Got a pair of Li-ning n99 (1 blue, 1 gold paint scheme). I haven't played with them yet, but will probably do that tomorrow. I have been playing with a pair of n50ii for several months and I love them. They've clashed a few times when playing with newbies at the club, but so far not even a crack .. just the expected paint chips. First impression - n99 is head-heavier than the n50ii. Beautifully understated rackets. I like the n50ii for all-round play (I like playing at the net in doubles (60%) and 40% at the back court). My smash technique definitely needs improvement, but when I do it correctly, the n50ii produces powerful smashes. But when I tried my friend's Yonex ZForce 2 .. the smash was not only powerful, but the direction was much better controlled. Almost like it went exactly where I aimed, as opposed to the n50ii which goes in the general direction of where I aim. I'll post detailed review after I use it a few times.
So I played with it for about 4 hours. Smashes are way more powerful and more importantly, direction is well controlled than the n50ii. It is a bit heavier so I find that my defense went down a bit. But I feel completely at ease playing with it now. It's not as stiff as the ZF2, but I am missing very few shots due to the racket's fault - mostly just the slight delay in my timing (having used the lighter n50ii), which will fix itself the more I play with it. Clears were initially feeling weird, but as I got the hang of the racket, it became right. I am 6' 2" and 200 lbs, so am not a small guy. I lift weights regularly as well, so the weight will not be an issue for me after a few more sessions. But for smaller guys, I can see how it will not be easy to defend in fast games.
How are you finding it compared to the ZF2? I personally moved from 3U BS12 and found it very difficult to use. Recently picked up a 4U ZF2 and enjoyed using it. Oddly enough as I began using the ZF2, my N99 also felt like it was easier to use.
ZF2 .. when I first used it, my skill level was not high and I was not able to make good use of it. Smashes were not that powerful, I wasn't able to control the shots. Now, when I tried the ZF2, I was able to control well and generate power. The n99 is easier to control than ZF2, and power is almost the same. So I agree with your experience.
Can any suggest which is better model , when compare to N99 or N9ii or N90IV Both offensive and defensive
I have not tried the n90iv or n9ii I've only used the following Li-ning rackets (n77, n50ii, n99). Of these, the n50ii is the easiest to use, for all-round play. I found it excellent to use for defending and at the net, but lacking power for smashes and drives. With the n99, now my smashes are much more powerful, as well as controlled. Drives are way better. But, defending and net play is more difficult .. being slower to use compared to n50-ii. The n77, which I used 2 years ago, was also great for all-round play. Nothing really sticks out to me on that model.
Subjectively comparing the stiffness between a Yonex Voltric 7, Victor Jetspeed 10, Li-ning n50-ii and Li-ning n99, the n99 seems to be the stiffest. Here are some photos comparing the heads of the above rackets. The n99 head is noticeably bigger than Jetspeed 10, slightly bigger than n50ii and almost exactly the same size as Voltric 7. When I played with the n99, I noticed a bit of difference in the sweet spot, compared to the n50ii which is more forgiving. But, compared to ZForce 2, the n99 has a bigger sweet spot and it only took me 2 games to get used to the n99 and now I love it.
Just want to share my experience about the N99, I recently purchased the N99 and used for about 5 sessions and here is my thoughts about it. I would consider myself to be intermediate player, played in small competitions but not at state level or anything. Stringing the racket with BG80power @28lbs and tried the racket mostly in doubles, I would consider myself as a rounder player where I will play whichever place in the court. Attack i would rate 8/10 thanks to the weight on the frame, control I would also rate it 8/10 as I'm able to place the ball wherever i wanted. Now things get bad on defense.... I'm not sure but I'm not able to defend well with this racket, especially during lift from smashes as it takes a lot of effort to clear to the back of the court. I also owned the Yonex Lindan Force and comparing this to the N99 I could clear effortless with LF. I think maybe the issue is that racket is one of the first 3U racket i bought as I use mostly 4G racket for doubles, only reason I got the racket cause I got a good price on it and it looks super high quality and paint job is excellent. The racket I was using before I bought the N99 was the Voltric 80 E-tune for 4U and the frame broke cause I was stringing the racket on 28lbs and it didn't last on me, this racket I had no issues with so i thought N99 would give me a similar feel but I must have misjudged. I would say this racket would be more suitable for singles (which i think this racket is design for lol). As for doubles I would suggest maybe the N7II which I think i should had bought it, but I bought the N99 cheaper than the N7II otherwise I would have bought the racket.
I suppose it also depends on the physical size of the player. I am 6 feet 2 inches tall and moderately powerful. So it works for me for defense as well, although not as easily as the n55ii or other lighter frames.
n99 felt very wobbly and didn't do very well at 28lbs+ tensions. I think 26lbs is the ideal tension for this racket
550 with string and grip, but if your going to buy a racket from Li Ning for doubles i suggest the N7II or N9II which is hell much faster and suits doubles more, N99 is more suited for singles IMHO.
Yeah I'm waiting for 11.11 discount I might get N9ii directly from LN official store in JD. I'm so intrigued by the design, since I already have 3D Caliber I might try Turbocharging as well. Recently they have launched quite a number of new rackets in their market but they didn't make much effort to promote outside the region. Like 3D Caliber 500 and more.