Got some demos. Figured I'd post my impressions here for anybody they might help. My playing style is fairly aggressive baseline. I am a DII college player.
Pure Drive 2012 Swings a lot lighter than the previous model; therefore, I did not like this one as much. Power was there as well as spin, but it took a lot more of my work to get a heavy ball. Didn't really get pushed around that much, but it was almost too whippy. It's still a great stick, but a little too light for my tastes. It does, however, volley better than the previous iteration, likely due to the much lower swingweight. I think a little lead could make this a good stick.
Pure Drive Roddick 2012 All I can say is WOW. I picked it up after I determined that the regular pure drive was too light for me. This thing is exactly what I need for my game. Plenty of power and spin on the groundstrokes. This is the best feeling racket for my backhand ever. I just feel so confident stepping up and hitting my stroke authoritatively. Serves are powerful with good spin, and it volleys surprisingly well, too. This one is by far in the lead to become my new stick right now.
AeroPro Drive GT + A little sluggish off the ground, but if you have the strength to maneuver it around, there is a lot of power to be had. Great spin production, even better than the standard aeropro drive. Serves big, a little bit bigger than the Roddick. Not as big as I remember the '09 Roddick + doing, though. Didn't like the lack of maneuverability on volleys, but it was easy to hit volleys with authority into the open court if I got it into position. Broke the strings after 20 minutes, so this will be my final impression of this stick as well.
Volkl Organix 8 315g Similar to the Roddick with less ball pocketing. It has that familiar Volkl stringbed feel: a comfy hit with little vibration, but plenty of the feedback that is essential for feel. It sits somewhere between the Pure Storm Tour GT (my current racket) and the Roddick 2012. More power than the regular pure drive, but less than the roddick. Spin is less, too, but there is still more than enough of both power and spin. Serves were ok. I hit some amazing kickers, and some flat bombs, but I could never find a consistent groove. It's still not as good as the Roddick, but if I had some time to get accustomed to it, I could serve just as effectively due to a greater ability to place the ball with this frame vs. the Roddick.
Pure Drive 2012 Swings a lot lighter than the previous model; therefore, I did not like this one as much. Power was there as well as spin, but it took a lot more of my work to get a heavy ball. Didn't really get pushed around that much, but it was almost too whippy. It's still a great stick, but a little too light for my tastes. It does, however, volley better than the previous iteration, likely due to the much lower swingweight. I think a little lead could make this a good stick.
Pure Drive Roddick 2012 All I can say is WOW. I picked it up after I determined that the regular pure drive was too light for me. This thing is exactly what I need for my game. Plenty of power and spin on the groundstrokes. This is the best feeling racket for my backhand ever. I just feel so confident stepping up and hitting my stroke authoritatively. Serves are powerful with good spin, and it volleys surprisingly well, too. This one is by far in the lead to become my new stick right now.
AeroPro Drive GT + A little sluggish off the ground, but if you have the strength to maneuver it around, there is a lot of power to be had. Great spin production, even better than the standard aeropro drive. Serves big, a little bit bigger than the Roddick. Not as big as I remember the '09 Roddick + doing, though. Didn't like the lack of maneuverability on volleys, but it was easy to hit volleys with authority into the open court if I got it into position. Broke the strings after 20 minutes, so this will be my final impression of this stick as well.
Volkl Organix 8 315g Similar to the Roddick with less ball pocketing. It has that familiar Volkl stringbed feel: a comfy hit with little vibration, but plenty of the feedback that is essential for feel. It sits somewhere between the Pure Storm Tour GT (my current racket) and the Roddick 2012. More power than the regular pure drive, but less than the roddick. Spin is less, too, but there is still more than enough of both power and spin. Serves were ok. I hit some amazing kickers, and some flat bombs, but I could never find a consistent groove. It's still not as good as the Roddick, but if I had some time to get accustomed to it, I could serve just as effectively due to a greater ability to place the ball with this frame vs. the Roddick.
