Extended length racquets with good control (Babolat PA+, Dunlop CX 200+, ProKennex Ki Q+ 5X Pro)

firepanda

Professional
Hi guys,

Have enjoyed my Yonex VCore Pro for many years now. Thinking of switching to an extended length racquet for a bit more pop and reach. I'm considering three racquets:
  • Babolat Pure Aero Plus
  • Dunlop CX 200+
  • ProKennex Ki Q+ 5X Pro
But before I go and demo them, have any of you had any experiences with these? Compare and contrast? I'm excited to try them out :)
 
Have the ProKennex. Easily one of the most arm friendly racquets I've ever hit with. I like the weight/sw, offers easy power without sacrificing control. You get used to the 'sand' sound very quickly. I prefer an open pattern, so I felt like my spin was missing a bit compared to my main racquet (POG LB)

Babolat racquets are always too stiff for me so I rarely even look at them anymore.
 
Prokennex has tons of power. Spin for me was great too. Comfy too.
Pure aero+ not as comfortable and nice power though not as much as the prokennex. Spin was great as well. It feels a bit more stable than the Prokennex.
 
I prefer an open pattern, so I felt like my spin was missing a bit compared to my main racquet (POG LB)

Interesting, I thought 16x20 was still considered 'open' (and 18x19 closed). What even is the difference between mains spacing and cross spacing?
 
Only tried the new Yonex 98+ and the Babolat PA + from current offerings. I've never enjoyed Babolat and after 4 minutes of hitting with it I put it away forever. It was clunky, over powered, low control etc. The 98+ was significantly better and did everything well. Played comfortably too. Would definitely recommend trying that out.

Blade 104 is also fantastic and one the best rackets I've tried from current offerings overall.
 
Currently playing with the Dunlop CX200+ alongside my Vcore 98+ ( which has been my racquet the past two years). The CX200+ has a nice crisp yet comfortable feel and great power and spin for a control oriented racquet. For me at least, the ball really explodes off the sweetspot and has enough power and control to really attack the ball. I find it similar to the Vcore 98+ in terms of overall playability with the Vcore having a softer more traditional feel and the Dunlop being a bit more lively on a full swing. They are definitely comparable racquets. I prefer the feel of the Vcore but that extra pop from the Dunlop makes life easier against big hitters. Both will stay in my bag for now.

I haven't played the 2019 Pure Aero Plus but I just recently finished an extended playtest of the 2013 Aeropro Drive Plus, which is a great racquet. The APD/Aeros are definitely next level in terms of power and spin with the power being fairly easy to harness and user friendly. I get definitely get more action on the ball with the APD+ and can hit winners from all over the court. It is especially great on serves and return. For the 2013 APD, the feel of the racquet is stiff although dampened. Initially, despite its stiffness, I felt the racquet was comfortable enough (through the dampening technologies) for me to think that arm issues wouldn't be a problem. But as I started ramping up my play over the next few weeks, my tennis elbow did eventually flare up. Up until then, I had been seriously thinking about whether I could switch to this racquet.

I've also hit with the standard length Pure Aero 2019 - feel is noticeably more comfortable than the APD + - I was looking to demo the PA + 2019 but will probably wait until my elbow soreness goes away. The Dunlop and Yonex are comfortable enough not to irritate my elbow too much.

Haven’t tried the PK but hear good things. The 7G is apparently a classic so they been making great extended length racquets for many years.

Lastly, someone mentioned the Blade 104 - I tried the 2015 version of the Blade 104 with the 18x19 pattern. With some lead tape added to bring the weight up, that racquet may be the best feeling 27.5 inch racquet of all time - super plush and responsive! My forehand on that racquet was awesome - great power, feel and control. Maybe due to the larger head, sweet spot felt a bit lower in the hoop than other racquets - almost like a 27” racquet and I couldn’t quite hit my backhand drive with as much power or my serve with as much action as the Vcore+ or Cx200+. But definitely worth a demo -would have loved to have made that one work.
 
I would put control of the frames you listed as follows:
Control​
Spin​
Power​
Feel​
Babolat Pure Aero Plus
2​
1
2​
3
Dunlop CX 200+
1​
331
ProKennex Ki Q+ 5X Pro
3​
213

The CX200+ has the best feel and the least powerful, unless you swing fast. That string pattern, tighter in the center limits spin, which is another control parameter. I tried to like it but the inconsistent response of string pattern was difficult for me to feel confident.
The BPAP is stiff and easy to swing fast, which gives heavier spin. I didn't like the feel at all, but the grip from the open pattern was kind of addictive. Still, deadish feel and harshness, plus the need to increase the swingweight to my specs left me less than impressed.
Q+5xP is like a club. The 16x20 isn't the most open, but has decent bite. The feel is weird because of the added action of the microbeans, and it is comfortably muted for a stiff racquet.
I still play with the SV98+, which strangely is also a stiff and crisp frame with narrow feel, but I serve and volley well, although still have a little difficult with super soft shots. Found the VC98+ less crisp and precise, even though it has better feel, and never really gelled with it.
One other brand in EU you may want to consider for more power and a lot more bite and spin is the Angell TC100 V3 27.5 16x19 70RA 310g 31.5cm/9pt hl. I've been testing that out a lot, and really like the feel and power from it, but mostly, it's the grip from the open pattern, which pockets and allows me to wrist flick shots, unlike the SV98+, which has more power but less grip and feel for finesse. The 70RA feels like 66 because it's rated raw frame without grommets, buttcaps etc. Obviously there's no demo, and there's another TC101 which apparently is softer and more powerful. However, I would not venture into Angell unless you know your specs well, including swing weight, balance and weight, and also what you are looking for.
 
The Serena Williams Blade is a good consideration. 18x19 string bed provides better control than more open string beds. Very stable.

My old PD plus wrecked my arm and so I can't recommend that frame even though it was an amazing serving frame. Buyer beware since it checks every box for arm killer.
 
Yonex SV 98+ is a great racquet. Probably shouldn't have switched from it to the Vcore 98+ - it was perfect in stock form and a great all round racquet. Like Sardines, I preferred the feel of the Vcore 98+ and with some lead tape I thought it played really well and comparable to the SV 98+. But I think I could achieve a higher racquet speed with the unleaded SV98+, which I appreciate against better players, and there was certainly enough stability and power in stock form. For me, the Dunlop CX200 Plus reminds me a bit more of the SV98+ than the Vcore 98+. The string patterns are different - I haven't experienced as much inconsisentancy in the string bed as Sardines but I would agree that the 16 x 20 of the SV98+ was very predictable. If you can find some used copies of these racquets, they are also a great choice if you don't mind the higher RA/crisper feel.
 
Based the reviews and specs, I bought four Dunlop CX200+, as I was looking to get a little more help in terms of power and spin especially for serve vs. Head i.Prestige Xtralong I have been using for the last three years or so. i.Prestiges were an accidental find and they really helped me improve my tennis markedly. With them, I developed a control based game to move my opponents around corner to corner. So far, I have tried a few different strings with the Dunlops, but in terms of control it is nowhere close to the i.Prestige. The only plus is that I get noticeably more pop on serves. With the i.Prestige, the ball basically goes where I aim and I can control the depth really easily. It is not the case for me with the Dunlop. It reminded me of the Yonex DR+ that I tried a few years back in terms of lack of control and unpredictable response, though DR+ has very different feel vs. Dunlop.

My experience simply didn't jive with the reviews, so I pulled out my old Wilson Ultra Tour V2.0s to see if something was messed up with me. Actually, the Ultra Tour is up there with the i.Prestige in terms of control and predictable response. I may try the ProKennex model, but I think I am done trying to find other "control oriented" long rackets for now. I had forgot how risky messing with new rackets business is. Of course, it is all very relative and personal, though still I can't believe how different my experience with the Dunlop is vs all the reviews I have seen. BTW, I used to play with PD+ and later POG LB, so I am relatively familiar with playing with longer sticks. Also, before switching to i.Prestige XLs, I played with Dunlop F3.0s and M3.0s, so I am familiar with newer Dunlop offering and I liked them quite a bit.
 
I'd really recommend the PK 7G. Compared to the previous Q+5x version, which has similar specs as the current one, it's easier to swing but still delivers a punch. The Q+5x is incredible but you need to be strong to wield it for two hours. If not, it can punish you. The 7G is an absolute legend.

Less control but far, far easier to swing is the current v7 Blade 104. Tremendous tweener that has the XL length but swings as light as a standard, and it can feel like a video game with just how much you can crush it, but at times the ball can launch or be not quite so precise as one would wish. But still vouch for this frame because it's just so, so easy to use for an XL.
 
Suggest the Volkl VCell V1 OS. While I have not played with this iteration, I have used the prior models and found them to be well balanced, maneuverable, and had excellent control and reasonable power. Most important, they have zero vibration, and play more like mid size than OS. While I have gone to mid size model of the racquet, I actually played better with the OS models.
 
My racquet of choice for the last few years is the extended PK Q+5X Pro (310). I'm using Fairway leather grip and few grams of lead at the hoop. Strung specs: Weight - 345 g, Swingweight - 346, Balance - 31.4 cm, Twistweight - 15.5, Recoilweight - 189, Polarization index - 0.545, MGR/I - 20.11.
Very happy with this racquet, tested more than 30 frames in the past and still own several other frames like Prince, Volkl, Wilson, etc. but keeping them just for experiments with lead tape and measurements.
 
Never tested Babolat AeroPro Drive+, so can't comment. Based on my experience with other Babolat racquets probably it feels stiffer than PK Q+5X Pro and is more powerful with less control. PK is very comfortable even with leather grip.
 
There's also the Volkl C10 Pro Xtended... it's a lighter, extended length C10 Pro with a lower RA than the standard C10 Pro (from memory). Very nice... but needs to be modified (IMO).

Also, there was a Tecnifibre TFight 325 some years back (Texalium version) that was an extended length, 18x20, low RA.
 
There's also the Volkl C10 Pro Xtended... it's a lighter, extended length C10 Pro with a lower RA than the standard C10 Pro (from memory). Very nice... but needs to be modified (IMO).

Also, there was a Tecnifibre TFight 325 some years back (Texalium version) that was an extended length, 18x20, low RA.
i didnt know about this texalium version ... do u know the specs
 
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