pheonix6579
Professional
I will try and do the same with the MP
Tennis Warehouse Playtest: Head Extreme 2024 (Pro and MP)
- Thread starter TW Staff
- Start date
SlowTiger
Professional
Crazy to think about how things have changed as these extremes used to be arm killers. Even the MG extreme was pretty stiff
Fighting phoenix
Professional
Bummer I didn’t get chosen - enjoy the play test! Eager to hear what you all have to say about them
TennisHound
Legend
Obviously Krejikova and Berrettini like the older version while Fokina and Struff like the newer. I could be wrong but I think Fokina and Struff’s racquets have the wider string pattern before the Auxetic.
stapletonj
Hall of Fame
GOT IN !!!!! Looking forward to this. Tournament season is here though, but I will have enough practice and drills to give it a good go in the time allotted...
jackcrawford
Professional
Happy to be on this play test. Have been playing recently with a customized Auxetic 1 Extreme Team, will be interested to see how the stock Extreme MP Auxetic 2 plays in comparison.
I have been playing with the MP for 3 weeks now. Use Tch NRG 2 Multi. I can tell you not a stiff racket at all. I had a Pure drive and Ezone much softer than Pure drive and and the Ezone too. I love the feel of this one.
vsbabolat
G.O.A.T.
Velocity Power has more pop. I tried it last month.
taydbear7
Professional
Is that new? Now I'm curious.
Yes, and it has blown away all of my expectations.
...though I seem to have liked it more than the rest of the playtesters...I'm planning on buying a reel the next time I see it on sale.
vsbabolat
G.O.A.T.
Brand new, just came out.
Head Velocity MLT Power 16/1.30 String | Tennis Warehouse
www.tennis-warehouse.com
Happy to be selected to play test the Head Extreme Pro 2024 in grip size 3. Received it today including a set of Lynx Tour 17 and Velocity MLT 16 both in black. Racket paint job looks better in person than in pics...I like it. Haven't decided on the string setup just yet...maybe hybrid Lynx Tour mains and MLT crosses. Did a quick check on the unstrung static weight and came out to be 306g. Looking forward to this playtest. Thanks TW!
Looks very nice. I like the color. And I like that weight for rackets.Happy to be selected to play test the Head Extreme Pro 2024 in grip size 3. Received it today including a set of Lynx Tour 17 and Velocity MLT 16 both in black. Racket paint job looks better in person than in pics...I like it. Haven't decided on the string setup just yet...maybe hybrid Lynx Tour mains and MLT crosses. Did a quick check on the unstrung static weight and came out to be 306g. Looking forward to this playtest. Thanks TW!
Is 306g with the placard in the stringbed? Can you re-weigh without grip plastic and placard, please. Thanks!Happy to be selected to play test the Head Extreme Pro 2024 in grip size 3. Received it today including a set of Lynx Tour 17 and Velocity MLT 16 both in black. Racket paint job looks better in person than in pics...I like it. Haven't decided on the string setup just yet...maybe hybrid Lynx Tour mains and MLT crosses. Did a quick check on the unstrung static weight and came out to be 306g. Looking forward to this playtest. Thanks TW!
taydbear7
Professional
Will have to check it out. Thanks!Brand new, just came out.
Head Velocity MLT Power 16/1.30 String | Tennis Warehouse
taydbear7
Professional
I just saw the playtester thread. I'm going to read through it now.
I was lucky enough to try this out a few weeks back. Love the look , its obnoxious yellow green but it is called extreme right? I play with nrg2 have elbow issues so strung low noticed after a week balls started to sail on me , so I just went from 16 gauge same NRG to 17 gauge, (more power and spin is what they say)bumped up tension to mid 50's no elbow issues and can take some big cuts now. Tension before was 50. The 5 makes a big difference to my game it appears.
Bhagi Katbamna
Legend
Happy to be selected. Thank You Tennis Warehouse.
Got my Extreme Pro G2 today and strung it with Lynx Tour Mains at 52 lb and MLT crosses at 52 lbs.
Tennis experience/background:
58 years old. Have been playing for 45 years. I'm left handed. Typically, I play singles and doubles approximately 2-3 times per week.
Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley):
Aggressive baseliner. I try to finish points off with my forehand.
Current racquet/string setups:
Babolat Pure Drive strung with Kirschbaum Yellow Shark at 52 lb
Yonex Vcore 100L strung with Polytour Pro at 50 lb.
Babolat Pure Strike 100 strung with RPM blast at 52lb.
Head Flexpoint Prestige MP customized with 2 glue sticks in handle. Strung with Kirschbaum Max Power 19 at 48 lb.
How many hours did you play with the racquet?
Currently 13 hours. Will continue to update and add to review as I play more with it.
Comments on racquet performance for each stroke (each section should be 3-5 sentences minimum):
-Groundstrokes:
Forehand: My forehand is usually my best shot. With the Extreme Pro, I could confidently swing out and not have to worry about my shot sailing. I had enough power to put away short balls. Also I able to swing hard and still be able to keep the ball in when moving forward on balls near the service line that were below the net. I was able to hit the ball high enough and deep enough on defensive shots(for example when my doubles partner was lobbed). Inside in and inside out forehands were as I expected and didn't sail on me or surprise me by being lower in speed than I expected. I could hit out on high forehands and be aggressive without worrying about the ball sailing.
Backhand:
I have a one-handed backhand. Typically I hit topspin backhands because my slice backhands tend to float. I can't say that it is a weapon but it is steady enough. I am able to hit aggressive topspin backhands on short balls to finish points. Wit the Extreme, I had no problems hitting deep topspin cross court or DTL backhands. Also, it was fairly easy to control the height that it crossed the net for passing shots. Slice backhands on approach shots were OK. Those typically aren't something that I do but really they weren't any worse for me.
-Serves:
My serve can be a weapon if I just relax and let the racket work instead of trying to hit each serve 200mph. The PD and Yonex are great serving rackets so the Extreme Pro was following tough acts to follow. Today when serving, I did not need to adjust my swing. Flat serves were excellent. Kick serves and slice serves were as expected. I'm left handed so I like using the slice serve on the ad side and I was able to place it well. It took a little bit of adjustment to the grip shape(details below) but once I adjusted, it was easy to hit serves where I was aiming to.
-Volleys:
Generally, there isn't a volley that is too easy for me to screw up so net game isn't a huge part of my singles game. The best volleying racket I ever used was a Flexpoint Prestige MP tailweighted, but I can't play for more than 15-20 minutes with that type of racket due to the weight. Reflex volleys as well as touch volleys went where I wanted. Put away volleys didn't sail on me and had a nice bite. Forehand as well as backhand volleys were as expected.
-Serve returns:
The racket is light enough to move quickly to get hard serves back and stable enough to get depth when there is time to swing. Reflex returns were easy to perform and the ball ended up deep enough where the point wasn't basically over. When I had time on second serves I was able to hit aggressive returns without being afraid of it sailing out or dumping it into the net. Slice defensive backhand returns is one of my most potent ways to get back to neutral against people who have a big serve. That worked well with this racket as well.
Comments on racquet performance in each area (should be 2-3 sentences minimum)
Power/Control-
Extreme Pro was more powerful than the Yonex I have used and equivalent to the Babolat PD. The difference was though, the Head's power was a bit easier to control. This did not feel like a power racket but more like a balanced racket. I was able to place the ball properly if I had the correct swing. Control with the backhand was excellent. I typically try to hit topspin backhands because my slice backhands tend to float. I really enjoyed the power and control I had on my topspin backhand.
Top Spin/Slice-
The open pattern really lends itself to biting the ball and inducing spin. Topspin was great. On par with the other 2 rackets that I am comparing it to. I was able to get enough spin in order to hit aggressively while still keeping the ball in play. Slice shots were as expected from my technique. On defensive forehand slices when I was pulled out wide, I was able to hit a pretty aggressive squash type shot.
Comfort-
With the hybrid stringing, comfort was excellent. I did not need to use a vibration damper. One problem that I had with the Head Prestige racket was that if I mis-hit serves, it seemed like the vibration was causing pain in my shoulder. It felt odd to me that such a flexible racket could do that but every time I use it that happens. With the Extreme, hitting the frame or hitting the ball off-center on serves or groundstrokes did not result in any pain or discomfort.
Feel-
Did not feel any problem. Feel shots are typically not a huge part of my game but did not experience any issues on drop shots or drop volleys. I was able to get enough underspin to make those shots effective. One of my favorite shots in doubles is a short angle forehand into the ad-side doubles alley. I was able to hit those shots and place them where I wanted to without thinking.
Maneuverability-
Excellent. Reflex shots were easy to get the racket moving to. At the net, it wasn't sluggish to where it seemed like I was getting to the ball late. There were no issues with using it as easily during the first 15 minutes as during the last 15 minutes of the second hour of play. Overheads felt great to hit and I didn't get the feeling that I had to swing 100mph to be able to put the ball away.
Stability-
The racket is stable enough for reflex shots and not getting pushed around against hard shots. One of the issues I had with the Pure Strike 100 was that I felt the racket being pushed back when hitting against hard hitters. I didn't get that feeling with this racket(the Pure Drive is good in that regard as well). Off center hits didn't obviously feel as good as hitting the center but they were still better than I expected. Feel and touch shots were also better with this racket than the other rackets save the Prestige--which I can use for only 30 minutes. The other issue I have with the Prestige line is that it hurts my shoulder when I serve and the ball is hit off-center.
General reaction/comments on overall performance:
This is a great racket for aggressive baseliners like myself. It has enough power and great control. I am really enjoying using the racket thus far. One thing I am thinking about is putting a leather grip to make it a bit more headlight but I haven't done that yet as I wanted to give my impression on the stock racket.
Other:
A couple of things that I have to adjust to on this racket. First the grip shape is a little more rectangular than the babolat and the Yonex racket. Also, the size is on the generous side compared with the Yonex 4 1/4 grip size and the same as the babolat 4 1/4 grip size. That is going to take a little bit of time for me to get used to. The other is that the butt cap is more flared than I am used to as well. Those two things haven't had any detrimental effect on my play but just something that will take a little more time to get used to. edit: after playing more with it, I am getting used to the grip shape and butt-cap flare.
Now I have played enough to get a good handle on the racket and can make some observations: I didn't feel that there was a lot of free power on serve or ground strokes. Sometimes because of the grip shape I felt that I couldn't take huge cuts on ground strokes. I think that adding some silicon to the handle and lead to the head would make this racket more potent for me to use.
Ok after using it enough for the purposes of the review, I am going to put a leather grip and add some tape to the bevel to make the grip feel a bit more like the Wilson or Babolat grip shape and then use it for a bit and see.
Update: August 4 2024
I put tape on the bevel so that the grip is more like the Wilson grip shape. While doing this, I noticed that the pallet were the speed pallets(TK-82S). After putting a leather grip, this was more like it. Now that the grip feels familiar, the racket feels better to me. So in conclusion, Head has come up with a good racket that can be used by intermediate and advanced players.
Got my Extreme Pro G2 today and strung it with Lynx Tour Mains at 52 lb and MLT crosses at 52 lbs.
Tennis experience/background:
58 years old. Have been playing for 45 years. I'm left handed. Typically, I play singles and doubles approximately 2-3 times per week.
Describe your playing style (i.e. serve & volley):
Aggressive baseliner. I try to finish points off with my forehand.
Current racquet/string setups:
Babolat Pure Drive strung with Kirschbaum Yellow Shark at 52 lb
Yonex Vcore 100L strung with Polytour Pro at 50 lb.
Babolat Pure Strike 100 strung with RPM blast at 52lb.
Head Flexpoint Prestige MP customized with 2 glue sticks in handle. Strung with Kirschbaum Max Power 19 at 48 lb.
How many hours did you play with the racquet?
Currently 13 hours. Will continue to update and add to review as I play more with it.
Comments on racquet performance for each stroke (each section should be 3-5 sentences minimum):
-Groundstrokes:
Forehand: My forehand is usually my best shot. With the Extreme Pro, I could confidently swing out and not have to worry about my shot sailing. I had enough power to put away short balls. Also I able to swing hard and still be able to keep the ball in when moving forward on balls near the service line that were below the net. I was able to hit the ball high enough and deep enough on defensive shots(for example when my doubles partner was lobbed). Inside in and inside out forehands were as I expected and didn't sail on me or surprise me by being lower in speed than I expected. I could hit out on high forehands and be aggressive without worrying about the ball sailing.
Backhand:
I have a one-handed backhand. Typically I hit topspin backhands because my slice backhands tend to float. I can't say that it is a weapon but it is steady enough. I am able to hit aggressive topspin backhands on short balls to finish points. Wit the Extreme, I had no problems hitting deep topspin cross court or DTL backhands. Also, it was fairly easy to control the height that it crossed the net for passing shots. Slice backhands on approach shots were OK. Those typically aren't something that I do but really they weren't any worse for me.
-Serves:
My serve can be a weapon if I just relax and let the racket work instead of trying to hit each serve 200mph. The PD and Yonex are great serving rackets so the Extreme Pro was following tough acts to follow. Today when serving, I did not need to adjust my swing. Flat serves were excellent. Kick serves and slice serves were as expected. I'm left handed so I like using the slice serve on the ad side and I was able to place it well. It took a little bit of adjustment to the grip shape(details below) but once I adjusted, it was easy to hit serves where I was aiming to.
-Volleys:
Generally, there isn't a volley that is too easy for me to screw up so net game isn't a huge part of my singles game. The best volleying racket I ever used was a Flexpoint Prestige MP tailweighted, but I can't play for more than 15-20 minutes with that type of racket due to the weight. Reflex volleys as well as touch volleys went where I wanted. Put away volleys didn't sail on me and had a nice bite. Forehand as well as backhand volleys were as expected.
-Serve returns:
The racket is light enough to move quickly to get hard serves back and stable enough to get depth when there is time to swing. Reflex returns were easy to perform and the ball ended up deep enough where the point wasn't basically over. When I had time on second serves I was able to hit aggressive returns without being afraid of it sailing out or dumping it into the net. Slice defensive backhand returns is one of my most potent ways to get back to neutral against people who have a big serve. That worked well with this racket as well.
Comments on racquet performance in each area (should be 2-3 sentences minimum)
Power/Control-
Extreme Pro was more powerful than the Yonex I have used and equivalent to the Babolat PD. The difference was though, the Head's power was a bit easier to control. This did not feel like a power racket but more like a balanced racket. I was able to place the ball properly if I had the correct swing. Control with the backhand was excellent. I typically try to hit topspin backhands because my slice backhands tend to float. I really enjoyed the power and control I had on my topspin backhand.
Top Spin/Slice-
The open pattern really lends itself to biting the ball and inducing spin. Topspin was great. On par with the other 2 rackets that I am comparing it to. I was able to get enough spin in order to hit aggressively while still keeping the ball in play. Slice shots were as expected from my technique. On defensive forehand slices when I was pulled out wide, I was able to hit a pretty aggressive squash type shot.
Comfort-
With the hybrid stringing, comfort was excellent. I did not need to use a vibration damper. One problem that I had with the Head Prestige racket was that if I mis-hit serves, it seemed like the vibration was causing pain in my shoulder. It felt odd to me that such a flexible racket could do that but every time I use it that happens. With the Extreme, hitting the frame or hitting the ball off-center on serves or groundstrokes did not result in any pain or discomfort.
Feel-
Did not feel any problem. Feel shots are typically not a huge part of my game but did not experience any issues on drop shots or drop volleys. I was able to get enough underspin to make those shots effective. One of my favorite shots in doubles is a short angle forehand into the ad-side doubles alley. I was able to hit those shots and place them where I wanted to without thinking.
Maneuverability-
Excellent. Reflex shots were easy to get the racket moving to. At the net, it wasn't sluggish to where it seemed like I was getting to the ball late. There were no issues with using it as easily during the first 15 minutes as during the last 15 minutes of the second hour of play. Overheads felt great to hit and I didn't get the feeling that I had to swing 100mph to be able to put the ball away.
Stability-
The racket is stable enough for reflex shots and not getting pushed around against hard shots. One of the issues I had with the Pure Strike 100 was that I felt the racket being pushed back when hitting against hard hitters. I didn't get that feeling with this racket(the Pure Drive is good in that regard as well). Off center hits didn't obviously feel as good as hitting the center but they were still better than I expected. Feel and touch shots were also better with this racket than the other rackets save the Prestige--which I can use for only 30 minutes. The other issue I have with the Prestige line is that it hurts my shoulder when I serve and the ball is hit off-center.
General reaction/comments on overall performance:
This is a great racket for aggressive baseliners like myself. It has enough power and great control. I am really enjoying using the racket thus far. One thing I am thinking about is putting a leather grip to make it a bit more headlight but I haven't done that yet as I wanted to give my impression on the stock racket.
Other:
A couple of things that I have to adjust to on this racket. First the grip shape is a little more rectangular than the babolat and the Yonex racket. Also, the size is on the generous side compared with the Yonex 4 1/4 grip size and the same as the babolat 4 1/4 grip size. That is going to take a little bit of time for me to get used to. The other is that the butt cap is more flared than I am used to as well. Those two things haven't had any detrimental effect on my play but just something that will take a little more time to get used to. edit: after playing more with it, I am getting used to the grip shape and butt-cap flare.
Now I have played enough to get a good handle on the racket and can make some observations: I didn't feel that there was a lot of free power on serve or ground strokes. Sometimes because of the grip shape I felt that I couldn't take huge cuts on ground strokes. I think that adding some silicon to the handle and lead to the head would make this racket more potent for me to use.
Ok after using it enough for the purposes of the review, I am going to put a leather grip and add some tape to the bevel to make the grip feel a bit more like the Wilson or Babolat grip shape and then use it for a bit and see.
Update: August 4 2024
I put tape on the bevel so that the grip is more like the Wilson grip shape. While doing this, I noticed that the pallet were the speed pallets(TK-82S). After putting a leather grip, this was more like it. Now that the grip feels familiar, the racket feels better to me. So in conclusion, Head has come up with a good racket that can be used by intermediate and advanced players.
Last edited:
No worries. The placard was removed before weighing. I already have the racket strung and brought it out to play today. Lynx Tour mains 48lbs and MLT crosses 50lbs. But here is the difference of the plastic grip sleeve (about 1 gram).
So I guess the static weight of the racket came out to be 305g unstrung (with plastic grip wrap off, no overgrip) as manufacturer advertised or very close to it. First impressions of how the racket played coming in my next post.
Last edited:
Head usually puts a little dot on the frame by each grommet for all of the mains. That's a little subtle feature on Head racquets that I absolutely love! I assume these carry on with the trend.
_FrankTheTank_
Rookie
Really looking forward to you guys' extreme Pro reviews! Really interested if this one has become a bit more stable in stock form. From what i've seen on YT, at least the first demo batches seem to have slighty higher targeting SW than the Aux 1.0, which everyone appriciated.
ChanterRacquet
Professional
New HEAD Extreme 2024
The new HEAD Extreme 2024 is hitting stores in July. The cosmetic is bolder and there is Auxetic 2 in the layup.
tennisnerd.net
Ryebread
Hall of Fame
I enjoy that as well!
I just like to see skips and official specs to be safe.
but you're right it's prob fairly obvious.
I have a pro coming tomorrow and hope to string it in the late evening.
cheers
TennisHound
Legend
What used to be called the Extreme Tour will be called the Extreme Pro. The specs have remained the same:
Head Extreme Tour Racquet | Tennis Warehouse
www.tennis-warehouse.com
Preface
Current racket and string setup: Wilson Ultra Pro v4 (8 grams total added to hoop), Solinco Hyper-G 17 poly hybrid (shaped mains 45lbs, round crosses 47lbs).
Playtest: Extreme Pro 2024; Head Lynx Tour mains 48lbs, Velocity MLT crosses 50lbs
First time out with the Extreme Pro 2024, during baseline rallies, several things I noted. The default Head Hydrosorb Pro grip offers good cushioning and comfort, but it was too tacky for my personal preference, and so I added on my usual Wilson Pro overgrip later in test session. Overall comfort of the racket was good as I did not feel any unwanted vibrations. The racket has good power and a nice feeling of forward weight when hitting through the ball. The balls coming off the strings felt quite muted though compared to my Wilson UP which gives a good amount of feedback. I guess this is the Auxetic working giving off a muted feel? Because of this, I felt a sense of disconnect when striking the tennis ball. My brain was like, okay I hit the ball but where is the feedback? On flat groundstrokes the launch angle was low resulting in some balls not getting enough height to go over the net. Maybe if I went with a full bed of Lynx Tour that would have given me a better launch angle? Spin is good but not extreme; maybe full bed of Lynx Tour would produce more. Volleys and serves shine with this racket. Volleys resulted in good control with nice pop. Serves - hard hitting flat servers - you'll love this racket just for that...power and control! For me I found to play with this racket, I loosen up my grip on the handle more, use loose, full, fast upward swings and trust that the racket will do it's magic. Viola! It works...controlled spin. I passed the racket to my practice partner for a test drive and these are his exact words, "The racket seems to just want to spin.” His flats were similar to mine the first few shots...either launched low or rocketed long. Spin is the way to go. So far, it's been a fun play test and planning to use it in a upcoming doubles scrimmage.
Current racket and string setup: Wilson Ultra Pro v4 (8 grams total added to hoop), Solinco Hyper-G 17 poly hybrid (shaped mains 45lbs, round crosses 47lbs).
Playtest: Extreme Pro 2024; Head Lynx Tour mains 48lbs, Velocity MLT crosses 50lbs
First time out with the Extreme Pro 2024, during baseline rallies, several things I noted. The default Head Hydrosorb Pro grip offers good cushioning and comfort, but it was too tacky for my personal preference, and so I added on my usual Wilson Pro overgrip later in test session. Overall comfort of the racket was good as I did not feel any unwanted vibrations. The racket has good power and a nice feeling of forward weight when hitting through the ball. The balls coming off the strings felt quite muted though compared to my Wilson UP which gives a good amount of feedback. I guess this is the Auxetic working giving off a muted feel? Because of this, I felt a sense of disconnect when striking the tennis ball. My brain was like, okay I hit the ball but where is the feedback? On flat groundstrokes the launch angle was low resulting in some balls not getting enough height to go over the net. Maybe if I went with a full bed of Lynx Tour that would have given me a better launch angle? Spin is good but not extreme; maybe full bed of Lynx Tour would produce more. Volleys and serves shine with this racket. Volleys resulted in good control with nice pop. Serves - hard hitting flat servers - you'll love this racket just for that...power and control! For me I found to play with this racket, I loosen up my grip on the handle more, use loose, full, fast upward swings and trust that the racket will do it's magic. Viola! It works...controlled spin. I passed the racket to my practice partner for a test drive and these are his exact words, "The racket seems to just want to spin.” His flats were similar to mine the first few shots...either launched low or rocketed long. Spin is the way to go. So far, it's been a fun play test and planning to use it in a upcoming doubles scrimmage.
A few years ago I developed tennis elbow from work related tasks. At the time I was playing tennis with a full bed of medium/stiff polys. My TE got to a point where I couldn’t play tennis without feeling sharp pain. I then went with soft poly/multi hybrid strung in the mid 40’s and that helped where I didn’t need to give up tennis while I let my TE heal and played less. This year I’ve switched to the Wilson UP and progressed to a full bed of soft poly which doesn’t aggravate my TE. Feeling that my TE may be gone (cross fingers), I wanted to try full poly again and recently was selected to play test Solinco Hyper-G hybrid. That’s what I have on my Wilson UP now. See thread. Happy to say that Hyper-G hybrid (strung in the mid/upper 40’s) feels comfortable and my elbow feels fine after multiple hours and days of play. Back to the Head Extreme Pro, since I haven’t tried the previous models, I didn’t know how a full set of medium/stiff Lynx Tour would feel on it. Being cautious of TE, I went with past experience with poly/multi hybrid. Lynx Tour / MLT hybrid feels comfortable, although to me, the feel is muted in the Extreme Pro. The setup is working for me for the most part…just need to focus on imparting topspin to get proper ball height and dip in the other side of the court. I may decide to cut out the hybrid and test with full Lynx Tour.
Full lynx tour is pretty stiff. I don't recommend.
SirCraigoryy
Rookie
Congrats to those selected, excited to read your feedback! I'm especially curious about the balance of these frames. Jonas (tennis nerd) mentioned them on a recent video and posted specs indicating that the balance is even or near even on every version of the new Extremes.
My Extreme Pro came in today and as promised here are the specs…
Unstrung:
32cm/7ptsHL
306-308g/10.8oz
Strung with Kirschbaum Proline II @ 50lbs with overgrip and dampener:
32.7cm/5ptsHL
332g/11.7oz
I’ve got a small session at the park by me tonight. Gonna go channel my inner Musetti and report back with my first impressions and thoughts after!
jackcrawford
Professional
Head Extreme MP strung with Lynx Tour 17 @ 45 pounds
Tennis experience/background Playing for 25 years, first 12 of which included many tournaments and leagues.
Describe your playing style 4.0 player, consistent, try and find what an opponent does not like and give it to them. Right-handed, two handed backhand with one handed slice. One handed backhand volley
Current racquet/ string setups Familiar with multiple versions of Extreme, for the past month playing with Auxetic Extreme Team customized with polarized weight setup, for a year prior to that a heavily tailweighted TiS6, and prior to that for twenty years versions of the Volkl V1 MP. Also a part of the Racquetaholic thread, demoed and/or had flings with just about everything. Experiment with strings, always low tension, always 1.20 to 1.25 poly, Lynx Tour 17 in all colors is a favorite.
How many hours did you play with the racquet 12 hours, 8 hours singles and four doubles
Groundstrokes The 2024 Extreme MP is powerful off the ground, as fits a spin racquet since they include a thick section in their variable beam and are designed to provide power as well as spin. I am a player who wants a bit of help from the racquet, and this provides it. I like to put lots of spin on every shot.
It is more powerful than a Speed, and less than a Pure Drive. With the level of power and the way the spin grommets, layup and bumperguard react, this is not a good choice for a relatively flat hitter who wants some extra spin, but doesn't want to change their game. The current Pure Aero would be a better choice there. For me, it was just as I like it. I found it a good match for my Eastern forehand, my topspin two handed backhand, and my one handed slice backhand. I hit a fair amount of drop shots and topspin lobs, and the racquet has good touch on these, not too muted like a VCore 100 or too inconsistent like a Shift 300 gram. It is perfect for high, deep forehands to the opponent's backhand. It provides me the extra spin that even with my exaggerated low to high swing path I would be missing with a Pure Drive due to my Eastern grip and not having tremendous RHS.
Serves This is a good serving racquet, good speed on flat serves, nice break on slice. I rarely hit a kick serve as it too often just sits up if I don't catch it just right, but I can hit it as well with this one as any standard length frame. This racquet doesn't have the flat serve power of an Ezone 100 or Pure Drive, but if you are under 6 feet and rarely hit flat serves as the percentage is too low, the Extreme hits with a good combination of speed and spin.
Volleys Volleys are not a big part of my singles game, but in doubles I have to play a lot of them, and this works for me as well as any frame. Reflex volleys, touch volleys, low volleys, and sitters are all handled well. The 64 stiffness suits me, 70 is too boardy and 60 too noodly. I know RA isn't the whole story because in some cases it is misleading, but here it isn't. Stiff enough for putaway power without being too stiff for touch. Overheads are a breeze, easy to get the racquet over the head and snap down on the lob.
Return of Serve The return of serve is another strong point of this racquet. My two handed backhand serve return is my best shot, and I can hit it hard with just enough spin for control, or hit with lots of spin and dip it at a net rusher's feet. My forehand return is usually just a block to stay in the point, and the Extreme MP does well on this, with a large sweet spot and decent response outside the sweet zone. On weak second serves, it is easy to step in and take control of the point.
Power/Control The racquet's power is easily controllable if you put lots of spin on all groundstrokes. I feel it has a more consistent response than the Shift 300 gram, or the VCore 100.
Power/control The power is on tap thanks to the thick portion of the beam, and the medium stiffness. If you hit flat, the racquet will seem too powerful. Someone looking for just a little more spin for their flat game would be better off with the Pure Aero.
The racquet of course gives help in promoting topspin, but is no slouch at slice
You must knife the slice, or it will tend to float. Comfort and feel are linked together, the Auxetic 2 technology delivers a plush feel at impact. This is easy on the arm. Anyone can appreciate the comfort, but I also find the sensation ideal, but someone who likes crispy frames will be disappointed, as will someone who likes a flexy thin beam Prestige feedback.
Mneuverability I had no trouble swinging the frame fast for two hours. With an overgrip and dampener, it feels like a high 320s SW.
Stability I found the frame quite stable. It did not twist in my hand on fast serve returns. It was fine on reaction volleys against fast passing shots. Its combination of weight, beam width, and medium stiffness enables it to win the collision with the ball on hard groundstroke exchanges.
Comments I like the frame a lot. I will use it as my main frame. As a holic, who knows how long but the Extreme 2024 MP is definitely a keeper. Thanks to Head and Tennis Warehouse for this opportunity!
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alexmontw
New User
pheonix6579
Professional
As promised...my MP specs UNSTRUNG, factory grip, no over grip, and plastic/cardboard removed...
Weight: 301g
Balance: 32 cm
Weight: 301g
Balance: 32 cm
TennisHound
Legend
Had a hit with the MP yesterday. First impressions - love the paint job. Strung with a full bed of Lynx Tour .17 at 53lbs. It's been awhile since I've hit with a Graphene/Auxetic Head. I had to get used to the crisp pingy sensation again, since I've been using just a plain graphite racquet. Felt like a yellow Speed Pro sort of. - slow/ moderately clunky. This is not a racquet that any player can pick up and play with. It takes some thought on getting it to work. The Graphene/Auxetic seemed to sap the power slightly upon contact. It wasn't a flexible feel but a slight power nerf, like 20%. This was a different feel than the 360+ Extreme MP that was the best softening material to date, in my opinion. I was late on quite a few shots. Power fell of sharply on off center hits, especially toward the top of the hoop. Granted, these are only first impressions.
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