Yonex EZONE 2020 AO

mscream

mscream

Professional
Crocodile said:
I have 2 prototypes with me, a 98 and a100. They are not the final paint job, they are matt black with a little green (100) and blue (98). I will be testing them this week and getting others to hit with them as well and get feedback. There are no specs on the frames.
Click to expand...

Any chance of measuring some specs?
 
dje31

dje31

Professional
Jster said:
There will be at least 10% white involved for the final paintjob. Trust me
Click to expand...

That's too bad. The bit of white on my EZXi98 is the worst part of that PJ. Maybe I can pick up a prototype afterwards.
 
Last edited:
Crocodile

Crocodile

G.O.A.T.
Just coming back with the previous post I made in this thread. Today I hit with the black prototypes of the 98 (blue) and 100 (green) and here are my thoughts:

1. You have to hit with these racquets for at least a day to allow for the strings to wear in because I believe these frames are quite sensitive to tension differences and they do play very differently if you use a string dampener.
2. Unfortunately it's not a return to the DR days. The 98 plays firmer than say a Tecnifibre T40 315 and Wilson UT. Interestingly the 98 feels like a longer racquet and is very stable for its weight ( Which I haven't measured yet). I think at the end of the day what people miss from the DR is its plush foam like feel. I think a lot about racquet selection for me is about the feel and this frame to me felt more like a more comfortable Grinta 98 ( Snauwaert) .
I am going to hit with it more tomorrow and get others to do as well to get a better picture of where this racquet fits especially among my EZone and DR users.
 
dje31

dje31

Professional
I didn't have issues with feel or stiffness of the EZone98+ I tried a few months ago, and found it played similarly to my EZXi98. I know several folks had issues with it, and I tend to favor softer, flexier racquets.

I wonder if they'll end up putting---or have already put---that wonder damping material in the grip that's in the new VCP97 Emerald models?
 
Notirouswithag

Notirouswithag

Professional
Crocodile said:
Just coming back with the previous post I made in this thread. Today I hit with the black prototypes of the 98 (blue) and 100 (green) and here are my thoughts:

1. You have to hit with these racquets for at least a day to allow for the strings to wear in because I believe these frames are quite sensitive to tension differences and they do play very differently if you use a string dampener.
2. Unfortunately it's not a return to the DR days. The 98 plays firmer than say a Tecnifibre T40 315 and Wilson UT. Interestingly the 98 feels like a longer racquet and is very stable for its weight ( Which I haven't measured yet). I think at the end of the day what people miss from the DR is its plush foam like feel. I think a lot about racquet selection for me is about the feel and this frame to me felt more like a more comfortable Grinta 98 ( Snauwaert) .
I am going to hit with it more tomorrow and get others to do as well to get a better picture of where this racquet fits especially among my EZone and DR users.
Click to expand...


What string and tensions are you using in them?
 
Alexh22

Alexh22

Professional
Apart from the pj will the final release be the same layup with the protos? They don’t have much time to change anything as they are out in 2020 correct?
 
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
Crocodile said:
Just coming back with the previous post I made in this thread. Today I hit with the black prototypes of the 98 (blue) and 100 (green) and here are my thoughts:

1. You have to hit with these racquets for at least a day to allow for the strings to wear in because I believe these frames are quite sensitive to tension differences and they do play very differently if you use a string dampener.
2. Unfortunately it's not a return to the DR days. The 98 plays firmer than say a Tecnifibre T40 315 and Wilson UT. Interestingly the 98 feels like a longer racquet and is very stable for its weight ( Which I haven't measured yet). I think at the end of the day what people miss from the DR is its plush foam like feel. I think a lot about racquet selection for me is about the feel and this frame to me felt more like a more comfortable Grinta 98 ( Snauwaert) .
I am going to hit with it more tomorrow and get others to do as well to get a better picture of where this racquet fits especially among my EZone and DR users.
Click to expand...
Would you say the new model is an iteration of the current EZONE 98? I find the current EZONE 98 to be string sensitive and firmer feeling. Is it firm and still comfortable (like a DR100)? There are other 'firms' that are not as comfortable (like a PD).
 
P

PMF

Semi-Pro
Crocodile. Thanks for sharing your impressions. Racquets look great, even if prototypes. I'm particularly interested in what your DR98 & Ezone98 players are going to say. :)
 
Znak

Znak

Hall of Fame
XFactorer said:
#SeizeThePower seems to be the hashtag for this social media campaign. More pics are surfacing on Instagram.
Click to expand...
Good call. One of the testers wrote "this one sure feels just as solid as what the DR was. Just a bit more plush." :eek:
 
Znak

Znak

Hall of Fame
Check it out:

Screenshot-20191115-145636.png
 
Last edited:
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
Znak said:
You beat me to it. By their description sounding alot like the previous ezone 98 but less firmer in the hoop.
Click to expand...
I hope it's also less string sensitive. I've grown to like my EZONE 98, but I've been waiting for the next iteration since month 2 of the current EZONE 98 due to the Hyper MG in the upper hoop.

This is the first time Yonex has taken to social media with the whole 'prototype' shenanigan (a la Project One 7, Head Gravity).

@yonex, can I get an EZONE 98, please? :)
 
V

vanworth

Rookie
managed to pick up a couple of new DRs in September meaning I now have 4 all with plenty of life left, so unless this scores crazy high I will probably just pick one up second hand cheap, i should just leave it as i'm playing best tennis i have ever played but i know curiosity will get me at some point!
 
J

jon777

New User
Disappointed that it sounds more like the current EZONE 98 thatn the DR98, as I'm a DR98 player and down to 2 (both with a lot of mileage) so looking for new sticks. Been waiting for this to come out to demo (and switch over to these or something new). Sounds like DR98 players may not be thrilled so will be looking for other frames to demo with this... Hopefully when they arrive TW will have enough demos so the wait isn't too long to demo.
 
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
**EDIT: It's the Yonex EZONE 108 PJ or EZONE Rally PJ**

Original post:

There's a pic on Sunrise.Yonex (IG) that might show the new PJ? It's basically the same design, but it's white towards the throat/lower hoop where it's currently green/blue.

Is that a Japan only prototype PJ? Or the final design?
 
Last edited:
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
gazz1 said:
I love the look of the prototype...just start cranking them out.
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, 'prototype' is a misnomer in this case. This is a social media campaign. They're already cranking out the final production racquets if it's truly launching (meaning TW will have stock to sell) in January 2020. They're not going to take feedback from play testers of this racquet to make tweaks. It's too late for that. Yonex is sending this out to build hype.

Yonex, take my money now.
 
P

ProRadTour

Semi-Pro
XFactorer said:
Would you say the new model is an iteration of the current EZONE 98? I find the current EZONE 98 to be string sensitive and firmer feeling. Is it firm and still comfortable (like a DR100)? There are other 'firms' that are not as comfortable (like a PD).
Click to expand...

Got to hit the new 98 and 100. The 98 is an evolution of current EZone 98, it is still has a firm crisp response however the sweet-spot is has a more plush response. Still has a firmer upper hoop, but not as firm as the current EZone 98. The EZone 98 was my frame of choice for a while, I feel the new one is better overall and an improvement.

I can't gel with the 100, but I do think the new one is also better than the EZone 100 it will be replacing. Felt more comfortable overall, just a better response, not as stiff feeling, but still much firmer than the 98.

Overall, I would say the changes provide a nice feedback, you really know when you hit the sweet-spot, and when you miss it you don't really get a sharp drop off in power. I actually appreciated that about the EZone 98, so the new one is in the same vein, but nicer overall response. I actually hit the new 98 and the Ezone 98 side by side when I tried them, and as much as I liked the EZone 98, if I was still using it I would definitely switch to the new one.

Also, the shape of the head is rounder and I think more forgiving, larger sweet spot.

The frames I tried were strung with PTP 1.25 @ 52. So if you string lower, the new 98 would feel even sweeter.
 
n8dawg6

n8dawg6

Legend
ProRadTour said:
Got to hit the new 98 and 100. The 98 is an evolution of current EZone 98, it is still has a firm crisp response however the sweet-spot is has a more plush response. Still has a firmer upper hoop, but not as firm as the current EZone 98. The EZone 98 was my frame of choice for a while, I feel the new one is better overall and an improvement.

I can't gel with the 100, but I do think the new one is also better than the EZone 100 it will be replacing. Felt more comfortable overall, just a better response, not as stiff feeling, but still much firmer than the 98.

Overall, I would say the changes provide a nice feedback, you really know when you hit the sweet-spot, and when you miss it you don't really get a sharp drop off in power. I actually appreciated that about the EZone 98, so the new one is in the same vein, but nicer overall response. I actually hit the new 98 and the Ezone 98 side by side when I tried them, and as much as I liked the EZone 98, if I was still using it I would definitely switch to the new one.

Also, the shape of the head is rounder and I think more forgiving, larger sweet spot.

The frames I tried were strung with PTP 1.25 @ 52. So if you string lower, the new 98 would feel even sweeter.
Click to expand...
good to hear. of all the racquets ive messed around with over the last few years, the ezone 98 and blade 98 have easily been my favorites. id still be using the ezone if the feel was a little better
 
P

ProRadTour

Semi-Pro
Have to agree the EZone 98s and the Blades 98s are the best modern frames on the market. If you don't mind a stiffer feeling frame, the Graphene Radical lines are also very capable frames.

You should really like the new upcoming EZone 98.
 
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
ProRadTour said:
Have to agree the EZone 98s and the Blades 98s are the best modern frames on the market. If you don't mind a stiffer feeling frame, the Graphene Radical lines are also very capable frames.

You should really like the new upcoming EZone 98.
Click to expand...
Ugh, if the Blade didn't have such a short handle, I would have switched from my EZONE 98. But hey, the new EZONE 98 sounds promising!
 
Znak

Znak

Hall of Fame
XFactorer said:
Ugh, if the Blade didn't have such a short handle, I would have switched from my EZONE 98. But hey, the new EZONE 98 sounds promising!
Click to expand...
I'm not a two hander but they apparently extended the v7s handle length if that changes anything :) . With only one DR left in my bag I'm slowly making the switch haha
 
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
Znak said:
I'm not a two hander but they apparently extended the v7s handle length if that changes anything :) . With only one DR left in my bag I'm slowly making the switch haha
Click to expand...
I was referencing the V7. Ick. If that's extended, no thanks!

Yonex has always had more generous handles.
 
XFactorer

XFactorer

Hall of Fame
Retail PJ is predominantly blue - so says a person on IG who claims to have seen it at a shop - but wasn't allowed to take pics.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

D
2020 Yonex Ezone 100 way too stiff
Replies
25
Views
4K
n8dawg6
n8dawg6
S
Yonex EZONE 98+
Replies
0
Views
450
SteveXtreme1978
S
T
matching yonex ezone 98 2023 to ezone dr 98
Replies
2
Views
187
tele
tele
P
Has anyone tried the 2020 Ezone yet?
Replies
24
Views
3K
B-Line
B-Line
lulo
Switching from Ezone 98 Tour 2020 Recommendation?
Replies
26
Views
1K
lulo
lulo
Top