I don't fly paragliders (but I used to fly hang gliders) and...I must say, your control of gliders is amazing. You're so precise and delicate with the control. Watching you handle the wing on the ground is even impressive. You're in total control! Neato!
This wing is top notch! After I bought it just jumped into the big thermic ocean in Bassano del Roughness. Amazing performance, security and handling. After 15 minutes we became good friends like previously with Mentor 3.
I switched from Mentor 4 to Maestro. I felt exactly the same feeling that you have about the information that glider gives you. It made me feel like I am learning the thermalling again. to much information made me scary in the first place than I get used to it. What is your opinion about glide? I found It is one of the strong points of the wing?
Nice review. I swapped from an Ion5 at 20 hours to a Maestro. A big leap. But... love the dynamic handling. I feel i'm more in control of where my glider goes than a low B. Agree that you need to actively fly this wing to feel safe, especially in the choppy stuff, but it is very responsive to inputs and doesn't feel dangerous. The lines were a bit "tangly" early, but work themselves out after 10 hours. Advice in the first few hours of transition is to only go up in conditions that are kind. Once you have the feel and control, you can progress to its full potential. Cheers.
@Hawksultralight I feel safer through more precise control and handling, but you have to be on the ball as the wing is more likely to misbehave than a low B. Ground handling is key to gaining confidence and control with this wing.
@Gabriel Gutfilen Schlesinger i'm really not qualified to comment on other wings, but I chose the Maestro because of the great quality / innovations in Phi's lower wings (symphonia etc).
I'll do my best to offer some comparisons in my upcoming Mentor 6 review on that step up. 20hrs on Maestro is a bit early for most pilots, I'd suggest this is a 75hours+ sort of wing (a huge generalisation, i know). I'm not sure if its 'safer' than a Mentor 6, it's more 'alive' so you have a different experience of flying. Ion->Mentor is an easier (smaller, less demanding) step. but some pilots need / want / can take bigger steps than others ;-) the right match all depends on the pilot.
You've survived (so far), good for you. Hopefully, your skills will grow faster than your luck running out. For the sake of the sport, I hope others in your shoes will NOT follow your path, but rather listen to Greg, Hannes, or any other responsible instructor and NOT jump on a hot EN-B this early. Yes, I know, you feel more secure due to the crisper handling and you only fly in "kind" conditions. These are textbook fallacies of UA-cam/ forum experts. Learning by doing works for painting, tennis, chess, photographing cats in you living room etc, but NOT when your and others' lives are at stake. Peace
It would be nice to review the Ozone Rush 5 also. Often when you look for a wing to buy, being in the same match wing/pilot, you also try to find out where is the value of an "out of market" price like the PHI Maestro compared to others. I have tried the Maestro, and besides the longer speed system lenght compared to standards (+10 cm at least, which is a problem for me), I did not find any extra "value" in the wing for the money they ask which is considerably higher than competitors.
All our local polots using phi tenor or maestro are complaining following stuff. if they are loaded at the max, they they don`t climb good in weak thermals, if they are loaded at mid+ they climb good but have no good punch/penetration ahead wind.
That's very strange, not what we have experienced at all. From extensive testing over many hours in very varied conditions with different kit against many wings, that's not been our experience at all. Quite the opposite, in fact. For example, in Colombia this January over 12 days I flew around 45 hours of pure XC on my MAESTRO 21, and I always felt I had an advantage over other current high B wings - climb rate, glide and speed. There were quite a few other pilots also flying the MAESTRO or MAESTRO X-alps, and some flying the TENOR or TENOR light (which I have also flown extensively). My impression was that these wings are both current at the top of their classes, high B and low/mid B respectively, clearly out-performing most other wings in their classes. I heard other pilots commenting that they had the same impression. Every pilot I spoke to who had a MAESTRO or MAESTRO X-alps was totally in love with it, and very happy indeed about the performance. So sorry but I don't think the pilots you are talking about can blame the wings for any poor performance! 😘
PS. I forgot to mention the key reasons why I chose the MAESTRO as my personal wing: the handling and the feedback! The MAESTRO is exceptionally responsive for the class--more than most wings even in the class above--and is able to out-manoeuvre most other XC wings (assuming all other factors e.g. wing loading, harness etc being equal, of course). The feedback is relatively high for the class--it is certainly not a dampened XC wing--which I like, but will not be to every pilot's taste. Those who prefer a more dampened XC wing will likely prefer something like the Mentor 6 or Rush 5, for example.
@@flybubblecarlo Carlo, interesting . Just came back from our mountains. At our takeoff was today a guy, using since 1 year a tenor, loaded 2 kg below top. I know him good. And a unknown pilot with a Symphonia, same loaded. Phi infection today ?? :-)) When he bought the tenor he was very fastinated. Today, he was testing the air design Vivo and when top landing after 1:10 flighttime, we have been talking exactly about I have held on upon. He is not satiesfied with the climb ability at full load with the tenor in weak conditions. Later the symphonia pilot was coming from the valley , he he also complained about this problem with the A wing. And you rhave the feeling the tenor has a nice agile handling ? I was testing the wing as one of the first, and immediatly have had the feeling, to long brake ways and missing a punch. But , Carlo, the minds are different, some like it, some are not satisfied. For myself , I have been testing the arak last year 10 days at grece and at several xc flights and here, real nice, I gonna wait now for the ion6. New standard announced, not any more a low B, Nova pushed the ION6 in level mid B. Lets see at Stubai, what the I6 will perform :-) cheers from black forest...and by the clouds, I love the bubbling channel at all :-)
@@flybubblecarlo as you know I love my Maestro and it was perfect for Colombia, where it was consistently faster than (and glided just as well as) Deltas, Mantras, XAlps and many other 'higher' wings. However, the only concern I do have is that I wasn't able to maintain in the weak stuff as well as I reckon I could have on my Chili 4. Possibly simply because there is a little less cloth above me? Its my only concern about coming home to the weaker days in Scotland. We'll see.
There are several flying sites shown in this video, all of them within the same freeflight club. For visiting pilot info for this club see www.shgc.org.uk/visitingpilots
@@cluelessbeekeeping1322 yes I think it. You can watch my newest video. I was the only one flying more than a few seconds that day. And there were a few days like this in the past. Sink rate well in my opinion, glide angle more like a average and not better than a new high b wing (the crossalps is almost 6 years old, keep that in mind). It's a light and compact low safe tool with nice handling and it's looking awesome. Brake travel is short and brake force is mid to high.
informative review. i was considering coming down from an EN-C to such a wing however, the wing looks as if it lacks character and appears a little dull from the review. I think I'd miss the energy and fun to fly a wing with more energy than the maestro.. Perhaps U-turn or new EN-B from UP will have more dynamic behaviour.
If you've gotten that impression from this review then I'd say that's quite unfortunate as this is certainly not case! Nowadays I usually fly Sports class wings (e.g. I had many great flights on my old Skywalk CAYENNE5 , love the handling of my Advance Sigma 10, and really enjoyed testing the excellent Gin Bonanza 2 and Triple Seven Queen 2 - awesome Sports wings! I've been testing the Phi MAESTRO (actually I've flown five of them so far - three size M 21, one ML 22 and one L 23) for several hours in a good variety of conditions (from light and scratchy to breezy and sporty) and I have to agree with Ziad Bassil's findings in his review: "... the brake pressure that feels ‘perfect’. Not hard at all, nor too light!" "The response on the brakes are immediate!" "... with a high degree of precision, that is rare to find on a high B glider! Pure pleasure for the pros!!" "The Maestro surges forward in a good climb, without any pitch back at all. I mean it moves forward very quickly in climbing mode and coring the well built thermal. In windy and challenging conditions or facing the valley breeze, the Maestro will deliver good climbing when encountering strong thermals! Those characteristics are rare to be found on a B glider!" "The Maestro is definitely ‘not’ your first B glider. Not even after one small season on your first low B glider… The Maestro has some super fine qualities, and delivers impressive and valuable information for the keen pilot. It takes an experienced pilot to appreciate it, and to use it at its full potential." "Talking for the B category, the Maestro is like a Samurai sword if you know what i mean. It can cut swiftly and cleanly, if you seek it or know how to use it. Pilots flying some C’s and even D’s wanting a great weapon for XC with B certification, will cherish the Maestro feel and qualities. Pilots flying high B gliders for a season, will find in the B certified Maestro, the educative feedback that will allow them to understand and fly later higher rated gliders." "Conclusion: The best impressions you get is immediately after landing. Right? This is one of the few times I enjoy test flying a B glider. It’s not like driving a 8 cylinder family car. It’s like driving an “everyday” Sports car! Comfortable enough but pleasurable to drive." "... the Maestro... responds swiftly and precisely to every input." "The Maestro has a complete package of top overall performance, agile feel of a dynamic but “balanced” high B glider. Flying pleasure awaits you with spices for the refined gastronomist ! :-) For those flying qualities, test flying it is a must." Since I quoted so much from Ziad's review, I'd better be fair to him and link to his full review: bit.ly/2VYn3Ae
I don't fly paragliders (but I used to fly hang gliders) and...I must say, your control of gliders is amazing. You're so precise and delicate with the control. Watching you handle the wing on the ground is even impressive. You're in total control! Neato!
This wing is top notch! After I bought it just jumped into the big thermic ocean in Bassano del Roughness. Amazing performance, security and handling. After 15 minutes we became good friends like previously with Mentor 3.
Finally the Maestro review!
I waited a long time to see that review by you Greg.
It confirms my decision of buying the Maestro.
Thanks
Great objective review as always, Greg. Keep up the good work!
See the new and used High B wings we currently offer and have in stock:
flybubble.com/wings/xc-paragliders
flybubble.com/used/used-wings
excellent demonstration Greg ! :-)
Another great review!...........You are an asset to the paragliding community!!
You are true “maestro” Greg, on this paraglider reviews.
nice review and great to meet Hannes in London
Greg it would be awesome if you could go over how you’re managing your weight shift in a thermal…
The best way to use a 360° camera! Perfect.
I switched from Mentor 4 to Maestro. I felt exactly the same feeling that you have about the information that glider gives you. It made me feel like I am learning the thermalling again. to much information made me scary in the first place than I get used to it. What is your opinion about glide? I found It is one of the strong points of the wing?
Great video, great review ! Seems like an awesome wing to fly..
Și pare să ceară un pilot experimentat! :)
nice review... 6.25 some poor soul smacks into the ground behind you
yes I pay them beer money to keep you guys entertained when I waffle on too long about groundhandling ;-)
he's FINE!!
The maestro reviewing the Maestro 🙂👍👍
Nice review. I swapped from an Ion5 at 20 hours to a Maestro. A big leap. But... love the dynamic handling. I feel i'm more in control of where my glider goes than a low B. Agree that you need to actively fly this wing to feel safe, especially in the choppy stuff, but it is very responsive to inputs and doesn't feel dangerous. The lines were a bit "tangly" early, but work themselves out after 10 hours. Advice in the first few hours of transition is to only go up in conditions that are kind. Once you have the feel and control, you can progress to its full potential. Cheers.
Thank you for an insightful comment on how you have transitioned to a higher B! Cheers.
@Hawksultralight I feel safer through more precise control and handling, but you have to be on the ball as the wing is more likely to misbehave than a low B. Ground handling is key to gaining confidence and control with this wing.
@Gabriel Gutfilen Schlesinger i'm really not qualified to comment on other wings, but I chose the Maestro because of the great quality / innovations in Phi's lower wings (symphonia etc).
I'll do my best to offer some comparisons in my upcoming Mentor 6 review on that step up. 20hrs on Maestro is a bit early for most pilots, I'd suggest this is a 75hours+ sort of wing (a huge generalisation, i know). I'm not sure if its 'safer' than a Mentor 6, it's more 'alive' so you have a different experience of flying. Ion->Mentor is an easier (smaller, less demanding) step. but some pilots need / want / can take bigger steps than others ;-) the right match all depends on the pilot.
You've survived (so far), good for you. Hopefully, your skills will grow faster than your luck running out.
For the sake of the sport, I hope others in your shoes will NOT follow your path, but rather listen to Greg, Hannes, or any other responsible instructor and NOT jump on a hot EN-B this early.
Yes, I know, you feel more secure due to the crisper handling and you only fly in "kind" conditions. These are textbook fallacies of UA-cam/ forum experts. Learning by doing works for painting, tennis, chess, photographing cats in you living room etc, but NOT when your and others' lives are at stake.
Peace
great review + thermaling class
It would be nice to review the Ozone Rush 5 also. Often when you look for a wing to buy, being in the same match wing/pilot, you also try to find out where is the value of an "out of market" price like the PHI Maestro compared to others. I have tried the Maestro, and besides the longer speed system lenght compared to standards (+10 cm at least, which is a problem for me), I did not find any extra "value" in the wing for the money they ask which is considerably higher than competitors.
I fly atm the gin explorer s at 95kg would you say there is much more performance to the maestro?
A great resistance to stall. Trully !
Great review! Any chance for reviewing the U-Turn Everest?
All our local polots using phi tenor or maestro are complaining following stuff. if they are loaded at the max, they they don`t climb good in weak thermals, if they are loaded at mid+ they climb good but have no good punch/penetration ahead wind.
That's very strange, not what we have experienced at all. From extensive testing over many hours in very varied conditions with different kit against many wings, that's not been our experience at all. Quite the opposite, in fact. For example, in Colombia this January over 12 days I flew around 45 hours of pure XC on my MAESTRO 21, and I always felt I had an advantage over other current high B wings - climb rate, glide and speed. There were quite a few other pilots also flying the MAESTRO or MAESTRO X-alps, and some flying the TENOR or TENOR light (which I have also flown extensively). My impression was that these wings are both current at the top of their classes, high B and low/mid B respectively, clearly out-performing most other wings in their classes. I heard other pilots commenting that they had the same impression. Every pilot I spoke to who had a MAESTRO or MAESTRO X-alps was totally in love with it, and very happy indeed about the performance. So sorry but I don't think the pilots you are talking about can blame the wings for any poor performance! 😘
PS. I forgot to mention the key reasons why I chose the MAESTRO as my personal wing: the handling and the feedback! The MAESTRO is exceptionally responsive for the class--more than most wings even in the class above--and is able to out-manoeuvre most other XC wings (assuming all other factors e.g. wing loading, harness etc being equal, of course). The feedback is relatively high for the class--it is certainly not a dampened XC wing--which I like, but will not be to every pilot's taste. Those who prefer a more dampened XC wing will likely prefer something like the Mentor 6 or Rush 5, for example.
@@flybubblecarlo Carlo, interesting . Just came back from our mountains. At our takeoff was today a guy, using since 1 year a tenor, loaded 2 kg below top. I know him good. And a unknown pilot with a Symphonia, same loaded. Phi infection today ?? :-)) When he bought the tenor he was very fastinated. Today, he was testing the air design Vivo and when top landing after 1:10 flighttime, we have been talking exactly about I have held on upon. He is not satiesfied with the climb ability at full load with the tenor in weak conditions. Later the symphonia pilot was coming from the valley , he he also complained about this problem with the A wing. And you rhave the feeling the tenor has a nice agile handling ? I was testing the wing as one of the first, and immediatly have had the feeling, to long brake ways and missing a punch. But , Carlo, the minds are different, some like it, some are not satisfied. For myself , I have been testing the arak last year 10 days at grece and at several xc flights and here, real nice, I gonna wait now for the ion6. New standard announced, not any more a low B, Nova pushed the ION6 in level mid B. Lets see at Stubai, what the I6 will perform :-) cheers from black forest...and by the clouds, I love the bubbling channel at all :-)
@@flybubblecarlo as you know I love my Maestro and it was perfect for Colombia, where it was consistently faster than (and glided just as well as) Deltas, Mantras, XAlps and many other 'higher' wings. However, the only concern I do have is that I wasn't able to maintain in the weak stuff as well as I reckon I could have on my Chili 4. Possibly simply because there is a little less cloth above me? Its my only concern about coming home to the weaker days in Scotland. We'll see.
Where exactly is that spot in the UK? I really would love to fly there:)
There are several flying sites shown in this video, all of them within the same freeflight club. For visiting pilot info for this club see www.shgc.org.uk/visitingpilots
Any chance the Mentor 6 review coming soon?
have you done a review on a bgd adam ?
@@flybubbleparagliding
well time to start then lol
I need to spread my legs a little bit just to get full bar-lmao!
now that you put it that way ... lmao2
Have you ever reviewed a "Skyman Cross Alps?"
no, and not high on our very long list of kit to review, to be honest!
@@flybubblecarlo I just love the colors and that red marque in the middle (I know, not the best criteria for buying a wing, huh)
I fly a crossalps, what do you want to know?
@@E620SE I want to know if it has a competitive sink rate. Also, what do you think of the handling?
@@cluelessbeekeeping1322 yes I think it. You can watch my newest video. I was the only one flying more than a few seconds that day. And there were a few days like this in the past.
Sink rate well in my opinion, glide angle more like a average and not better than a new high b wing (the crossalps is almost 6 years old, keep that in mind).
It's a light and compact low safe tool with nice handling and it's looking awesome. Brake travel is short and brake force is mid to high.
informative review. i was considering coming down from an EN-C to such a wing however, the wing looks as if it lacks character and appears a little dull from the review. I think I'd miss the energy and fun to fly a wing with more energy than the maestro.. Perhaps U-turn or new EN-B from UP will have more dynamic behaviour.
If you've gotten that impression from this review then I'd say that's quite unfortunate as this is certainly not case! Nowadays I usually fly Sports class wings (e.g. I had many great flights on my old Skywalk CAYENNE5
, love the handling of my Advance Sigma 10, and really enjoyed testing the excellent Gin Bonanza 2 and Triple Seven Queen 2 - awesome Sports wings! I've been testing the Phi MAESTRO (actually I've flown five of them so far - three size M 21, one ML 22 and one L 23) for several hours in a good variety of conditions (from light and scratchy to breezy and sporty) and I have to agree with Ziad Bassil's findings in his review: "... the brake pressure that feels ‘perfect’. Not hard at all, nor too light!" "The response on the brakes are immediate!" "... with a high degree of precision, that is rare to find on a high B glider! Pure pleasure for the pros!!" "The Maestro surges forward in a good climb, without any pitch back at all. I mean it moves forward very quickly in climbing mode and coring the well built thermal. In windy and challenging conditions or facing the valley breeze, the Maestro will deliver good climbing when encountering strong thermals! Those characteristics are rare to be found on a B glider!" "The Maestro is definitely ‘not’ your first B glider. Not even after one small season on your first low B glider… The Maestro has some super fine qualities, and delivers impressive and valuable information for the keen pilot. It takes an experienced pilot to appreciate it, and to use it at its full potential." "Talking for the B category, the Maestro is like a Samurai sword if you know what i mean. It can cut swiftly and cleanly, if you seek it or know how to use it. Pilots flying some C’s and even D’s wanting a great weapon for XC with B certification, will cherish the Maestro feel and qualities. Pilots flying high B gliders for a season, will find in the B certified Maestro, the educative feedback that will allow them to understand and fly later higher rated gliders." "Conclusion: The best impressions you get is immediately after landing. Right? This is one of the few times I enjoy test flying a B glider. It’s not like driving a 8 cylinder family car. It’s like driving an “everyday” Sports car! Comfortable enough but pleasurable to drive." "... the Maestro... responds swiftly and precisely to every input." "The Maestro has a complete package of top overall performance, agile feel of a dynamic but “balanced” high B glider. Flying pleasure awaits you with spices for the refined gastronomist ! :-) For those flying qualities, test flying it is a must." Since I quoted so much from Ziad's review, I'd better be fair to him and link to his full review: bit.ly/2VYn3Ae
What a Awasoem Gilder
Review an AD Rise3 please.
Buy it, I did I love it
muito showwww