Head Youtek Speed Mp 18 / 20 Tennis Racquet Review
Caput YOUTEK Graphene Speed Pro Racquet Review
Price:
$
| Head YOUTEK Graphene Speed Pro Scores | |
|---|---|
| Comfort | 79 |
| Touch/Feel | 83 |
| Serves | 83 |
| Groundstrokes | 89 |
| Returns | 87 |
| Slice | 82 |
| Topspin | 86 |
| Volleys | 83 |
| Overall | 86 |
Upsides
- Stability
- Maneuverability
- Ability
- Spin
Downsides
- Nothing we could hold on
Summary
We were eager to hit the court with the Head Graphene Speed Pro and test Head'due south update to its Speed Pro racquet line The Graphene Speed Pro replaced the YOUTEK IG Speed MP 18x20 and features Head'southward revolutionary Graphene technology. The Graphene engineering helps redistribute weight toward the ends of the frame, creating a more solid and maneuverable racquet. Our playtesters agreed that this was the best installment of the Speed line yet. It has the most solid feel all over the court, it continues to be maneuverable, and information technology has that e'er-sought-after blend of power and control. This racquet really shone when returning serve, where the improved stability was apparent and the power and spin helped our team intermission serve with ease. All in all, like Novak, we loved the new Graphene Speed Pro, and we are pretty sure you volition, too.
Groundstrokes - Score: 89
The Graphene Speed Pro quickly became a favorite when hitting groundstrokes. Our playtesters loved the solid feel and the blend of power and command. "This has been one of my favorite racquets to play with from the baseline recently," said Andy. "It's super maneuverable but all the same possesses plenty of stability and plough through. It has plenty of access to popular and spin, but I still felt that I could be precise with all my shots. I plant this racquet to have some of the best access to topspin of any racquet that I've hitting with in a while, aside from the Wilson Steam 99S, and I thought it was comparable to the Babolat AeroPro Drive. The feel of this racquet is a nice alloy betwixt crisp and comfy, and it feels enough lively. At that place was a lot to like and not much to dislike when striking groundstrokes with this new Speed."
Chris thought this version of the Speed was the best notwithstanding, saying, "From the very first hit I idea Head had actually improved the response of this racquet. This was, by a long, long way, the best playing Speed I've striking. It felt so much more than solid compared to the previous two versions. The previous version felt unstable off centre and it always felt like power dropped off very quickly outside of the sweetspot. This Graphene version has none of that. The power was not only much better, but also much more than consequent. When communicable the ball off heart I could all the same get decent depth and pace. Comfort too felt improved -- I think more often than not due to the more solid feel. I felt similar I could hit a much bigger ball with this version. It also felt good to go in stock class, whereas with previous versions I accept always needed some lead tape. As with previous versions, I found it very easy to get spin. If you think an 18x20 cord pattern is not spin friendly, hitting with this racquet will modify your mind. I found lots of it on both topspin and slice shots."
Troy plant power and precision from the baseline. He said, "I found the alloy of control and power to be very enjoyable on my groundstrokes. I found corking directional control when moving my opponent side to side, also as a noticeable amount of added power in this racquet compared to its predecessor. With the blend of ability and command I was striking heavy groundstrokes to the corners of the courtroom, which immune me to dictate the points well. I too enjoyed the increased experience of this version compared to the previous model. I felt more confident when attempting a affect shot, feeling more than connected to the ball compared to the previous version of this racquet. With the dense cord pattern I found the backhand slice to work well and penetrate the courtroom with ease. The 1 downside I institute with this racquet was that information technology felt a bit jarring on the arm when hitting outside the sweetspot."
Marker was a fan of previous versions of the Speed, and the new Graphene version didn't disappoint. He said, "I know that the electric current Graphene Speed Pro is not really the successor to the older YOUTEK version (the YOUTEK IG version was only available in Europe), only I could non assist merely make the comparing because I used to play with that racquet. At kickoff swing (the forehand), I noticed an ease of maneuverability. Afterwards a few minutes of warming up, which takes me to 'battle mode,' I actually liked its stability, and because I have been playing with extremely open patterned frames lately, I was surprised at its like shooting fish in a barrel access to spin. The backhand slice dug in beautifully, and past the stop of the first session I got the feeling I could play well from anywhere in the court with this racquet."
Volleys - Score: 83
The crisp feel and improved stability too fabricated this new Speed a corking racquet around the net. Chris could access his entire armory with this racquet. He said, "This was an easy to maneuver racquet at net. I could punch volleys away, yet I likewise liked the feel and control. I liked how the racquet came through the ball when I was looking to snap a high volley away. I was getting aplenty power and the stability felt fantabulous. On bear upon volleys I felt equally dialed in. I constitute good accuracy on angle and drop volleys and enjoyed playing doubles with this racquet because I had so much variety with my volleys."
Marking plant increased stability to be the standout characteristic of the Graphene Speed Pro in the forecourt. He offered, "Short courtroom groundstrokes and volleys were consistent, with no real need to adjust my swing much to keep the brawl in play. Fifty-fifty on the stretch, where the brawl is at the tip of the frame, the Graphene Speed Pro felt stable. Since I don't always brand contact at the heart of the stringbed this is e'er a frame test of mine; if information technology's reasonably stable with ball contact at the tip, it is an indicator that it is a loftier quality racquet."
Enjoying the precision and feel was Troy, who said, "I felt a good connection to the ball when moving my way into the internet. With the increased power I institute it easy to stick volleys with good depth, causing a tough return for my opponents. The amount of mass this racquet possesses allows for good stability confronting heavy shots hit to me at net. The control of this racquet helped me feel confident when coming to the cyberspace and going for volleys near the lines, and I felt as though I could create some sharp angles."
Andy also liked this racquet around the net, simply he felt the racquet lacked some stability on certain shots. He said, "The new Speed Pro besides felt expert around the net, but it didn't perform quite as well as it did from the baseline. There was the aforementioned nice feel and a expert alloy of power, spin and control, simply the racquet lacked a bit of stability when making contact off center. I institute if I didn't hit the sweetspot, the racquet would turn a bit in my mitt at contact. But this was a small unfavorable feature, and for the most part the racquet performed nicely on volleys and overheads."
Serves - Score: 83
Our playtesters also really enjoyed serving with the Graphene Speed Pro. Feeling like the racquet helped him on his various serves was Troy, who offered, "I was confidently hitting my targets when serving with this racquet and felt like I could mix upward my serves well. My flat serves up the heart were consistent, and I could hit some heavy piece and kick serves. I liked that the sub-12 ounce mass helped me go a lot of racquet head speed. I found a bit more pop on my serve compared with the previous model of this racquet and my current racquet of option."
Chris recognized the spin potential as the most impressive element of this racquet when serving. He noted, "Pace on serve was decent for me. Spin was more than impressive. I was able to get lots of bite on the brawl, which allowed me to aim deep and keep my step upwards -- even in tight situations. Information technology felt very easy to snap the tip of the racquet through contact, which let me observe enough stride. The racquet too felt maneuverable when brushing upward the back of the ball to add some spin."
Echoing Chris' sentiments was Andy, who also loved the action he could become on his well-striking serves. He said, "Serving was keen with this racquet; the shining aspect was the spin potential you could get on piece and kick serves. I plant that when I accelerated the racquet quickly (which was piece of cake due to the nifty combination of maneuverability and heft), I could get my serves jumping and diving off the court. I could as well be very precise while getting plenty of juice on my flatter first serves."
Rounding out the coiffure was Marking, who liked the end result of his commencement and second serves. He said, "The frame I played with had Head FXP Tour in it, which is a multifilament string. Although I tend to prefer polys, I liked the grip and tempered power the 18x20 stringbed provided on serve. I was definitely able to ready some weak responses from my opponent with my first serve, and I could get my second serve close to freeway speeds, with a flake of spin as well."
Serve Returns - Score: 87
This racquet performed well all over the court, but our playtesters' favorite shot to striking with information technology might have been the return of serve. "You'd expect this racquet to perform when returning serve because it's the racquet of choice for arguably the all-time returner on the ATP tour, Novak Djokovic, and it certainly does," said Andy. "It has lots of maneuverability while remaining stable when stretched wide. One time again, I had dandy access to power and spin while maintaining plenty of control. This stick will help unlock your potential on service returns."
Chris also loved returning with the new Speed Pro. He said, "My favorite shot with this racquet was the return. I could take a big cut with my forehand and get a groovy combination of spin and power on my returns. When I was forced off residuum the condolement and stable response came into play. I was able to chip the brawl dorsum deep, and I liked the fact that even shanked returns with a total poly stringbed never felt excessively jarring."
Mark had every render working with this racquet. He said, "I loved the backhand slice and topspin return with the Graphene Speed Pro. My usual forehand chip return was too effective."
Troy was breaking serve more often than he unremarkably does with this racquet. He said, "I was returning serve with expert command over the ball as well as good depth. I found that the 100 square inch headsize provided a forgiving sweetspot, and in that location was enough control to be aggressive on my returns. When needing to I could slice the backhand render deep and depression, creating a difficult return for my opponents. The weight and residue of this stick created good maneuverability, as well equally enough plow through to keep the ball deep. Overall, I institute this racquet to help me break serve more oft!"
Overall - Score: 86
Likes
Chris - "I liked the power, spin, experience, touch on and condolement. This version also felt mode more solid and stable, with improve power outside of the sweetspot, than previous versions."
Andy - "I constitute bully experience and neat access to ability and spin, without losing control. It too has plenty of maneuverability without losing too much stability."
Mark - "I could play a tournament with it, fifty-fifty with a multifilament in it. The pigment scheme is pretty middle of the road, which I like, and for the 11.seven oz, 328 boilerplate strung swingweight, I was a picayune surprised at how easy the Graphene Speed Pro was to swing. This racquet's dense cord pattern gets me thinking toward the 18x20s once again."
Troy - "The weight and balance feels good in hand, possessing much amend plow through than the previous version. I institute great precision from all areas of the court."
Dislikes
Chris - "Nothing actually. I would add a leather grip and play around with the string setup, but the racquet itself felt expert -- power, comfort, stability and touch were all there."
Andy - "None."
Mark - "Yet another high quality racquet in my range that I accept to contemplate switching to. I liked it a lot."
Troy - "The simply knock I accept on this racquet was the slight arm-discomfort I experienced on my groundstrokes. This is something that tin exist fixed with string choice."
Comparison the racquet to others they've tried, our testers said:
Chris - "I would consider the Wilson Blade 98 18x20 a straight competitor, every bit is the Caput Youtek IG Prestige Midplus and the ProKennex Black Ace 98."
Andy - "This has been ane of my favorite racquets of tardily, and I could easily switch to this without much of an adjustment. I accept not hitting the previous versions a whole lot, so I'm going to leave the comparing to the YOUTEK IG version to the guys that accept hitting those a footling more. To me, it feels a lot like the new Wilson Blade 98 18x20, with a like feel only with a fiddling more forgiveness and maneuverability."
Marking - "The new Graphene Speed Pro is not besides far off of the original YOUTEK Speed 18x20, IG YOUTEK Speed 18x20, the Prince Exo3 Bout 100 18x20 (with string pigsty inserts), the Donnay Pro Ane 97 (18x20) and Dunlop Biomimetic F3.0 Tour, which are all physically comparable to each other."
Troy - "I felt like this racquet played simply as skillful as my current racquet of choice (customized Microgel Radical MP). It has more power but is non as comfy on the arm. It'due south a much better racquet for me compared to the previous version, possessing more than power, stability, and feel. I establish a blend of power and control that some of the older Caput Instinct's possessed, such as the Liquidmetal."
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Scores
(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)
| Chris's Scores | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 7.8 | Serves | viii |
| Control | 8 | Groundstrokes | eight |
| Maneuverability | eight | Returns | 8.4 |
| Stability | 8 | Slice | 8.4 |
| Comfort | eight.3 | Topspin | 8.4 |
| Touch/Feel | 8 | Volleys | eight.3 |
| Overall | 8.1 | ||
| Andy's Scores | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 8 | Serves | 8 |
| Control | eight.5 | Groundstrokes | 9.v |
| Maneuverability | ix | Returns | 9.5 |
| Stability | 7.5 | Slice | 7 |
| Comfort | 8 | Topspin | 9 |
| Touch/Feel | 8.5 | Volleys | 7.five |
| Overall | 9 | ||
| Marker'southward Scores | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Ability | 8.3 | Serves | 8 |
| Control | 9 | Groundstrokes | 9 |
| Maneuverability | 8.5 | Returns | 8 |
| Stability | 8.5 | Slice | 8.five |
| Comfort | viii.v | Topspin | 9 |
| Touch/Experience | 8.2 | Volleys | nine |
| Overall | 8.viii | ||
| Troy'south Scores | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Power | 8.2 | Serves | nine |
| Control | nine | Groundstrokes | ix.2 |
| Maneuverability | viii.3 | Returns | 9 |
| Stability | 8.8 | Slice | 8.vii |
| Comfort | 6.9 | Topspin | viii |
| Touch/Feel | eight.5 | Volleys | viii.v |
| Overall | viii.five | ||
Playtester Profiles
Chris: five.0 all-courtroom histrion currently using the Volkl C10 Pro 2012. Chris uses a full-western forehand grip, has a fast swing style and hits a one-handed backhand.
Andy: Open level all courtroom role player with a semi-western forehand grip and a two handed backhand. Andy currently using a Yonex RDiS 100 Mid.
Mark: 5.0 lefty all-court thespian with a 1-handed backhand. He currently plays with the Dunlop Aerogel 4D 200.
Troy: five.0 lefty all-courtroom player with a full Western Forehand and a two-handed backhand. Troy currently plays with a customized Caput Microgel Radical Midplus.
Review appointment: February 2013. If you plant this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.
All content copyright 2013 Lawn tennis Warehouse.
Click hither to see all Lawn tennis Warehouse reviews
Source: https://www.tennis-warehouse.com/learning_center/racquet_reviews/HGSPROreview.html