3rd Look: Rossignol Soul 7

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Mount Location

Since that -6cm from true center “recommended” line isn’t likely where a playfully minded all-mountain skier would want to mount the Soul 7, I did play around with the mount location, eventually moving as far forward as the currently mounted Jester demo would allow. This still only moved me up to -3.5cm from true center, and for reference, the Rocker 2 108’s “Recommended” line is at -3cm from true center.

But I actually found that going -3.5cm from true center took me outside of the sweet spot on the Soul 7, and felt a touch too far forward in the sidecut (a sensation I found to an even greater extent on the Rocker2 108), while also decreasing my confidence in the support offered in front of the bindings in variable conditions.

This forward mount did balance out the swing weight a touch, but honestly, the skis are so light in this area to begin with that the difference was barely noticeable. To me, the decreases in skiing performance were larger than the increases in trickery performance, so I ended up settling back to the recommended line.

With the skis at recommended, I have to admit the Soul 7 is incredibly fun, as long as the snow is soft. On a powder day, I found myself pulling off high-speed nose press 3’s over nearly every roll I encountered. I even felt very comfortable landing switch in fairly deep snow, only stuffing the tails on one occasion. Landing forward off of jumps and drops were also well supported and predictable.

Jason Hutchins reviews the Rossignol Soul 7, Blister Gear Review
Jason Hutchins on the Soul 7, Alta Ski Area.

The ski performed equally as well once the snow was cut up, only perhaps becoming a little twitchy on the roughest packed down in-runs.

As conditions become less forgiving, so too does the Soul 7. When conditions started firming up, skis like the Sir Francis Bacon, and even more so the Blizzard Peacemaker, far outshine the Soul 7, both in freestyle and outright skiing performance.

Touring?

The backcountry in Utah this season has been a little suspect, and I’ve been severely limited in time, so I haven’t skinned for turns on the Soul 7 yet. When I do, I’ll be sure to update the review.

Durability

As of now, I have run into one particularly concerning issue in this department. On my second day testing the ski, conditions were firm and a bit thin, so I stuck to groomers and the sides of groomers, mostly carving around and gently skiing small mogul lines. Near the end of the day, as I followed another skier down a section of man-made snow on the side of a groomer, after a quick right hand turn I suddenly found myself with only a boot on my left foot, no ski. After a few intense seconds I came to a stop, only to watch the heel piece of my binding bouncing past me down the slope: the heel had completely ripped out of the ski.

I’ve obviously remounted the skis, and haven’t had another failure yet. During the remount, however, I did notice the skis feeling very “soft” compared to nearly all other skis I’ve mounted. I’ve since spoken with a few shops across the country, only to find they have noticed the same thing, and have taken special measures to avoid stripping the holes while mounting.

With this in mind, if I were a heavier or aggressive skier, I might be a little suspect of the Soul 7 if you are constantly skiing firm snow. Even at my 160 lbs., I personally won’t be skiing the Soul 7 aggressively into any consequential terrain. If you purchase this ski, make sure you have a very reputable tech mount them up.

Aside from that fairly serious matter to keep in mind, I have been very pleased with how the skis have fared in the early season snowpack. The bases and edges are holding up well, even after being the victim of a couple violent shark strikes. The topsheets and honeycomb tip and tail are also holding up very, very, well.

Bottom Line

The Soul 7 excels in soft snow, and its performance varies as the snow firms up and conditions become less forgiving.

So long as the snow is soft, the Soul 7 has become my favorite 100-110mm underfoot ski in quite some time. It’s a piece of cake to ski, yet still has a top end for someone my size looking to ski the mountain at speed.

It loves to drift medium-to-long turns, but can just as easily slash a quick one wherever you want. The Soul 7 can also pull off high speed nose and tail presses, switch pow landings, and (given its light weight) any trick I’ll be looking to accomplish this season.

It’s not nearly as stellar on firm snow, but it can get the job done if you slow down a bit—and that’s exactly what I would expect for a ski with an intended usage of “80% powder and 20% groomed.”

Heavy skiers and aggressive skiers putting themselves in consequential situations, I would recommend keeping a close eye on screw retention.

 

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56 comments on “3rd Look: Rossignol Soul 7”

  1. Have you spent much time on JJ’s over the years? If so preferences? I’m betting the way you described the ski soul7 is he way you would go for over all fun and versatility.

  2. “…DPS Wailer 99, are all much more nerve wracking at speed”–
    Hey, I thought you guys the Wailer 99’s were actually pretty solid on anything softer than boilerplate. Are the Soul’s actually better on piste?

    • James,
      The 99’s I rode were indeed a fun ride on groomers. The 99 can be pushed-on much harder than the Soul 7 (for example, during aggressive, short radius, carved turns), but the Soul is less twitchy and “hooky” feeling at speed (medium and long radius carved turns). The Soul also provides a more balanced feel, tip to tail, than the 99.

      If groomer performance were a big concern of mine, neither of these skis would be on my radar. Taking ALL aspects of MY own skiing into consideration, I would much rather own the Soul 7 than the Wailer 99.

      • What features would you say push you to prefer the Soul 7 over Wailer 99?

        I’m looking for something as an all around tele ski for summit county. I’m 5’10”, 165#. Expert. I tend to prefer a quick and playful ski, throw a few 3’s here and there, but nothing more flippy / spinney than that. I ski hard and fast but would say I’m more of a finesse than a power skier.

        I had been leaning toward the wailer 99 based on these reviews (Robin’s in particular) but thinking perhaps the Soul 7 might fit the bill and I’ll hang on to my Nordica steadfast for the firmer days. Sick day 110 also on the radar. I would probably complement the wailer with something a bit fatter for Pow days.

        Specifically I want something quick, with a supportive but not overly stiff tail (which I dislike about the steadfast), that will be fun in soft but not necessarily deep conditions – including the usual cut up chop and wind affected crud that are predominant around here.

        I also ski alpine 50% and have 184 old bibby’s for the deeper days or when I feel more like charging.

        Thanks for the great reviews!!

  3. Hi there. I could use some advice on what ski’s to buy. I am 189 lbs, 6’4 and an advanced skier, skiing in Europe. My daily ski is the Armada AR7 but I want an extra set of ski’s for going mainly off-piste. The conditions in the ski resorts here is that fresh snow gets tracked fast and crud and small moguls off-piste are common. I’ve skied the Rossi Soul 7 which were great on groomers and had enough float off-piste. However, based on the reviews, I think a Rossi Sickle would maybe better for me. Any advice on which ski would be best is welcome.

  4. P.S. I don’t ski extremely fast off-piste, only on-piste. And I wonder if the Armada JJ would be an option too. This afternoon went skiing again on Soul 7 in bad conditions (fog, hard packed off-piste snow) and the ski die not give me the confidence to just go for it and don’t worry. Thx for replies..

      • Hi Jason. My AR7 skis are 181cm. The Soul7 ski’s I’ve tested were 188cm. Last Friday there was a snow dump of 35cm and I’ve skied the Soul7. Awesome ski, very easy to ski and even at high speeds very stable. Best day of the year so far. However, I’ve decided to buy the Blizzard Cochise ski based on reviews and typical conditions I face. Hope they will be great too.

  5. If the snow is not soft, or not always soft, what is your favorite 100-110 ski in quite some, or current, time? Blister tends not to revisit non-current models (although the Sickle endures, for good reason). What do you want to be on between (sometimes rather extended) storm cycles?

    • Jonathan,
      My current favorite in the 100-110 range, for when it’s not soft, is the Blizzard Peacemaker. If the 11/12 Sickle were still available, it would be a pretty close toss-up between the two.

      • Hey Jason,

        Any word on when the Peacemaker review will be coming out? Ive heard a ton of hype over the ski and am super interested to see what you guys have to say!

        Thanks!

          • Awesome, thanks Jason.

            I look forward to reading it. Trying to currently decide on the 186 or the 179 and you guys put out the best reviews out there so I figured Id wait to see what ya had to say about the boards.

            -Luke

  6. Great review, as always! I’m looking for a beginner off-pist ski, and thought perhaps this could be a good choice. I’m 5’7 and 157 lbs. It will be my only ski and mainly off-pist (70%) in the French alps and should be a easy-turning ski. Or would you recommend something else, perhaps Salomon 108 or Atomic Automatic?

    • Mathias,
      I personally liked the feel of the Soul 7 much more than the R2 108. Comparing the Soul to the Automatic is a bit of a reach, since the Automatic is much wider. The Automatic would be more appropriately compared to the Super 7, which I haven’t ridden yet.

      The Automatic is effortless to ski off-piste, but the Soul 7 (and I would guess Super 7) are not far behind and offer a much more symmetric feel tip-to-tail that I personally prefer.

  7. Hi Jason,

    Thanks for this review, much helpful. I’ve read the other reviews as well, and commented on Dana’s thread too, but wonder if I can have your opinion also, as it would be helpful to have both.

    I’m 188CM, 180lbs, and am looking for my first off piste/deep snow ski. On the frontside I ski on a Line Sick Day 95, which I bought recently and really dig for my level of skiing and how it performs all around. I’m looking for a second set to complement the SD’s when the snow is deep, basically pushing myself off the piste.

    The models I have narrowed it down to are:
    * Rossi S7
    * Line SD 110
    * Line SFB
    * Whitedot Preacher

    Given your experience and knowledge of these, what would you suggest to a pow beginner? I’m not looking to run this pair much on groomers although that’s of course a positive plus, but I also have no pow experience, so this is the pair I will learn on. I think that for the conditions I am likely to ski (French/Austrian alps), around 110 cm underfoot seems reasonable.

    Also, your comments on the R7’s soft surface for mounting is worrying for sure.

    Any thoughts would be appreciated

    • As a small PS. When it comes to crud and moguls, I find a pair of stiffer “basher” skis much more enjoyable than very soft “zippers”…

      • Of the skis you’ve mentioned I’ve only ridden the Soul 7 and SFB, so I can only comment on those skis. I would say, in powder, the Soul is easier to ski, and provides a bit more float than the SFB. Neither the Soul or SFB are going to be “basher” crud skis, both prefer a lighter approach. Skis that like to crush crud are not typically what I would recommend for a beginner pow skier.

  8. Jason: can you compare the Soul 7 to the original Obsethed (105 mm under foot), which you mentioned in your May 2011 review of the then-new Obsethed (117 under foot)? I’m thinking of replacing my original Obsethed, which would leave me needing something between my K2 Rictor and the wider Obsethed. I’m 5’11” and weigh 145 lbs, which means prefering a softer ski. Thanks

    • John,
      The Soul is going to give you a much lighter, snappier ride than the original Obsethed, which has both benefits (it’s fun and easy) and weaknesses (little less forgiving if you make a mistake). I remember being able to ski more aggressively on the Obsethed in firm conditions than the Soul prefers, but in soft conditions I would definitely be happier on the new Soul than the old Obsethed. You may even find yourself riding the Soul over your newer Obsethed on all but the very deepest days.

    • I bought a pair last spring and was really happy with them. I have an overly long winded comment below Jonathan’s review about their tele performance.

  11. Jason:

    Am looking for a pow and soft snow ski that is playful and light, but also good for resort tracked pistes like you get at the Bird and Alta (where I ski the most) late day or next day/2 after a dump. My mainstay is the Mantra 190 (I am 6’2″ and 210) so I am looking for a complement on days when conditions are good …..and also something quicker in the soft bumps and trees. We got 12″ of light density in Little Cottonwood on Thursday overnight and I skied the Armada JJ 185 at the Bird. the next overnight we got 6″ of high density and another 6″ during the day. Skied Alta on the Salomon 105. Last night we just got dust or an inch or two and I tried the Soul 7 188 at the Bird. Maybe it was just my legs finally getting into shape, but I had the most fun on the Soul 7 this morning cruising down still soft and deep Great Scott and Upper Cirque. Just kept running laps on this and had as much fun with this ski as I have had in a long time on any ski with the lightness and quickness of turns.

    So here is my question, given none of testers are as big or heavy as me, and the comments on the ski relative to how it could hold up for a heavy skier, I am wondering if you think that I should be looking at something else to fulfill my objectives knowing that I am 6’2″ and 210 and don’t get backcountry much so I need to be cognizant of the tracked pistes you can get at Alta and Snowbird when skiing inbounds….

    I think I wouldn’t have any questions if there weren’t concerns over my weight and aggressiveness with the ski.

    It sure was fun today….I just don’t have multiple days to trial it out to see if it will be exposed by my weight…..and I probably was having too much fun enjoying it today in what I knew I liked and staying away from crowds vs. spending some time pushing it in certain ways that I might on other days and conditions…..

    • Hey, Dave – I’ll chime in. First, if you had a great time on the ski, in the sort of conditions that you’d be buying this ski for, then trust yourself and get the ski. If you hadn’t skied it, and since you’re coming from a 191 Mantra, I would not have predicted that you would have liked the 188 Soul 7 so much. But you did … so go with it! While there are a number of other ~108mm-underfoot skis we like, I can’t currently think of something that is basically a more stout Soul 7. Then again, it doesn’t sound like you were wanting to change anything about the Soul 7. You might not get as many days out of it as your burlier, metal Mantra, but sounds like – in the right conditions – you’ll continue to have a lot of fun.

  12. Hi Jason
    Thanks for the review! Looking for some advice: what size would you recommend for a lighter build for the soul 7? I am 5’8″, 135-140lbs, advanced level but not a very agressive skier, skiing in Europe, previously on a 2008 Scott Mission in 169cm which I found too shoort for off-piste skiing. Given that you generally recommended to go for the longer length I am inclined to go for 180cm but I read that Dana recommended the 172cm for someone 145lbs so I’m a bit lost: any advice?
    Also have you skied the Volkl One? Any thoughts on the fit for a lighter skier and the performance in variable snow compared to the soul 7 (I guess they’re equivalent in powder)?
    Thanks!

  16. Hi Jason,

    Great review, nicely complementing the other two. Just one quick question: Is the new model of the Soul 7 for 2014/2015 any different to the 2013/14 model?

    Many thanks,
    Hans

  17. Hi guys, love the unbiased reviews.
    Not sure about getting the Soul vs the 2015 Sin as I’m very light and might prefer the slightly quicker edge on the Sin and still find it fine in deeper snow? Have experinance on the S3 and S7 but these are a bit different now. You mentioned you hoped to test and review the Sin as well, any chance of that happening?

      • Thanks Jonathan, look forward to it.
        Don’t know if this helps everyone for sizing questions but I ski a 163 length Head Titan frontside for its playfulness and turnability.
        This Monday, we are still skiing over here (NZ), there were a couple of guys on 180 Souls. I compared my Titans effective edge length against the black part of the Soul and the Titan is actually longer.
        So I’d have no hesitation going for at least the 180 length in the Soul (or Sin), it is definitely going to be fun, lively and quick.

  18. Hi everyone,

    Sorry to jump on the “what size band wagon” but i’m torn between the 172 and the 180’s. I am 5’8″ and weigh 145 pounds. I send most of my time on the east coast but will be spending a month this year crashing couches out west. I am leaning towards the 172 to gain mobility in the trees but i’m not sure how they will hold up out west or if they will feel to small. Any input is greatly appreciated.

    • I’m almost certain everyone is going to tell you to go longer.

      I’m 5’10”, 165#, and the 188 do not feel at all too long as a tele ski, and they honestly felt short when I demoed an alpine setup. They are incredibly quick, so you do not need to go shorter for this reason.

      Not sure how you ski, but if you are an aggressive skier who pressures the shovels at all, I would even say go 188 to get more edge for harder snow conditions.

      That being said, they work but are not awesome on hardpack. They get the job done, but I bet there are a few other skis out there that will treat you very well during your month out west, but serve you better at home. These guys can tell you better than I, but I would read every review on skis in the 100-110mm waist range and see what fits. Supernatural 108 comes to mind (this will be the next ski I buy).

    • As mentioned above, when between sizes with the Soul 7, go longer, or you will regret it!

      I’m 5’11, 160 lbs myself and went with the 188 and it’s still über-quick and I’d never ever trade it in for the 180.

  20. @everyone:

    While the design and construction of the ski stayed the same, they did slightly alter the colors this year. The 15/16 ski’s yellow is more of a brighter, neon yellow, while last year’s yellow was darker and matte. Also, the sidewalls were white last year, now they’re the same neon yellow as the tip and tail.

  21. So basically it’s a fun ski but dont ski it to aggressively or you may rip the bindings out, Who wants to pay $600 for a ski that they have to be careful not to over ski it? Typical Rossignol crap, I think I will stick with Moment and Line.

    Rossi has always had a reputation for fun skis that fall apart after one season.

  22. No advanced skier I know has ever said anything positive about the Soul 7, and here in MT our second hand market was flooded with them last season when everyone realized how shitty a ski they had bought.

  23. I think I never saw a ski generate so much discussion around sizing! Are you ok to respond to another one? :-)
    I’m an east coast skier ( 6′;215 pounds) that just love tree skiing! And when the official places are skied out, I go further deep so further thight places… When we have big dumps (for here), I ski on my 185 Patron no problem in any of these places… Lately, I bought a 192 TST for days of less bigger dumps… I just love them on hardpack, bumps and trees; but when I go in thighter trees, I’m not confident no more and I would like something easier to ski there… So I’m now looking for something else in the 100-106 range that will be very easy to ski in thight places… Everything point towards the Soul 7 but also maybe the Pinnacle ( maybe too soft?), the automatic 109 ( larger than 100-106 range) that I only tried in 182 and thought that it lacked tail compared to the 180 Soul 7 that I also tried that year… So the Soul 7 are the #1 on the list and I’m thinking that if I tried the 180 and really liked it, maybe I should stick to that lenght; specially since I had a “bad” experience with the 192 TST and also considering that the difference between the 180 and 188 soul all goes in the tail… Please help me so I can sleep again… :-)

    • If you hadn’t tried the 180 and really liked it, I (and probably everyone else who skied it) would absolutely advise you against the 180! I’m 5’11” and 160, so WAY lighter than you and found it absolutely mind blowing how quick that ski is! I personally don’t think it gets much quicker than that..

      Ask yourself: did the 180 offer enough stability and float for you? If yes, then you could consider sticking with the 180. Otherwise I’d pick the 188, especially since you’re not gonna give up much quickness, because, as you said yourself, the length is added in the tail!

      It would probably also help if you described your skiing style (hard/powerful or finesse) and skill level!

      If you can, by all means, go back and ski it in 188. No better way to figure it out than that. Also have a look at the other two reviews on this site, since the reviewers, Jonathan and Dana, are closer to your weight than Jason is. Maybe you’ll also find somebody about your size in the comments, with a feedback.

      • Thanks Stephan for your answer!
        In fact, I just had the chance to ( very very) briefly try it again this saturday and… I didn’t like it as much as I remembered… Again, at the demo, the longest was the 180 so I couldn’t try the 188… First, I tried the K2 Pinnacle 105 as I thought I would finish with the one I prefer (the soul 7)… But I was surprise to prefer the Pinnacle 105! I tried them on hardpack, icy hardpack ( Pinnacle : better edge hold), skied out bumps ( both similar) and couple days old untouched snow in really thight trees and in there, I prefered the Pinnacle again! The 184 Pinnacle is 185 cm so it would have been more interesting to compare it to the 188 Soul7 that is about 186.7 cm ( like they say here)…
        Last year, I tried the 180 Soul 7 after trying the Automatic 109 in 182 (way to short for me! Felt like no tail at all!) so maybe this is why the Soul 7 in 180 then felt so nice???
        Anyway, I might go for the Pinnacle 105…

  24. Thank you for your very good reviews. I would be very glad if you could help me with the length of a pair of Soul 7.
    I have been skiing a lot but mostly in pist but have recently started to ski more offpist. I have mainly been using race skis and the last one is an all mountain ski, Kästle MX83 173cm, but its more like a pist ski with full camber.
    Its a pretty stiff ski without rocker and now I want a more playful all mountain ski that is better for off pist that could do some pist as well. I thinking of a Soul 7 with a Marker Duke. I don’t know if I should buy the 180cm or the 188cm. Is the 188 hard to do tight turns with when you are among trees? Is the 188 more solid and stable if you ski it hard? Im 185cm(6.1) and 80kg . Very thankful for an answer.
    What about the mountain point for the bindings in 180/188? I also red that you are saying that the 188 is only adding length in the tail, what do you mean with that?
    Regards
    Henrik

  25. Can totally confirm the soft core. Just had my toe pieces (tech-binding) ripped off the ski and had trouble finding proper wood in the holes left behind.

    Truly love how this ski goes down hill soft hard or even ice (for non skinny ski) Piste are fun to carve on with it.

    BUT if not mounted with rock solid inserts you might want to slow down on the piste, and what is the fun it that.

    Anyone knows a ski that comes close to this but has actual wood inside? Hapily have something heavier in exchange for robustness.

  26. Soul 7’s are garbage. They delaminated after 10 days of inbound skiing with my kids over the last 16 months. Rossignol claims that this is not a defect and will not warranty them because they are more than a year since I bought them, despite that they are still BRAND NEW without a scratch on them. My only conclusion is that if they are not defective, then they design them to delaminate. Total garbage. I will NEVER BUY ROSSIGNOL again.

  27. I just recently found a pair of old Rossi Soul 7’s 188cms and I absolutely love them!!!!. They are my go to powder ski because they turn so easy. What i found out is that ,now, being very late season and the snow is getting heavier (-1 to -3) conditions….these skis handle the heavier snow conditions unbelievable. My other powder skis are more torsional stiff and burlier therefore they don’t turn as easily.
    I am now shopping for a new powder specific touring ski set up with the same characteristics as the “old” Rossi Soul 7.
    Therefore….. would you please give me some examples of skis that would fit the description.
    I am a directional skier who likes to turn to control speed……. love powder and tree skiing in the backcountry.

    So if you have skied a Rossi Soul 7…..and you have found a current ski that is similar I would appreciate your comments.

    Thanks for any advice,

    Regards,
    Derek

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