Review and Comparison Li-Ning Aeronaut 9000C and 7000C
Part 1
I bought the 7000C back in 2020 for ~155€ (shortly before the lockdowns in our country started) and recently got my hands on a 9000C for ~126€ via the Li-Ning Family (Li-Ning.dk) shop. I have used both rackets for some time now, so I decided it would be time to post a review/comparison, especially since there aren’t many on the 7000C.
It has been a love hate relationship with both rackets, since they are not very user friendly, and the lockdowns (and therefore reduced time on court) after buying the 7000C didn’t help with that.
Another factor was my selection of strings: I really struggled with the 7000C when I used BG80 or G-Tone 5. Going for a softer string like the No1 helped with that.
Why did I buy these two rackets?
When I bought the 7000C I was looking for a doubles racket which is slightly stiffer than the N9-II since I didn’t felt comfortable with it anymore and also wanted something inbetween the N9-II and N55 when it came to stiffness and balance.
The 9000C was a bargain (considering the usual prices of LN rackets) and I was going to sell either the 7000C or 9000C after thoroughly testing them. Seeing Yuta Watanabe use it may have influenced the choice a bit
General Specs:
Wet setup: LN No1@12,5kg, three (five on 9000C) layers of cushion wrap, LN GP1000 overgrip with 50% overlap and thicc ring around buttcap.
Weight (Dry):
7000C - 89g;
9000C - 88g
Weight (Wet):
7000C - 99g;
9000C - 98g
BP (Dry):
7000C - 300mm;
9000C - 298mm
BP (Wet):
7000C - 293mm;
9000C - 293mm
Head Weight:
7000C - 43g;
9000C - 43g
Stiffness:
7000C – medium;
9000C – medium/medium flexible
Grip Size:
7000C - S2 (G4);
9000C - S1 (G5)
On a sidenote: I haven't owned a G5 Yonex racket for a long time now, but the S2 grip on LN rackets feels thinner than the G4 grip on the one Yonex racket I have (didn’t measure it though). Could it be the same with S1 and G5?
Speed & Handling:
I was pretty happy with the speed of both rackets. The slimmer grip on the
9000C took me quite some time to get used to but makes maneuverability slightly easier.
Both move well through the air despite being slightly headheavy, while feeling faster than the usual box frame. Probably due to the airstream vents on the bottom of the head (at 4-6 o'clock positions), which seem to behave differently than they did on the N99, where I felt that it didn't really make a difference when it came to speed.
Drives, interceptions and fast counter attacks are easy to play with both rackets, but slightly easier to control and execute with the slimmer grip on the
9000C. The additional flex also helped with defensive lifts.
Quick stick smashes and wrist flicks were better and easier to execute with the
7000C on the other hand due to the additional stiffness.
Neither of them are as fast as a Bravesword 12 or Jetspeed 10, but they make up for it in pretty much all other areas.
Control & Feeling:
The additional stiffness of the
7000C made it easier for me to control shots from the mid and backcourt when compared to the
9000C.
But when playing at the front court the slimmer grip made it easier to control soft shots and play tight net shots. The better maneuverability helped making these shots feel easier and I would prefer the
9000C when playing at the front (which I don’t do most of the time).
The feeling of both rackets when hitting is quite solid. The Aeronaut frame doesn’t suffer from the hollow feeling of the Turbocharging and on the 3D Calibar series (to a lesser extend though).
They provide solid feedback after hitting which I sometimes miss from my backup N9-II or BRS 12.
Not as solid as the usual box frames on Yonex rackets, but very decent.
Power:
Since these rackets are not really headheavy, it shouldn't come as a surprise that both are not among the most powerful ones. This must be the hardest part to describe, since I have been used to playing with stiffer rackets (Calibar 900 CP/N55) and/or head heavier rackets (N55, N90-II and also Tectonic 7C).
At first, I struggled to get comfortable with both rackets. Hitting hard has never been a problem for me and the specs were pretty much what I had been looking for in a racket.
As expected when looking at the specs,
Clears were effortless and both rackets well within my range of comfort regarding stiffness and head weight. Never wished to have a bit more headweight or more/less stiffness.
Now the tricky part:
Smashing with the Aeronauts.
One major point of critique on the N99 with its Airstream frame has been the user friendliness caused by its smaller sweet spot. This continues to the Aeronaut series of rackets, and it will reward you on a good day, but you won’t be happy to use it when you aren’t focused.
Both can hit hard but don’t expect anything in the league of a N90 or Astrox 99/88D or Z-Force 2.
Getting the timing right on the
7000C took a few weeks but the bigger problem was getting used to the
9000C. Since its stiffness was slightly more flexible than I was used to at that time, it took me about 7 weeks of frustration with inconsistent smashing speeds and angles until it finally clicked and I managed to consistently get the timing right.
That was the moment I fell in love with the
9000C. It hits harder than a N9-II while being similarly fast but slightly more maneuverable and hits as hard as the
7000C but is overall slightly faster and easier to maneuver.
Dominating the rear court with this beauty and chasing down the mid court just felt right; same story when defending, playing fast flat exchanges and interceptions at the net.
I didn’t look back at the
7000C after getting used to the
9000C and decided to sell it a few weeks ago, together with the N9-II (only used this one on bad days at that time and even then preferred to go with the Bravesword 12).