# Review of Diansheng (Type E) and Type F cubes



## Guoguodi (Jun 25, 2008)

I finally received my order from cube4you today. I ordered some Dianshengs (Type E) and a Type F among other things. The Dianshengs came assembled with correct color scheme -- and surprisingly they have stickers, not paint! It must be the latest batch from cube4you.

Anyway, on to the review. 

(N.B. Both cubes reviewed are the currently available white versions).

*Type F ~$12USD*

This is the newest addition to the cube4you catalog. As you can see from  this picture, the pieces have a rounded appearance. This impression holds true with the real thing; the cubies are indeed quite rounded, presumably so the cube can cut corners better. I found that in reality, the color of the cubies is a dull yellowish white, rather than the bright white in the photo above.


*Structure*

This section would be more useful if I could post pictures along with descriptions ... but I don't have a digital camera on hand at the moment. Sorry! 


_Core_: An opaque white core that looks very similar to the current Type D cores. The core has sharply defined edges whilst the Type D cores are more rounded.
_Centers_: Almost identical to the Type D centers.
_Screws & Springs_: The springs I have are extremely stiff. This might be why it's not cutting corners well (see Turning section). The screws are seem basically the same as the Type A's screws.
_Edges & Corners_: The plastic seems quite soft, and the plastic used is different from the white Type A's. During turning it makes an unusual _hollow_, crispy sound. Each piece comes with a side unfilled, so you have to fill them in yourself. The pieces are also incredibly lightweight, which makes the cube overall one of the lightest I've ever tried.

*Turning*

For the purposes of this review I have played with the Type F for roughly an hour or so since assembly, so it's by no means broken in yet. Of course, I lubed it almost immediately after assembly to see if its characteristics changed suddenly (Type D, anyone? ). However, largely its turning properties remain the same from unlubed to lubed.

_Speed & POPiness_
I've tried various tension settings, from initially very tight, to very loose. Here's my opinion:


_Very tight_: Turns poorly. Similar to a very tight type A cube, but doesn't even turn as good as that.  Contrast with Type D's, which at max tightness still turn decently. 
_Medium_: Still not very impressive. Despite having rounded pieces, it cuts corners quite poorly. 
_Very loose_: Decent turning speed. Cuts corners slightly better, but still locks up a fair bit, even for minor misalignments. Whereas type A's with this loose setting feel OK, the Type F simply feels flimsy and unstable. Had one or two minor POPs.

The very loose setting feels the best at the moment.

_Sound & Feeling_

I'll try my best to describe these properties ...

The cube is not loud & clackety like the Rubiks.com DIYs or the Japanese speedcubing kit. Nor is it clicky like the Type A's. I would categorise it as a "_crispy_" type cube. To my ears at least, the turning sound is *not* that pleasant. Type A's and Rubik's DIYs sound better. This cube reminds me of the "Rice Krispies" cereal for some reason.

Due to its flimsiness and funny sound, it doesn't "feel" that great of a cube. I know that's quite a vague statement, but it's a bit hard to describe. On a purely subjective basis though, I vastly prefer Type D feeling over this cube's.


*Verdict:*: 

A mediocre cube with unimpressive characteristics. I recommend it for collection purposes only. It is not worth its current price of $12USD on cube4you.

<<<< *UPDATE* >>>>
Following Jai's recommendation, I switched out the Type F's core and replaced it with a new type A core. The result is indeed a much improved turning feel. I've set it quite loose, and it doesn't pop much at all. The cube is much more "free" in its movement thanks to the superior A core. If you do end up getting a Type F, make sure to order some type A cores along with it!



*Type E (Diansheng) ~$4USD*

Another of the new additions to the cube4you catalog. This is a more "known" cube than the mysterious Type F, as I noticed quite a few people have already tried it (it's been available for ages in the Philippines). 
Picture here: http://www.cube4you.com/index.php?gOo=goodspic.dwt&goodsid=370

In a nutshell, this cube is pretty good, on par with the Type D's. It's _very_ similar in turning characteristics and popiness to the white Type D (i.e., turns well, locks up a fair bit, but pretty much never pops). The cubes I ordered are the out-of-box versions, so they come with correct color schemes and stickers. 


*Structure*


_Core_: The core I have is dark grey. It's basically the same as the Type D core, but a little less rounded in appearance.
_Centers_: Same as the Type D centers, except with no raised circle thingy for the screws. The center caps have a X-shaped thing on the underneath to attach it to the center piece.
_Screws & Springs_: The screws look quite similar to the Type D's; they're wide in diameter and the thread of the screw is short. This probably is why it's not easily POPable. The Dianshengs and Type D's clearly have discovered the secret to lower POPability! 
_Edges & Corners_: The plastic is basically the same as in the white Type D (i.e., quite hard).

*Turning*

Unlubed, it sucks. Period. Lubed, it's awesome! 
...It's surprisingly how many similarities this cube has with the Type D's.

_Speed & POPiness_

I haven't had much time to play with the Dianshengs yet, so perhaps this review is a bit premature. In any case, my initial impression is that it turns very well -- and that's with the screws at max tightness. Judging by how similar it is to the white Type D, I'd say that a looser setting _won't_ increase turning speed significantly, but it _will_ lead to more lockups and POPs.

Overall, it has great turning speed and very low POPiness.

_Sound & Feeling_

Sounds most similar to a black Type D. It's actually not that crispy or clicky. Just sort of, meh. It's OK though, better sounding than the Type F by far. 

The Diansheng feels pretty good too. It's kind of like an offshoot of the Type D family. 


*Verdict:*: 

A good cube by all measurements. I would place it equal to the white Type D. I can easily see it having main cube potential, or at least, a good backup cube. Good value for money too, at only half the price of the D cubes. Recommended.


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## shadowpartner (Jun 25, 2008)

dianshengs sux in corner cutting but it roxs in smoothness.even at tightness(high) it still turns VERY VERY smoothly.

using Mr Mckenic Silicon Spray btw


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## Jai (Jun 25, 2008)

Replace your Type F's core with a Type A core (I used nylon), it makes a big difference.
And actually, my Type F's plastic looks whiter than my Type A's.
The Type F's sound is more of a muffled crispy sound (with a Type A core). My old white Type A makes a somewhat high-pitched sound, whereas my Type F makes a low-pitch sound. I don't know about the Type F core, I never lubed it with the type F core.


And actually, I believe it is worth $12. A core swap-out for a Nylon A core makes a big difference.

EDIT: I lubed it a second time, this time with a bit more lube, and it's feeling much better. It could even compare to a black Type A. It's not as good as my white Type A, but that's because I put in much more lube, and it's older, and broken in. I've also found that the more you lube it, the higher the turning sound goes, in pitch.


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## Guoguodi (Jun 25, 2008)

Jai said:


> Replace your Type F's core with a Type A core (I used nylon), it makes a big difference.
> And actually, my Type F's plastic looks whiter than my Type A's.
> The Type F's sound is more of a muffled crispy sound (with a Type A core). My old white Type A makes a somewhat high-pitched sound, whereas my Type F makes a low-pitch sound. I don't know about the Type F core, I never lubed it with the type F core.
> 
> ...



Interesting. What color was your Type F's core? I have a few new Type A cores (but not nylon), so I'll give that mod a go and maybe update with how it turns out. 

Also, played with the Diansheng more, and I'm liking it a lot. The only slight problem that I forgot to mention is the orange and red stickers are similar in color tone, which can be off-putting. Meh, that's what Cubesmith is for  Still all-in-all it's a great cube.


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## Jai (Jun 25, 2008)

Guoguodi said:


> Interesting. What color was your Type F's core? I have a few new Type A cores (but not nylon), so I'll give that mod a go and maybe update with how it turns out.


My Type F's core was white. The Nylon A cores and the normal A cores shouldn't be too different, but the Nylon A core seems smaller. They both should be much better than the Type F core.
And, I have my Type F on medium tension, and it's fine.


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## Statical (Jun 25, 2008)

diansheng is really good it is cheap and turns really well


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## Lt-UnReaL (Jun 25, 2008)

In your review you keep comparing it to the white type D, is white better than black?


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## Flame838 (Jun 25, 2008)

Lt-UnReaL said:


> In your review you keep comparing it to the white type D, is white better than black?



Well white colored plastic is generally better than black and other colors.


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## Guoguodi (Jun 27, 2008)

Switching out the Type F core with a Type A core really makes a *huge* difference to this cube ... now it feels very similar to a Type A. The only differences are: it doesn't have explosive pops (thanks to the Type F screws + springs) even at loose setting, and it still makes a strange hollow sound when turning.

Also played a bit more with the Diansheng and it's still awesome.


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## Stefan (Jul 4, 2008)

Can you explain/show the difference between E and A cores? And have you tried "replacing" the E core by an E core? In other words, why are you sure the A core is better and it's not just that you completely disassembled and reassembled?


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## Unknown.soul (Jul 5, 2008)

One thing to add to your review, the stickers are worse than the Rubik's store-bought cubes (watch the end of this review, I don't have one yet but I'm going back to the Philippines _next_ year  )


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## Guoguodi (Jul 6, 2008)

StefanPochmann said:


> Can you explain/show the difference between E and A cores? And have you tried "replacing" the E core by an E core? In other words, why are you sure the A core is better and it's not just that you completely disassembled and reassembled?



I think you mean F core. I merely followed Jai's recommendation to switch out the core with an A. I had nothing to lose, as to my mind the Type F sucks with its default core. It simply turns like a very tight A cube; i.e., badly. 

As soon as I tried it with the A core, there was a _noticeable_ improvement in its turning feel. I wasn't imagining it, it really did feel qualitatively better. Clearly it has everything to do with the cores and their characteristics, but I'm too dumb (or lazy) to look into the precise physics of it....


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## Jai (Jul 6, 2008)

It's not just the difference between being completely disassembled and reassembled; there's a totally different feel. The feeling was too different to just be the difference between being taken apart and being reassembled.
As for difference, the F core is white, whereas the nylon A core is yellow. The nylon core is much smaller than the F. The F core feels completely like plastic, whereas the nylon core doesn't. Like Guoguodi, I don't know anything about _why_ it's better. I can upload some pics, though, if you want.


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## Stefan (Jul 6, 2008)

Yes, I meant F core. Didn't realize you reviewed F before E. Haven't seen an F core, but if it's really that much larger, that'd be an explanation and I'll try it myself when I get an F cube. But just to be sure: Have you guys actually tried completely disassembling such a cube and "replacing" the core with itself instead of with an A core? Your replies didn't clearly answer that.


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## rjohnson_8ball (Jul 6, 2008)

So what is it with "different cores"? Could it just be that some cores are simply bigger/smaller so the gap between each center cubie and the core is smaller/bigger? That is the only difference I can think of that could affect popping, tightness, cutting corners.


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## Jai (Jul 7, 2008)

StefanPochmann said:


> Have you guys actually tried completely disassembling such a cube and "replacing" the core with itself instead of with an A core?


I haven't, when I replaced the core, I just took out the F and replaced it with the A, not even giving the F a second chance. If I have time in the next 3 days, I'll try it. I don't know if I want to go through the hell I went through trying to take off the center caps again, though. 

I'm leaving to go to Thailand for most of the summer on Thursday, btw. I'm gonna be somewhat busy the next few days.
I should have internet access there, but I'm sure I won't have it immediately.


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## vloc15 (Nov 22, 2008)

consider an A core with your type E. 
it kinda lessens the locking


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## HarryOng (Jun 8, 2009)

i using dian sheng cube..i bought then it is real smooth..i don even hav to lub it


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## pentrixter (Jun 10, 2009)

dude, you probably got a bad Type F. Most Type Fs start out being really good. I have heard many good comments about the Type F. Just search this forum for "Type F" and look at the comments.


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