Head Graphene XT Extreme MPA

Jul 17

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As you know Head has made incredible strides in terms of racquet technologies and important players using them!

The racquets I received recently  are the new Head Graphene XT Extreme MPA.  Richard Gasquet, a talented and great player to watch, has been using the “Extreme” model for several years and has been making it into the late rounds at more tournaments!

The bright yellow finish with bright red and black certainly makes a statement!  The black grip is a slight departure from the more usual white synthetic grip used on many racquets.

Head Graphene XT Extreme

Head Graphene XT Extreme

The new model incorporates the ASP technology that allows the racquet to be strung either in a 16 x 19 pattern or a 16 x 16 pattern!  One racquet two string pattern options!  Great idea, I think!

DSC01787

ASP Insert

This model weighs in at 319 grams (11.25 ounces) with a swing weight of 322 (11.36 ounces) with a RDC flex of 60 (compare to 71 for the Babolat Pure Drive).

I installed a new Head string that is not polyester!  The new string is Velocity MLT, a multifilament polyamide (nylon) with about 10.2% elongation.  The string bed stiffness is a comfortable RDC 61 and DT of 38.

If you are considering a new racquet consider this one for sure!

Posted on July 17, 2015, in Racquets, Racquets - New, String, String - New, String Patterns, String Review, Technology. Bookmark the permalink. 4 Comments.

  1. Scott Allan | August 6, 2015 at 12:40 PM

    Thanks – that’s really helpful. I’ve never heard of stringbed stiffness. Is there a way of measuring this? And a rule of thumb for what is high-medium-low stiffness? I suffer from TE/GE so this is an area close to my heart. I did think the Extreme range might be a bad idea but perhaps not at this RA and with the right strings?

    Reply
    • RacquetQuest | August 6, 2015 at 12:55 PM

      Scott, there a a few ways to measure string bed stiffness. One is the Beer’s ERT300. This is a small electronic device that clips on the strings and vibrates the string bed. The number is relative to the stiffness. The Babolat RDC applies a mechanical load to the string bed and returns a number. The FlexFour applies a mechanical load tho the string bed and returns a number. These numbers will not be the same because each device uses a different “algorithm”.

      The Beer’s ERT300 is the only device that is designed, and priced, for the consumer not the racquet technician.

      With your issues I would stay around the “60” range for the racquet and use a good high elongation string… no polyester. I would stay below a 30.0 effective stiffness.

      Reply
  2. Scott Allan | August 5, 2015 at 1:01 PM

    Hi – did you measure the RA on a machine on this racquet? 60 seems very low – and it’s listed elsewhere as 66?

    Reply
    • RacquetQuest | August 5, 2015 at 2:03 PM

      Hi, Scott, and thanks for the comment.

      The equipment I use is the Babolat RDC and FlexFour. The RDC stiffness is indeed 60 for the Extreme XT MPA . The Extreme XT Pro is 66 on the RDC.

      Reply

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