Babolat AeroPro Racquet Playtest

[Doubles]

Originally Posted by cluckcluck

Except, for a product to be successful in any market, it needs to be looked at from all angles.

A product can't be great if it's based on a biased review.

Exactly. It's good to see things from all sides rather than just one.

[dode]

Ok here is my review. I will say that I have never played with a Babolat racquet before. I have demoed a few along the way, but never really cared for them for various reasons. I gave this racquet a review that was not biased because of these previous demos though.

Tennis experience/background: Started playing last fall again after about 11 years of not picking up a racquet. Played at 3.5 USTA Nationals last fall and am an above average 4.0 player currently.

Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): Prefer baseline play, but tested this racquet playing 90% doubles, so not as much rallying as I would normally play since winter USTA season for us is only doubles.

Current racquet/string: Volkl C10 Pro - Pacific Tough Gut/Genesis Black Magic

Racquet model tested: AeroPro Drive with XCel

How many hours did you play with the racquet? 10

Comments on racquet performance:

-groundstrokes: Overall were good. With this racquet I was able to produce good pace and spin. I never felt that even though this racquet is light in comparison to what I normally play (around 350 g strung) that it was pushed around on heavy balls. I was able to turn around fast paced balls well in addition to hitting floaters and short balls with authority. In fact, hitting balls with little pace was one thing that I really liked with this racquet compared to my Volkls. I tend to have problems with those balls, but not with this racquet. However, I did struggle from time to time with the weight and being way out in front of balls. The more I played with it, the less of an issue this was, but it still crept up from time to time. Overall I give it an 8/10. I would be interested in playing this racquet with some addition mass and a gut/poly hybrid.

-serves: In a nutshell, serves are where this racquet really shined. Flat serves were faster than I normally hit, along with getting a higher percentage in. Spin serves were very good as well, but were "different". They had much more of a slicing action as opposed to the very heavy spin kick serves I normally hit. This I would guess has a lot to do with the difference in strings. Overall I give it a 9/10.

-volleys: Net play is not my strong suit, but I will say this racquet is quite maneuverable at the net. I seemed to struggle more with the touch shots, but not horrible. Solid volleys and overheads were no problem though. 7/10.

-serve returns: I like to be aggressive on service returns and on the forehand side I could really turn around serves with pace. Backhands I really struggled with attacking like I normally do with a 2 hand top spin return. I hit a lot of them into the bottom of the net if I didn't back off some. I think some of that was just being out in front due to the lower weight. Overall probably 7.5/10

General reaction/comments on overall performance: Overall I was pretty surprised with how well I played with this racquet. It was a little stiffer than I am used to hitting with, and that bothered my elbow just a bit, but nothing over the top. Also the "bulk" of the frame in my hands was a little strange and distracting compared to my Volkls, but not a show stopper. I would be really interested to see how this racquet would perform with about 20 g of added weight and my normal gut/poly hybrid. I would rate the racquet an 8/10 overall, and probably the best hitting Babolat frame I have hit with.

Thanks for the opportunity to play test this frame. I hope this feedback helps others, and I am sure this racquet will be a good seller.

John

[gavna]

Tennis experience/background:
Age 51, Playing since I was 7 and played in the juniors in Europe and USA. Played Div 1 NCAA (1979 - 1984) and was an Asst D1 coach (1985 - 86) Currently play ITF seniors and current NTRP is solid 5.0, Cat 3 ITN and an FFT rating of 2/6.

Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley):
Aggressive Baseliner until my 30s - But since then more and more doubles - i know play doubles 95% of the time now so much more Serve and Volley/All Court.

Current racquet/string:
Since September: Wilson Blade 98 (2013 model w/ Amplifeel 18x20) strung with Luxilon 4G mains/ VS or Wilson Gut crosses at 58 lbs.

Racquet model tested:
AeroPro Drive GT 2013 strung with RPM Blast

How many hours did you play with the racquet? 30 hours

Comments on racquet performance:

-groundstrokes:
Right off the top the pop was as expected very very good, power is not an issue and getting depth was no problem from all areas of the backcourt. In fact like every other Aeropro I have tried it was almost too much power but overall the response and feel was firm and crisp.
The light weight allowed me to generate plenty of swing speed and the open 16 x 19 pattern really helped generate plenty of spin and I loved from the baseline the way I was able to "go for it" and keep the ball in.
I also did find good accuracy and I was able to place the ball where i wanted it which did surprise me due to the amount of power it generated. Overall excellent on both forehands and backhands - Loved the new Active Cortex as it helped make the stiffness much more comfortable.

-serves:
I found that the racquet is a real serving monster. I found it was excellent in all areas from the service line and it was easy to hit everything: Huge flat serves, Heavy spin ones, Kick serves...etc. In my view this was one of the strongest aspects of the frame and the comfort was excellent even on mishits. Overall an excellent racquet for serves period.

-volleys:
Like the serve this is where I found the frame to stand out.....overall very stable and extremely powerful. It's maneuverable and I was able to get penetration and pop even on drop volleys or half volleys overall I have no complaints on the way it responded. I was able to place my volleys with ease and when I needed a putaway it didn't take much to hit a huge winner. Even when targeted at net by a screaming shot right at my bellybutton the APD preformed excellent.

-serve returns:
This is once spot where I had some issues as when returning as I'm used to taking a fairly big swing at the ball....with this frame I really had to tone it down a notch and allow the stick to do the "work" as it just has so much power. Laying off a small bit I found worked wonders and i'm sure with more time I could get more comfortable going for it. Not a real negative but it is one aspect of the frame that for players who are used to more old school frames need to be aware of.

General reaction/comments on overall performance:
Overall I find the 2013 frame to be very very impressive. Clearly its a stick that's designed for big hitters and folks who love to generate lots of spin. I found it does has much better feel than the previous models and for folks who play lots of doubles its an almost perfect stick with its blend of pop and control at the net and on serves & volleys.
I also do feel the Active cortex does make a difference in the feel from older models - for sure its a different feeling AeroPro drive.

[SFrazeur]

Tennis experience/background:
I have been Playing tennis since I was 13 years old. I have taught tennis for over ten years now.

Describe your playing style:
I have a one handed backhand with an eastern grip and a forehand with a semi-western grip. I like to serve and volley; and to be aggressive on the baseline and finish points at net.

Current racquet/string:
Pure Drive Roddick w/ Babolat leather. Tourna Grip XL. I am currently stringing with Solinco Tour Bite 16g strung at 55lbs.

Racquet model tested:
AeroPro Drive 2013 w/ RPM Blast

How many hours did you play with the racquet?
6 Hours

General reaction/comments on overall performance:
While I have used Pure Drive Roddick since the Cortex iteration and have used Pure Drive Teams I have never actually hit with an AeroPro Drive.
the first thing I noticed was the feel on left hand during the one-handed backhand. At first it felt like I could not get enough real estate with my left thumb, which I often use to rotate the racquet in position. It was somewhat off putting and just made the racquet feel very foreign compared to my PDR GT. This was absent on backhand volleys and felt fine. The paintjob itself looks great and is probably my favorite AeroPro Drive one yet.

Comments on racquet performance:

-Groundstrokes:
I loved the feel on groundstroke as it felt very plush. The feedback was very dead on full out swings which I enjoyed. It may seem counter-intuitive but the AeroPro has a less hollow and more solid feel compared to the PDR GT but the APD 2013 is not as stable compared to my PDRs.. However, it has great stability for it's weight class. The power on groundstrokes felt odd to me at first. Due to a lower swing weight the AeroPro lacked the power and plow through but was easier to maneuver. While the AeroPro is certainly still a tweener (power players racquet) it had less power than I expected or prefer; this was probably due to the lower swing weight more than anything. So I had to swing faster for more power and at the same time I had to generate the spin to control the ball they way I prefer.

-Serves:
With serves it was easy to generate the all the spin I wanted, but lacked the BOOM Factor of Pure Drives. This is common and perfectly normal for tweeners with lower swing weights.

-Volleys:
Volleys with great and felt it had very precise directional control. With the jumpy tendency of these types of frame under-spin on my volley were very important. With touch volleys and half volleys that use less spin. I felt a disconnect due to the dead feel. The string I use are crisper to me than RPM Blast and this could be a factor in the disconnect.

-Serve returns:
The racquet is maneuverable but lacks weight for plow-through.

[bugeyed]

Tennis experience/background: I recently returned to tennis after more than 10 years not playing & am currently a strong 4.5 player.
Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): I play mostly a baseline game, but serve & volley if I am feeling lucky. I only come to the net if I get a very short ball. I have a very good serve, both flat & slice are consistent. Topspin forehand & slice backhand mostly.
Current racquet/string: For the last 3 years I have been using the Babolat Pure Storm strung with VS mains & a variety of 17 gauge synthetic crosses. Tension is 56/54.
Racquet model tested: Babolat AeroPro Lite strung with Xcel.
How many hours did you play with the racquet? Used this racquet for a total of 4 hours.
Comments on racquet performance:
-groundstrokes: I have to begin by saying that the AeroPro Lite is not the weight & balance that I am used to using. It is much lighter & stiffer, so it was a real challenge to control the ball. I had trouble getting enough topspin to keep the ball in the court. I did finally settle down & hit well with topspin on the forehand side, but my slice backhand is going to take more work, as the ball was flying on me.
-serves: I got a lot of pop on my serve with the AeroPro Lite. I felt that I was getting good racquet head speed & a nice acceleration through the hitting zone.
-volleys: I felt very comfortable withe the AeroPro Lite at net. It is very maneuverable & volleys were crisp & easy to place.
-serve returns: Returning heavy serves was not where this racquet shined. Being so light, it didn't return with much authority. I had to swing hard to get any depth on the return.
General reaction/comments on overall performance: The AeroPro Lite is a stiff & light racquet. I prefer a more flexible, heavier racquet. The stiffness showed on mishits & serve returns. It wasn't as harsh feeling as other stiff racquets, maybe due to the CORTEX? The AeroPro Lite is probably best suited to a player that hits with extreme topspin & generates a lot of racquet head speed.

Thanks for letting me participate.
kev

[downs_chris]

Tennis experience/background: Played in high school and a little bit of club tennis in college. Been playing USTA for the past two years, just bumped to 4.5.

Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): All court player. I thought I was a singles player, but I’ve learn to enjoy doubles and even mixed. I've been called a USTA "*****" - haha, playing in almost kinds of leagues - 4.0, 4.5...8.5 / 9.5 men's combo...8.0, 8.5, 9.0, 9.5 mixed...singles leagues, tri-level, chinese league (even though i'm not chinese), etc, etc.

Current racquet/string: Babolat Pure Storm Tour GT w/Luxilon Fluoro

Racquet model tested: Babolat AeroPro Drive 2013 strung with 16g RPM Blast

How many hours did you play with the racquet?: Since receiving the racquet from Tennis Warehouse I’ve put about 9 to 10 hours on the frame. This includes a few hitting sessions, one men’s doubles match and one 9.5 mixed match. The frame was used both indoors and outdoors.

Comments on racquet performance:: Having hit with and owned all the previous versions of this frame, the first two things I noticed when hitting with the new aeropro was 1) it definitely had a unique dampened feel (which I’m guessing is from the new cortex system in the handle) and 2) the racquet actually has a pretty good control! I just had the feeling that I knew where the ball was going – which is not always the feeling I get with some of the pure drives or aeropros of the past. I’ve owned the new 2012 Pure Drive and I just can’t hit with that frame in stock form. I need to add a decent amount of lead at 9 and 3 to make it swing a little slower to tame the power. If I played with this aeropro, I’d probably add minimal lead to this frame.

In match play – the racquet performed great! I think the lowered swingweight is going to appeal a lot of people and it definitely helps on the return of serves. I felt like I had a little time adjusting to the frame from the baseline and I just felt connected with my shots. In terms of feel, I still think the original aeropro is the best – but this new version isn’t too bad. I felt like the aeropro drive cortex (2nd version) had a little bit of a dead / disconnected feeling and the previous aeropro gt had more crisp response – the new aeropro takes that crisp response of the previous model and kind of adds a touch more feel. It’s like you get a little more response from the frame, which I like.

I had a love hate relationship with this frame on serve. The frame serves big – but I think thicker poly that was in it kind of caused some arm discomfort after a while. But yes, the frame serves huge! At net, the stability of the frame made it play very well. I spend a lot of the time at the net, so no complaints there. On slices, I’d probably want a little more mass in the head, but overall it’s not bad in stock form.

General reaction/comments on overall performance: Overall, I would say I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of control I was getting from this frame. It’s definitely the type of racquet for me that needs very little lead and is good to go. I’d definitely be curious to see how other strings work in this frame. The original stringjob felt a tad bit boardy and I’d probably go with a 16 or 17 gauge Volkl Cyclone. I did experience some arm discomfort serving, but I think that would be cured with a different string setup. I didn’t feel like the frame was overly harsh otherwise.

[Boricua]

Originally Posted by downs_chris

Tennis experience/background: Played in high school and a little bit of club tennis in college. Been playing USTA for the past two years, just bumped to 4.5.

Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley): All court player. I thought I was a singles player, but I’ve learn to enjoy doubles and even mixed. I've been called a USTA "*****" - haha, playing in almost kinds of leagues - 4.0, 4.5...8.5 / 9.5 men's combo...8.0, 8.5, 9.0, 9.5 mixed...singles leagues, tri-level, chinese league (even though i'm not chinese), etc, etc.

Current racquet/string: Babolat Pure Storm Tour GT w/Luxilon Fluoro

Racquet model tested: Babolat AeroPro Drive 2013 strung with 16g RPM Blast

How many hours did you play with the racquet?: Since receiving the racquet from Tennis Warehouse I’ve put about 9 to 10 hours on the frame. This includes a few hitting sessions, one men’s doubles match and one 9.5 mixed match. The frame was used both indoors and outdoors.

Comments on racquet performance:: Having hit with and owned all the previous versions of this frame, the first two things I noticed when hitting with the new aeropro was 1) it definitely had a unique dampened feel (which I’m guessing is from the new cortex system in the handle) and 2) the racquet actually has a pretty good control! I just had the feeling that I knew where the ball was going – which is not always the feeling I get with some of the pure drives or aeropros of the past. I’ve owned the new 2012 Pure Drive and I just can’t hit with that frame in stock form. I need to add a decent amount of lead at 9 and 3 to make it swing a little slower to tame the power. If I played with this aeropro, I’d probably add minimal lead to this frame.

In match play – the racquet performed great! I think the lowered swingweight is going to appeal a lot of people and it definitely helps on the return of serves. I felt like I had a little time adjusting to the frame from the baseline and I just felt connected with my shots. In terms of feel, I still think the original aeropro is the best – but this new version isn’t too bad. I felt like the aeropro drive cortex (2nd version) had a little bit of a dead / disconnected feeling and the previous aeropro gt had more crisp response – the new aeropro takes that crisp response of the previous model and kind of adds a touch more feel. It’s like you get a little more response from the frame, which I like.

I had a love hate relationship with this frame on serve. The frame serves big – but I think thicker poly that was in it kind of caused some arm discomfort after a while. But yes, the frame serves huge! At net, the stability of the frame made it play very well. I spend a lot of the time at the net, so no complaints there. On slices, I’d probably want a little more mass in the head, but overall it’s not bad in stock form.

General reaction/comments on overall performance: Overall, I would say I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of control I was getting from this frame. It’s definitely the type of racquet for me that needs very little lead and is good to go. I’d definitely be curious to see how other strings work in this frame. The original stringjob felt a tad bit boardy and I’d probably go with a 16 or 17 gauge Volkl Cyclone. I did experience some arm discomfort serving, but I think that would be cured with a different string setup. I didn’t feel like the frame was overly harsh otherwise.

I always recommend Polyfibre TCS for people to at least try in the APD. It blends well with the 2010 APD so I suppose it will blend well with the 2013 APD.

[Nastase]

Tennis experience/background:
Age 48, Played Div II NCAA, currently a 5.0+

Describe your playing style:
Aggressive Baseliner, but am playing more doubles than singles these days.

Current racquet/string:
Had a 26 year relationship with the POG. I found that about 4 years ago it became a little harder to swing, but have struggled to find a racquet I like as much as the POG. I have been playing past couple of years with the Pure Storm Tour GT. Of course I have tried these Babolats before and have never really gotten along with the Pure Drives, Aeros, and such because of the lack of feel (for me).
I was eager to hit with this based on the favorable comments and new active cortex.

Racquet model tested:
AeroPro Drive GT Lite 2013

How many hours did you play with the racquet? 2.5 hours

Comments on racquet performance:
First off, a coment on the cosmetics. It looks very nice to me. Nice improvement.

First I must say that, being used to heavier/player type frames, this racquet was light for me...and while I am grateful for the oppty to participate in the play test I would have preferred the regular version. But it was an enjoyable test and I felt like the racquet shined in several areas...primarily overall comfort and spin. These racquets are known, for better or worse, for their stiffness...I did not find this to feel as stiff as previous versions. Perhaps it was the new dampening system at work?

-groundstrokes:
The racquet delievered in every category that the frame was known for. I was almost immediately comfortable from the baseline with this. Spin was generous. I found hitting a variety of shots to come easily. The light weight of the racquet made my balls fall a little short, but with some height adjustments I compensated. I felt like the Active Cortex was a monumental difference between this version and the previous versions in regard to feel. I can't describe it perfectly, but i thought the feel was much improved and was something I could live with (i think thats a compliment)....I think it also seemed to soften the stiffness of the frame nicely.

-serves:
I found it was comfortable from the service line and it was easy to hit everything: It was almost like a trick racquet, the light weight made it pretty nimble and I could generate just about any spin and serve location seemed super easy. The weight of serves wasnt what I would call heavy (again, this is a lighter racquet than I play with) but it was point and shoot type serving with good spin, location and variety was easy.

-volleys:
Probably the best area for me. Stability was good for this class of racquet. Maneuverable, with good placement. I found it to volley pretty well.

-serve returns:
This was probably where I felt the lightness of the frame was a hinderance for me. I like more mass in the racquet for the game I play. But candidly, the racquet again was awfully comfy, even with shots hit outside the sweetspot...and again I felt like the advantages of a lighter frame were obvious here...it was nimble and I felt like I had lots of options on the return.

General reaction/comments on overall performance:
Overall I find the 2013 frame to be good looking and performance was, on balance, impressive. It did deliver on the advertised improvements...most notably better feel and comfort. The test was favorable enough for me to consider a demo of the standard Aero and Aero+.

[downs_chris]

Originally Posted by Boricua

I always recommend Polyfibre TCS for people to at least try in the APD. It blends well with the 2010 APD so I suppose it will blend well with the 2013 APD.

how's the bite with that string? i have heard good things about that string being very arm friendly...

[Andyroo10567]

@TW Staff, I have just dropped off the racquet today. Hoping you recieve it on time. If you need a tracking number, please PM me.

[Boricua]

Originally Posted by Boricua

I always recommend Polyfibre TCS for people to at least try in the APD. It blends well with the 2010 APD so I suppose it will blend well with the 2013 APD.

Another string that is worth a try is Luxilon 4G. Chris from TW loved this string in the new Aeropro. He said it felt comfortable and the strings control blended well with the power of the racket.

[Boricua]

Originally Posted by downs_chris

how's the bite with that string? i have heard good things about that string being very arm friendly...

Its very good for hitting topspin. But, string often maybe 4 to 6 playing hours. I suggest you try it. Many TW playtesters like it also

[TW Staff]

Originally Posted by Andyroo10567

@TW Staff, I have just dropped off the racquet today. Hoping you recieve it on time. If you need a tracking number, please PM me.

Andyroo10567,

That should be fine. Thanks for letting us know.

Brittany, TW

[Andyroo10567]

Originally Posted by TW Staff

Andyroo10567,

That should be fine. Thanks for letting us know.

Brittany, TW

Ok. 10char

[Babolat Official]

Thanks for everyone who tested the new Aeropro Drive. This was the first time we have tried a test like this in the forums. A big thanks to the team at TW for guiding and coordinating. We'll be putting together a document to take to the product team in France with all your feedback (good & bad).

We know some of you received "Lite" models and it sounds like you would have preferred the standard. We'll take this into consideration for future tests. Thanks for being good sports.

I've started a thread "Bonjour from Babolat" in the "racquets" section. Feel free to ask any questions about Babolat products or shoot me an email dbecker@babolat.com.

We will be partnering with TW for more product tests in 2013, so stay tuned.

Happy hitting,

Daniel

[ohcaptain]

A test like this in Europe would be great

[muyago]

i think i m gonna get this raquet too soon... i got pure drive team but i need more spin...