Hey guys!
I've been meaning to write a review about my first couple of US saber acquisitions, but I had been SO insanely busy preparing for SD Comic Con that I hadn't had any time to do so. Now I finally have a moment to do a little write up and post some pictures and a few thoughts about my personal saber (my wife's DVA Dark War Glaive I will write about later) - my Dark Catalyst in Pyrestone Orange.
So, first the critical specs;
Model: Dark Catalyst
Blade Color: Pyrestone Orange
Blade Type: Ultra Edge Heavy Grade
Switch: Red Illuminated AV Switch
Sound: Obsidian USB Sound
This saber really is a beautiful piece. The lines of the hilts design are incredible, and the knurled bands in the hilt provide a fantastic grip surface. The addition of a tapered choke point just below the emitter makes for an intuitive two handed grip surface that immediately makes one think of a traditional Bastard Sword. With this grip layout, the Catalyst can easily be wielded either one or two handed allowing for fantastic handling and control when dueling or flourishing the blade.
Now lets move on to one of the sabers more striking yet subtle features - the emitter. This crenelated emitter is just a wonderful design feature and was one of the primary reasons I chose this saber hilt over the many other stellar options offered by US. Unlike sabers like the Raven or War Glaive (which are both awesome designs in their own right), the Catalyst's emitter is much more subtle and elegant which I found very appealing. I found it to be a tasteful addition to the sabers overall aesthetics without being ostentatious. Taken together with the other smooth lines and features of the hilt I feel that it creates a very organic and fluid look. The Dark Catalyst strikes me as a saber that a Sith Warrior would chose if he/she were looking for an elegant, no nonsense weapon suitable for quick and nimble one handed duels or savage and brutal two handed hack and slash attacks.
I will note that the blade does seat much shallower into the emitter/hilt that one might anticipate. As such it does feel a bit blade heavy balance wise. I don't mind this myself personally but others may look for a more balanced saber (or maybe get a shorter blade to offset this). I actually like the perceived additional blade length it appears to give the saber, which is in keeping with the Bastard Sword type feel of the Catalyst.
My saber was sent back in to get a Pyrestone Orange RGB LED added in to replace the original Fire Orange I had purchased with it initially. As you can likely see in some photos the Green diode in my saber is a little bright and as such gives the blade a bit of a greenish/yellow coloring at the emitter which gradually changes to yellow/orange at mid blade to a blood orange at the blades tip. I feel it makes the blade appear to look like fire; fading from yellow to pale orange to blood orange. It's a very unique look that has really grown on me. You can see the color gradient I mentioned a little more clearly in the picture below. Also of note, I am very glad I opted to get the illuminated AV switch as it provides a really beautiful accent to the hilt and it just POPS in low light!
The Obsidian Sound is what really makes these sabers special. Originally I had no sound on my saber and it really, sincerely felt like there was a huge hole in the saber. While a beautiful saber, it was missing its soul. As soon as I got it back from Emory with the Obsidian USB Sound added, it was like the saber came to life! Taking some time to download a number of fantastic sound font packages, I finally put together a mix of sounds I was really happy with and that I felt captured the Sith feel I was looking for that really complimented the sabers aesthetics. I went with a mix of Blackstar, Sister of Shadows, Stygian General and Ancient Saber sounds. I was absolutely floored that the amount of memory that the Obsidian board had! I think all told I loaded a good 8-10 different options for both swings and impacts and a couple of options for lockup sounds. The volume of that little speaker inside the hilt is truly remarkable! The placement, along with well thought out venting for the pommel really allows the sounds come through clean and clear. Just listening to the saber's idle hum, you can almost feel the hilt vibrating!
In closing, I am extremely happy with this purchase. My Catalyst really brought my Sith Lord costume together and it made for a ton of fun at SD Comic Con as I tried to hunt down lone Jedi who had wandered to far away from the safety of their Republic allies
I had a lot of younger kids approach me at the Con and ask to have their picture taken with me and if they could hold my lightsaber, and I was only too happy to indulge them! I am sure a lot of their parents were cursing me as I can only assume now that it is all their kids were asking for after having a chance to swing it around a bit haha
I think all together, I made a pretty menacing Sith with a wickedly elegant yet deadly lightsaber!
Thanks for taking the time to read my first review! I hope you found it amusing and informative! I'll be sure to follow this up with my wife's thoughts on her Dark War Glaive in DVA!
