Hi everyone, I am an intermediate/advanced level badminton player in my country. I have always been playing mostly singles but as i am getting much closer to both MD and XD i am about to buy a new racket. I have been using an Arc11 for the last couple of years, it served me well but i am looking for something new. I like it in control and , since i am quite a smash hitter I don’t find it lacking in power but I wouldn’t mind playing with a more HH and stiffer racket. My playstyle is mostly offensive (in fact i like playing in the backcourt even though i am trying to improve my frontplay and defense) so I don’t want to lose power at all. I have a Lining n90iv as well but since I found good for singles in my opinion lacked in maneuverability for doubles, i found it too slow for that. I also used a Lining n9 but couldn’t get very much used to that (maybe i am not very good for Lining in general). I recently tried a Victor JS10 4U in doubles and i enjoyed it a lot because i found it much faster than the rackets i am usually used to and extremely good in control (for the stiff shaft I suppose), the only issue is that in the backcourt I didn’t find it performing that well even though accuracy was brilliant. I am also afraid that it couldn’t suit my single play for its lightness. So I am looking for something similar (I don’t mind the smaller head) but a little bit more helpful in offensive situations (more HH or just heavier). I read that yonex DZS 3U could be kind of similar (unfortunately I don’t have the chance to try it) but some find it too slow for doubles, maybe someone has experience with it in doubles? Other options could be Voltric ZF2 in 3U or 4U since it is stiff and suits an offensive playstyle but maybe it is too slow, i am a bit afraid of it being maybe too heavy (the 3U) ? What about a JS10 in 3U? I don’t know very much about the Astrox series, maybe you could tell me something about them.. what about victor Bravesword 12 3U and 4U?
I would take a look at the Jetspeed 12 if you like the Jetspeed 10 and want a more head heavy racket.
I own both BS12 KRP 3U and an ARC11 3U. Power wise you definitely want to stick with the ARC11. I tried a 4U astrox 77 last week and I must say the power on that racket feels rather good. I however still prefer my ARC11 over it.
I didn't get enough playtime on it sorry, for what it's worth it felt good at the net but the grip he had on it kinda put me off it lol. (I'm a fan of just ac102ex over original grip..). I would nearly say keep the Arc11 and play around with the string tensions. It's a very capable racket.
You can try out Duora10 , it is similar to Arc11. The speed of D10 might be a little slower but the smash power is definitely better than the Arc11. Both are good control rackets IMO. Summary : Smash : D10 > Arc11 Control : D10 = Arc11 Defend & Drive : Arc11 > D10 Just go for D10 if you want to play offensively and change back to Arc11 for fast play
Don't know if your country has it yet, but the new JS11 is definately a good alternative to ARC11 IMHO. I find the arc11 slightly slower than the JS11, slightly more flexible than JS11 In terms of head balance they're both around the same. I found the overall play on the JS11 more controllable and smashes were of better quality (probrably due to the extra stiffness)
personally speaking u seem like the player who wants a lot of speed from ur racket. pls avoid zf2. its a good attacking racket but im afraid its really too heavy for u if u really change to MD and XD, unless u get 4U version. jetspeed 10 sounds like a good choice, especially 3U. other choices tht id like to recommend to u is Nanoray z speed.
