The cushions on the home tables are usually a lower tier than the commercial tables. Even within Bruswick's line, for example, they only use the Superspeed on the commercial and the top tier home tables. The lower tables have a lower tier of cushion. For the Chinese import tables that are today probably most common for home tables, I've seen the cushions on those go completely dead and the ball thuds off of the cushion. But that usually takes 5 or 10 years, not when new. I don't know if you are describing a new table, or an older table where the rubber has deteriorated over time. Home tables also have thinner slate and are generally lighter weight. All the tiny motions of the balls rolling and the balls hitting the rail get dissipated by those lighter weight/thickness materials vibrating. The heavier/thicker materials will vibrate less, and keep more energy on the ball. This will make the ball roll further. There of course is a point of diminishing returns. A 5" thick slate might not be noticeably better than a 2" thick slate. But a 1" thick on a commercial table is probably noticeably better to a thinner slate on a home table.