Sage 490-4 Sonic

Reviews

1. Rated 4 out of 5

   Functionally, this rod will catch every fish in the river. It needs a Rio Gold or SA MPX to load well inside of 30 feet. In this range, it’s a little bouncy and unrefined, but once it hits its stride at 40 feet, it wants to go forever. I enjoyed casting this rod at distance, but not as much in close, where tip bounce and wide loops tell me that the tip section is not as finely tuned as the butt. It would be a great nymphing 4-weight at short to medium distances, and a superb dry fly rod when casting beyond 30 feet. I want to emphasize how much better this rod is at 50 feet than 20 feet. I would recommend it for the Missouri, South Fork, Silver Creek, Big Horn or Green, but not so much for the freestones and small tailwaters of southern Colorado. If the other Sonics are a 7 out of 10 in stiffness, the 490-4 is an 8 out of 10.

   John Duncan (Telluride Angler)

2. Rated 5 out of 5

   This is a 5-star 9’ 4-wt in the mid-price category and I preferred it to the 486. The Rio Technical Trout and the Gold were both very good. The Sonic 490-4 can throw the laser like V-loop with the Technical Trout line and makes you feel like you could cast any dry fly out there with the Gold. It is a smooth casting rod that finishes very well. The lower end of the rod has a nuanced and stable bend, while the light tip finishes the cast and lets you speed up or slow down. The Sonic 490-4 has wonderful line and loop control and casts through the range of distances very well.

   Richard Post (Telluride Angler)

3. Rated 5 out of 5

   The 490 is a bit slower vs the 486, which I found favorable. I like the deeper flex profile which provides a better connection to the fly line for the caster. At close range I found it to be superior to the 486. It also performed quite nicely at longer distance. Out to about 70 feet the rod still maintained excellent line control. I cast it with an SA Trout WF4F line which was a fine pairing. To add a broader comment on the Sonic lineup, I really like the choice of grip by Sage. Similar to the Trout LL, it is a Full Wells of smaller size. It cradles the hand perfectly and provides a nice cup for the thumb. I find it ideal for that crisp stop at the end of the forward stroke.

   Jason Moshonas (Telluride Angler)