Racquet Playtest Comparison:

About the play tester

About the racquets

Name: Netman on the Talk Tennis message boards Playing Level: 3.5 Regular racquet, string & tension: Dunlop MaxPly McEnroe modified to 11.7 oz, 6 pts HL. Primary is strung with BDE Perf 16 Nat Gut (M)/Gosen SM 17 (C). Mains 58, Crosses 60. Backup (for damp days/courts) has Wilson Sensation 17. Mains 58, Crosses 62. Both have leather grips and Yonex Supergrap overgrips. Tell us about your game: Mostly doubles on hard courts. Prefer to serve and volley. Swing fast and generate own power. Serve flat and slice, continental grip. FH and BH Volley continental. One hand BH, topspin and slice. FH mainly flat and slice, have added some topspin. BH is my primary weapon on both groundstrokes and volleys. Use angles, spins and placement to construct points, not a baseline basher. Test scenarios: Scenario 1: Men's Doubles. 4 sets, rotating racquets every four games. Scenario 2: Mixed Doubles. 6 sets, rotating racquets every set. Scenario 3: Prince ball machine. Set at 4.5 level, random FH/BH program which generates a mixture of spins, placement and speeds. 100 balls each frame. Mix of ground strokes, half volleys and volleys. Then hit 50 serves with each frame.

All test scenarios were played in 35-40 F weather so strings were a little stiff and balls were a bit harder than normal. Actually broke a main on the Volkl during Scenario 3 when I caught a ball right where the string enters the grommet at the tip.

Yonex and Prince were 3 grams lighter than the TW published weight. Volkl was 7 grams lighter. All were strung with Wilson Sensation 17. Was not provided tension info. I did not use vibration dampeners. Added an overgrip to all 3 which added 7 grams of weight.

Power

Yonex RQ-7 MP - I look for what I call the "noodle effect" when I see a racquet that is under 11oz and has a flex rating in the low 60's., i.e. this frame. The Yonex does not have this problem. When I first hit with the Yonex, I quickly realized it rewarded long, smooth swings with a solid hit, good power and great control. This racquet had more power than I expected. My backhand became an even better weapon. I could hit deep, penetrating balls both cross court and down the line. If I was lazy or out of position, it was pretty easy to knock off a shot that didn't land short in the court. FH were not as powerful as the BH, but I could get good depth with more topspin that I normally generate. RQ-7 was a great weapon on return of serve. I must have ripped half a dozen screaming winners down the alley right past the net man. A monster serving stick. I could hit big flat serves deep in the box and by adding a little slice send them jumping and skidding off the court. My opponents commented on how well I served with it. Volleys . Here is the Achilles heel. Volleys just had no feel or power. I could hit drop volleys and steal pace, but the RQ-7 just did not stick the ball. Also there is no "feel" when volleying, just a disconnected thud. Very strange. There is wonderful feel and control on groundstrokes and serves, but it all seems to disappear at the net. Lead might fix this, but at what cost from the baseline?

Prince Diablo MP XP - The lowest power of the three. I could take a huge cut at the ball and it was almost impossible to knock it out of the court. Felt more solid than the Yonex when striking the ball, but got a loud "clanking" sound every time the ball was struck, sounding like a much lighter, stiffer racquet than its actually is. I was expecting more power than the Yonex, but found the opposite. I had to swing as hard as possible to get power and depth. Pretty good slice, but again I had to really drive through the ball or it wouldn't even reach the net. Served similar to the Yonex, good power and spin was there, though not as easy to access as the Yonex. Volleys. Volleyed well as long as I was well prepared and used good form. It would stick volleys with authority (and that funny clanking sound). Recovery shots were tough to hit with this racquet. Return of serve was ok but not special, and it was a little easier to get jammed. Preparation is everything with this racquet.

Volkl BB-10 - Most powerful of the three. The Volkl is very maneuverable. I can generate lots of topspin on groundies because of increased racquet head speed, which is critical with this frame to keep the ball in play. However I was hitting shots without much weight. Initially, I was constantly out in front of the ball due to the ability to swing so fast. Serves could be hit with lots of spin, but it was hard to hit a flat screamer. It excels at rapid fire volleys. I could react quickly to shots at the net, but unless I punched through the ball, it landed soft. I also needed to put some underspin on my volleys or they would fly off. For a couple of years I tried to switch to much lighter racquets, ending up playing the Prince TT Hornet MP modded up to 10.8 oz. The Volkl reminded me of that racquet but with the softer flex the Hornet sorely needed.

Control

Yonex RQ-7 Control on all shots, except volleys, was excellent. I could vary spins and pace and come up with really good angles from the baseline. If your game is based upon mixing it up from the back, moving your opponent from side to side, this racquet would be a great choice. It was eerie, I could pick a spot on the court where I wanted the ball to go and then put it right on the dime. I hit so many laser-like passing shots my opponents wanted to know who had been giving me lessons. This from a pretty average baseline player. Same thing with serves. I could put the ball on a dime with power and spin. Good control on return of serve. You can hold the shot until the last moment and still knock off a strong return. Volley weakness has been noted. Could hit drop and touch volleys which stick to the court, but all volleys were hard to control precisely. There is just no feel when hitting the volley, which made every trip to the net an adventure.

Prince Diablo XP - Control with Diablo was more from the lack of power than the pinpoint targeting of the Yonex. It seemed to have a small sweetspot. Miss the sweetspot and the ball just died on the strings. This came into play a lot more on volleys and rushed shots when there wasn't time for proper setup. On serves, control was good and it was easy to hit it big flat serves deep in the service box as long as you swung hard. Volleys were easy to control with proper form, but needed a big punch to get any depth and weight. Service returns were controllable, but the need to swing hard impaired control .

Volkl BB10 - Control takes some work with this frame. I needed to add a good amount of spin on the ball or it was going to hit the fence. I could move the ball around with slice and underspin, but an easy swing is needed to keep the ball in play. Was able to hit big slice and topspin serves with good movement on them and depth in the box, but they were not as heavy as I would have liked. Return of serve was almost too easy. I found myself out in front of the ball numerous times. Again, slowing down the swing helped, but at the cost of pace and weight. Volleys were crisp and precise with this racquet and it was easy to hit short angles. You can hit fun shots like look away volleys with ease. Numerous times I looked off the net man, then hit a sharply angled ball right behind his back foot. Reaction and stab volleys were easy to hit, but they had little speed and tended to be sitting ducks.

Maneuverability

Yonex RQ-7 - Found this racquet to be well weighted and balanced. Maneuverability was fine everywhere except the net. I would consider this a nice, light player frame. While lighter than I am use to, it delivered the impact of a heavier frame on serves and groundstrokes. Interesting paradox on this one. It just seemed to flow on groundstrokes, return of serve and serves, yet felt awkward on volleys.

Prince Diablo XP - Preparation is everything with this racquet. Get it back early and swing hard or you will not get a decent shot. It swings heavier than the specs would indicate. This racquet was pretty maneuverable on volleys as long as you prepped well. If you don't prep early you probably won't like this frame. Particularly true on volleys and reaction shots.

Volkl BB10 - Maneuverability is very good. The Volkl is a beautifully balanced racquet that feels and swings lighter than its static weight would suggest. The BB10 feels fairly headlight and moves quickly. Makes you want to slice and dice everything. Gives that sense of confidence that you can recover quickly, even if you guessed wrong on the shot. Strong players may find themselves out in front of the ball with this one.

Stability

Yonex RQ-7 - This racquet has a nicely sized sweetspot. I measured string tension on all the frames with a Stringmeter and this was the first racquet I have ever measured that had equivalent readings at all 4 points I measured across the face. Must be some merit to the head shape Yonex uses. This racquet had the stability and solid feel of a much heavier racquet. However, shots outside the sweetspot resulted in a dead hit and a wobbly feeling. A little lead on the head would probably help.

Prince Diablo XP - This racquet felt solid when striking the ball, but the clanking sound noted earlier was annoying. Had the highest "plow though" quotient on groundstrokes and serves. Shots outside the sweetspot tended to die on the strings.

Volkl BB10 - The sweetspot is large and it easy to find. Balls that did miss it died on the strings, similar to the Prince. Another interesting paradox on this one., it felt light when I picked it up and I expected it to be tinny and stiff, but it played solid, with no noticeable shock or vibration.

Comfort

Yonex RQ-7 - A plush ride. Feels very comfortable and almost no shock or vibration - even on mishits. The RQ-7 can feel wobbly on some mishits, but still no real shock to the arm. This tends to mute feel as noted earlier but gives you the confidence to hit the ball hard with out worrying about protecting you arm. Also makes the Yonex feel like a heavier frame.

Prince Diablo XP - There are no comfort technologies on this frame and it plays like a no-nonsense graphite stick. Anything outside the small sweetspot sends vibrations up the arm. As noted earlier, it feels stiffer than its rating would indicate.

Volkl BB10 - Even though this is a mid-weight, medium stiffness frame, it is very comfortable. It feels stiff, but you rarely feel any shock or vibration, except on shots near the frame.

Spin

Yonex RQ-7 - You can hit any kind of spin you wish from the baseline. Drop shots are a breeze. It is particularly good at flattening out a groundstroke and ripping it down the line. I could hit a hard, flat ball without too much concern of the ball flying on me. You can put plenty of spin on serves. Sliced backhands stayed low and deep and it was easy to hit with depth. Easy to hit little dippers just over the net. The lack of feel at the net hampers the ability to hit penetrating underspin on volleys. Topspin lobs were easy to hit from both sides.

Prince Diablo XP - Spin is easy to create, but control of spins was not as easy as with the Yonex. Like the Yonex, you can hit a hard, flat ball without too much concern of the ball flying out. This racquet was best for hitting big flat serves. Had trouble getting much action on slice and topspin serves. Drop shots could be hit but were harder to control than the Yonex.

Volkl BB10 - Topspin was easy to produce effortlessly with the Volkl. You could generate lots of racquet head speed to brush up across the ball. I was having no trouble hitting big rainbow groundstrokes, which I almost never do. Not much weight on the shot though. Topspin lobs were a breeze. Had more trouble controlling underspin shots as they tended to either fly or sit up. Could generate really big ball movement and great placement on spin serves at the expense of ball speed.

TECHNOSPEAK AND FIT/FINISH:

Yonex RQ-7. Wins hands down. Integrated Power Weight System. Nanotechnology Matrix C60, F2 Filter Grommet, Dual Power Structure, Isometric Head Shape. This frame as more stickers than a NASCAR racer. Beautiful multi-color paint job and solid craftsmanship.

Prince Diablo. Close second. Triple Threat Stability weighting, GraphitExtreme, and Dynamic Braided Technology. Glossy black and neon orange finish. Got to love those little hot rod flames.

Volkl. Energy Box, Titanium Lite Carbon. Oh, and Boom Boom's autograph. A beautiful, high quality finish in white and metallic cherry red.

SUMMARY:

The numerical rankings are based on how these three racquets related to each other. I found all of these racquets to be well made, controllable, comfortable racquets, and had no problem picking them up and playing competitively with them. If I could have resolved my volley issue with the Yonex, I would already have one on order. It has such a nice mix of power, control and comfort. I will probably pick one up anyway and play around with some lead to see if the volley issue can be fixed. If you play a slice and dice doubles game, the Volkl would be worth a serious look. Very maneuverable and plenty of spin on tap. The Diablo XP seems like a good choice if you use the regular Diablo, older Rebel or any basic graphite frame and want a little more length and power with lighter weight.

Control RQ-7 90 Diablo XP 85 BB10 80	Comfort RQ-7 90 BB10 85 Diablo XP 75	Groundstrokes RQ-7 90 Diablo XP 85 BB10 80	Maneuverability BB10 90 RQ-7 85 Diablo XP 80
Power BB10 80 RQ-7 75 Diablo XP 70	Serves and Overheads RQ-7 90 Diablo XP 80 BB10 80	Serve Returns RQ-7 90 Diablo XP 80 BB10 75	Slice RQ-7 90 BB10 85 Diablo XP 80
Stability RQ-7 85 Diablo XP 80 BB10 80	Topspin BB10 85 RQ-7 82 Diablo XP 80	Touch/Feel RQ-7 80 BB10 75 Diablo XP 70	Volleys BB10 85 Diablo XP 80 RQ-7 70
Overall RQ-7 87 BB10 80 Diablo XP 75

Playtest date: January, 2006.

All content copyright 2006 Tennis Warehouse.