KING OF SPIN - 98 EDITION | Babolat Pure Aero VS vs. Head Extreme Tour vs. Vcore 98 Racquet Review 

Thanks mate - i switched up my forehand just a little bit in last few weeks, certainly works better since coming off of the lockdowns previously, kind of lost it a bit

Thanks Kyzer, appreciate that 😁

Most racquets i get are underspec'd , and when you've tested this many racquets, you know what works personally, but i would prefer to play in stock if possible lol

Thanks Samster, glad you like the videos! 😁

Haha let's hope it stays that way 😆, thanks mate

Thanks buddy, given that i dont release many videos lol, much appreciated

@@ACTennis A good shot selection is more important than anything else…😉

Thanks mate , honestly didn't have all that much on the ET - i keep most things light and fast as possible, just enough for stability and power without sacrificing manoeuvrability.- all my specs for each frame i customize will end up being roughly the same, i experiment and experiment but at the end of the day i know what works for me lol

Biggest anomaly in YT history right? 😂

Thanks bud, VS is super fun to swing around, like the fastest racquet ive used at a standard weight - ET takes a good while to find it, but i would probably say it's closer to an advanced frame

Thanks Morgane, appreciate it - correct yeah, Extreme Tour is basically a platform racquet for control with pretty good spin, old blade should have a good punch , it's what Tsitsipas uses 🙂

Yeah ET kind of needs the extra weight or lower tension , i might try to add a little more again and counter balance, but i think it works well for me at the moment

Thanks Thomas, good to know - does make it alot easier for me to make aswell, might try to pump out a couple more videos here and there when i'm free since it's slightly less time consuming...still very time consuming but lol not as crazy

How does the speed pro play compared to extreme tour?

@@hameedn.b7004 for me the SPEED PRO does everything very well. The feel is more plush than the ET. Easier for flat shot, easy to create spin maybe not as aggressive as the Gravity Pro but at least the launch angle was higher than the ET. Stable in stock form with good plow. My only downside is that I could go for the lines with my ET and head pro tour 2.0 but cannot with the Speed and Gravity pro.

Still quite busy from work lol, i'll see how many reviews i can release, depends on if i have enough play footage already

If Vcore 98 was the only racquet around , it would certainly do the job more than enough, i just think some particular qualities of the others played better in comparison

i have the 2019 Pure Aero VS and no arm issues thou I heard others complain about it being too stiff. Been using Solinco tour bite 16 string. Spin frame, spin string.

Thanks Gareth - VS has very good dampening and paired with softer strings it feels quite nice for the stiffness levels, a cushion grip is also a good idea, i havent tried the VTA ones before, might be worth

@@ACTennis I really enjoy the vt ones, wouldn’t go back to playing without them now, well worth a try in my opinion. Anything that helps stave off the elbow pains of the past for me is a welcome addition.

Thank you very much, that’s amazing, appreciate it Happy to answer your question in as much detail as I can remember - I didn’t have the racquet at the time of this video, so did not think about including it, I really thought the Whiteout would be similar to TF40 playability, because it’s mould was based off the TF40, made from same factory, but they slightly altered it - Whiteout is near equal to VS in power, where VS is more specifically for vertical motion (although can flatten ball as well) but I believe Whiteout is more versatile since it’s a constant beam and quite thin, will suit more swing styles, obviously ET is quite controlled and low powered frame in general - Control obviously to ET by far , Aero VS has a more consistent stringbed than Whiteout, as Whiteout string spacing is so wide, and causes it to drop tension very fast, Aero VS doesn’t have this issue, so it can stay consistent for longer, makes it less erratic - Spin is a tough one, but Aero and Whiteout have similar potential, but more dependent on swing path, Whiteout you can really snap into the ball with pure hand speed - this especially helps on the serve where I find it to be the most effortless out of the 3 to serve with - although VS can serve well, it takes a particular type of swing path, that most people did not seem to like - Whiteout would be easiest to most people, it felt Wilson Blade like on the serve, super fast, super efficient - The manoeuvrability, basically crosses over between the other characteristics, in how easy it is to swing and I’ve mentioned it above , Whiteout is likely the easiest due to the shape, it suits more people. For me personally the Aero VS was amazing for my forehand, not great the backhand - Whiteout balances both groundstrokes out better shape does not favour one side, and I think you could probably perform a slapping / whip shot easiest for flat penetration with the Whiteout more efficiently than the VS

VS has flattening ability, but i wouldn't recommend it to someone who wants to hit flatter, it'll have a higher launch angle even with a 16x20 pattern , you'd have to explore outside of Yonex for something, or the Ezone you just need to experiment with string and tension, because when you get it correct, it works quite well

Thanks Robert 🙂

Extreme Tour is probably close to the VC95 playability wise, VC95 is faster through the air but needs extra weight to make it more solid vs. the ET - the VS is just something else if you want something very easy and fast to use

Thanks Josh - if you go to multi obviously expect to sacrifice some spin , if you do a poly poly hybrid then you probably won't sacrifice anything - my favourite setup was the poly hybrid, multi hybrid personally just doesnt suit my style

@Josh, I have been using 17g Confidential crossed with Lynx Touch in an Extreme Tour for a couple of months. It is a nice combination, not harsh at all and spin is what I would expect from Confidential. The feel and sound are both confidence inspiring. The only thing that gives me pause is that the Lynx Touch, even though it is smooth, pretty much saws through the Confidential. It's a surprising amount of notching in a relatively short time (looks like it will break any moment). I've paired Confidential with Kirschbaum Pro Line II rough and not seen this aggressive notching. YMMV.

thanks Josh, pretty much what i expected, if it's cheap enough i'll get it

If you use the MP, obvious choice would be the Tour, Pro is better in my opinion but most people say it's too heavy to use for long sessions Tour will provide exact same feel, but give you more control and stability basically Blade 18x20 is also good, but more demanding than the GTour

If swingweight is sitting in the mid 320 range, then its rarely any proper modification, i increase swingweight to mid 320s just to stabilize a racquet enough to make it play well , but still light enough - all i'm doing is just adding 1g of lead total at 12 to increase swingweight by 7-8 pts , and overgrip is already +5g to handle - if i really really need more weight to handle then ill just add another +5g to buttcap

Have been meaning to try it but not keen enough to buy it, so if i can get a demo i will have a go and see

Very opposing style racquets, Aero is stiffer, spin orientated, power, light, fast Blade v7 is bit heftier, soft, muted, high launch angle with some spin but more control and stability V8 with no weight is flimsy, low powered, control orientated, not much spin, needs a bunch of weight to make it better

Yes usually Wilson Burn, i think you can still find some from official Wilson site for a cheaper price, unless theyve stopped it, ladt i remembered they released burns to be a budget line - otherwise Ultra will also have spin (not Ultra Pro or 95) but more focused on power before spin

Probably not, no test models around and i'm not gonna dish out on them because i already have the previous model still lol, if they make a demo available then sure

Never got my hands on the MP, i bought the Pro and never made a review on it lol, all the footage is just in archive haha - i hear the MP is kind of close towards the Extreme Tour , so would be interesting how that plays out

@@ACTennis Radical MP has the weight distribution towards the head. More solid if you ll found one with decent quality control. Power delivery is more instant and classic feeling like pro staff for example. So to me it has more free power than ET despite head suggest the opposite. Best suited for flat users not enough spin potential. To me it’s the best current head racquet. Radical pro is a lot more demanding and not forgiving but feel is great too. You like gravity line so you would definitely enjoy radicals too. For me extreme tour is a demanding stick….. even with lead free power doesn’t comes with ease…..

Indeed the PAVS is an excellent racquet lol

@@ACTennis VS is of the few sticks that made me to consider switching from my blade V5 2015 98S version….. the only issue i had was confidence on my 1HB…. I couldn’t plow through and drive it exactly where i wanted…. ball could easily fly away. I want to re-demo it and see how it would play with lead at 3/9 or 10/3….. because it’s way too HL.

@@TheodorosKolokotronis799 Yeah VS needs to be really crashing into the OHBH to get a good strike off it, but it's pro's is that since it is so fast, that on the run i can get around the ball easier too, so you get a little and you give a little

@@ACTennis i also didn’t enjoy it at all with hyper g. With rpm team i had more consistency. But i believe it’s a very sensitive string racquet. I was not fully confident when executing drop shots…. it’s a babolat after all ball pops easily from the stringbed….. it needs time to adjust your strokes. But what you gain from this stick on forehand, slice and specially on ENERGY RETURN (this is the medicine against heavy hitters…. you just put the racquet) outshines it’s cons.

VS is bigger sweetspot, Vcore is supposed to be more comfortable but will depend on tension and string you use, i actually like the VS comfort alot for its stiffness, VS is better for both whipping and driving, Vcore easier to drive than to whip

I don't really "switch", i buy alot of racquets, i keep alot of racquets, sell alot of racquets lol, i go through periods of high usage, VS is a keeper, ET is a keeper (i've had it before but i sold it because it was ugly)

@@ACTennis Haha, I can definitely see that! I agree with you on the pj for the ET. I got it because of the nite pj. I also got the Ezone 98 based on your review and now comparing it to the ET. I definitely prefer the Ezone more. I am tempting to get the VS and try it out as well and go from there.

@@louisfung1698 Love my ezone for sure 🙂 unbeatable on the serve, and my most important shot aside from forehand

If you enjoyed ezone 98 on serve wait until you try ezone 100…. probably best serving racquet out there. But but but….. yonex has yet to produce a truly unmuted stick like the old days of DR,xi,si,duel g etc. Also i would never suggest ezone 98 to any one hand backhander out there….. Vcore pro 97 line or VC95/98 are more natural. Ezone 98 is like holding a boat stick…..

Sorry late reply - i only put 2g at 12 if i remember correctly, it was enough for me, i wanted to keep the speed , not too much extra weight

Could be a possibility

Lynx Tour was just a little too controlled for my liking since ET is already controlled, so i liked something softer and more powerful, maybe just as shaped - my hybrid poly poly setup worked nicely i thought

Try Solinco confidential down at 48lbs

Not too hard, it's a matter of preference and playstyle, they are quite different Vcore 95 is a control racquet with some good spin capabilities for a 95, low powered, not extremely forgiving but pretty decent considering the head size - i would say needs a decent amount of additional weight to unlock its full potential Aero VS is a power spin racquet that is super easy to swing, more control than the regular aero but no where near same as Vcore 95 If you want a racquet that you need to put the work in, go with the Vcore - if you like power racquets like Pure Drive and Aeros or Yonex 100s, but want smaller frame thickness and bit more accuracy, then Aero VS is the go to Both are great racquets, just careful with the stiffness of the Aero VS long term (though i dont find it incredibly stiff for its rating)

@@ACTennis great feedback thanks so much👌

Depends on the day really, if i'm tired and want an easy ride, VS is the way to go, if i need to dial it in a little bit if the balls are flying, ET will be more useful

@@ACTennis thanks! one last thing do you feel the ET is easier to serve with given the 16x19 pattern? I heard its also better for slicing.

@@JnRGaming Not a bad serving racquet by any means, more control if you need it, but my serve is pretty standard with almost every racquet i use, so i think PAVS can serve better as long as you can utilize the speed of it to its advantage, but some people will say its not very good at serving - which probably means its underspec or not your style

@@ACTennis thanks for the insight. I think my pure arrow vs a little bit under spec with the swing weight but can easily be remedied with some lead tape. yeah I guess the extreme tour is more controller oriented good to know thanks man. always enjoy watching your videos

They are completely different racquets. ET is the most spinny players racquet out there. To me suited only for advanced players and up…. With pure aero vs you can win tournaments……ET has better placement on serves, ball goes off fast but it hasn’t got any heft behind it like it’s baseline strokes. If you are not an advanced player you would never extract anything from that frame….. nevertheless i enjoyed its feel and touch.

Aero VS has more spin and power, is faster through the air, not great on the one hand backhand, and decently stiff, but i don't mind it - Ezone 98 2022 is one of the best serving racquets, just as excellent on groundstrokes, with less spin, less power, more control, one hander is decent but you need a little bit of weight added

@@ACTennis This is awesome! Thank you. I do like to play with more spin though. Is the difference significant on the backhand side?

@@timothytabora2038 it's not the spin that's better or worse, it's the weight behind the swing, VS is made for a very vertical swing so it works extremely well for a modern forehand, but then when you do this for the backhand it's much more difficult to get the same speed on the swing

@@ACTennis Thanks for helping out! I really appreciate it.

Take a look at 2:23

It's not that they necessarily run large, it's because of the shape - the shape is much more squared off each bevel, which naturally will make it larger because each bevel is kind of evenly lengthed, so in technicality yes they are bigger

Personally for me yeah, one day for me the VC really me to dial in the spec to suit me more, anything other than that didn't work too well for me

Really hasn't been crazy noticeable to me at all, would be no different to a normal hybrid would it? but yeah my mains will lose a little faster but it doesn't affect my play

@@ACTennis I've definitely noticed the differential with Solinco in the mains and cheaper Kirschbaum on the crosses. The crosses end up looser and bowed upward towards the tip.

Launch angle with the extreme tour can highly depend on the strings you use, use a round poly and youll find it doesnt launch so crazy and is more like a standard 16x19 what you'd expect, but 18x20 will always be much lower, also given ET is made for spin, then naturally arc will be decently higher

Which frame? VS i think was just 2g at 12 , ET was 3g at 12, not really doing anything extravagant, im increasing SW as much as i can without increasing overall static weight too much, static weight slows me down as much as higher swingweights - crosses youre looking for something round that will help the mains slide, something slick is even better - T1 ghostwire works well with a number of strings

Generally 2g at 12 will increase it by around 8-10 SW points, so 325-330 is generally an optimal range for my swing where i can find just enough stability as well as main some relative lightness to keep racquet head speed

@@ACTennis Thanks a lot. So with the ET, you simply went with some lead at 12? Did you also try @3&9 or 10&2?

@@NikBoyi Didnt like anything with swingweight over 326ish because it reduced my racquet head speed

@@ACTennis Did you add any weight to the handle for counterbalance?

Not terrible but not ideal, 2 reasons is that most people may hold the throat with the non dominant hand, and the wide triangular shape doesnt feel as nice as holding something rectangular and small, obviously more nitpicky but that's a common criticism Second the design is made for vertical swing path to generate top spin, a one hander doesnt really move in that kind of way, so what happens is that you feel like theres not enough weight or plow through behind the ball when you hit, this needs to be supplemented by additional weight, because you wont generate the same racquet head speed as you would on the forehand

@@ACTennis Thanks for the feedback. Much appreciated. If you don't mind me asking. What racket are you using these days?

@@chadallen3211 Gravity Pro for proper matches

SW Machine Briffidi

They are different racquets, different shape, Alcaraz uses the newer one, Felix uses one of the older ones, can't remember which

It's included in the review 🙂

@@ACTennis In this video (Seen it a lot, si sorry if I missed that point) or in a review about pure Aero vs only (Haven t Seen it and going to check it right now) ?

@@Le-Chuck Would be when i talk about feel in beginning for the comfort and sweetspot is in forgiveness Large sweetspot and comfort is decent , its a stiff racquet, but its not as bad as one might think

@@ACTennis ok I see. I played with a pure strike 100 (pr one seven in 100si) and it was Bad for my arm, so I passed to other brands. Now I play with a blade 98 v7 16 19 (Gravity mp before that). I just was given an old all red vcore 98 (lower ra) strung with an hybrid and 2 gr in the throat). I feel I would benefit some more forgiveness and spin from the blade so, after some research (thx also to your videos) I now must chose between : pure Aero vs with fear of thé ra, New vcore 98 (but doesnt look so good here and there), ezone 98 but fear i won t benefit so much spin more than my blade (or maybe ezone 100 but fear the too Big power), New blade (I try and thought the same as you : meh! I préfère m'y v8). I also tried the New speed mp strung in RPM power 23/24kg, good stick but too much power (maybe the string). I have an old clash 98, good stick but erratic, no feeling and string/tension eater. Maybe I m just lost 😅 but I feel that a more open blade 98 would be the answer. Anyway, thx for all your answers. 😋👍

@@Le-Chuck I think ezone 98 will give you more spin and control than the blade , but not sure where you live , im sure there is a blade 98s that is available somewhere which is i think 16x18 pattern, could try that also - if you have problems before with the arm, i would stay away from VS , maybe you wont feel issues straight away, but long term use may give you trouble

Difference is the serve, ezone serves much better, more control - VS is more spin, bit more power, very fast through the air for swinging, not as stable without weight

This one takes me like 2 minutes to do, compared to the endless hours i spent on the previous ones hahah, glad you still like it

Yeah the VS can getcha with the stiffness for sure if you're not careful, luckily dampening does a very solid job - i doubt the SX Tour will be on the way unless i see it for super cheap, but i don't think anyones bought it here really lol, i'm not paying $300-350 for it, because if i try and sell it, i probably won't even get $200 back

Waiting for it to come out in my country 🙄

I mentioned it in the first minute 😁

I think you are talking about technical things , a racquet wont help you immediately - except you are using the Radical Pro which is a very difficult racquet to use - you should use lighter more easier racquet, so you can actually move it around and hit with ease - maybe Speed MP or Speed Pro, Radical MP also ok

Yeah that's what it is supposedly - VC95 is a different story though 😁

I liked the old Shapo vcore95 SV. I bought it twice. Each time i had to ditch it because it was a wrist killer. Although i never served and hit harder.

@@fingersm Only have the 18' one and still a favourite of mine

It depends my friend. VC95 is a better racquet than ezones if you can handle it. On the other hand ezones are a lot better sticks compared to the ultra f muted vc98. In general i hate all modern yonex sticks despite their fancy PJs and quality. VDM has killed their soul….. people are hyping them because they never experienced yonexes of the past. All of my clothes are from yonex….. that’s how i love this company and how sad i am that i cannot found a single racquet to fully enjoy from them.

I've played with a buddies, does look pretty good, not sure how much different it is to the previous, don't think I'd buy it, if I get a test version i'll make a video

Auxetic version made an excellent racquet even more solid and connected. It will happen to all head line of racquets. Just wait the auxetic version of your beloved one. Mine is radical mp.

@@TheodorosKolokotronis799 I tested radical mp, it still has an absolutely amazing feel.

Not that bad lol