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What is this? Why does it feel so different
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I've got very confused testing the 88S Pro, Tour and Game Rockets
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So, I had to test them even more. It's not all bad though, so let me explain what I've found
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Hi everyone, Yonex has actually released two additional models of the Astrox 88S
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and besides the Made in Japan, Astrox 88S Pro. We now have the Made in Taiwan, Astrox 88S Tour and 88S Game models
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If you're still confused about why there's multiple similar looking rackets with almost identical names
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Pause this video and check out this short little video I made explaining the three rackets at three different price points from Yonex
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I will also tell you how to differentiate them visually as well. So quick reminder for everyone
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The pro model is the higher-end model The tour is the mid second tier and the game series is the third tier three rackets at three different price points
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Sound familiar? So the ADS Tour and game sample rackets were in the same 4UG5 configuration as what I tested with the ADS Pro so I was looking forward to this consistent test Although I wasn as big of a fan of the 88S Pro as I was with the 88D
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Pro, the 88S Pro was super super fast, super smooth, big sweet spot and very easy to play with
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So looking at the 88S Tour racket, it retains the fully recessed frame profile as with the 88S
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Pro. But when I was playing with it, I felt this 88S Tour's racket head was significantly lighter
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compared to the Pro model. At the same time, the racket also felt significantly more hollow
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compared to the 88S Pro. However, the racket is very fast. So perhaps because of how headlight it
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is right now, this thing is very very fast and up to an extent where sometimes the racket is
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slightly unstable because of the lack of head weight. So looking at the racket matrix, I'm
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really surprised Yonex classified as exactly the same with the 88s Pro, but just made with
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different materials. So similarly with the 88d models, I disagree with the racket matrix
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and I believe they should be put around this position here It was a shame I was not able to test the 3U model of this 88S Tour to verify if this was a one production
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or design difference, or was this the intended design philosophy. The racket production quality was certainly very, very good
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as you can see here from a supposedly mid-range Yon-Explanten racket, but I just thought it felt like a completely different series
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compared to the Pro models for this one. So when I moved from the 88S Tour
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To the 88S game rackets, it felt very similar to the Tour which means the design philosophy
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matched, but it had a different frame design with a more traditional one with only a half
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recessed frame profile as well as a thicker shaft. So here are the stats for all three rackets
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I also want to add that the 88S game's head weight felt very similar to the 88S Tour
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meaning it was very fast and agile, but the game was slightly stiffer
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At the same time, it's not a feeling that I can explain very well, but the 88S game feels like it's got slightly more drag than the Tourer models, like it's got a
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slightly thicker frame although from my measurements all three rackets have the same identical frame thickness So for me the Tourer and the game rackets felt very similar with subtle differences whilst the Pro Japanese main model felt significantly different to the other two Although the game
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model was supposed to be the cheapest one in its price range, but I prefer it to the
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Tour, which is supposedly to be the mid-tier of the Astrox 88S lineup. Again, repeating
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myself from the 88D's test, besides feeling more headlight compared to the Pro models
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The tour and game models rackets also don't feel as smooth as they grow, just a touch more
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on drag perhaps. However, in saying that, the tour and game rackets stand and play really well on their own
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So I would really recommend you guys try these rackets out for yourself
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So if we refer to the racket matrix that I showed you earlier, I would put the tour and
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game racket models here and here. So let me know what you guys think about them in the comments section down below
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One last piece of advice would be to restring these rackets to your preferred strings and
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tension. They'll play a lot better and you'll enjoy them more too. I'll see you in the next one
