The issue you might be feeling is twistweight. The Aero VS was spec'd at around 14.1-14.6 twistweight, which is already pretty high for a 98 (the Pro Staff RF 97 was 14.0). The Aero 98 is around 15.5. I tested a whole rack of them at a store near me and they all were well over 15 twistweight. That is beast level stability, which is nice on off-center shots, slices, and especially drop shots, but it's going to mean less maneuverable if you are trying to have a spin-friendly swingpath on shot where you don't set up correctly. I played an Aero 98 for a while side-by-side with Ezone 98s that I had leaded up to the identical swingweight, and with the identical string (Outlast 18), to make a fair comparison. The Ezone 98 has a 14.0 twistweight. The Ezone 98 felt like waving a t-ball bat versus the Aero 98 baseball bat. I'm fit for a 54 year old but that much twistweight is just more than I can handle over the course of a long match. With a two-handed backhand, the twistweight isn't as noticeable, but with the forehand it's just too much for me. It's interesting that this is a drop shot optimized frame, isn't it? Certainly fits Alcaraz's game. And he's strong and fast enough not to experience the downsides.
PA98 feels very jarring out of the sweetspot... it's by no means a comfortable frame. It also needs a SW around 325, below it's not as stable as u described!
One thing I also noticed with this racket that it is VERY tension sensitive. I normally string around 56-58 lbs and iit would be a little tough to generate spin and needed more effort for power and when i dropped to 52 lbs soon was much easier but shots would launch. I’m keeping the happy medium around 55 lbs and it’s such solid stick for control and variety for spin and power.
For the people with one handed backhand, just put some weight in the handle, I use 2 overgrips and 4gr lead in the butt cap for total of 16gr. It shifts the balance without adding too much SW and makes the racket much more comfortable to swing for the 1 hander. The frame is certainly very good and really suits aggressive all court playing styles. Easy access to spin and at the same time flat shot winners are addictive. Negative compared to my normal racket( Pro staff 97 v13) lack of feel and precision on some shots, due to shape of the frame sluggish for flat serves, 1HBH still better with 97 inch frame.
I use lynx tour and love it on this racket as a ohbh. Rpm blast rough is also very good - perhaps trying one of those strings might give you a different perspective.
What tension do you use in the PA98 with Lynx tour? My normal tension for Lynx tour in Pro Staff 97 at 345gr static weight is 52-53lbs. PA98 is at 338gr at the moment with some customizing and Hyper G. Wondering if i should go higher because of the more powerful frame.
@@BillyWander-k4m that’s a shame, I had an adjustment period where I felt weird in arm at first compared to my Gravity Tour but no issues since. But I also don’t go too high on tension.
Nice review! Can we get a gravity pro one next? I feel like there are not that many gravity's in college tennis. Why do you think that is, or am I wrong in thinking that?
I’ve seen Gravity Pro in D1 tennis. Forgot which team it was that was playing against Stanford. Used by a strong tall guy that had by far the heaviest ground strokes I’ve seen in college tennis, looking like cannon balls getting sucked downwards by supergravity. I’m thinking it’s not used much because many players keep using what they used as successful juniors, and perhaps because college players often play both singles and doubles, and the Gravity Pro isn’t great for doubles.
I REALLY tried to fall in love with this racquet as well because I’m trying to incorporate more spin into my game but I just couldn’t groove with it like you. I think this and the E Zone with that aerodynamic beam really make them great for certain strokes but really hurt the racquets on other strokes. In other news, there is a new Extreme Pro coming out in the next week or two. Might be something to check out!
@@BillyWander-k4m They changed the name and paint and it’s now Auxetic 2.0. But he’s used it in the past so might be worth giving a demo now. First couple reviews are very positive online so far.
Don't buy into Head's lazy marketing. Auxetic 2.0 is gonna be more muted and if they don't change specs, the ET is a weak frame in stock... U have to add so much weight to make it stable and plow through, it's not worth it if your static weight becomes very demanding..
@@hybrid11theory75 this is spot on. 3g at 12 and 5g at 3&9 to make it playable. Not sure how head can call a racket like “pro” when it has a static weight of 305g unstrung and a sw of about 317. Ps that paintjob is woeful. Give us a blackout version of it
@@BillyWander-k4m Even if it's meant to be a platform racquet, playing terrible in stock is not a good start. U want to customise your racquet for "more" performance not by ironing out all the issues. A racquet above 340 g static weight is really demanding for most advanced club players. This is why customising such a frame is not worth it, u end up with such a demanding weight class, it's pointless...
I switched from the Yonnex Ezone 98 to these. First I was using Wilson Gut 16 in the Main and Lexilon Alu Power Rough in the Cross at 56/53 pouinds. I liked it but I didn't like the feel, a friend suggested switching to the Babolat Touch VS Gut- Main and Lexilon Alu Power - Cross. I did and I love the feel, strung at 53/50. Feels great. I keep it stock as well, no lead and handle is 4 1/4 with one overgrip.
It’s funny you mention the serve issues because I feel the opposite. Just switched to this racquet from my pure drive and i love it on serves. I will say it definitely lends itself more to spinny serves than flat serves
second you on the 1 hander - aero 100 is a disaster, it lags and is so bulky but the aero 98 is awesome. I was a nationally ranked junior 20 years ago and am getting back into tennis now in my 30s. the aero 98 is the best stock racket I've ever used. This thing is incredible. You do need to be a good player though and with a lot of racket head speed - I'd prob say 5.0 and over and with heavy shots.
What noticed is how lead can really mess these rackets up. I put 4 grams at total on pure aero 100 and it completely screwed the racket up, and i even counter balanced with 6 grams in the handle. I ripped off half and it play awesome. Extreme tour, I out 2 in the handle and 6 in the hoop and it felt great. Head rackets are not as picky and im not sure why. Babalots might create more power thus you have to be careful with swing weight, it may of been better to put that weight at 3 and 9 instead for some swing weight and stability. Head rackets are pretty stable so i out some lead higher up for head racket due to being less powerful. Speed MP tho 100's totally different animal, that thing is a monster at serve, i put 6 grams int he handle 1/2 tape and its probably the biggest serve ive had next to the pure drive.
How does the aero 98 compare to the origin? Both definitely seem to have the spin-ability and some control elements with string spacing and such, not sure how much overlap there is between the market of a 98 and an overspecced 100. Really appreciated your take on the origin. I know a lot of youtubers and general rec players view the origin as unusable, which i think is more a product of being sold and told to play "lower spec" racquets by "big tennis" (sort of joking) for decades now and when presented with something outside of their comfort zone dismiss it as difficult. I have not held an origin, though my current racquet is modded to 341g static and 372sw.
I’ve been playing with it since the start of the year moved from a speed MP. Loved everything about it felt more solid and more stable and gave me that extra margin I was looking for. But now have developed really bad golfers elbow. Nothing else has changed except the racket. Not saying I’m in the same universe as him, but Carlitos is also battling the medial epiglottis/pronator teres so could indeed be the racket.
I had the previous version for a bit (bought it used and sold it) and unfortunately I definitely felt it in my arm IMMEDIATELY when I was hitting with it. I switched to the new vcore98 with 8grams at 3&9 and a 2 in the buttcap and I've been enjoying that quite a bit.
Im a grinder counterpuncher style player and am currently with the speed mp and might switch to pure aero 98. Do u recommend it? What should i look out for
@@MPTennis I agree they are very different rackets. YOu would think they should ~kind of~ be similar but I came to the conclusion that they are not. I have been hiting with 2023 vcore95s that i modified (swaped the stock grip for leather and added just a little lead at top of hoop) for a while now. I am a big fan of them but I am for sure switching to this babolat pure aero 98. After trying this babolat for fun I just could not put it down. It is much crisper than the yonex but not overly crisp. Also, the vcore is very spin friendly but I found it had no plow through or stability, hence the needed customization for me. By contrast, the PA98 is even more spin friendly and also easier plow through I think. The only issue for me is a lack of stability (twist weight I think) that I fixed with a tiny bit of lead at 10&2. I may try a leather grip on it and see how that affects the feel at net with about half an oz more concentrated in the handle from the leather.
It's a good frame for healthy, advanced players. If you hit the sweetspot, u have a perfect blend of power/control/spin. But the caveat is the sweetspot is not huge, racquet feels demanding, outside the sweespot it's really jarring with full bed of poly.... can cause issues easily!!
supposedly not supposively…. Supposedly: adverb. according to what is generally assumed or believed (often used to indicate that the speaker doubts the truth of the statement).
The issue you might be feeling is twistweight. The Aero VS was spec'd at around 14.1-14.6 twistweight, which is already pretty high for a 98 (the Pro Staff RF 97 was 14.0). The Aero 98 is around 15.5. I tested a whole rack of them at a store near me and they all were well over 15 twistweight. That is beast level stability, which is nice on off-center shots, slices, and especially drop shots, but it's going to mean less maneuverable if you are trying to have a spin-friendly swingpath on shot where you don't set up correctly. I played an Aero 98 for a while side-by-side with Ezone 98s that I had leaded up to the identical swingweight, and with the identical string (Outlast 18), to make a fair comparison. The Ezone 98 has a 14.0 twistweight. The Ezone 98 felt like waving a t-ball bat versus the Aero 98 baseball bat. I'm fit for a 54 year old but that much twistweight is just more than I can handle over the course of a long match. With a two-handed backhand, the twistweight isn't as noticeable, but with the forehand it's just too much for me. It's interesting that this is a drop shot optimized frame, isn't it? Certainly fits Alcaraz's game. And he's strong and fast enough not to experience the downsides.
PA98 feels very jarring out of the sweetspot... it's by no means a comfortable frame. It also needs a SW around 325, below it's not as stable as u described!
+1 Thought the same thing
Alcaraz also uses a grip 4 1/2 (pretty big for his handsize) which is a way to get it more maneuverable
@@Snat9 No, a bigger grip gives you more stability/hitting force, a smaller grip will give you more wrist freedom/maneuverability..
One thing I also noticed with this racket that it is VERY tension sensitive. I normally string around 56-58 lbs and iit would be a little tough to generate spin and needed more effort for power and when i dropped to 52 lbs soon was much easier but shots would launch. I’m keeping the happy medium around 55 lbs and it’s such solid stick for control and variety for spin and power.
It feels like I saw some Rune style forehand groundstrokes
Exactly what I thought.
I think you should try the racquet without the lead. It feels a lot nicer when you're able to nail it full speed and completely engage your body
I liked it strung at a lower tension. I hated it at 55 but loved it at 49 with sync 18ga
For the people with one handed backhand, just put some weight in the handle, I use 2 overgrips and 4gr lead in the butt cap for total of 16gr. It shifts the balance without adding too much SW and makes the racket much more comfortable to swing for the 1 hander.
The frame is certainly very good and really suits aggressive all court playing styles. Easy access to spin and at the same time flat shot winners are addictive. Negative compared to my normal racket( Pro staff 97 v13) lack of feel and precision on some shots, due to shape of the frame sluggish for flat serves, 1HBH still better with 97 inch frame.
👍👍👍
I use lynx tour and love it on this racket as a ohbh. Rpm blast rough is also very good - perhaps trying one of those strings might give you a different perspective.
I tried in both those setups and it gave me bad elbow pain. Only babolat that doesnt is the strike vs
What tension do you use in the PA98 with Lynx tour?
My normal tension for Lynx tour in Pro Staff 97 at 345gr static weight is 52-53lbs. PA98 is at 338gr at the moment with some customizing and Hyper G. Wondering if i should go higher because of the more powerful frame.
@@BillyWander-k4m that’s a shame, I had an adjustment period where I felt weird in arm at first compared to my Gravity Tour but no issues since. But I also don’t go too high on tension.
@@aet96 On my 2nd set of lynx tour (champagne) now at 22kg(48.5lbs) and no issues playing avg 6-8hrs a week.
@@BillyWander-k4mshame to hear. I had an adjustment period where my arm felt weird but it went away. (I also don’t go high on string tension)
Nice review! Can we get a gravity pro one next? I feel like there are not that many gravity's in college tennis. Why do you think that is, or am I wrong in thinking that?
I’ve seen Gravity Pro in D1 tennis. Forgot which team it was that was playing against Stanford. Used by a strong tall guy that had by far the heaviest ground strokes I’ve seen in college tennis, looking like cannon balls getting sucked downwards by supergravity. I’m thinking it’s not used much because many players keep using what they used as successful juniors, and perhaps because college players often play both singles and doubles, and the Gravity Pro isn’t great for doubles.
@@glademaster Got it, thanks for the help!
I REALLY tried to fall in love with this racquet as well because I’m trying to incorporate more spin into my game but I just couldn’t groove with it like you. I think this and the E Zone with that aerodynamic beam really make them great for certain strokes but really hurt the racquets on other strokes. In other news, there is a new Extreme Pro coming out in the next week or two. Might be something to check out!
Extreme pro is a carbon copy of the current extreme tour. Save you cash and save your eyes as that new paintjob is the worst i have seen
@@BillyWander-k4m They changed the name and paint and it’s now Auxetic 2.0. But he’s used it in the past so might be worth giving a demo now. First couple reviews are very positive online so far.
Don't buy into Head's lazy marketing. Auxetic 2.0 is gonna be more muted and if they don't change specs, the ET is a weak frame in stock... U have to add so much weight to make it stable and plow through, it's not worth it if your static weight becomes very demanding..
@@hybrid11theory75 this is spot on. 3g at 12 and 5g at 3&9 to make it playable. Not sure how head can call a racket like “pro” when it has a static weight of 305g unstrung and a sw of about 317. Ps that paintjob is woeful. Give us a blackout version of it
@@BillyWander-k4m Even if it's meant to be a platform racquet, playing terrible in stock is not a good start. U want to customise your racquet for "more" performance not by ironing out all the issues. A racquet above 340 g static weight is really demanding for most advanced club players. This is why customising such a frame is not worth it, u end up with such a demanding weight class, it's pointless...
I switched from the Yonnex Ezone 98 to these. First I was using Wilson Gut 16 in the Main and Lexilon Alu Power Rough in the Cross at 56/53 pouinds. I liked it but I didn't like the feel, a friend suggested switching to the Babolat Touch VS Gut- Main and Lexilon Alu Power - Cross. I did and I love the feel, strung at 53/50. Feels great. I keep it stock as well, no lead and handle is 4 1/4 with one overgrip.
I am currently using the ezone... do you like the pure aero more?
@@jaidengalati2954 love it.
I am hesitating between buying the ezone 98 or the aero 98, wich one is better for you? In terms of power? Wich one is more complete? Thankss
@@Retr0-Creative power comes from your legs, you gotta get low. The aero gives me a little more spin over the eZone which I like.
It’s funny you mention the serve issues because I feel the opposite. Just switched to this racquet from my pure drive and i love it on serves. I will say it definitely lends itself more to spinny serves than flat serves
second you on the 1 hander - aero 100 is a disaster, it lags and is so bulky but the aero 98 is awesome. I was a nationally ranked junior 20 years ago and am getting back into tennis now in my 30s. the aero 98 is the best stock racket I've ever used. This thing is incredible. You do need to be a good player though and with a lot of racket head speed - I'd prob say 5.0 and over and with heavy shots.
Does the Speed Pro have a similar feeling where the ball launches out of the string bed quickly?
What noticed is how lead can really mess these rackets up. I put 4 grams at total on pure aero 100 and it completely screwed the racket up, and i even counter balanced with 6 grams in the handle. I ripped off half and it play awesome.
Extreme tour, I out 2 in the handle and 6 in the hoop and it felt great. Head rackets are not as picky and im not sure why. Babalots might create more power thus you have to be careful with swing weight, it may of been better to put that weight at 3 and 9 instead for some swing weight and stability. Head rackets are pretty stable so i out some lead higher up for head racket due to being less powerful. Speed MP tho 100's totally different animal, that thing is a monster at serve, i put 6 grams int he handle 1/2 tape and its probably the biggest serve ive had next to the pure drive.
How does the aero 98 compare to the origin? Both definitely seem to have the spin-ability and some control elements with string spacing and such, not sure how much overlap there is between the market of a 98 and an overspecced 100. Really appreciated your take on the origin. I know a lot of youtubers and general rec players view the origin as unusable, which i think is more a product of being sold and told to play "lower spec" racquets by "big tennis" (sort of joking) for decades now and when presented with something outside of their comfort zone dismiss it as difficult. I have not held an origin, though my current racquet is modded to 341g static and 372sw.
The power wow
What's about the launch angle compared to the regular aero 100? Is the stringbed more open in the center? Does it affect flat shots?
No. Its flatter than the 100. Its also less power and ore difficult to use. You wont like it.
Do you prefer Radical mp or Pure Aero 98?
I’ve been playing with it since the start of the year moved from a speed MP. Loved everything about it felt more solid and more stable and gave me that extra margin I was looking for.
But now have developed really bad golfers elbow. Nothing else has changed except the racket. Not saying I’m in the same universe as him, but Carlitos is also battling the medial epiglottis/pronator teres so could indeed be the racket.
I had the previous version for a bit (bought it used and sold it) and unfortunately I definitely felt it in my arm IMMEDIATELY when I was hitting with it. I switched to the new vcore98 with 8grams at 3&9 and a 2 in the buttcap and I've been enjoying that quite a bit.
Im a grinder counterpuncher style player and am currently with the speed mp and might switch to pure aero 98. Do u recommend it? What should i look out for
nice vid. Would like to see you review the Speed MP 2024 at some stage.
It’s coming ;)
How do you compare it with Yonex Vcore 95 2023? Which one is a better racquet and which do you like more?
They are different for sure. If I got Vcore 95 to my spec I might like that more. But.. hard to say tbh.
@@MPTennis I agree they are very different rackets. YOu would think they should ~kind of~ be similar but I came to the conclusion that they are not. I have been hiting with 2023 vcore95s that i modified (swaped the stock grip for leather and added just a little lead at top of hoop) for a while now. I am a big fan of them but I am for sure switching to this babolat pure aero 98. After trying this babolat for fun I just could not put it down. It is much crisper than the yonex but not overly crisp. Also, the vcore is very spin friendly but I found it had no plow through or stability, hence the needed customization for me. By contrast, the PA98 is even more spin friendly and also easier plow through I think. The only issue for me is a lack of stability (twist weight I think) that I fixed with a tiny bit of lead at 10&2. I may try a leather grip on it and see how that affects the feel at net with about half an oz more concentrated in the handle from the leather.
That racket limit certain shots such as forehand down the line it doesn't go straight Ι reckon alcaraz would play even better with any other racket
The ball goes straight if you hit flat, so it's not the racquet, it's the technique. Alcaraz has shown the racquet is capable of achieving all shots.
I like the strike vs better. Now called strike 97
How does the pure aero 98 compares to the Wilson shift 99?
Shift has better feel imo
Is that Har Tru clay? Do you like it
Yes it is. It is nice change up from hard court.
You gotta alter your swing a bit to look more like his to get a feel for it, no?
It's a good frame for healthy, advanced players. If you hit the sweetspot, u have a perfect blend of power/control/spin. But the caveat is the sweetspot is not huge, racquet feels demanding, outside the sweespot it's really jarring with full bed of poly.... can cause issues easily!!
I definitely had a tough time once and awhile with the sweet spot too
WHAT THE HELL does 'supposively' mean? 2:12
supposedly not supposively….
Supposedly: adverb.
according to what is generally assumed or believed (often used to indicate that the speaker doubts the truth of the statement).
Pretty sure he uses the pure aero vs with a pj.
Alcaraz and Rune are actually using PA VS. FAA is actually using aero storm.
Alcaraz isn’t using the vs anymore
Wrong Einstein!
@@carlo8899 who are you saying is wrong? FAA is using a Aero Storm, but Carlos is using PA98 not VS
blame Canada 😁
I make it simple if y play on clay buy it ,if u play on some else trash it
Holger Roon-uh.
😂