That's just about the best advice for buying rackets. Once you get too deep into specs, you will spent anxious hours worrying about them. You will pore over reviews at BC, looking for a definitive answer. You won't find it. Forget about the specs, the reviews, and the debates. Go try a racket instead.
I am definitely into technical specs for rackets. But definitely not into manufacturer's delibrately vague marketing slogans that people like to repeat. Without the review section on BC and Yonex's limited but useful technical specs, I could not have found the racket I consider to be ideal. Racket reviews done by a large number of people over a long period are generally more valid than racket reviews done by few people in a short time, as views tend to average out better when lots of people are involved. Undoubtably NS9K is considered great by many now. Will it still be considered great when NS10k is out ? If it can stand the test of time, then it is undoutably a great racket. Need I mention there are rackets that did stand the test of time ?
I definately this found out concearning the NS9000, the racket I purchased was delivered a few days ago and is currently being strung. Before purchasing the racket I got very caught up with Type X vs. Type S mind battle...and was worried about whether I have made the right choice in the X, however I guess I'll never know untill I try them both. I think a reason for this is that rackets are so expensive these days. If rackets where cheaper, people wouldn't worry about choosing the right ones as they know they can simply purchase another one, if the one they had chosen simply isnt for them. However when rackets are £100's, people have to save up for the racket and therefore worry about where to spend their money (this especially goes for those who are un-employed or students (like me) and have no steady income.) (I tried to make sure the NS9k was mentioned somewhere in making my point as this thread has been veering off course since....it started lol )
I would never buy a racket without trying it first. I understand that it is difficult for some people to obtain this option, but to me there is no acceptable alternative to trying a racket before you buy.
Just curious, with any owners of the 9K who have the SP coded racket, just wanted to verify if the letters "SP" is on the shaft. If yes, can you post a picture here? Thanks in advance
Try before you buy sounds good in theory. But in practice it is no better than a shot in the dark. How often would people lend you their most expensive racket so that you could play a full game with it ? Even if you are allowed to play a full game, you'd be so careful with the racket that you would be unable to play a proper game with it. Then there's the question of grip, string, and tension, all configured not the way you would want them. Testing a racket like that would be more or less pointless. The only sure way of working out if a racket is good for you is to buy it and use it the way you normally do. If it is no good, buy something else, or if you are lucky, your expensive mistake will cause an inner light to light up and show you the way in finding a racket that suits you best. The racket reviews are useful if you are able to seperate the hype and the facts. I usually skip without a second look any posts containing a trace of the manufacturer's marketing speak. Like Nano C60 super particles are powerful, 10% faster, and lifts your game to a new level. Does it really now ? Of course as we all now know the nano C60's are inadequte until Elastic Ti is added in, as demonstrated by NS9k.
guys mi newly bought NS9000X has a slight rattling cone coming out from the cone. should i be worried about it? haven tried it out yet
CaT Yonex racket prices in Bangkok (this Prices at the Shop which behind the nation stadium(in thai=Sooppatcharasai) or near MBK departmentstore ) You can go to this shop by BTS (Sky train) NAN0Speed 9000 x, s = 4500 Baht Nanospeed 8000 = 3800 Baht NanoSpeed 6000,7000 , AT 700,800 = 3300 Baht MP 100 99 88 = 3000 -3200 Baht 1 US dollar = 38-39 Baht all rackets above are TH version and made in japan .
Moved from a separate thread after using the racquets for a bit more. I have a 2U and 3U NS9000S (G5 grip). Both weigh 92grams including BG66 excluding overgrip. My 2U NS9000S is head-heavier than the 3U. I've been playing with the 3U for a few months already but after about 10 hours with the 2U, I find I can smash just a little bit harder with the 2U, though the only difference is head-heaviness since weight is the same. Disclaimer: I do not know if in general 2U NS9000s are head-heavier than 3U NS9000s, i could have just gotten an odd sample. Would like to hear from other NS9000 owners who have both 2U and 3U.
i do not believe yonex add weight to certain region of a 3U racquet to make it heavier into the 2U class. Did the date codes said your 2 and 3 U were made on the same date? if not how close were the dates? I have tried 2u and 3u mp99, 3and 4U AT700's, 800's and i didn't experience your observation. Actually, it was the 4U which felt more head heavier, relatively, due to 4U being a lighter racquet.
Hi Cooler, date codes are covered by the hologram but shaft codes are 59xxxx and 63xxxx, so they are several months apart. Definitely could be a batch issue. Lets hope recent batches are not so head-light... I like the 'not so head-light' balance of my 2U a lot.... Question - Since the only difference between 2U and 3U is in the order of 5-10 grams, wouldn't it make sense for the additional weight to go to the frame and not the shaft? The reason I say this is because Yonex recommended tension for 2U racquets (based on the stickers on the racquets) is higher than that for 3U racquets, which seems to suggest that 2U racquets have stronger frames (i.e. more stuff in the frame?). Just a theory for discussion....
No, i believe it is easier to injection mold on a mass scale on the entire racket, be it 2u or 3u, than adding some more material onto a specific area of the racket. This is my speculation, (1) i think yonex has the specs for matrix formulation all figured out, pre-determined and computerized. If they want a 2U production run, they mix a batch of matrix resin of pre-determined density to achieve 2U results. (2) or increasing weight by increasding pre-determined injection pressure to get more matrix resin inside each mold, and this will get extra material through out the racket. I believe method (2) is mostly likely precedure used by yonex. Who want to tinker with weight modification here and there on each racket during a production run? Extra labor cost would be high plus off spec error percentage shoots up, bad for cost and quality control. The little bit extra matrix went into the frame will increase string tension range, like 2 lbs. If all 5 gram goes into the frame as u had suggested, the tension range improvement should be much better than 2 lbs. Also, 5 extra gram in the frame will completely change the characteristic. It would be like the difference of ns8000 and at700, or even more extreme, 5 extra g on the frame is alot.
storkbill, it is very possible that your 2U ns9k is off spec ( i forgot u got a SP one or not). As i had once owned a off spec armortec 800of. It was a full 1 cm shorter in b.p. than 4 other 4U 800of i have measured. It was really nice, it plays like between a DE and a OF but it was stolen
2U, 3U and 4U racquets are made in the same production batch. The manufacturing variation in making the frame head and the shaft allows for the three different weight classes, and the difference between each weight class is less than 5gm for the frame head and shaft. The 5gm weight class difference will be fixed when different weight handles are added, into the different U. An on-spec racquet should have similar balance point, irrespective of the U class.
