hopefully yours doesn't, Qui-Gon. Mine does with brand new Duracell Ultras in each hilt. The instruction manual even mentions them this time around, so I didn't think much of them. In fact, I actually had to return one of my Maul's and exchange it. Not because of dark spots, but because of the sound. It was quite a bit fainter than the other, but I found that it was actually the battery pack. Those little springy things weren't perfectly straight. I tried it in both sabers, and sure enough that is what it was. So I exchanged it for another one and the sounds were a tad better, but not as good as my first Maul. Again, the springs weren't lined up as well once again. ???
Insert Quote
You will post a review of the maul won't you Ayala?
You betcha! :)
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Can't wait for it ;D
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cool i always look foward to your reviews
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Well thank you. :D
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well your welcome! after all, your review of the anakin ROTS is what sold me for that model to be my 1st saber.
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Haha, cool. Glad I could help. :) Anytime you want to know something about one of the sabers just give me a shout out. ;)
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Soon Aayla will be advertising for MR :o :D 8)
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Like we here at FX-Sabers don't do it enough already?! :P
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I'm just saying it was kinda' cool how he was sold ny Aayla's review :)
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Is it true that the blade is redder than the vader ESB? I took a look at the foam inside and it has a slight purple tint to it.
The sounds could be louder I guess and DEFINITELY reusing the vader ESB sounds is a no-no. Darth Maul's saber sounds were very strong and bassy...
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the switch and batteries for me , like some of you have said its hard to turn on/off the saber in one hand, i'm using energizer max, needs a little more juice, i think AAA's dont cut it ;D
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Why do they screw the red sabers over with having only one clash sound? I personally like the multiple sounds they use in the other blades, but want a red one since the Sith rule. I figured all the new ones would have multiple sounds. It just doesn't make sense to me that they didn't give Maul's blade more than one...
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I wasn't sure about the switch until I thought of my Larbel Obi TPM EL with the same knurled switch. If you look at it funny the saber turns off, even easier than the ROTS Anakin.
As for the batteries, maybe it is time to consider the 9 volt question once again.
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Why 9 volt?
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I'm not really up on my battery dynamics but I've been told that one 9 volt can be comparable to 3 AAs. Can anyone elaborate on this?
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Is there any difference in cost?
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Why do they screw the red sabers over with having only one clash sound? I personally like the multiple sounds they use in the other blades, but want a red one since the Sith rule. I figured all the new ones would have multiple sounds. It just doesn't make sense to me that they didn't give Maul's blade more than one...
the reason for this is becuase the maul uses the same sounds as the vader ESB and ANH, these sabers were recorded from the original movie . in the movie there is only the one clash sound for vaders saber and thats why there are no other clashes.
i dont see that the sith sabers are "screwed over" by this, its just how it is.
all of us would have prefered the maul to use the actual sounds, but as the vader esb and anh are the only really accurate movie sound sabers, there is not really much to cry about.
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Ya, all the ohters have half 'movie accurate' sounds :)
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They don't HAVE to be 'movie accurate'. A lightsaber sounds like a lightsaber. MR can always get some random samples from Lucasfilms. I'm sure they have plenty.
Anyway, drastic improvements i.e. not liking the on/off switch, etc. are quite unrealistic and won't happen. How are the sounds? Are they muffled? Maybe MR can make the sounds louder.
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The sounds are very loud, I think the only complaint is the accuracy question.
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Louder than the Luke ROTJ?
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When the double is together it is understandably really loud!! :D
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Is everyone's Luke ROTJ really loud? Because of all the ones I've seen on display at stores (i.e. Borders and Sharper Image), the sound on the Luke ROTJ is really horrible and scratchy. Its very quiet and actually turned me off from buying one, well, that and the plastic look to it, but I guess you can buy something from this site to fix that. Have I just seen bad display models or what? I really would like a green lightsaber, but not if it is going to sound like it did in the stores...
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my luke rotj, is very loud indeed. on a par with the anakin ROTS. the ambient noise in the store will lessen the effect
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The Luke ROTJ sabers are very loud. I do know what your talking about though. I have this happen on my own Luke from time to time. All I do is unscrew the endcap, take out the battery and reset everything. This usually is enough to fix the "scratchy" sounds.
Don't be afraid to buy a Luke, they are AWESOME!
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yeah quigon is right,
i have had that happen with my luke and anakin, its quite scary when it happens cause you think for a moment its broke, then you re-fix it all together and phew, its like new. "hey i am a poet and i did not realise" sic
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hey thats good to know....the reset to fix
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speaking of this i had a serious worry with my anakin the other day. i was playing with it and noticed the blade was dimmer than usual so i put in fresh batteries. switched it on ...nothing..zip. i took the pack out again and reinserted it, same agian nothing, put the older batteries in and this time the blade came back on but already ignited with no power up only the idle hum,. on and off i switched it no better same situation idle hum only. then only half the blade was lit. i took the batteries out again and waited a few moments. put it all back together and now its working fine. dont know what was going on, but needless to say i was very worried for a while there.
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If you are dueling then it is quite good becuase it means that you can't accidently turn of the saber :).
ya youre right ani104. i guess i just wanna be cool like darth maul. :-\
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and maul is the king of cool.......even though he got cut in half
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thats right brother! ;D ;D
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and maul is the king of cool.......even though he got cut in half
Does that make him half as cool then? ;D
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and maul is the king of cool.......even though he got cut in half
Does that make him half as cool then? ;D
Lol :D
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I agree the darth maul is pretty darn awesome. I guess I'm not the only one that thinks MR should put in some new sounds from skywalkersounds. I got a double blade and I love it alot, it came with a vertical wall stand so it saves alot of space since my room is so small. I don't like how ever, that I haven't dueled with it but from swinging it around outside it really is that heavy and it's hard to pull off hard core tricks with this saber. I also don't like the AAA's holder. It really makes the blade unbalanced espeically when you take the two sabers apart. In conclusion I love the darth maul double bladed fx I'm proud of it and it belongs with my luxeon collection fx's. 8)
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this is another one of them sabers i so desparatly crave lol ;)
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I definately love this saber the most out of all of the FX's (somehow I ended up with 3 double mauls). It is very close to the LE in size and looks. It does have room for a lot of improvement.
1. There are too many buttons on the hilt, even the covertech clip is in the way.
2. It is extremely front heavy in single blade form.
3. The switch is a bear to turn on and off and should be located lower on the hilt.
4. Someone should invent a magnetic coupler or a setup that allows one to seperate the sabers easily.
5. It would be nice if the blades were removable, even if it takes a lot of effort for display purposes.
6. I feel that the blades need three inches trimmed off each end to accomodate shorter saber wielders.
7. Different color blades would be cool as well.
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Its a very solid saber, tough to the nails by design. The blades are a thicker composite polycarbonite to accomidate the wielder droping it (or dueling with it). As for the detachable blades, just go to Ultrasabers.com, they make conversions to stronger and detachable blades. The issue of the length is not an issue for me (i'm 6'4" tall) but the blades could be a tad shorter, Seven foot plus is a bit much. The weight issue to me is not present, the blades feel quite well balanced when separate or together, the balance point is about one inch up the blade with them detached, that is the desired balance point on a real sword/saber/katana. Not meaning to sound offending or disrespectful, but strength training works out very effctively while practicing with lightsabers (of coures I'm also an Artilleryman, so that helps with my muscles).
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im torn between this and the vader because i might not be able to afford the double maul but i might make some sacrifices lol
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im torn between this and the vader because i might not be able to afford the double maul but i might make some sacrifices lol
well you cant go wrong with the vader....trust me.
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ok im still waiting for my local borders to start displying and selling them again becuase i got my anakin from there last year and i;d rather take it away with my instead of waiting
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BTW, I was more of less forced into the Dark side. One, because Darth Maul was just so xxx cool. And Two, because the only other choice that they had for a lightsaber at the shop that I wnet to was the Luke ROTJ lightsaber and I was all like "nuh uhh, Green not, I like" and I asked for the Darth Maul. I love it though, and I might drag my brother into atleast the dueling part, once he gets a Obi Wan saber.
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im torn between this and the vader because i might not be able to afford the double maul but i might make some sacrifices lol
well you cant go wrong with the vader....trust me.
Seconded. The Vader is a top notch saber. I do have a double Maul coming to me in the mail, though, so my opinion might change( I doubt it).
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I definately love this saber the most out of all of the FX's (somehow I ended up with 3 double mauls). It is very close to the LE in size and looks. It does have room for a lot of improvement.
1. There are too many buttons on the hilt, even the covertech clip is in the way.
2. It is extremely front heavy in single blade form.
3. The switch is a bear to turn on and off and should be located lower on the hilt.
4. Someone should invent a magnetic coupler or a setup that allows one to seperate the sabers easily.
5. It would be nice if the blades were removable, even if it takes a lot of effort for display purposes.
6. I feel that the blades need three inches trimmed off each end to accomodate shorter saber wielders.
7. Different color blades would be cool as well.
ABOUT: 4. Someone should invent a magnetic coupler or a setup that allows one to seperate the sabers easily.
Parks sells his "inertia" saber, which uses magnetic couplers to do what you suggest! it seems quite nice. Maybe something like it can be machined to fit the maul saber.
just my 2 cents.
http://www.parksabers.com/inertia.html
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i think borders are only gonna stock the maul obi and vader this year becuase the rest are discontinued lol
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I'm not really up on my battery dynamics but I've been told that one 9 volt can be comparable to 3 AAs. Can anyone elaborate on this?
Sorry to dredge up old threads, but I saw the thing about batteries and voltage. Your typical LR6 (AA) battery has a standardized voltage of 1.5 volts. 3x1.5=4.5 volts. Half of the stated 9. To get 9volts you have to have 6 AA batteries Like the Luke ESB, Luke ROTJ, Mace Windu etc.
The older LED FX's don't really run on 9 volts, but two 4.5 volts run paralelled. The 6 AA battery clip is a holdover from the electroluminesent Luke ROTJ, which did require 9 volts to run. MR just didn't want to redesign the battery holder so they paralelled the battery holder into two separate 4.5v circuits. They did this to cut down on cost. They used the same method on the Mace since the AOTC and ROTS are the same saber with different packaging.
If you use true 9 volt setup on any fx not designed for it, you WILL fry the saber without heavy modification.
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I tryed that a long time ago with a cannibalized LED and a 9volt, it worked, then made an amusing ZZZZPISH sound, it made me chuckle. hehehe...oh wait, the moral! right...Never use a 9volt in any lightsaber that does not recommend 9volt batteries for use.
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i hope they make some improvement on the maul-im gonna hold off buyin 1 just yet...... ::)
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Theres not much they can do. its actually quite close to the size of the prop used, and they blades have to stay thick due to the wobblyness. What do you think would be a good mod to the maul?
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I think MR should offer removeable blades with luxeons. Perhaps as an Elite FX package....Jus a thought. The could put some of us DIY'ers to work on commission to do so...HINT HINT HINT...;D
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I think MR should offer removeable blades with luxeons. Perhaps as an Elite FX package....Jus a thought. The could put some of us DIY'ers to work on commission to do so...HINT HINT HINT...;D
Yes. A maul Lux would be nice and light.
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I really don't mind the weight really, just te fact that once you get it spinning really quick, it's harder than a rabid gundark to stop. ;)