1. How often do you play, how serious are you? I play atleast 3 times a week at about 3-4 hours each time. I'm a serious player playing in competitive teams and going to competitions 2. What style of player are you? (Aggressive smasher, net player ...) I'm mostly an agrressive player who likes to play the power game ( I play doubles by the way), I will occasionally play the game with drops and deception 3. Do you care much about durability or is it all about performance? Right now, I'm looking for performance over durability, but having good durability would be a plus 4. How much money do you want to spend? Money is not an issue for this racket. I am coming from a Victor Power Waves 11 racket. I'm looking for a racket that is offensivly oriented like this racket which is stiff and head heavy. I have no preference over the brand as long as it is available in Toronto ( I do not want to have to order it online). All suggestions are welcomed and I thank you all in advance
Yonex brand racquets that still sell in Canada that are offensive-based include: Every Armortec series racquet, and that's pretty much it, Racquets from Yonex still being made but aren't as offensive and more for balanced-type play (but can still pack a powerful punch in the right hands) include the MP-99 and CAB-30MS (oval head). A particular Yonex racquet that has been discontinued for ~2 years now (longer in Canada) but has been considered one of the most aggressive type racquets delivering awesome power would be the old Ti-10 (red/black color scheme). Chances are you most likely won't find this in any Canadian retailer, but if you're interested, there may be a few used ones going for sale in the Ontario area in the Buy/Sell area of the forums. Unless you're really strong in the arm, I'd stay away from the Yonex Nanospeed series, they're all headlight and generally control/defense racquets unless you have the power to back the racquet up. Back to the Armortec series by Yonex (which are all head heavy and considered Yonex's current offensive-play racquet line), they're all good, but for the racquets that really stand out, there's the AT-500, AT-700, AT-800 (discontinued), and AT-900. The AT-500 has a touch of power, but still is easy to maneuver and can play well all-around as well, doubling as an effective offense and defense racquet. One of the most popular racquets from Yonex that has amazing power would be the AT-700. It is quite head heavy but somewhat flexible as well, many players find it easy to generate large amounts of power from it, it's the go-to racquet for easy and huge power. I'd recommend this. The AT-800 (both versions) were discontinued this year and replaced by the two AT-900 racquets (which some say to be an improvement, I think the change is minor), but they're still great and if you can find one at a clearance, try it out. The AT-900 racquets I would say are the top offensive-based play racquets currently out for Yonex, their price is fairly steep, but there are few to no complaints about them, they're top notch racquets. Both the AT-900P and AT-900T boast considerable power, but if you're looking for an all-out power racquet, then the AT-900P is what you're looking for. The AT-900P is the strongest Yonex racquet out today and is perhaps the most head heavy racquet out currently by YY, it's somewhat stiff, but if you can use it well, it has explosive power. The AT-900T is a compromise between offense and defense, though it's slightly less aggressive than the 900P, it still has power well above that of the average racquet. It is somewhat easier to adjust and use, and is also excellent for defense. Going from most power/aggressive racquet to least would be: old Ti-10 > AT-900P > AT-800OF > AT-700 > AT-900T > AT-800DE > AT-500/CAB-30 MS > MP-99 This is all subjective and just my opinion, but that's the way I see it, In conclusion, I highly recommend the AT-900P for pure attack, AT-900T for great power with great defense too and the AT-700 for easy power. The others I discussed about are also all great choices, but those three are my top picks for availability and performance.
first off, thank you SO MUCH for typing that much info. I thought that the AT-700 is more head heavy than the 900 P, but the P is stiffer.
from your informations, pick one of these; 1. Yonex AT-900P 2. Yonex AT-700 3. Yonex Ti-10 (new) 4. RSL Diamond X2 Pro if possible, demo these rackets......
I wish I could demo them lol. Thanks for your suggestions, but are there any suggestions from other brands such as SOTX?
The new Ti-10 (orange/yellow/black) isn't sold in Canada, unless you find it at an import store (which will probably have them coded from somewhere in Asia). This new Ti-10 is still head heavy, but only barely, nowhere near its predecessor, and many players find this racquet quite opposite of the original, in that it is quick, more flexible, and very much more defensive than the old version. But nonetheless, like what Drifit said, it may suit you if you can find one. It may lack power in contrast to the original, but you can still pack some heat with it if you're good with it, I'd say the new Ti-10 is aligned more to that of the Nanospeed series' charcteristics. The SOTX Woven series has been pretty reputable with good performance and power, I haven't been able to find any here in Calgary, but who knows about Ontario, . Refer to Dink's racquet review spreadsheet stickied in the Equipment Forum for a good comparison of many types of racquets.
yeap, the Ti-10(new) is more to all rounder with extra punch of power. guess that yonex revive this model with all rounder in mind. sacrifice power to make it more all rounder. nevertheless, it still pack with power compare to other all rounder rackets.
SOTX wise, I've narrowed it down to the Woven 7i and Woven 7. I think the W7 is heavier, but the W7i is stiffer while lighter than the W7. Hard choice. The colour of the W7i is also pretty.... unique may I say lol
seriously in terms of yonex racquets i think the list works like this: 1) Ti-10 2) Tied between AT700 and AT900P 3) AT800OF
Thumbs up for SOTX! Definitely take a look at the Woven series. In particular, I find the Woven 11 to be one of the hardest hitting racquets I've ever owned. If you don't mind the bottom-cap sticker falling off (although I hear they are moving to paint now) they are great racquets and can take a lot of tension. I don't know many distributors in Toronto, but Winning Badminton had at least 1 in stock last I checked (2 days ago). BTW, why the change in racquets? Is there something you dislike about the Victor Power Waves 11. For instance, I've played with a Power Waves 11--I found it powerful as well--but it's netplay was a little lacking compared to the SOTX.
I'm pretty sure that I will get a SOTX Woven now. Reason is, yesterday, I had such a really big clash, so big and powerful that my Woven 8 flew out of my hands and hit the court mat. Amazingly, my racket suffered no damage other than a minor paint chip, but my partners AT-700 was dead. So now my questions is, which SOTX racket?
