Yonex Voltric 80 ( VT80 )

Also, I truly believe that racket "stiffness" is extremely difficult to accurately measure. I am personally a bad judge of racket stiffness. When I played with the NS9900 (an apparently extra stiff racket), I thought it was less stiff than my apacs Lethal 60. However, my friend was adamant that the NS9900 was significantly stiffer than the Lethal. One of the advanced level girls I know uses Wilson rackets, and I thought one of her rackets was just as stiff as my Lethal 60, but she thought my Lethal was much stiffer.

Also keep in mind that the weight distribution of a racket can be different. The Balance Points of two rackets may be exactly the same and yet the weight distribution could be completely different. Perhaps that's the case with the 8DX and MX80?

 

No chance in hell the shape of the frame plays such a small role. My guess is it plays a considerable role. As I mentioned above, the 8DX and MX80 are very similar in all the properties outlined bar one, the head shape. Technique/strength doesn't even come in to it as I was the one using both rakets. Same strings, same grips. If I needed a lot more strength or technique to use one or the other, clearly there's a fundamental design difference accounting for it. The reason I'm more sure it is the head shape is because You can actually hear the different sounds associated with different shapes. For example, the Bravesword series has a very high pitched sharp slash with swings, the MX80 a bit less so but namely the same. Compared to the 8DX and other Yonex rackets, the swing sound is much thicker and less high pitched. Again, most likely down to the difference in frame shape.

 

Interesting theory with the relationship between "head shape" and "swing sound". So you're saying that a higher frequency sound means a faster swing, given the same power/energy input?

I just went and dug out some 10-20+ year old Yonex rackets (including a Carbonex 8DX) and gave them a few swings around. Compared it with the VT80. Guess what, the older rackets sounded much more high pitched, probably due to the more oval shape? When I placed the head shapes directly over the top of the VT80, they actually didn't look that much different in shape. Again, I'm not sure if the relationship between "head shape" and "swing sound" is a reliable method of measuring any kind of "effectiveness". I think we need a racket designer/engineer to give us some insight here!

EDIT: my apacs rackets also all give a much higher pitched sound then the VT80 (even more so than the old Carbonex rackets).

 

Not necessarily faster, just less air resistance. Sharper more angular frames or shapes cutting through the air with less air resistance, whilst thicker or boxier frames cutting through the air with slightly more air resistance/friction, hence a thicker swoosh sound. Anyone who's ever had a Bravesword and just about any Yonex racket can attest to this. The Bravesword cuts through the air with a higher pitch and with more ease.

I can't speak for the Carbonex as I don't have one at hand to test.

 

Yes, the apacs rackets also seem to produce a much higher pitched sound than the Yonex ones. I remember the Lethal 60 having a higher pitched sound than the Arc 7 too. However, I know many people on these forums who would execute me if I said apacs rackets are technologically better than Yonex. Regardless, one can argue that the trend for Yonex appears to be to produce lower pitched swing sounds (granted none of our "experiments" are very scientific hehe, and I also haven't tried every single Yonex racket out there). A regression in technology? Or perhaps there's more to it than we think in terms of what produces the most "effective" racket in practise, with relative variables remaining constant.

 

Its a another interesting topic which is less covered here. I found that the wiping sound of each racket is largely due to:

1. Frame/shaft design
2. Stringing method
3. String type

And perhaps some other elements that i have no idea about.

I remember about a year ago, I got the Flypower Warrior 8 (which I wrote a review about it) this is the point that I found that it does closely related to the "FEEL" of the racket. Warrior 8 is a fine example, this is my first racket which is almost sound proof (creates the least amount of wiping sound) I ever came across. It affects speed and hence timing. I dont know how exactly how it works, but its aerodynamics is just awesome.

I think one of the measurement on this area should be the amount of air dragging while a racket is moving, and not the high or low pitch sound it makes. I believe the less amount air is traveling through the racket, the more speed the racket can gain. To me the indicator to thats is the volume of the sound (at a relatively same speed) which audio people call it "DB" or something, and not the high or low pitch it makes. And on that sense I dont even know where to start, as Im not a scientist nor an expert on that hahahha......

 

Very interesting post Yoppy. I think you're basically saying that the actual pitch of the sound is not (as) important. What's (more) important is the amount of sound energy created with any given (constant) swing. This is very interesting, as I am finding the "volume" of sound is (subjectively) louder with the VT80 when compared with the ancient Carbonex 8DX. Of course, I can't guarantee that the amount of energy I put into each swing is constant.

 

Yes more or less thats the idea. We can hear how often Fomula 1 racing is won or lost purely based on the difference on aerodynamic alone. I think as technology grow better and better we'll come to a point where badminton racket can be measured aerodynamically, just like BP and stiffness were non-existence 1 and half decades ago.

My experience with Warrior 8 was a strange one, I missed time it so badly until i realised that the racket is moving faster than I thought. It is still now my go to racket for single games. And since then I always pay attention on this aerodynamic thing.

Also think that many manufacturers are trying to go to this direction as well. For example, Victor with their BS series, honestly I dont know if BS is better aerodynamically but I think their frame design is purposely to meet that end. On the other hand I regards the 80 holes on MX80 is a counter earodynamic, althought it provides (arguably) more power.

ssj100, do you have same type of string on your CAB and VT80?

 

I have no idea what string is used on the Carbonex 8DX - it's not mine actually but I'm quite sure it's not the same string as on my VT80 (it's most likely much lower quality string, as it was probably last strung more than 15 years ago with relatively cheap string)! Perhaps that could be a reason for the different "swing sound", but who really knows.

My apacs rackets are all strung with identical string (and supposedly identical tensions) as my VT80, and they definitely sound much more high pitched and are probably producing a slightly lower volume too. However, perhaps we need to consider that some people hear higher pitched noises better than others etc, so it's not exactly a very scientific method of measuring decibels! Doesn't matter to me anyway - I enjoy playing with them all, but for now, I'm hooked on the 3UG5 VT80!

 

Just played with it for a couple more hours of doubles today. Was smashing like crazy. I really like the feel and power this racket generates. We'll see how the arm feels tomorrow. Hopefully less soreness on the arms. If not, back in the bag.

 

Soreness should become less and less the more regularly you play with it. It's like for me, no matter which racket I use, if I haven't played for months, I'll almost always be sore the next day. However, after a few days/weeks of regular play, the soreness becomes non-existent.

 

Gosh, that thread died for months, and never really got going after the racket release. Just shows how big an influence Lee Chong Wei and Mathias Boe (and now Peter Gade and others) are to people? Yonex must have "died and gone to heaven" when Lee Chong Wei and Mathias Boe won the All England 2011 in arguably the two most popular/prestigious disciplines (Mens Singles and Mens Doubles) respectively.

 

Just got a VT80 and without doubt, this is by far the best Yonex racquet ! Before the VT80, I rate the AT900P as the best racquet from Yonex but the AT900P doesn't have as solid a feel compare to racquets like Victor SW35. It is also not as fast as Victor MX80 and power wise, lose to SW35 and probably on par with MX80. This means that the best effort from Yonex is not able to compete effectively.

With the VT80, Yonex has in one single stroke, not only catch up with the competitors but I would say that it trumps them ! The Victor MX80 was designed to combine the characteristics of the SW series (power), BS (speed) and Spira (stability) and though it does have elements of all the 3 series, the results is a compromise rather than sum being greater than the parts.

I feel that the VT80 is more successful at combining all the different qualities required and it is very evident even with your very 1st shot with it. A tremendous effort from Yonex !

 

So I played a good long 3 hour session today, during which I used both the 3U and 4U VT80. I can say without hesitation, that for me personally, the 4U is a better fit. Not only was it faster, especially in defence and at returning instant forecourt drives, but also more maneuverable, powerful and less fatiguing to use. In-fact, for my level of play and strength, I'm not sure what the benefits of using the 3U are. Perhaps a slight increase in stability.

With respect to power, my guess as to why I was able to generate more power from the 4U is either because I am not strong enough to get the most out of the 3U, or because the extra head heaviness of my 4U (my 4U has a 5mm higher BP than my 3U) offset the power difference in overall weight.

In any case, when it comes to ultra head heavy rackets, I think I'll stick with 4U. In-fact....I'm starting to find I generally prefer lighter rackets. I also have two MX80's, both 3U's, however, one is 3-4g heavier overall than the other (also happens to be the one with a lower BP) and again, I find I get on a little bit better with the lighter one. But it's still not as much of a difference as with a 4U/3U VT80. For me personally, the 3U VT80 was noticeably more fatiguing to use than my 4U VT80. But with the MX80's, neither one is fatiguing, and both feel very similar to each other.

In any case, the VT80 delivered in spades for me today. Such potency and power. Every shot is just so direct and snappy.

 

Hi Naim.F.C, I know it sounds like you prefer lighter rackets, but wouldn't it be a "fairer" comparison if you used the 3U VT80 for another few weeks and then see how you get along? You've been using the 4U version for a few weeks right? From memory, you initially found the 4U version way too tiring and slow to use too, but eventually got used to it. I think you very much preferred the MX80 for the first week or so too.

By the way, in general, it may be useful to do some "armchair" exercises to strengthen your wrist. I think Paul (the UK coach who wrote the rather flattering review on the 3U VT80) has some videos on YouTube describing some simple exercises.

 

Gotten 36 hours out of VT80 and shall do another couple hours this week. So far so good. I'll probably stick to this setup (VT80 3U) for a while. It is closing in on becoming my go-to racket but I'm a sucker for more court hours. When I chose the original AT700 as my go-to, it also took me in excess of 50 hours to decide, once decided, that was it.

Was wondering will Li Ning ever decide to produce N90 III? Because I would certainly love to have a crack at it.

 

I completely see your point. But even the 4U VT80 after several weeks of use tires me out now and again (at which point I usually switch to my MX80). I just don't feel I should have to train myself to adapt to something more fatiguing to use, especially when I don't feel I'd really gain much from it. If I had more time to invest in badminton, I might do more exercises or play more etc, but with all the business ventures I'm getting in to recently, it's just becoming so hard to squeeze in the time.

I think for me the 4U is probably the sweet spot. Especially for doubles play where the game can so often be more about speed than power.

 

Fair enough mate. With regards to "armchair" exercises, it's not really about training yourself to adapt to a racket. The "armchair" exercises that Paul demonstrates are very easy to do and will help with whatever racket you end up using.

 

I got the VT-70 3UG5, VT-80 3UG5 and now just got the VT-80 4UG5. I haven't played with the 4U yet but notice that the head heavy balance is more evident in the 4U then the 3U. Comparing the VT-80 4U to an AT700 4U, the AT700 is definitely more head heavy. Also, the weight concentration felt different from the VT and AT. The AT700 weight concentrate around the tip of the frame, where as the VT80 concentrates around lower frame near the T-Joint.

Going to give it a shot tonight and hopefully it'll help me play more like LCW. hahahhahahaa