tennisguy11
Semi-Pro
As many of you know, I have been eager to get a comparitive review of the yonex rds 001 mp and the volkl dnx 9. I bought the yonex rds 001 mp 2 weeks ago without demoing the dnx 9 because my local shop did not get it in until two days ago. After reading all of the wonderful feedback on the dnx 9 ( in the dnx 9 review thread, I decided that I had to demo it and see for myself if it was for me. I hit with the dnx 9 for 2 hours and the rds for 2 hours today. Below I will compare the two racquets.
(Please excuse spelling errors- terrible speller)
Backround- strong 4.5, 16 years old, 6 foot 185.
Forehand- Both racquets excelled on forehands. I found that the rds had easier access to top spin and my opponnet, a 5.0 player, told me that I was hitting "heavier balls with the rds." I missed very few balls long with the rds and everything was clicking. With the DNX 9 I also had no problem hitting heavy topspin balls, but I was hitting some balls long when I really took a full cut at the ball. Also, the DNX has a smaller sweetspot than the rds and when I got lazy and did not prepare as well as I should have, I missed the ball long. In summary, with the RDS I found a little bit better control, easier access to top spin, and a larger sweetspot.
Backhand- I had a lot of trouble with my backhand with the DNX. I like to close the net a lot of the time with a "chip and charge." I had trouble with my backhand slice to say the least. With the RDS, my slice backhand was great, I was hitting with tight, low slice, that did not have any "float" to it. With my topspin 2 hander I found that I was hitting with a drop more spin with the rds, but the dnx was by no means mediocre with the topspin backhand, in fact it was very good, just a drop worse than the rds.
Volleys: One word can descripe the dnx 9 at net, amazing. What a great stick for volleys. i was hitting drop volleys, deep volleys, and angles with ease. The rds was also great and very manueverable at net. Both are great volley racquets, but I do not think I missed one volley with the dnx 9.
Overheads- I have no problem with overheads. I can hit them with any racquet. Both were very solid on overheads.
Returns- both racquets are very stable despite being below 12 oz. I could really crank some 2nd serves, but my opponnent has a very big first serve and I had a lot of trouble returning it with the dnx 9. However, with the RDS, I could simply block the return deep with a lot of success. Advantage here goes to the rds. However, I had more success returning 2nd serves with the dnx.
Serves- I had great placement with the dnx bit I had trouble getting pace and kick on my second serves. With the RDS, I was able to really nail some serves, and I had some great kick serves. However, I could place the serve a drop better with the dnx. I rely on a lot of kick and flat serves, and I just got more pace and kick with the rds than the dnx 9.
Overall- winner is the Yonex RDS 001 MP. I really feel that these are the 2 best mid plus players frame(that do not really need any customization) with an open string pattern on the market today. Although I liked the RDS a bit better, the DNX 9 is an amazing racquet. If you are in the market for a mid plus players frame with an open string pattern, you can not do any better than these 2 racquets. I also demoed the Fischer M speed- small sweetspot, too soft at net, could not serve with it, Head Flexpoint Radical Tour- all around solid racquet, just not as good as the yonex rds and the volkl dnx 9, Wilson Ncode 6.1 16x18- too powerful, great for serves, hurt my arm though, Babolat Pure Control Standard- too stiff for my liking, but the volkl dnx 9 and the yonex rds 001 mp clearly stood out from the rest.
I hope this review helps others with their racquet decision!
(Please excuse spelling errors- terrible speller)
Backround- strong 4.5, 16 years old, 6 foot 185.
Forehand- Both racquets excelled on forehands. I found that the rds had easier access to top spin and my opponnet, a 5.0 player, told me that I was hitting "heavier balls with the rds." I missed very few balls long with the rds and everything was clicking. With the DNX 9 I also had no problem hitting heavy topspin balls, but I was hitting some balls long when I really took a full cut at the ball. Also, the DNX has a smaller sweetspot than the rds and when I got lazy and did not prepare as well as I should have, I missed the ball long. In summary, with the RDS I found a little bit better control, easier access to top spin, and a larger sweetspot.
Backhand- I had a lot of trouble with my backhand with the DNX. I like to close the net a lot of the time with a "chip and charge." I had trouble with my backhand slice to say the least. With the RDS, my slice backhand was great, I was hitting with tight, low slice, that did not have any "float" to it. With my topspin 2 hander I found that I was hitting with a drop more spin with the rds, but the dnx was by no means mediocre with the topspin backhand, in fact it was very good, just a drop worse than the rds.
Volleys: One word can descripe the dnx 9 at net, amazing. What a great stick for volleys. i was hitting drop volleys, deep volleys, and angles with ease. The rds was also great and very manueverable at net. Both are great volley racquets, but I do not think I missed one volley with the dnx 9.
Overheads- I have no problem with overheads. I can hit them with any racquet. Both were very solid on overheads.
Returns- both racquets are very stable despite being below 12 oz. I could really crank some 2nd serves, but my opponnent has a very big first serve and I had a lot of trouble returning it with the dnx 9. However, with the RDS, I could simply block the return deep with a lot of success. Advantage here goes to the rds. However, I had more success returning 2nd serves with the dnx.
Serves- I had great placement with the dnx bit I had trouble getting pace and kick on my second serves. With the RDS, I was able to really nail some serves, and I had some great kick serves. However, I could place the serve a drop better with the dnx. I rely on a lot of kick and flat serves, and I just got more pace and kick with the rds than the dnx 9.
Overall- winner is the Yonex RDS 001 MP. I really feel that these are the 2 best mid plus players frame(that do not really need any customization) with an open string pattern on the market today. Although I liked the RDS a bit better, the DNX 9 is an amazing racquet. If you are in the market for a mid plus players frame with an open string pattern, you can not do any better than these 2 racquets. I also demoed the Fischer M speed- small sweetspot, too soft at net, could not serve with it, Head Flexpoint Radical Tour- all around solid racquet, just not as good as the yonex rds and the volkl dnx 9, Wilson Ncode 6.1 16x18- too powerful, great for serves, hurt my arm though, Babolat Pure Control Standard- too stiff for my liking, but the volkl dnx 9 and the yonex rds 001 mp clearly stood out from the rest.
I hope this review helps others with their racquet decision!
