Hi, today I hit with the Ultra Pro, comparing it to my Six.One 95 18x20 (2017 edition). This doesn't exactly address the topic here, but I didn't know where else to post. I have the Six.One weighted to be 354g with a balance point of 325, all the weight is at 12 o'clock. It is strung with 15g gut mains (45) and 17g Gosen Polylon crosses (40). I weighted the UP to 345g with a balance point of ~320--5g at 12 o'clock, 5g each at 2 and 10, 5g in the trap door. Same string set up but with 47 mains and 43 crosses. Here are my thoughts:
Feel: the UP is obviously much softer than SO with noticeable flex in the hoop area. You might notice that the cross strings are high in the hoop (i.e. there is a big gap between the bottom cross string and the bottom of the hoop). My sense is that there is more sweet spot higher up in the hoop, especially compared to the SO (that is why I put weight at the top of the SO). Overall, feels softer with bigger sweetspot than SO. At net, feel was very good and quite intuitive (i.e. the racquet does exactly what you'd expect).
Stability: this is a big thing for me. The UP turns out to be very stable--in fact almost as stable as the SO which is a very stable racket in its own right. At net, the UP was very similar to the SO, although it felt slightly faster allowing me to be a touch more aggressive with my volleys.
Launch Angle: this is another big thing for me. The launch angle on the UP was higher than the SO. It probably isn't high compared to today's modern racquets, but relative to the SO, it is noticeably higher. Took me a while to get my forehand under control. Slice was not as good with the UP, possibly because of the lower weight and balance. I have already added more weight to the UP and will eventually see if this helps.
Power: I feel like the SO is a fairly powerful racket, largely owing to its weight. It is not as maneuverable as the UP however. I this sense, I felt like the power of the UP is slightly less than the SO, but again, this may be attributable to the lower weight. In other words, I don't think the UP is meaningfully less powerful than the SO inherently. It probably is slightly less powerful given its lower flex rating, but by no means is it "under-powered." FWIW, the person I was hitting with is a 5.0 male, 19 years old, and he said that the power difference between the two, from a receivers perspective, was negligible.
Spin: Well, these are both 18x20 rackets and I am 51 years old so my style of play is not laden with spin (although when I was younger I was considered a spin player). That said, it is obvious that it is easier to generate spin with the UP. But frankly, both are fine for spin generation and get more spin than you might think. The more headlight balance of the UP (after I added tape) made it whippier and easier to get spin. Will be enough for my game.
Serves: For me, I use the SO's weight to generate power and spin. With this mindset, I can actually serve fairly well. Flat first, spin second. When serving with the UP, my first thought was that it feels light and less powerful. But watching the ball and the bounce after it hits the service box, it seems like the UP serves at least as hard as the SO. Whereas the SO seems to be weight based power. the UP seems to add a little oomph from a livelier string bed. Net-net, the serves seem about the same, but more accuracy with the UP.
Overall, I'd say the UP is higher launch angle, more spin, same stability, larger sweetspot. The SO is more pure weight-based power. My sense is that if I weight the UP the same as the SO, it would play quite close, with a a higher launch angle and more forgiveness. Frankly, that is what I was looking for when I bought the UP, so I guess it is doing what I asked.
I am an aging 5.0 male, played college. Still playing competitively in leagues, but now mostly doubles.
