Hey I am currently using a voltric 5. Since I have improved a lot over the past few years (by playing competition and tournaments), I would like to buy my first high-end racket. I am an attacking player who likes some vartiation in his shots. I play all disciplines. I prefer singles, but play a lot of doubles (most of the time at the back of the court when attacking) and some mixed doubles too. I was looking into the Arcsaber 11, Voltric 70 E-tune and Voltric 80 E-tune. The voltric 70 and 80 E-tune are close with voltric 5, whilst the arcsaber 11 is also supposed to be slightly headheavy and may give me some more speed. Do you think the transition from a voltric 5 to an arcsaber 11 would be too big or not? What are your thoughts on the voltric 70 E-tune. I've read the topic about this racket, but haven't got much wiser from reading it... And finally, do you think the transition from a medium stiff voltric 5 to a stiff voltric 80 would be too big? Thanks in advance
I think the voltric 80 is not ideal if you play doubles. But with regards to transition from one racket to the others, no problem. It will take one or two weeks and then you adapt to your new racket. You can also think of other brands. The Lining n80, or n55 III might be good for you. Or one of the victors, like the BS11 or thruster onigri
Thanks for your advice! Unfortunately, Lining and Victor rackets are hard to find in Belgium. I know only one shop which has Victor and it doesn't have a lot of good rackets (Thruster 9000, 6000, onigiri... for example aren't available). Same goes for Lining. There are two shops who have them, but both are far away from where I live. The shop I go to only has Yonex and since this year some Forza rackets.
I think based on your current racket it's possible to disregard the VT80. It's great no doubt but will be quite a laboured transition, and certainly requires very good technique for doubles (drives, defense etc)... The Arc 11 and VT70 will feel more familiar, and both are incredibly easy rackets to pick up and play with immediately. I think the VT70 will feel the most familiar to you, and the Arc11 might require a little more time to get comfortable with (probably because of the stiffness - what tension do you use?), but both are equally capable in the end. I use an Arc11 and Victor Hypernano x600 myself (which is comparable to the VT70). I'm in the Hypernano phase currently but i can see myself going back to the Arc11 before long...
Thanks, I also thought the VT70 would be the best fit, but now with the E-tune thing, I'm doubting whether it's any good and the 'normal VT70' isn't available anymore. I only use 21 lbs btw. But I feel that my current racket is becoming a bit too soft for me. The last year, I can clearly feel the flex in it with some shots.
Mm.. the flex you're feeling might also have something to do with the string.. 21lb is quite low esp if you play with feathers.. If you're still unsure it might be worth while to experiment with your current racket by increasing the tension to 24lb with a medium string such as BG80 and see how you feel about it. Top end rackets, especially the stiff ones, are made for pin point accuracy and explosive power where as if you're playing with a medium flex low tension set up then you're experiencing a rather pronounced 'trampoline' effect which might make the top end rackets (that IMO work best at 24lb upwards) feel quite alien...
Hey, like I said, I usually play with my voltric 5. This week, I got to use a friends arcsaber 11 for a singles match and to my surprise, I seemed to hit harder with the arcsaber than with my voltric. What could be the main reason for this? The extra stiffness, the handle which was G4 (on the arcsaber) in stead of G3 (on my voltric), the faster swing of a balanced racket...?
I would say the strings. Type, thickness and tension.... With that said, the arcsaber has always been a hard hitter. It's no light weight...
Thanks for the reply, but the strings were actually the same (BG65) and so was the tension (also strung by the same stringer).
