The Yonex EZONE DR 98: What's Your Experiences With It?

[GandalfofTennis]

*To OP*

 

[SideSpinSliceIsNice]

I kidda lost track of the direction of the thread when it started to go DIY with mods and such but I'll add in my 2 cents.

Strings, Strings, Strings are vital. My 2 demos with the Ai98 and Dr98 were pretty much awful cos of the dead poly in them. The Ai98 was mushy and I was spraying balls everywhere with the Dr98 however, a "mistaken" demo of the DR100 was great cos it had my fav strings. The next demo with the Dr98 with fresh strings was super.

Before doing any mods to the stick, mess about with strings, it's easier, less messy and replaceable. With the right strings, the Dr98 even unmodded, is a great racquet. One of the easiest to use, most comfortable and match worthy, retail stick out there. It's very balanced stats make it a great all round frame, that can be used from baseline bashing to S&V. I'll be getting one for a long term play test.

I experimented with Volkl Cyclone 16 and Wilson Revolve. Revolve is my favorite string atm and even with that in the DR, my elbow was hell. I sold my DR today and have no regrets . It's a nice racquet but my elbow just didn't like it.

How is the Blade 98 18x20?

Got my Blade today. Mate, this has got to be one of the best control racquets I've ever hit with. No elbow pain, no balls flying long... I think I'm in love

I'll give you another more detailed update tomorrow.

 

[mawashi]

Got my Blade today. Mate, this has got to be one of the best control racquets I've ever hit with. No elbow pain, no balls flying long... I think I'm in love

I'll give you another more detailed update tomorrow.

Good to know, keep whatever works for you and ditch the rest. The blades have a huge following and for good reasons however, they have never been sticks I could click with.

 

[SideSpinSliceIsNice]

Good to know, keep whatever works for you and ditch the rest. The blades have a huge following and for good reasons however, they have never been sticks I could click with.

It's pretty interesting to see how one racquet has incredible reviews on the market and someone (me) doesn't like it. I guess everyone has their own (extremely picky) tastes.

 

[mawashi]

Exactly, that is why it's so important to find something that works for you, what works for someone else may not work for you at all. That's why buying into the hype of what the pros use is IMO hogwash. Reviews only matter to the person reviewing it lol!

 

[dgoran]

I have mixed feelings about this racquet.
On one hand it serves amazingly well for me I mean it just clicks and I have never served better on the other hand I am not sold on feel on the groundies where IMHO tour g 310 is better racquet in stability plow and feel. So I am kind of torn. Serve and forehand is my biggest weapon and I rely on it maybe too much so if I want to maximize my strength I would simply have to pick dr98 but just does not have that smooth feeling like other racquets

 

[mawashi]

I have mixed feelings about this racquet.
On one hand it serves amazingly well for me I mean it just clicks and I have never served better on the other hand I am not sold on feel on the groundies where IMHO tour g 310 is better racquet in stability plow and feel. So I am kind of torn. Serve and forehand is my biggest weapon and I rely on it maybe too much so if I want to maximize my strength I would simply have to pick dr98 but just does not have that smooth feeling like other racquets

I agree that the Dr98 doesn't have as solid a feeling on groundies as the VCTG, that extra 1 pt in stiffness and it could be foam filled made it feel so solid on groundies. One the other hand, the Dr98 has more spin and power. I think with some lead at 12 o'clock, it would hit as well as the vctg.

The Dr100 is pretty amazing and didn't think it felt like the stated ra of 69, it felt closer to a 65. That extra crispness really connected on groundies when I could feel the ball on the strings so well I could adjust my stroke and put in more spin or hit through harder. I think the Dr98 would really benefit from an increase in ra to 65 and sw to 328.

The Dr98 still suffers a little from the muteness of the Ai98 so when I hit with the Dr100 I could really imagine how much better this stick could be with some minor tweaks.

 

[dimkin]

To each his own - I gave up both of my VCTG310 ... When I picked it (~2 yrs ago I demoed a bunch, and it was the best at the time - along with Prestige S), but I always found the launch angle a little inconsistent - and I tried many strings, tensions, weights etc ...
AI flexed in all the wrong places (both demo and a present I got for my buddy after adding 5g to the hoop it started acting much better).

DR though - the demo has Wilson Sensation @ 55 - was beautiful - I couldn't miss ... I added 5g to the hoop and 5g to the handle - it's just perfect ... I have TB16 and TB17 on my sticks ... NO pain ... just a little of good muscle soreness ... my backhand has never been better, forehand I am still dialing in (mostly due to the tension being a little loose) I will go up a few pounds on the next re-string.

 

[PlayBrave]

I switched to the DR98 a few months ago and after a positive start (possibly the honeymoon period) I have switched back to my trusty 6.1 95 (16x18).
My 6.1 95's weigh just over 360gm all up (with leather grip/OG) and I was basically looking for a lighter/faster player's frame for mainly dubs these days.
I have hit some amazing shots with the DR98 (especially one handed BH) but overall;
Consistency is lacking
Serving is poor
Forehand is erratic
Volleys are solid
Agree the racket is string sensitive - works better with poly, which I don't particularly like. I prefer gut mains/poly crosses or a poly/multi hybrid.
And I injured something in my forearm (probably due to the difference in weight/balance compared to the 6.1 95 - so not blaming the racket).
I am 47, 6'5 and weigh 100kg and feel that a heavier racket swung with good technique will work better for me than the lighter DR98 in the short-medium term.
I will try the DR98 again at the end of the summer season - but will adjust the balance (closer to my 6.1) before doing so.
I believe the racket will suit a lot of players - but if you like a heavy/solid racket, would suggest that you stick with that until you can no longer swing it effectively.
Then the DR98 will be one to consider for sure.

 

[MisterP]

I have TB16 and TB17 on my sticks ... NO pain ... just a little of good muscle soreness ... my backhand has never been better, forehand I am still dialing in (mostly due to the tension being a little loose) I will go up a few pounds on the next re-string.

I think you should give Tour Bite 16L a try at the same tension you've been stringing 16/17 at. I think you will notice an increase in stiffness, control and tension maintenance over the other two.

 

[dimkin]

I think you should give Tour Bite 16L a try at the same tension you've been stringing 16/17 at. I think you will notice an increase in stiffness, control and tension maintenance over the other two.

Yup - that's what a pro in my club recommended. I bot 16 and 16L from TW (and Cyclone 16 as well - I loved being able to swing for the fences with that one in AI98)

 

[MisterP]

Yup - that's what a pro in my club recommended. I bot 16 and 16L from TW (and Cyclone 16 as well - I loved being able to swing for the fences with that one in AI98)

I like Cyclone 16 a lot too. Unbeatable for the price, just not quite as much spin and lower tension maintenance than TB 16L.

 

[dimkin]

I like Cyclone 16 a lot too. Unbeatable for the price, just not quite as much spin and lower tension maintenance than TB 16L.

We'll see - someone also recommended I use RPM Team 16. Will give that a try.