Great review! I'm currently stuck between this and a Faction Mana 3 as the powder side of a west coast 2 ski quiver. I currently own the Mana 2's as my narrower ski and absolutely love them. I like the idea of adding a little waist and weight here but I'm worried the Anima will feel slightly "dead" in comparison to a Mana 3. I don't want to lose too much of the energy and pop that the Mana's have.
I wouldn't worry too much--I found the Anima to be pretty energetic due to the camber underfoot. If you know you like the overall character of the Mana, though, it's totally reasonable to get the wider version of said ski.
@SkiEssentials thank you, im 176 cm 65kg (18 age) and I ski the 98 at 172 as there is no reason to size up (would prefer around 176 if that was an option tho ). Should i go for 176/177 in nocta/anima or would you size up with these skis to the 182 anima or 185 nocta depending on what i choose. Though long term I believe i would get the most out of the anima, however the nocta looks tempting for Japan especially with the 98 as a 2 ski quiver.
Hi! What size do you guys recon i should go for? I am 180cm and skied a atris 184, 2 last seasons, super stoked on those. but not to sure if I should go down to 182 or up to 189 on the anima… using it for touring both some big lines and smaller playing. Intermediate/advanced skier
Hi! I (Jeff) generally prefer the 182.1 cm length in the Anima. I could ski the 189, but that's kind of overkill considering how strong it is. I'm about 5'10 and 160 lbs. The best place to get that information generally is on our actual Ski Test pages: www.skiessentials.com/2023-ski-test/
When is the powder ski comparison video dropping? I’m keen on hearing how the 112-116mm width skis are staking up this year! I have head kore 111 right now as “soft snow” skis but might turn them into 50/50 setups
Thanks for the review! I currently have the Atris (105 mm) in 184 length (im 5'11" 180 lbs) and trying to decide between Anima and Nocta. Any suggestions for which ski and size? Wondering if there's too much overlap in going with Anima. Looking for a fun soft snow oriented ski for my out west trips.
Hmmmmm... bit of a tossup there for sure. Nocta is huge, but if you want a purely powder ski, go Nocta. Also, the 185 cm length feels like a nice sweet spot. In Anima, I feel like you fall between the 182 and 189 and it would be somewhat hard for me to decide which way to go... I don't necessarily think there's too much overlap between Atris and Anima, more that Nocta is a bigger difference, so might make more sense.
What do you think of this vs. the QST Blank for skiing primarily at Palisades Tahoe, maybe Colorado here and there? Looking for something that holds up when things get tracked out in bounds. I like that it comes in a 182 instead of a 178 & 186. I generally use a Ripstick 106 on heavy snow days but find it feels too flimsy on run-outs or tracked Sierra cement. I do not like Enforcers, to me they feel flat and boring.
The turn radius is the big difference. The Blank's shorter arc makes it happier in a turn while the Anima is more of a straight-shooter. Even in the 186, the Blank feels a bit short in length--more similar to the Anima 182. I did not find either of these skis flat and boring at all. I'd say the Anima is the more aggressive of the two skis.
Would the Anima be good in a resort powder scenario, my home resort gets about a foot of fresh powder in a decent storm, I also want to use this as a big line charger. Would this ski be appropriate or what other skis would be good big line chargers? Would the Atris be sufficient in a foot or 2 of fresh powder?
Can you compare this to the Ranger 116? I’m trying to figure out how much the camber in this ski differentiates itself from the Fischer. The Fischer looks almost flat comparatively. I have the Ranger 102’s and love them but they seem a bit more powerful than the 116 design. I’m 5-10” and ski the 176cm Fischer but I was thinking the 182cm in the Anima would be a better fit for my purposes.
The Anima is a burler, stronger ski while the Ranger is more smeary and drifty. There's more flex and play in the Ranger while the Anima is more business-like. If you're looking for a different type of ski than the 102, then Anima makes sense, but for a wider and more smeary version of what you have, the 116 is not that much of a character change.
Thanks for you work guys, really enjoying watching your reviews! How would you compare Anima 182 to Enforcer 110 184? Basically skis with tatanal vs wood-carbon. Im looking for soft snow conditions skis in the Alps, we dont have super dumps here. Im having old qst 106 already, and looking for second ski in the quiver, little bit wider recent skis, also looking to put duke pt, for little tours from the chairlift. Thanks
The Anima feels more powder-oriented while I really like the Enforcer in more of a crud/chop/even groomer category. I like it because the metal of the 110 holds well on firmer snow, but if you're looking to go wider than 106, the Anima provides a greater difference between skis. The QST feels more like the Anima in terms of personality while the Enforcer is quite different.
@@proverbalizer Same here. From an online sales perspective, it takes the same amount of work to re-load a graphic change as it does a design change. Very annoying from a 1's and 0's view.
Hey, im going to Niseko for a season. I am an aggressive expert skier, currently have the blackops 98 as my all mountain charger, however im looking for a powder ski. Would you recommend the anima or nocta? Would you say the anima would be more condition versatile and more agressive ski compared to the nocta which would be more powder specific?
I'd say the Anima is a better option for most days, but if you're keeping the 98, then the Nocta would be an amazing ski for deep and fresh snow. Both/all are pretty heavy for touring, so no real differences there. If you're only bringing one ski, I'd go Anima, but I like the sounds of a 98/Nocta split.
Great review! I'm currently stuck between this and a Faction Mana 3 as the powder side of a west coast 2 ski quiver. I currently own the Mana 2's as my narrower ski and absolutely love them. I like the idea of adding a little waist and weight here but I'm worried the Anima will feel slightly "dead" in comparison to a Mana 3. I don't want to lose too much of the energy and pop that the Mana's have.
I wouldn't worry too much--I found the Anima to be pretty energetic due to the camber underfoot. If you know you like the overall character of the Mana, though, it's totally reasonable to get the wider version of said ski.
@SkiEssentials thank you, im 176 cm 65kg (18 age) and I ski the 98 at 172 as there is no reason to size up (would prefer around 176 if that was an option tho ). Should i go for 176/177 in nocta/anima or would you size up with these skis to the 182 anima or 185 nocta depending on what i choose. Though long term I believe i would get the most out of the anima, however the nocta looks tempting for Japan especially with the 98 as a 2 ski quiver.
If you have the narrower ski, I'd like to think the Nocta in the 177 is a better Japan choice.
Hi! What size do you guys recon i should go for? I am 180cm and skied a atris 184, 2 last seasons, super stoked on those. but not to sure if I should go down to 182 or up to 189 on the anima… using it for touring both some big lines and smaller playing. Intermediate/advanced skier
I don't think the 189 is necessary, although if you know you prefer longer skis, I'm not going to talk you out of it. Have fun!
Hey guys, thanks a lot for your reviews. Can you tell us what size skis did the rider pick ?
Hi! I (Jeff) generally prefer the 182.1 cm length in the Anima. I could ski the 189, but that's kind of overkill considering how strong it is. I'm about 5'10 and 160 lbs. The best place to get that information generally is on our actual Ski Test pages: www.skiessentials.com/2023-ski-test/
When is the powder ski comparison video dropping? I’m keen on hearing how the 112-116mm width skis are staking up this year! I have head kore 111 right now as “soft snow” skis but might turn them into 50/50 setups
Thanks for the review! I currently have the Atris (105 mm) in 184 length (im 5'11" 180 lbs) and trying to decide between Anima and Nocta. Any suggestions for which ski and size? Wondering if there's too much overlap in going with Anima. Looking for a fun soft snow oriented ski for my out west trips.
Hmmmmm... bit of a tossup there for sure. Nocta is huge, but if you want a purely powder ski, go Nocta. Also, the 185 cm length feels like a nice sweet spot. In Anima, I feel like you fall between the 182 and 189 and it would be somewhat hard for me to decide which way to go... I don't necessarily think there's too much overlap between Atris and Anima, more that Nocta is a bigger difference, so might make more sense.
@@SkiEssentials great thanks! I appreciate the quick response.
What do you think of this vs. the QST Blank for skiing primarily at Palisades Tahoe, maybe Colorado here and there? Looking for something that holds up when things get tracked out in bounds. I like that it comes in a 182 instead of a 178 & 186. I generally use a Ripstick 106 on heavy snow days but find it feels too flimsy on run-outs or tracked Sierra cement. I do not like Enforcers, to me they feel flat and boring.
The turn radius is the big difference. The Blank's shorter arc makes it happier in a turn while the Anima is more of a straight-shooter. Even in the 186, the Blank feels a bit short in length--more similar to the Anima 182. I did not find either of these skis flat and boring at all. I'd say the Anima is the more aggressive of the two skis.
Hey ! Are these skis solid? Thanks for your reviews ! from a Frenchman
Extremely solid. Very trustworthy.
Would the Anima be good in a resort powder scenario, my home resort gets about a foot of fresh powder in a decent storm, I also want to use this as a big line charger. Would this ski be appropriate or what other skis would be good big line chargers? Would the Atris be sufficient in a foot or 2 of fresh powder?
Yes, Anima fits right in to that description. I'd much rather ski that than Atris in over a foot of snow.
Can you compare this to the Ranger 116? I’m trying to figure out how much the camber in this ski differentiates itself from the Fischer. The Fischer looks almost flat comparatively. I have the Ranger 102’s and love them but they seem a bit more powerful than the 116 design. I’m 5-10” and ski the 176cm Fischer but I was thinking the 182cm in the Anima would be a better fit for my purposes.
The Anima is a burler, stronger ski while the Ranger is more smeary and drifty. There's more flex and play in the Ranger while the Anima is more business-like. If you're looking for a different type of ski than the 102, then Anima makes sense, but for a wider and more smeary version of what you have, the 116 is not that much of a character change.
Thanks for you work guys, really enjoying watching your reviews! How would you compare Anima 182 to Enforcer 110 184? Basically skis with tatanal vs wood-carbon. Im looking for soft snow conditions skis in the Alps, we dont have super dumps here. Im having old qst 106 already, and looking for second ski in the quiver, little bit wider recent skis, also looking to put duke pt, for little tours from the chairlift. Thanks
The Anima feels more powder-oriented while I really like the Enforcer in more of a crud/chop/even groomer category. I like it because the metal of the 110 holds well on firmer snow, but if you're looking to go wider than 106, the Anima provides a greater difference between skis. The QST feels more like the Anima in terms of personality while the Enforcer is quite different.
What would you say the differences would be from the 22 anima?
Hi Jules!
Same ski, different graphic. Have fun!
SE
@@proverbalizer Same here. From an online sales perspective, it takes the same amount of work to re-load a graphic change as it does a design change. Very annoying from a 1's and 0's view.
Hey, im going to Niseko for a season. I am an aggressive expert skier, currently have the blackops 98 as my all mountain charger, however im looking for a powder ski. Would you recommend the anima or nocta? Would you say the anima would be more condition versatile and more agressive ski compared to the nocta which would be more powder specific?
I may also do occasional touring on one of these
I'd say the Anima is a better option for most days, but if you're keeping the 98, then the Nocta would be an amazing ski for deep and fresh snow. Both/all are pretty heavy for touring, so no real differences there. If you're only bringing one ski, I'd go Anima, but I like the sounds of a 98/Nocta split.
An-eee-ma