Head Liquidmetal 170 Review
"Did you say Liquidmetal, is that some sort of new vitamin?"
The driving force behind HEAD's 2004 racquet line is its new Liquidmetal technology. According to HEAD and the researchers at the California Institute of Technology (CalTech), Liquidmetal is stiffer and stronger than graphite and titanium. The claimed result is more power and better stability than standard graphite/titanium composite racquets. HEAD strategically places the liquidmetal at the 2, 4, 8, and 10 o'clock positions on the racquet head to increase stability, stretch out the sweetspot, and increase the power level.
Already one of our top selling racquets, the Liquidmetal 170 looks and feels its part as the flagship racquet for the 2004 HEAD line-up. HEAD also stepped up its design for 2004. Our team agreed that the Liquidmetal racquets are eye catching and look intimidating.
To see if the Liquidmetal technology transfers to the court, we had our team of four playtesters make the call. Our team analyzed the racquet based on power, control, comfort, maneuverability, and stability over a period of two weeks - read on for the results.
Serve
On the serve, all four playtesters found an unmatched amount of control, but were split when it came to the amount of power this racquet offered. Dave was initially impressed with the look, balance, and the feel of the racquet. It felt good in his hand, but ultimately he would have liked more power on the drive serve. Dave said he found some added touch and control on the high lob, chest high, and the high Ôz' serve. Sara had a similar first impression with the eye-catching Liquidmetal 170. She said, "it felt good in the hand, and had the makings of a really nice racquet when I took some practice swings." Sara found the racquet to have great touch and feel on her signature lob serve, and the weight and balance was right in her comfort zone. However, she didn't find the additional power she had envisioned the Liquidmetal having compared to the older HEAD MegaBlast 175, but she felt the added control more than made up for it during her playtest.
Also finding excellent control on the serve was Jonathan. "Its head shape matches the Ektelon Dominant that I usually play with and there was little adjustment to be made on the style or length of my stroke. I immediately noticed better control off the serve." Brett, on the other hand, immediately noticed the power, "The Liquidmetal 170 has a ton of power and drives serves were quite effective. It took a few serves to get used to the power." Brett also noted that this racquet had the control the MegaBlast 175 seemed to lack.
Return
On the return, Jonathan enjoyed a superb amount of touch and feel from the racquet. He noted, "the Liquidmetal 170 swung well against quick serves, and I was impressed with how sensitive the frame was to small changes in my stroke against various serves." Sara agreed, stating, "I found good accuracy off the return and the frame offered excellent ball feel." Sara also loved the feel of the HEAD grip (more rectangular compared to Ektelon or Wilson), and the weight and balance of the racquet was perfect for her fast swing speed.
Dave got a bad vibe from the Liquidmetal 170. "Returning drive serves and fast pass shots proved difficult because of vibrations limiting the stability of the racquet. Even with no history of arm problems, I was affected after a few games. However, a vibration dampener and a different string choice may remedy the problem." Brett had a similar experience with the racquet's vibration, but seemed to find more power than Dave. "On service returns I found the Liquidmetal 170 had a pretty large sweetspot. Both drive serves and lobs serves were comfortable. Off center hits rattled my arm a bit, but that should be expected from such a stiff racquet. The racquet seemed very maneuverable despite its head heavy balance and 159 RDC swingweight."
Forehand/Backhand
Dave first noted that swinging the racquet felt great, similar to both Jonathan and Sara's initial impression. However, upon contact he found that "vibration carried through the frame and stability was lost." On another note, Jonathan found the playability and the control of the racquet off the forehand and the backhand to be its greatest attribute. To generate power, he found himself having to swing a little harder than normal. He said, "in the first game I immediately noticed better control, but was disappointed in the power of the frame."
Finding the most benefit off the forehand and the backhand was Sara. She described the racquet as being her racquet of choice for doubles play, and it really opened her eyes to what a little control with a good mix of power can do for her game. Sara quickly found her groove and the Liquidmetal 170 gave her the control to compete at a higher level. Brett also liked the performance of the racquet. He noted that forehand kills and lobs were comfortable and predictable. Brett said, "Like with the MegaBlast, I did notice the high sweetspot. Every shot I hit at or near center of the racquet didn't feel as crisp as when I hit closer to the top of the frame." This is ideal for intermediate to advanced players who use the top half of the stringbed.
Overall
Expectations were high for the Liquidmetal 170 because of the success of it predecessor. The consensus with our playtesters was pretty straightforward. This racquet was an improvement over last years MegaBlast. The Liquidmetal 170 seemed to incorporate many of the good features of the MegaBlast, with added maneuverability, balance, and control.
Review date: December 2004. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.
