Hey I am a beginner with the yoyo still. I can only do half of the tricks listed in the advanced tricks section under the learning section above on this website. One of my main complaints with doing tricks is that I cannot get my yoyo to sleep straight. Even though I have focused at it for a few hours a day for these last 3 weeks or so. I have looked at videos and studied professionals and just cannot get the hang of it no matter what, throwing a centered sleep. I know it is most likely my fault and basically I am wondering if I can get a yoyo that makes it much easier to throw a consistent perfectly centered sleep on a regular basis. I also would enjoy having a yoyo that can sleep for long periods of time, I feel it could help in the process of learning tricks quicker. I have big hands I do not know if hand size matters or if its just preference. I feel like I wouldn’t complain about the yoyo as long as it could accomplish what I would like. But also I wouldn’t mind having a yoyo that is similar size or weight or shape to a dark magic. If you have any advice on selecting a new yoyo or throwing a more centered sleep please let me know any help is greatly appreciated. Thank you!
A straight throw depends on the yoyo and your throw, I upgraded to the 888.11 from my Dark Magic 2 and believe me it was worth it. I always got bad throws like you I could never get a straight throw on my Dark Magic 2 but now on my 888.11 most of my throws are straight enough to keep my tricks going. Also get a Konkave bearing to help center the string. I made a review on the 888.11 if you want to check it out but it is pretty pricey and is undersized, to give you a feeling of the size it fits perfectly in side the Dark Magic 2’s rims without any free room. But if your serious about yoyoing, get the 888.11 it is absolutely incredible.
I know you are going to hate me for saying this but you dont need an upgrade, you need more practice. No yoyo will make you a better player. At your skill level the dark magic should do fine. getting those 10 minute long sleepers that the pros get is a product of years if practice. It won’t happen over night so keep at it and persevere. It only gets easier as you gain skill.
I have been throwing for nearly 10 months now, I think… May 2011… March 2012… yeah, 10 months.
Just practice your throw more. Narrower yoyos tend to be easier to throw straight but with enough practice it won’t really matter much what you’re using. You need to make small adjustments to your throw. Your body learn muscle memory that helps you deal with this. It takes time, patience and practice.
I can get almost 3 minutes of spin off my DM2. But that’s a straight sleeper, not practical for the most part. It can spin longer, I just can’t get it spinning longer for now.
I have lots of other yoyos, many more expensive. I still go back to my DM2.
I find I can usually get straighter throws with undersized throws if that helps, maybe try one of the yyf fundametals like a yuuksta or something.
Yuuksta was my first upgrade from a DM2. That yoyo is the bomb. Super stable, great spin times, just a really superb yoyo in general. You could always go with a Dv888 though, they never disappoint and at like 40 bucks it doesn’t get any better. What’s your price range?
I’ll sell you a brand new YYF 888x for $40 if you want it. Might as well go that way rather than move to the lower end DV888 like people usually (correctly) recommend.
You really should work on straightening your throw. You’re already using a solid yoyo, I assume it’s dark magic 2? A centering bearing is more for keeping the strings from hitting the side of the yoyo while doing tricks, you can still throw crooked with a centering bearing.
Try keeping your hand palm up at the end of your throw. Sometimes turning your hand over too quickly can cause the throw to go crooked.
Try to notice which side your yoyo is tilting towards and angle your throw to the opposite side to correct.
Don’t go for power throws until you get your throw straighter.
Try to use more of your upper arm muscles in the throw and less wrist snap.
Depends on your price range.
I upgraded TO the DM2 because my plastic yoyo was going crooked too often. The DM2 was a huge boost to my learning and all of a sudden I could land reliably and is what I learned to bind on. A perfect beginner yoyo IMO. But I don’t pick it up that often because it is far less stable than an all aluminum yoyo IMO.
I tried a Dash and would not recommend that to anyone as an upgrade from a DM2. I picked up a Magic Yo N5 Desperado and it was night and day difference for throwing straight and with a KK bearing it kept the strings off the sides and slept much longer than my imperfect throw would allow with a normal bearing. I love that yoyo and will defend it against anyone as it fits in my larger hand great and smoothed out my throw significantly. (I know, yoyo’s don’t improve the player but they sure do help!)
Also the wide stance really helps it land on the string and I am far more reliable than I was and makes me look better than I am right now.
I recently picked up a YoYo UFO Mercury which is a Chinese knockoff of a DV888 but it includes a 10-ball concave bearing and is very good for those looking to keep the costs down.
IMO there are a TON of really nice stable high-end throws out there that would help with keeping it straighter but I wanted to point out two inexpensive ones that seem to have helped me.
Oh and fixing your throw is the cheapest option. 
I’d recommend getting a Center Track or Crucial Grooved bearing. They really helped me straighten my throw.
Centertrac in a dm certainly makes it play better but practice is where its at…