As a beginner, I find the amount of different yoyos out there to be a bit daunting. What do you think are the yoyo standards out there?
What I mean by this is the throws that have stood the test of time. The ones that everybody has owned or thrown before. The ones that are always available in a product lineup, not a limited run. The ones that new yoyos get compared to.
What I DON’T mean is your personal favorite (though it could be). Or the best selling (also could be, but best selling likely has more to do with cost). This is meant to be as objective as possible.
An analogy: If anyone plays guitar out there, these are the Fender Telecasters, Strats, Gibson Les Pauls, Martin D28s of yoyos.
It’s worth noting that “standards” in yoyo are a moving target, whereas standards in guitar endure. Yoyos that were once the standard (888, for example) are considered lagging behind. Even the Supernova and Genesis are getting refreshes this year.
I agree with the above posters (the Chief is a great yardstick by which to measure), but with the caveat that you’re just not going to get the same definitive answers as you do in the guitar world. Plus, as popular as those might be, many of us STILL don’t have that basis of comparison. There aren’t yoyo stores around, we don’t know other yoyoers, or we only know people with certain brand affinities.
Telecaster, you can hear one through a Twin and go, “Yeah, that’s the stuff… that’s the classic Tele sound I’m after!” but you can’t know how a yoyo feels or performs by watching someone use one.
Anyhow, not meaning to pick apart anything… it’s actually a really good analogy to ask “what are the standards,” (I knew what you meant right away!) but all I’m trying to say is that it’s a trickier proposition for yoyo.
tom kuhn no jive
tom kuhn sb-2
playmaxx proyo/proyo 2
playmaxx cold fusion/gt
yomega raider
superyo renegade
duncan freehand
duncan fhz
dif-e-yo bare bones
yoyofactory fast 201
yoyofactory g5
yoyofactory 888
hspin pyro
spyy radian mk-2
clyw peak
one drop project
the problem with the guitar analogy is that people no longer have access to (or the patience to use) the popular yo-yo’s of even the recent past.
above are all yo-yo’s that have been used a lot as points of comparison throughout the “modern era” of yo-yoing. i think they work ok as the strats, teles, les pauls, sg’s, etc of the yo-yo world.
Anything that’s been made roughly unchanged for many years is always a solid bet. Code 1, Sleipnir, Supernova, Superstar, Avalanche. Those are what come to mind when i think of timeless yoyos(relative i know since some of those have only been around a little over 2 years…). That said there’s plenty of newer(and older!) yoyos at least as good if not better, but those are awesome performing classics that will never disappoint.
I would say that the No Jive is the equivalent of the '59 Les Paul
The people who have them know how to use them very well they are legendary one of the classics.
I go with the chief for strat. This being that comfortable normal that everyone loves.
I agree with you for the most part just not so much the CODE 1 and the Superstar. CODE 1s are great but after the initial hype died down you didn’t hear much about them. Superstars are constantly being changed and I don’t think they’re that good. Supernovas have been changed quite bit as well, but I think the newest Supernova really sets itself apart from all the previous runs and can definitely be considered a standard.
Here is my list:
Supernova - Set the standard for competitive play at an affordable price. YYF’s flagship yoyo.
Avalanche - Better performer than the supernova (opinion) at a slightly higher price range. One of the best CLYW’s
Chief - Same as the Ava but a little more expensive. Stable, smooth play. Introduced and popularized double rimmed yoyos.
Peak - If you’re a collector you need one of these. Does not play too well (opinion)
Sleipnir - Sets the bar for performance. Hands down. Amazing fast, smooth, stable play with ridiculous spin times. More expensive than everything else on the list that’s not a Peak.
The Chief is pretty much the ideal throw that everyone can enjoy. It’s just all around awesome. I’d say the same can go for the Avalanche, although it definitely plays different.
