VAXEE PA Review

VAXEE is a company that has been aiming their products at professional and competitive gamers ever since they first started off, and so far all of their products have been hits. The NP-01 in particular has been adopted by a lot of professional players over the past couple of months, and that is not something that we often see for a completely new brand or mouse model.

Knowing all of this, we have quite some expectations for their first mousepad. The VAXEE PA is a mousepad that’s been crafted for ‘precise control while improving the glide’ according to VAXEE, so we’ve sent some samples to our reviewer to see what he thinks of the PA line of mousepads.

At A Glance


VAXEE PA

Used by 96 players ()
  • electronic
    electronic
  • Mistic
    Mistic
  • YEKINDAR
    YEKINDAR
  • d3ffo
    d3ffo
Staff’s Choice
Pro’s Choice

❝If you’ve got a feeling that you would like a bit more control but you don’t want to overdo it with a muddy/gritty dedicated control pad then the PA can be right up your alley.❞

Read review (06/2023)

Pros

  • Smooth surface
  • Tight rubber base makes the surface feel very consistent
  • Lots of designs available

Cons

  • No stitched edges version
  • Humidity resistance isn’t the best

Specs

Height39
Length47
Thickness3.5mm
Stitched edgesYes
MaterialCloth
GlideControl
Static Friction44.9
Static Friction Angle7.64
Glide Difference X/Y14.8
Dynamic Friction1.45

Usage Over Time In The Pro Scene


First Impressions


You probably already noticed that there are two different versions of the PA, namely the Zygen and the Outset version. Both are exactly the same and only differ in the looks department, so if you’re interested in this pad you can just get the one that matches your preferences best. Aside from that you can also get a custom ID version, where they print your gamertag on the pad just like other brands do with the pros. That one is exactly the same as the regular pad (I double checked with the VAXEE people to confirm this) so if you want that bit of extra swag you can get it without worrying about it affecting the glide in any way, though the custom version costs a bit more of course.

As far as the design goes I have to say that I quite like both versions. The Zygen edition is perhaps a bit too busy for my tastes, but I do like the modern twist that they did on the Great Wave off Kanagawa (at least that’s what I see in it) and the Outset edition looks more interesting than a regular black pad without going overboard. Beauty is of course in the eye of the beholder so you may disagree with me, but I am glad to see that they ditched the leathery design that I saw in the first photos of a (it could’ve been a completely different pad though) VAXEE pad that surfaced on Twitter a while ago.

Performance


Those of you who follow the gaming peripheral scene a bit will perhaps get a familiar feeling when first trying out the PA. It feels an awful lot like Zowie’s G-SR-SE, which doesn’t have to be surprising seeing as VAXEE is founded by the same people who founded the original Zowie Gears company all those years ago. For those wondering: the glide characteristics are extremely similar, though I find the PA to be a touch faster than the G-SR-SE. It’s worth noting that I don’t have a brand new G-SR-SE lying around to compare it to however.

When placing the PA down on your desk it lays flat almost immediately, which is always nice. The thick, very tightly packed foam makes for a rather rigid surface so even though the pad is 3.5 millimetres thick you won’t get a lot of ‘mouse feet sinkage’ with this one. Whether or not that’s a good thing depends entirely on your preferences, but I quite like the extremely consistent experience that the PA offers. 

For a control pad it’s also rather smooth to the touch. Quite often you get this gritty, sandpaper-like texture when using a control-oriented mousepad but that is not the case with the PA. It even feels a bit smoother than the G-SR-SE to me, which is something to be proud of if you ask me. 

As far as the glide goes this pad offers a rather unique experience. It’s kind of a middle ground between an average cloth pad glide and a control pad experience, which isn’t something that you see very often with the mainstream brands. It’s, in my opinion, a great pad for people who don’t want to experience the ‘muddy feeling’ of a dedicated control pad but also don’t want to have a glide that’s too fast or unwieldy. There’s a decent amount of friction, both when coming to a stop and when making micro adjustments, and that allows for precise control while the smooth surface allows you to execute larger flicks without feeling too held back by the surface. Whether you like this glide experience or not is of course entirely up to you, but if you feel a bit too floaty with your aim this could be one to look at.

One unfortunate thing about mousepad reviews is the fact that reviewers can’t usually judge the durability of a pad, unless it’s extremely bad. The only thing I can say is that the PA has held up just fine during testing, and that I didn’t have any consistency issues with the glide even in pretty hot and humid environments. It’s worth noting that my arms don’t really sweat when gaming though, so if you’re a bit sweatier and you make a lot of big swipes this could be different for you.

All in all this isn’t the most innovative product that VAXEE has ever made but there’s of course only so much you can do with a mouse glide surface, and the growing success of pads like the G-SR-SE have made it clear that there is a market for this type of stuff. 

VAXEE PA Black Review


This section was added to the review on the 8th of November, 2022.

A while ago, the VAXEE PA Black was released. Contrary to what you might think, this is not the exact same pad as the printed versions. Due to a different design process (the Black has no printing at all, whereas the printed versions obviously go through a different process when the prints get applied) the Black has a slightly different top surface. Except for the different surface, all specs are the exact same.

This different surface is hard to notice if you’re not paying attention to it, but from what I’ve experienced the Black has a higher dynamic friction (meaning that it’s slower for swipes). Aside from that, the glide feels pretty much the exact same; I couldn’t notice any difference with static friction, both in testing and in actual gameplay. So in a nutshell: if you want a VAXEE PA that offers more resistance when gliding it can be a good idea to go for the Black version.

Something that I did notice during testing is that tiny ‘fragments’ (skin flakes, grains of sand or dirt, …) seem to get stuck in the surface weave a little easier than on the printed editions. I don’t know if this is down to the fact that the printed version has a slight coating that ‘papers over’ the spaces in the texture or if it’s a coincidence, but I found myself doing swipes with my hand to clear off the surface pretty regularly. As someone who strongly dislikes having these sorts of ‘obstructions’ on my mousepad this was something that annoyed me during my testing, so if you’re also a person who likes a completely pristine mouse surface this is something to consider.

VAXEE PA Review – Conclusion


If you’ve got a feeling that you would like a bit more control but you don’t want to overdo it with a muddy/gritty dedicated control pad then the PA can be right up your alley. It’s a high quality mousepad that gives you an interesting glide with enough smoothness to allow for big flicks but enough friction to allow for fine control and a lot of stopping power. It all comes in a pad with a very firm foam base and a surface that’s rather smooth to the touch. 

The only thing that I don’t like is the fact that they don’t have extended versions available at the time of me writing this review, but aside from that there’s plenty to love about the VAXEE PA even though it’s perhaps not very innovating.

This product was received for free from the manufacturer and given to our reviewer to test and review. Brands and manufacturers have no editorial control over our reviews. For more information, check out our review FAQ.

21 Comments
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
klurf

how is it compared to the lethal gaming gear saturn ?

JKaerup

Hello. I see it here is a XY difference with the Vaxee PA, I assume it’s for the outset or zygen mousepads. What about the Vaxee PA Black? Thanks in advance.

Malaise

Hi pro settings i want to know what’s the difference between VAXXE PA BLACK and Zowie G-SR-SE bleu ?
is the vaxxe more control pad than the G sr se bleu
I had a G640 after that i switch to zowie gsr se bleu because i feel its more balanced control pad than the G640 but thoose two pads at one time they are not smooth anymore and the mouse feel sticky..
Now i want a new mousepad who have the same glide/static friction/dynamic friction of the zowie G-sr-se bleu and good durability of smoothness (by the way i’m livin’ in humide place)
Wich one i need to go with the VAXXE PA BLACK or a Razer Gigantus V2 ??
i read in your comment That the Razer one feel like the zowie gsr se but i want to know if VAXXE PA black feel the same like a zowie GSR-SE bleu too ?
thx

Malaise

hello pro settings i feel like you didnt answer to my question :p
I want a pad who have the same glide/static friction/dynamic friction of the zowie gsr se bleu
I have already the red gsr se and its a fast pad compared to the bleu she have lower dynamic friction.. i cant micro ajustement
my question is : wich pad have is similar to the zowie gsr se between this two :
VAXXE PA “BLACK” or RAZER GIGANTUS V2 ??
I’m not talkin about the regular VAXXE PA i’m talkin about the (BLACK) one
is the “Black” Vaxxe pa similar to the zowie Gsr se Bleu or no ??

Malaise

I just got my vaxxe pa black and it feels like a qck heavy same glide same stopping power its has nothin to do with a gsr se bleu or red
anyways i like the feeling of the mousepad too much i think i will like it more than the zowie gsr se or the g640
the feeling of my hand on the mousepad is just insane and the stopping power is more better than the printed vaxxe pa i had one before i sold it cuz i didnt like the stopping power i felt i cant do microadjusment with the printed one

jonathan

hello I have always used qck plus, it is perfect for me, neither too fast nor too slow, I tried it once

BenQ ZOWIE G-SR and it was too slow for me, what do you think of vaxee pa? it’s worth it?

Alex

Hello, I used to have a hyperx fury S mouse pad. Is it possible to buy “Vaxee PA” for FPS games?

Jaxon

Hi, I have been maining the zowie g-sr for years now and wanted to know any that might be better or some alternatives to it I don’t like fast pads only control pads helps also when playing csgo what do you recommend? thank you in advance!

Jaxon

Is there any other options you would suggest for me other than the PA? Really looking for a new pad mine is worn out now there so many pads I just don’t know thank you.

Evy

Other control pads include the LGG Jupiter/Saturn (first one is sticky mud and too slow for a lot of people lmao so probably not for you, second is great for precision shooters with ShaZam having the Saturn and Tarik owning the pro variant, a little like Artisan with foam bases and copied colour schemes), Gamesense Radar, Puretrak Talent, Esports Tiger Qingsui 2 Pro. If you wanna stay safe and not play niche just cop a Razer Gigantus V2 as that’s a control pad.

NICO

is this mousepad washable?

jimmy

Hi please note that the process of putting prints on the mousepad is usig heat sublimation and it is not coated like the gsr se !!

Qee

this or g-sr-se which do u prefer?