Racquet Playtest Comparison: Power Beam Pro vs RDX 500 Mid vs V-Engine 10 Mid & MP

About the play tester

About the racquets

Name: Shaolin on the Talk Tennis message boards Playing Level: 5.0 all court player, former teaching pro Regular racquet, string & tension: Wilson Prostaff Classic 6.1 strung with Babolat Polymono 17 at 70 lbs Tell us about your game: Aggressive all court player. Serve & volley on most first serves using mostly kick and slice, playing baseline on 2nd serves but approach whenever possible. Western grip forehand, 2handed backhand. Strengths: Serve & forehand. Primarily a singles player but play occasional dubs.

Overall thoughts on each racquet

Estusa Power Beam Pro: Initially I was a little disconcerted by the "unique" head/frame shape but I'm glad that I tried this racquet. I really enjoyed this racquet in all areas of the court and found it to be solid on all shots. Despite being 12oz+, it is very easy to swing and generate racquet head speed, yet easy to create spin and not so powerful that you are worried when hitting out and going for your shots. Definitely one of the best players racquets that I've hit with. The old-school graphics and overall look will make you want to venture to the net more often than usual for perhaps some diving volleys. Short shorts, tube socks and grass court not included.

Yonex RDX 500 Mid: I had never hit much with a Yonex racquet before (I have mostly played Wilson Prostaffs and Head Prestiges) and was happy to get a chance to hit with one for an extended time. I can see why this racquet has a large following, as it was excellent in all departments. Very solid and stable from all over the court, without too much power and great spin potential on serves and groundstrokes. If you are used to a stiff racquet (as I am) the soft flexy feel of this one might be quite a change. Personally my arm and elbow didn't mind the change. If you hit high on the stringbed, as I do, you might really enjoy the RDX headshape. The ball seems to dwell a little longer at the tip of the racquet providing a little more control and ability to curl the ball and find short angles. Also, despite being a midsize this racquet seems to have a sweetspot more like a 98 or 100 inch racquet. The only thing I would change is adding a little weight to the head and stringing tighter, as this generated a little more power than needed occasionally on my forehand. Overall a great racquet.

Volkl V-Engine Tour 10 Mid: This racquet made me really want to go out and hit. Very attractive graphics, nice head size and shape, thin beam, etc. However I was slightly disappointed with it overall. I found its lack of spin potential a little annoying and the racquet seemed to play lighter than its listed weight, feeling somewhat unstable. It would be interesting to try at a much higher tension and with an ounce or more lead tape added. I did enjoy using this racquet at the net, as it was quite agile and maneuverable. This would be a good choice for a flat hitting player or finesse player that likes to get to net a lot, as it seems to be most at home in the front court.

Volkl V-Engine Tour 10 Midplus: I'm not really a fan of the yellow graphics, but that's pretty much the only complaint that I can find for this racquet. A fun racquet to use and just basically user-friendly from everywhere on the tennis court. A notch or two higher on the power scale than the other three racquets but its still controllable as the spin is easy to generate and keep it in the court. Serves are easy to pop and it is quite maneuverable at the net as well. Would be a great choice for a player looking for a platform frame to customize or someone used to the power of a Babolat PD or tweener type racquet but looking for a little more control and predictability. Seems to have more mass in the head than its midsize counterpart and feels heavier/more stable as well.

Power

The Volkl V-Engine Mid had the least power of the four, followed closely by the Estusa, RDX and then V-Engine MP with the most. The V-Engine MP isn't an overly powerful racquet but it felt like a Pure Drive compared to the other three, as serves and groundstrokes came off the racquet with pace quite easily. If you are a player that likes to generate your own power and don't need any help from the racquet, then any of these would be worth a look, although you might want to string the V-Engine MP on the higher end of the tension range.

Control

Great blend of power and control with the Estusa. My groundstrokes found the corners of the court routinely with depth, pace and spin. The first time I hit with this racquet it felt like I had used it for years, there were no surprises. Very accurate and enjoyable to hit with. The RDX 500 Mid came close to the Estusa in terms of control but I found there was a little more power than needed sometimes when flattening out shots, especially forehands. Spin, however, was extremely easy to generate and I found myself finding sharp angles on groundstrokes and serves to pull my opponents outside of the doubles alleys. I found the opposite with the V-Engine Mid, as it was difficult to get enough spin to ever really feel comfortable and hit out. I really would have liked to try this at a higher tension or with poly string. The V-Engine MP was very controllable even though the power level was up a notch or two from the others. Spin was very easy to generate and helped land the ball into the corners when going for big serves and forehands.

Maneuverability

I found the Estusa solid, stable and predictable at the net and easy to swing/generate head speed from the baseline and on serves. Actually surprisingly easy to swing from the baseline in lieu of its 12oz + weight. High marks all around for the Power Beam Pro. The RDX 500 Mid was not quite as flowing as the Estusa but still easy through the air and agile at the net (although it wouldn't hurt to be a little more headlight.) No complaints with the Volkls either as they were both very well balanced for either the baseline or net. The V-Engine Mid was particularly adept at the net and easy to maneuver, but the MP was not far behind.

Stability

The Yonex was probably the most stable feeling stick of the bunch, playing/feeling heavier than its listed weight. Returns of serve and 2 handed backhand drives were a pleasure to hit with the RDX Mid and those are shots that can really break down with an unstable racquet. The Estusa was also very stable, both at the net and off the ground, right up there with the RDX. The V-Engine Mid just did not feel good to me, like it needed more mass/weight in the head. When returning big serves, there just did not seem to be enough substance. The V-Engine MP felt much more stable and I felt like I could really hit a good deep return off a powerful serve. It seemed to play/feel heftier than the midsize.

Comfort

The Estusa had a nice big sweet spot and was very comfortable on all shots, forehands and volleys especially. It swung very easily even though its 12 oz plus weight. The throat/neck area of the Estusa did feel a little strange however with my 2 handed backhand as it tapers in quite a bit there. I am used to hitting with a more uniform beam width at the throat and it took a little getting used to.

The RDX had a nice, flexy yet hefty feel that I enjoyed, and, perhaps due to the headshape, the ball felt like it dwelled on the strings forever, allowing great placement.

I really liked the low power level of the V-Engine Mid but it just felt too light, almost like an 11 oz racquet and it just didn't feel solid to me. Probably with some lead tape at 3 and 9 it would feel much more comfortable.

In contrast to the mid, the V-Engine MP felt heavier and more stable with a huge sweetspot. I found it very enjoyable to hit with. I also liked the grip shape of the Volkls, slightly rectangular but not quite as extreme as a HEAD grip.

Spin

The RDX was a dream for spin. Kick serves had a lot of action and were easy to hit over shoulder height or out of the doubles alley. Topspin groundstrokes were fun to dip into the service boxes for sharp angles and passing shots. I would recommend trying this racquet to anyone who likes to experiment with the geometry of the court with heavy topspin. The Estusa was not lacking in spin potential either, especially on slice backhands and serves. Slice approach shots stayed low and slice serves had noticeably more arc and movement. The V-Engine MP had above average spin potential on all shots, especially topspin, and did not disappoint. I would also recommend this racquet to those who like to hit with heavy spin. The V-Engine Mid was really lacking in the topspin generation and I would have liked to try it with a different string or tension. Even hitting with a western grip it was difficult to grab a hold of the ball and I saw a lot of shots fly out that would have fallen in with any of the other 3 racquets. Slice backhands, however were enjoyable with the V-Engine Mid and it was easy to knife low approach shots to follow up to the net.

Comfort Volkl T10 VE MP 92 Yonex RDX 500 Mid 88 Estusa Power Beam Pro 87 Volkl T10 VE Mid 85	Control Estusa Power Beam Pro 95 Volkl T10 VE MP 88 Yonex RDX 500 Mid 87 Volkl T10 VE Mid 80	Groundstrokes Yonex RDX 500 Mid 90 Estusa Power Beam Pro 90 Volkl T10 VE MP 90 Volkl T10 VE Mid 85	Maneuverability Estusa Power Beam Pro 95 Volkl T10 VE Mid 93 Volkl T10 VE MP 87 Yonex RDX 500 Mid 85
Power Volkl T10 VE MP 91 Yonex RDX 500 Mid 85 Estusa Power Beam Pro 80 Volkl T10 VE Mid 78	Serve Returns Yonex RDX 500 Mid 90 Volkl T10 VE MP 88 Estusa Power Beam Pro 87 Volkl T10 VE Mid 85	Serves and Overheads Yonex RDX 500 Mid 90 Volkl T10 VE MP 90 Estusa Power Beam Pro 87 Volkl T10 VE Mid 85	Slice Yonex RDX 500 Mid 92 Estusa Power Beam Pro 92 Volkl T10 VE Mid 88 Volkl T10 VE MP 87
Stability Yonex RDX 500 Mid 92 Estusa Power Beam Pro 89 Volkl T10 VE MP 88 Volkl T10 VE Mid 83	Topspin Yonex RDX 500 Mid 97 Volkl T10 VE MP 90 Estusa Power Beam Pro 88 Volkl T10 VE Mid 70	Touch/Feel Yonex RDX 500 Mid 90 Estusa Power Beam Pro 90 Volkl T10 VE Mid 90 Volkl T10 VE MP 87	olleys Yonex RDX 500 Mid 92 Estusa Power Beam Pro 90 Volkl T10 VE Mid 90 Volkl T10 VE MP 87
Overall Yonex RDX 500 Mid 90 Estusa Power Beam Pro 89 Volkl T10 VE MP 89 Volkl T10 VE Mid 84

Playtest date: March, 2005.

All content copyright 2007 Tennis Warehouse.