Pinokio’s original hopper was an eyesore, to say the least. The design was clunky, and the hopper was just too big for practical use. To sell more hoppers, Pinokio decided to make the Speed, which was similar in design to the original but much smaller. However, it didn’t sell well, mainly because people still had a bad taste in their mouths from the original hoppers.
After acquiring Pinokio, HK Army put their name on the Speed and began selling it. With HK behind it, they were able to get it into stores, and it sold much better than the Pinokio version . Nowadays, we have a much more modern hopper, the Sonic, which is a follow-up to the Speed. The Sonic has a sleek and modern design that fits in perfectly with today’s high-end hoppers, and at only $100, it’s reasonably priced. Like other modern hoppers, it’s effortless to take apart. All you have to do is pop up the tab on the back, and the top shell comes off. The closure tab system feels secure, unlike the BK CTRL, which uses the same style closure on the back, but isn’t nearly as stiff as the Sonic. The CTRL suffers from the top shell being insecure, which isn’t an issue with the Sonic.
- O-rings are color coded by size, eliminating the headache of matching up sizes
- This 360 piece Players Kit contains 18 of the most common sized o-rings found in paintball equipment (20 of each size)
- Kit includes o-rings sorted by size/color in individual compartments
One noticeable feature of the Sonic is the sensor in the breech. When the sensor is in a resting position, the hopper doesn’t feed. When a ball passes over and moves the paddle down, the loader knows you’re shooting and starts feeding. It works well, but it’s a little odd to me. I prefer the normal IR eye or the g sensor on the Spires. Having a delicate piece like the sensor in the Sonic makes me nervous, but it’s made of the orange plastic ribbon stuff, so it’s quite durable. Another issue with the Sonic is that if you shoot your hopper dry, it stops feeding because the sensor tab piece is all the way up. This is expected, but it means you’ll need to shake it, power it off and on, or use a pulsing feature to get a ball into the feed tube.
The Sonic uses a 9v battery that goes on the underside of the tray and is powered on by a button on the bottom. The BK CTRL also has a similar battery setup, but it’s awkward reaching under the loader. It’s much easier on the back, and the LED on the bottom is much better visible. The lid, like the top shell, can be quickly removed and replaced with a speed-feed.
Good news is that it takes the same speed-feed that works for Virtue and BunkerKings hoppers, so any speed-feed that fits a Spire or the CTRL will fit on the Sonic, giving you several options.
When it comes to rate of fire, the Sonic is on par with most loaders today, except for the Dye Rotors, which still feed the fastest. The Rotors are force-fed, which means they grab paintballs and always have force pressing on the stack, even if you’re not shooting. The rotor is pushing the stack of paintballs waiting for them to be fired, which creates pressure and forces them out faster. The Sonic has a more radial drive feed area, which looks similar to the JT Revolution. It’s similar to the Spire and doesn’t force paintballs down.
- Single-button, one-touch on/off + Force feed
- Easy to clean with removable tray
- Upgraded "H" board for increased battery life and efficiency
- Jam-free and gentle on fragile paintballs
- Motorized paddle system feeds paintballs at 16+ BPS
I like it, I like how the shells work, its stupid lightweight, feeds quick enough for 98% of people, its $100, some of the stuff I don’t like the ball sensor, the cheapness of it, but I don’t think the things are like will really cause any issues, the sensor has been proven to work on previous Pinokio hopper and the Speed. Its another good mid-range option, if you don’t like the Rotor LTR or Spire IR2.
