This is going to be a quicker review than I normally do . . . simply put, there's already so many great Reviews of the Consular out there, I really don't want to just totally repeat what's already been said so well.
So I'm just going to focus on the pics of mine, what I did with it and a few other thoughts & suggestions.
Let's get right to it . . .
Build SpecsHilt: Consular
Blade Color: TRI Adegan Silver
Blade: UltraEdge Midgrade w/ Pointed Tip
Sound: Obsidian v4
Switch: White Illuminated Black AV Switch
Shroud Finish: Standard
InspirationWait?
Did you say you got it in Silver?
A Consular that's not in
CONSULAR Green?
Well . . . yes, yes I did.
While I love the character Qui Gon Jinn, he actually wasn't at the forefront of my thoughts in choosing this saber.
I got the idea from the standard lightsaber of the Imperial Knights as seen in the following pics:
As you can see, while the Emitter & Pommel are different in design, it's still very reminiscent of the Consular in the Black-ribbed main Body which is covered in a similar Silver shroud.
I love the look of that hilt and thought the Consular would likewise look spectacular with a Silver Blade and I'm happy to say - I wasn't wrong!
Aesthetics I'm going to run though a bunch of pics here of my hilt with a few comments sprinkled in . . .
Normally I would have gone with the Nickel plated finish on a hilt, but in this case I stuck with the standard finish for a couple reasons.
First, I wanted the Silver of the shroud to match the color of the Silver accent on the Emitter.
Secondly, I thought the paler color of the polished aluminum would pair better with the Adegan Silver blade.
The Circle Blade Plug looks fantastic in the Consular Emitter.
The shape of the Emitter also forms an excellent choke point, facilitating a very comfortable grip.
I don't typically go for Illuminated switches, but I thought it would be perfect in this situation and it turned out spectacular. The Black AV blends seamlessly into the Black Anodized Body of the hilt and the White light looks great, matching the blade color.
The hilt actually comes with a Black Covertec wheel by default which also works to hold the shroud in place.
However, as usual, I find it gets in the way of my ideal grip, so I simply took it off and replaced it with a small button screw to anchor the shroud; MUCH more comfortable!
ElectronicsLove the v4 Sound!
I mentioned this in a prior Review, but it's a tip worth repeating for those that may not know about it.
The Obsidian v4 by default has 8 different banks for storing sound fonts.
Personally, I mostly just use the Obsidian sound font and Mute for Stunt Saber mode.
You can use the software to deactivate any of the sound banks you want; they'll still be there - you just won't have to cycle through them unless you enable them again.
So I disable the other 6 sound banks which effectively lets me just toggle between Sound On & Sound Off; much more convenient than scrolling through 8 different fonts.
As for the TRI Adegan Silver blade - it's truly spectacular and looks really sharp on the Consular.
There's no manipulation here; that's really how bright the blade is to the camera.
Final ThoughtsOverall, I highly recommend this release from UltraSabers!
In particular, I would say it really is one of their best "bang for the buck" investments.
Go to the store page and sort from Highest Price to Lowest; you'll be shocked how far down the list the Consular is, considering how great it looks and the overall quality of the saber.
The only negatives I can think of are the location of the Covertec wheel, which is easily remedied as you saw above and the fact that the hilt was a little bit larger than I expected. It's in no way heavy or awkward (it's quite comfortable to wield), it just looks a little bigger than I was expecting.
Finally, this comes entirely down to personal preference and what's important to you in a saber, but if you want a solid color, I would definitely suggest getting the TRI LED setup over the single diode with the option for FoC.
The FoC effect is nice, but personally I place greater value on the brighter, "fuller" looking blade the TRI setup gives you. It really looks tremendous.
Finally, I'll just remind you this is a full MHS hilt, meaning both the Pommel & Emitter can be switched for maximum customization options. Throw in the fact that the shroud can also be removed and you have one of the most versatile hilts in the entire UltraSabers lineup. I didn't include any custom configuration pics in here because there are already SO MANY great pics with this hilt out there in the Forum, I didn't feel I had a whole lot to add with the options I have on hand.
Thanks for reading! I hope you got something useful out of it!