Blizzard raised the performance bar on its top Quattro models, injecting a large dose of carbon into its Frontside flagships. C-Spine Technology consists of two bi-directional carbon layers that work in concert with the Quattro 8.4 Ti’s existing Titanal laminates to improve damping and responsiveness. If the benefits of all that carbon were condensed to a single word it would be “smoothness.” The addition of C-Spine hasn’t altered the Quattro 84 Ti’s groomed snow orientation – its score for Off-Piste Performance remains around a full point below the category norm – but it has made it a mellower, more secure ride within its hard snow domain.

“Smooth and clean in the turn,” assures Boot Doctors Bob Gleason. “Easy on and off the edge with a quick yet planted connection. A feeling of dampness that enhances performance at speed,” he adds, hitting on the Quattro 8.4 Ti’s defining trait. It seems to revel in its ability to stay in contact with every phase of a carved turn, as though it would be penalized for drifting even a few millimeters off course. While it isn’t a big fan of drifting across the fall line, neither is it insistent on a high edge angle to hold its course. It navigates comfortably from a relatively upright stance.

While our stats indicate that the Quattro 8.4 Ti is clearly a Power ski, a closer look at its Finesse scores shows that it’s not hard to ski, just finicky. There’s nothing about off-piste conditions, slow turns or drifting that contributes to carving continuously, so the Quattro 8.4 Ti returned ‘meh” scores for these attributes. As a more than competent carver, naturally it’s much better at Power skills, but it’s not a ski that needs to be worked to be enjoyed. Lighter weight skiers who can’t put a lot of oomph into their arcs will find the Quattro 8.4 Ti responsive to their gentle commands.