Callaway Ai Smoke Max vs Paradym - NEW vs OLD HEAD TO HEAD Performance Test (Off Centre Hits!)

Рет қаралды 18,003

Күн бұрын

Fancy a fitting with Ross?? Then use the below link to book in:
www.epgolfstudios.co.uk/book-a-fitting
Today we put the brand new 2024 Callaway Ai Smoke Max up against the old 2023 Callaway Paradym in a test like no one else is currently doing on KZfaq!
We take a DEEP DIVE into the data to really try and see if there are any performance upgrades with the new Ai Smoke Max...
Timecodes
0:00 - Intro
02:14 - Paradym Hitting
06:35 - Ai Smoke Max Hitting
12:10 - Numbers Comparison
13:55 - Ai Smoke Heel Strikes
17:03 - Paradym Heel Strikes
21:28 - Heel Strikes Numbers Comparison
22:46 - Paradym Toe Strikes
26:33 - Ai Smoke Toe Strikes
31:24 - Toe Strikes Numbers Comparison
32:44 - Summary

Пікірлер: 76

@critterdoc3353 5 ай бұрын

66 year old 10 handicapper here and just traded in my Paradym for the Ai Smoke and, with my comparatively low swing speed compared to Mike, I get exactly the same results as this review. The sound is definitely louder and tingier, not Ping loud and tingy, but noticably less pleasing. Distance for me out of the middle is maybe 5 yards more with the Smoke, but off centre strikes are WAY longer and straighter. Without question the most forgiving driver I've ever had in my bag. I'll accept the sound for that all day, every day. Great review.

@pellkloster 6 ай бұрын

This is one if the most detailed and honest reviews I have seen. Great job!

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Thanks 🙌

@jamesrobinson7458 6 ай бұрын

Another great review Ross. Excellent display with the big dog from Mike to assist you, which in turn gives us all an insight into how these clubs perform. Thank you.

@TheNicP74 6 ай бұрын

Loved this. Great test Ross and well done Mike for hitting it so well 👏🏻

@ricd4950 6 ай бұрын

Another cracking review Ross. Really good channel, which deserves a lot more subscribers. 👏

@ariesclaw8623 6 ай бұрын

Great review, really interesting test to understand what’s meant by all this tech when in the hands of a player - looking fwd to seeing the 10k clubs on a similar test

@golfnut6129 6 ай бұрын

Interesting. Great test. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

@Thealmostaveragegolfer 6 ай бұрын

Really good review, love this content

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Thanks Russell 🙌

@billburbank4314 6 ай бұрын

Great video. Very insightful on impact of strike quality...which likley is hi hncaper challenge regardless of head. Anxious to get peek at my data.

@RELENTLESSGOLF 6 ай бұрын

Nice video Ross

@JiKimbo 6 ай бұрын

Wow, I'd love to be able to hit the different parts of the club on demand like that! It's a lottery with me, never know what you're gonna get. Great review, and very interesting results! 👏👏

@NovaScene 6 ай бұрын

Thank you for the video! Great honest comparison, would love to see this from every new head! 😮 Seems like the weighting in the Ai Smoke Max gains a lot of forgiveness and launch from the removal of the jailbreak, that must transfer the CG from higer in the head to lower! Since the front weight is added it also get the benefit of the radial weighting = forgiveness without losing speed. Smoke Ai TD vs Paradym TD comparison, same like this video would be extremely intersting! Since last year the TD was unbeatable ballspeed, could imagine those types of ballspeeds with added forgiveness 🤩 That would go in the bag!

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

We will try as much as we can 🙌 got a couple more lined up 👍

@jasonwinslow3543 6 ай бұрын

I have an AI Smoke Max with a Ventus TR Blue 6 on order after a fitting... I have not had a Callaway driver in the bang in the last 25 years - this one was insanely forgiving, provided almost silly spin retention on mishits for me and felt terrific. Moving from a Stealth 2 plus into the Callaway. I could poke the stealth out further, but not consistently. I'll take consistency and fairway finders over 5 - 10 yards of distance for sure!

@travisrobison1074 6 ай бұрын

Awesome review!!! I know the rear weight was set the same with both heads but I wonder if it would change anything having it behind strike location? I'm new to the fitting process but maybe changing the loft for face angle correction. Thank you for the honest numbers.

@rogerbaker3914 6 ай бұрын

Great review, which imo really helps the mid handicapper as we don’t always get the centre of the face and the Ai clearly is more forgiving in that area

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Thanks Roger 👍🙌

@carlrulton8101 6 ай бұрын

Interesting comparison video, they seem to have cracked the forgiveness as most will benefit from the off centre strikes.. would be interested to see how the off centre strikes compare to an even older Callaway model such as the Mavrik.

@richardskinner5050 6 ай бұрын

Great review. I have the last years triple diamond - is if worth upgrading to smoke?

@BiGKP6Five 5 ай бұрын

One thing I notice that I have seen on other videos is the slider adjustment on the Smoke actually does a lot more than the older model. I would be curious to see them adjusted straight up then make changes and compare.

@GRIFF22 6 ай бұрын

I'd be interested in seeing the AI Smoke Max vs Epic Max LS ...how much improvement in similar head models over a 3/4 year period.

@Braddles44 6 ай бұрын

Great review! What about reducing the loft on the new model? It should increase efficiency, reduce launch, and reduce spin. I think that would match them up more closely.

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Yeah certainly could and it would definitely make them a closer match for sure. I think there was enough data in this test for one video 😂 maybe down the line we could do that 👌

@gregmeakin8363 3 ай бұрын

Just what i wanted to hear, especially with the toe strikes.

@AGClassicCarTuning 6 ай бұрын

For those who walk into a golf store and see the new Paradym Smoke, one of the first things to catch their eye will be the sticker on the face covered in yardage gains...+7 yards, + 12 yards, +9 yards etc etc. Including the middle +7 yards, and high middle + 9 yards. Hence all about distance gains. Reality is no distance gains over last years Paradym, but quite a lot more forgiving off centre. But then again that's why the buzz from other makers latest products seem to be all about 10k heads. If we cast our minds back to the high MOI drivers of the late 2000's...Nike Sumo, Cobra L5V, even the Ping G425 10 years later, all awful sounds. That's the next step.....forgiving and quiet.

@rothvonhoyte 4 ай бұрын

It goes back way further than paradym. There is a hard limit on the efficiency and we've reached that limit on the center for years now. The only advantages that can possibly be gained on drivers rn is off center hits

@user-jh7mr7wr4d 5 ай бұрын

Excellent review. I'm curious when you are comparing the launch angle and spin rates of the drives that you don't look at the dynamic loft. I noticed some of them were 3 to 4 degrees different which will affect spin as well as efficiency .

@epgolfstudios 5 ай бұрын

I did mention that a few times 👍

@mariofonseca9267 5 ай бұрын

Great review. My perspective is that the old driver performed better. It was effortless ball speed out of a very smooth swing vs comparable balls speed out of a swing with visually more effort with the smoke. I would stay with last year’s model.

@SteveSmith-zz4ih 5 ай бұрын

A gut feeling, they just trickle feed improvements at each model release, yes they do a lot of R&D BUT deep down they know they could produce a one off best of the best, now that would not keep the money wheel turning would it?, Question have you Tested Krank Drivers - just to broaden the Driver exposure for the Viewers etc etc

@sheechan8407 3 ай бұрын

I needed the proof to callaway s claim. I m buying one this week

@nealfreeman01 6 ай бұрын

Great review! I think that Callaway has really figured it out. If you have FOMO, buy the Smoke, or save a couple hundred and buy the Paradym. They are both amazing clubs. Also the standard Smoke AI is last year's Paradym STD Tour head. If you want the best low spin, movable weight tech, change the front weight to something heavier and it is a monster.

@DrewJ79 6 ай бұрын

I would like to see the difference between the Smoke and Rogue St Max to see if its worth upgrading yet.

@scottrobinson2580 4 ай бұрын

Same here.

@jeremyparolini4579 6 ай бұрын

You have an incredible channel but I feel like some small production tweaks would really make your content jump. The main thing in this video is something called the “180° rule.” Not a criticism, just love the channel and would love to see it get even more popular.

@NovaScene 6 ай бұрын

I also feel like this channel and this host could easily be better then current TXG and 2nd Swing with better production.

@ducatidad8231 6 ай бұрын

Interesting video . Just bought the old paradym and started using this week and finding it has less curve on heel strikes (my miss) than my 2019 cobra f9. Really insightful to see a 20-30yd drop off the heel….

@ducatidad8231 6 ай бұрын

Also shows I need to learn to hit from the toe instead!!

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Yh so much difference!!!

@ducatidad8231 6 ай бұрын

It has adilda msi 130 stiff, counterbalance and never used one before, so next experiment if change the tip on my ventus blue stiff so o can try that…. And mess with the rear weighting 😂

@NovaScene 6 ай бұрын

Don't forget the weight was set in the extreme toe, it makes the heel miss a lot worse.

@iMc404 6 ай бұрын

I see the added 300 revs and higher launch being down to the fact the delivered loft was 3 degrees higher?

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

100%! The new head consistently delivered more loft than the old model in the baseline test even with same AOA and same average face angle. So it's definitely got different internal weighting

@kev12558 6 ай бұрын

Is it a £599 improvement? Ping, TM, PXG all at the £599 price point now. Crazy. Paradym now selling for £250-£300.. I’m gaming TSi & waiting for the price of the TSr to drop.

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Absolutely not 😂 but you wouldn't change if you had a modern driver unless it wasn't fitted well to you. You could have a brand new driver but if you have the wrong head at the wrong loft it still won't perform how it should. But if you have a fairly recent driver and it's fitted well for you then there would be no need to change

@xavierperez9725 4 ай бұрын

Of course it’s more efficient out of the toe than it is in the middle. You have shifted the GC to the toe with the sliding weight. This would be the case with any driver

@epgolfstudios 4 ай бұрын

Pretty much all modern drivers are like that now, even ones without sliding weights 👍

@LassoMediaUK-lo2gh 5 ай бұрын

Could the fact his gamer has had 12 months wear so it’s CT has changed to enable it to perform better than one off the rack?? Hence it’s good middle stats??

@LassoMediaUK-lo2gh 5 ай бұрын

And given how good his delivery was, the Ai TD would be a closer numbers comparison. That will probably be same forgiveness given the Ai face tech plus similar spin to his gamer

@wessims3412 6 ай бұрын

Slightly longer on the off centre strikes but on the centre strikes at his swing speed a 9 yard loss. Simply encourages everyone to hit the ball crappy off the heel or the toe in order to get the best performance side of the driver. LOL. No thanks anything close to the centre within a quarter of an inch will go further with the old Paradym and just as straight. Great attempt at a test result and indeed the results were decent however it is just human testing in the slightest bit of inconsistency will drastically change the results. For the crazy price of a new driver in Canada I would just stick with the old model from last year practice a little more at hitting a closer in the centre no I’m going just as far or further than what the new club will do.

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

It wouldn't be any longer on off centre strikes really, as you say human variables more important there, but as we said it definitely curved less which did surprise me and is a nice benefit for a lot of golfers. Old Paradym is only longer because it spins less. Which will be good for some and bad for others, that all just comes down to fitting. But fit Mike definitely spinning it at 1800 is bad. His left miss will be a lot worse. So for him Ai was better. But then you could just go to the 10.5 old Paradym to up the spin and get that in an acceptable window. Then the distance would be the same as Ai Lots of ways around it but ultimately it just comes back to the same old thing, getting fitted properly to make sure you get the right head, right loft, right set up for how you deliver the club

@stiggiban 5 ай бұрын

I feel like these type of reviews would be more interesting if they where conducted with a mid-hcp and not someone who already has a low spin, highly efficient 114 mph swing. :) I want to se the guy who swings at 100-105 with a smash varying between 1.3-1.4. I’d want to see inconsistent paths and face angels. That’s who’s going to g for these drivers anyway+ :-)

@rossh5416 5 ай бұрын

I imagine these will come on the fitting videos 🙏🏼

@epgolfstudios 5 ай бұрын

Yeah I think the only problem with that is you wouldn't get accurate test results from the clubs. Even with a pro sometimes it's hard. So one video the Paradym could come out better, then if we did it again the Ai might come out better. These videos are all about trying to take the human variables out as much as possible to try and see how the clubs perform with similar strikes. Would be extremely difficult to do that with mid handicap. Plus the higher the speed the more force we put through the head. So at lower swing speed the heads would perform even better in mishits.

@epgolfstudios 5 ай бұрын

Yes and no, we will definitely be having fittings where all the new drivers will be hit against each other but will only be comparable data with a very good player. In a fitting I'm not trying to compare clubs as accurately as I possibly can, I'm just trying to fit the person for the best set up. so the results are mostly not a fair comparison of how the heads perform because one they might hit well and the other poorly. This is why we use better players in these tests because it then reflects accurately how the head performs. 👌

@zacharymilos392 5 ай бұрын

This is really hard - AI arguably looks better and performs better on miss hits, but old Paradym feels/sounds better and has marginally better performance in the middle. Overall, I think I'd give the nod to the AI. I do agree the feel is actually not very nice at all (feels very hard/firm) but it seems like you'd be hitting more fairways in the long term. I think if you play on a tighter course, I'd upgrade... If you play somewhere where missing fairways doesn't matter as much, stick with OG Paradym.

@mickyd2673 4 ай бұрын

Like to see test with handicap golfer with swing speed 90mph

@jamesdailey5485 5 ай бұрын

3 yards left with ai smoke is a misrepresentation of the offline data. 2 shots were toe strike fades with ai smoke. Only 1 toe side fade with paradym. I bet those offline numbers favor paradym if you took all 3 open to path swings out of the set. Or, show total yards offline on all strikes...

@pumalos1835 6 ай бұрын

Great video but 164 ball speed 336 total.？？？

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Quad over reads low spin shots for sure. Take 15 off that, and a lot more in the winter

@EricCartmenez1 5 ай бұрын

only fully honest reviews on youtube

@epgolfstudios 5 ай бұрын

We try 🙌

@samhuang888 6 ай бұрын

3D, pls😊

@adrianmardlin 6 ай бұрын

More efficiency out of the toe because the toe is travelling faster than the middle of the club...

@epgolfstudios 6 ай бұрын

Indeed it would be. But it would also be far less stable than the middle so theoretically would lose ball speed though gearing. But modern drivers are phenomenal out of the toe