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Saturday, March 12, 2011

Yonex Voltric 80 review



At last I've put enough hours into this racquet to made a final updated comprehensive review on this racquet. (Updated19th March 2011)

I played mostly doubles (and half court singles)

TOC (time on court) when making final review:
8 x Warm ups (Half court singles) + 28 x (21 point doubles games) = total 16 hours game play

Specs: 3UG5 SP version
Balance: Head heavy
Stiffness: Stiff
Shuttles used: (speed 2) Yonex AS40
Strings: Yonex BG80 tension 27lbs
Grips: original + Karakal overgrip

Racquets Specs: please see manufacturer's website

Review and breakdown of shots tried:

Power: 10/10 (4U may be lesser)

Synopsis: Felt that the racquet is rather solid ala AT900P and packs an umph when clearing full court and smashing. I felt the head is rather heavy and lactic acid (owing to the weight on the head) builds up quickly on the wrist. Same class as AT900P and AT700 in terms of power. Smashes are sharp and crisp, during play the shaft doesn't feel that stiff , which allows steeper smashes. Clears are effortless and so is a forehand drive baseline to baseline. The 3U in this regard I believed should be for singles and the 4U (lighter) should be for doubles.

Clear: back-court to back-court and crosscourt full length clear to opponent's backhand side.
Smashes: Straight and crosscourt
Drives: hard straight and forehand/backhand to the corners


Control: 9.5/10 (4U version may be similar or lesser)

Synopsis: Felt that the racquet is rather solid and stable while cutting through the air, hence it's easy to control shots to the four corners of the court. The sweet spot is rather large (compared to a Z-Slash) and less likely to hit an off-centered shot. I include netshots here as the stability and aerodynamics of the racquets allows it to play deceptively fast and well at the net.

Drops: checked/slice/reversed to the 2 front net corners
Netshots: Crosscourt net
Netshots: hairpin/tumbling netshot
Clears: to the 2 back court corners
Smashes: down the line
Push: flat and low to half court

Defense: 7.5/10 (4U version may be better)


Synopsis: Surprisingly, despite the weight of the head, the racquet is easy to defend. I managed to backhand lift smashes to the backcourt a few times but drive return is a better option with a head heavy racquet. However, owing to the weight, lifting tires the wrist pretty fast, hence a slightly lower rating. The aerodynamics of the racquet somewhat compensates for the heaviness of the head(since the racquet head moves very fast to intercept the shuttle). Be sure to do some weight/resistance training on your wrist/fingers if you want to defend well with the backhand...in a long match.

Lifts: backhand and forehand full court
Drive: backhand and forehand drive return
Block: backhand and forehand straight

Maneuverability: 8/10 (4U version may be better)

Synopsis: This racquet is surprisingly agile, though not in the class of a top headlight racquet. The racquet head speed is very high and the the swing is fast. Possibly, if the handle was slightly longer, then it would be even more maneuverable...(It's no fault of the racquet but my preference). The (slim shaft & frame) aerodynamics improved the handling of the racquet. This is true when near the net, like doing a netkill. I also find that catching body smashes and doing last minute double action shots are pretty fast and comfortable.

Crosscourt net shot
Crosscourt smash return block and crosscourt whip
Defending body smashes: reflex block, between the leg/behind the back defensive block
Tight netkills
Hold & flick shots


Feel: 9.5/10 (4U may be the same or lesser)


Synopsis: The racquet felt solid owing to the 'meatier' head compared to the more frail VT70. Felt close to AT900P hence I gave it a high rating. I guess the manufacturer fix the feel of the previous VT70. The stiffness of the racquet also helps to channel the bounce of the shuttle on the stringbed to my hand. No bad vibration...only good vibes. The audio provided by the manufacturer's sound filter makes for some nice 'music' to boot. (apologies for the sound filter joke, can't help myself)

Total rating: 8.9/10


Pros : Tremendous power, excellent control & feel with good defence and very good maneuverability. Smashing racquet par excellence.

Cons: cost and not suitable for beginner who are not used to a stiff and real head-heavy racquet. A bit tiring to use for a long but fast game.

Suitability : aggressive attacking or all-around players.
Need skill level of at least intermediate/advanced.
For singles 3U is better...(4U for doubles).
Not suitable for beginners or defensive players.

Footnote: this review was done as a hobby and as an interest to inform fellow badminton enthusiast. This is my personal opinion and in no form to promote this racquet.

Conflict of interest: None

Reference: Yonex website (accessed @ 01/03/11)
Badmintoncentral.com (accessed @ 01/03/11)


YONEX/Sunrise sports recommendation for player type:
For players looking for a stiff racquet with an ultra long shaft that delivers an explosion of power with every swing.

Yonex rating 1-5
Power 5
Control 5
Flex 5


(Ref: Yonex badminton chart)

Review: 4U VT80 
Date: 30th November 2011
Racquet Type: Voltric 80 4UG5 SP
Strung with Yonex BG66 Ultimax @ 24lbs using Yonex ES5 PROTECH
Grip: Karakal Super PU
Shuttle used: Yonex AS40 speed 2

Power: 9.5
Control: 9.5
Defense: 8
Maneuverability: 8.5
Feel: 9


Conclusion: 
Very similar to the 3U version but notably faster and agile. The racquet still stings with its head heavy momentum but having better handling. Better suited to doubles game than 3U version but equally good for singles.

12 comments:

jo shum said...

Hi I bought the 80 2 days ago because my 2 beloved rackets of old (and I mean 20 years) broke at the same time, so decided to buy the latest one in the market. When I played for 2 hours yesterday, I noticed quite a difference in how heavy it felt on my arm after a few games, I considerably sweated a lot more running around the court. Funny how I later checked the weight again and supposedly similar to my old one but it just felt more tiring smashing. the other thing is that the hitting sound is strange and got me some time to get used to it.

What is really good is one, the accuracy, it gives very sharp angle and helps my placement to where I wanted the shuttle to go. Smashing is amazing, at
Least my opponents on he other side told me. :)

defense not so good, somehow heavier to lift or that I couldnt get the shuttle to the middle hitting zone.

Overall I still need some time to get used to it. I can't say I fell in love with it at love at first hit. But it has it's merit and I can really build on my control and aggression. Just not too sure how I can improve my defense. And for sure with the heavier feel, am going to be losing some weight. Hahaha.

Unknown said...

Hey,

I plan to buy this raquet because a friend of mine can get me this raquet rather cheap but it is still expensive. the problem now is: I have only started playing actively badminton for 5-6 months. I often mishit and hit with the frame or with the outer part of the strings.
my question is: Can I break or damage the raquet significantly with my play?

badmintan said...

mishiting the frame will not normally break the racquet. (again this is assuming your tension is around 25lbs. Having said that, the higher your string tension, let's say 30lbs and above, mishit can damage the frame.
Most breakage occur due to the following reasons: Stringing (stringer's fault), racquet clash in (doubles) game and accidentally hitting the top of the frame on the floor.

Unknown said...

wow! this is very gud review!
now i'm using ns9900.. perfect for me! and backup racket is ARC8DX..
but with high rating review of Voltric 80.. can't wait to have one..
But not sure whether i can handle the head heavy or not..
your comment badmintan?

badmintan said...

Hi Agos,

Seeing you can handle NS9900 and Arc8DX, which imho very stiff racquets, shouldn't be a problem.

I'm assuming you play doubles? If so the 4U should be ok.

The 3U defense is not so good if you are facing a heavy smasher and a fast net player (in doubles).

Defense isn't so important in singles...compared to doubles.

I hope you make the right decision. All the best

Unknown said...

Thanks man.. With many gud review.. Will visit this site often... :)

Shang Rong said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Shang Rong said...

voltric 80 , 3u or 4u better for smash?

Anonymous said...

Hello,

First off, I am very fond of head heavy raquets so picking one of these up was a "no brainer" for me. My back up rackets are a Muscle Power TI-10 and a Voltric 70. Both rackets are 3U. I play doubles most of the time and the Voltric 80 (4U) is a big difference from the my other 2 backups. Playing my frist game with this raquet I felt the difference, but with no loss of power in my smashes. We all know that the Voltric system is yonex's new idea, but I can honestly say that the V80 is the best raquet I've played with so far. If you're an active player, this raquet is very good from an all around stand point (offensive and defensive). Great Review!!!

ais kacang said...

nice racket..ordy try it...really satisfied with the performance..easy to control the ball and feel good when u do the smash..reallly love it..head heavy really help in smash.also good when u string BG65...this racket really dont disappointed...

Unknown said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

Hey do you have any opinion on prince rackets?

My friend showed me a few reviews on this site:

http://www.badmintonbest.com/best-prince-badminton-rackets/

Is the prince deliverance a good racket?