MVP Vector Midrange

[discspeed]

I posted this review on MVP's page, but this disc deserves it's own thread. Anyway, this thread will be the vector for the Vector's dispersal.

Ok, I'm going to try and give a cohesive review after my first day with the Vector. This disc grooved with me as quick or quicker than any new disc I've tested...including the Ion. I had some ridiculous shots with it today and parked some holes I've never reached with a mid before.

Physically this disc is very interesting. I received 2 Vectors, both weighing 177 (my OCD midrange weight of choice). One is dayglo green and the other is a dayglo red/orange/pink color. The plastic looks AMAZING. More or less identical to Opto plastic as far as I can tell. The overmold is the same black rubbery feeling plastic as on the Ions. The tops have a very smooth, gradual, and shallow dome that is perfectly formed on both my discs. The bead is so smooth that I can't even tell it's there with the disc locked in my power grip. MVP used a new molding process that placed the parting line that is usually on the bottom of the bead/disc up below the overmold so the bottom of the disc is completely smooth with no sanding or breaking in required. There are embossed logos (MVP, VECTOR, GYRO, and PDGA) spaced out on the bottom of the wing on the overmold that are interesting...They are very small...maybe 1/64". It looks pretty cool. The stamp also looks great (thanks to ZM!!). In the hand it feels very close to a Buzzz or Fuse as the inner wall is a bit shorter than a Roc (this surprised me as the pictures and specs looked closer to the Roc). Everything is smooth and comfortable with no raised lettering or textured areas on the underside of the disc.

The Vector is on the fast side for a mid. Out of the hand it is about Buzzz/Core/Mako speed, but due to it's greater gyroscopics, it holds it's speed longer. The gyroscopics give it awesome glide as well, without sacrificing wind resistance. It glides like an Ion(if you've thrown them for anything longer than putts you know what I'm talking about)...Just give it a little snap and watch it go. It has a zero in HSS as far as I can tell from my arm and a 10mph headwind. It will be interesting to see how it holds up for the biggest arms on here. Despite it's HSS, it can fly on a forward dominant line riding hyzer the whole way...I had several 250'-280' shots that I thought would fail because I didn't throw it flat/turned over enough, only to see them fly pretty straight with a hyzer lean and end up in the circle. The Vector pushes the performance limits of a midrange with it's glide and speed...Without good LSS, it would be a disc with a limited appeal as it would be very difficult to range (like a high powered sports car without enough downforce). Luckily, the LSS of the Vector is just enough to keep it totally predictable and controllable. Whatever line and angle I put the Vector on one thing was constant...It always faded. The fade reminds me of only one disc...The Rancho Roc. Unless really powered, the fade usually starts to happen at about 60% of the way through the flight. However, it is very gradual and forward dominant, so it keeps you on the fairway. Shots released hyzer got decent forward penetration while staying true on their line of release. Mid and high powered anhyzer releases always flexed out unless thrown really low.

I can see many possible uses for the Vector. In a multiple mid setup it could definitely occupy the moderately overstable slot and prove versatile enough to get a lot of tee shots. Only time will tell how the Vector will break in, but it's starting at a great point for a minimalistic setup. Personally I'm sidelining my Buzzz for a while to learn the Vector, and it seems to pair seamlessly with my Fuse.

 

[Mad Scientist]

Does the underside have the same curved area where the rim meets the flight plate as the Ion does?

 

[discspeed]

Does the underside have the same curved area where the rim meets the flight plate as the Ion does?

No. It's pretty conventional in this respect.

 

[Ryan C]

Really excited for this one. I dumped Ions, but I may be putting them back in the bag alongside my Jokeri.

Kind of a bummer that I've discovered Pains so recently, cause these sound similar, but better in several respects. Particularly in feel, if what Discspeed says is any indication. The parting line not being on the bead sounds like a huge plus for me. These sound like they might make a great workhorse midrange once they season. I don't think I would throw Pains for anything other than a big hyzer mid shot, or a windy day straightish shot. I have great hopes for these.

 

[JimW]

So Mike, you gonna make it out to the handicap Sunday? :lol: Maybe you need a little help testing these

 

[cfair]

if it doesn't have the rounded and textured underside I may be interested but I won't hold my breath. My Comet Roc combo has blown me away to many times and I've been mystified by enough mids to know that I'll be hard pressed to push out either of the two molds mentioned above because I always... always end up going back to them. And building my bag around it, well we'll see. I'll still find one to try though.

 

[Mad Scientist]

Does the underside have the same curved area where the rim meets the flight plate as the Ion does?

No. It's pretty conventional in this respect.

Good - that curved area and the texture on the bottom were deal-breakers for the Ion becoming my main putter :-|

Sounds like the Vector might pair well with the Comet, no?

 

[discspeed]

if it doesn't have the rounded and textured underside I may be interested but I won't hold my breath. My Comet Roc combo has blown me away to many times and I've been mystified by enough mids to know that I'll be hard pressed to push out either of the two molds mentioned above because I always... always end up going back to them. And building my bag around it, well we'll see. I'll still find one to try though.

This is the first new mid I've thrown in a long time that really seems like something new...Especially in the moderate overstable category. Now that I've thrown 2 gyroscopic discs (Ion/Vector) I can really feel what this technology is doing for the flight. Added HSS without corresponding LSS, holding speed later in flight(better glide, and forward dominant flight regardless of angle of orientation are all things I notice in both the Ion and Vector. The way the added LSS plays with the gyroscopic is the most surprising part of the flight. I already told Chad now I want an Ion with LSS like the Vector has...

 

[discspeed]

Does the underside have the same curved area where the rim meets the flight plate as the Ion does?

No. It's pretty conventional in this respect.

Good - that curved area and the texture on the bottom were deal-breakers for the Ion becoming my main putter :-|

Sounds like the Vector might pair well with the Comet, no?

Chad said something to me about updating the Ion mold as they have learned so much since they first built it. I forgot to ask (I should start writing my ?s down before I talk to him :wink: ), but I'm hoping this update includes removing the texturing/tooling on the underside of the Ion. I think without that the curved part would feel a lot more natural as well.

The Vector would compliment the Comet. On one hand with the Comet and Vector you will have more mid lines in your bag than you know what to do with. On the other hand, it would be a little weird for me to switch back and forth between such a deep dish old school lid-disc like the Comet and something as streamlined as the Vector.

 

[Mad Scientist]

I'd really be interested if they did a revision to the Ion - even if they released it as a seperate version and kept the original, like Innova has done with the Plus molds.

Sorry for the thread-jack. Back on topic...

 

[discspeed]

So Mike, you gonna make it out to the handicap Sunday? :lol: Maybe you need a little help testing these

I'll probably be out there. I'm not sure it will work for southpaws :lol: .

 

[rusch_bag]

Is the plastic as slippery when it is cold/wet as it is with ions? I hate having to change molds just because it is winter.

 

[ForeverBlue232]

Is the plastic as slippery when it is cold/wet as it is with ions?

And by cold, Mike, he doesn't mean 65 degrees...... :roll:

Sorry, I'm just being jealous. Sorry for the thread hijack. hehehe

 

[rusch_bag]

Alright, if you go put it in your freezer for like 20 minutes and then put some water on it. Let me know how it feels and that is kind of like playing in snow.

 

[discspeed]

Is the plastic as slippery when it is cold/wet as it is with ions? I hate having to change molds just because it is winter.

No one is making you live in Wisconsin. :lol:

It's urethane, what else can I say? I don't believe Ions are any different than any other premium plastic disc in this regard. I lived in MI and played in a lot of snow and used almost exclusively champ/z. I kept my hands and discs dry and my hands warm and I managed as well as anyone.

 

[jubuttib]

Yeah, I don't think any Champ/Z putter would feel that much better in the cold. Baseline does, but what can you do?

 

[Ryan C]

The forward dominant flight of the Ion is actually one of the things that seemed like a negative for me after a while. It was difficult to throw a hyzer with an Ion, because it would hold its hyzer angle, but then still just fly straight. This is not to say that they wont hold ANY hyzer, but it was difficult to get all the lines I wanted out of Ions. This is why I think I'll go back to them and add keep the Jokeri. This way I'll have a super straight disc, and a disc with very reliable fade.

I wouldn't even mind carrying a 3rd upshot mold if it did something the others didn't. I'm pretty sure on the courses around me, putters consist of at least half my shots.

 

[discspeed]

The forward dominant flight of the Ion is actually one of the things that seemed like a negative for me after a while. It was difficult to throw a hyzer with an Ion, because it would hold its hyzer angle, but then still just fly straight. This is not to say that they wont hold ANY hyzer, but it was difficult to get all the lines I wanted out of Ions. This is why I think I'll go back to them and add keep the Jokeri. This way I'll have a super straight disc, and a disc with very reliable fade.

I wouldn't even mind carrying a 3rd upshot mold if it did something the others didn't. I'm pretty sure on the courses around me, putters consist of at least half my shots.

One of the first things I said to Chad after throwing the Vector was "I want an Ion with a slow overstable finish like the Vector". I think it will happen eventually. I don't think MVP is going to have much downtime in the forseeable future...

 

[josser]

#excited

 

[discspeed]

I got to test the Vector quite a bit more today. Conditions were different...I played an open course and it was unseasonably warm and humid (even for FL). I was also pretty sore from yesterday since I haven't been playing a lot, so I feel that I wasn't getting quite the power/snap/timing that I was yesterday.

Due to some combination of the reasons above, the Vector seemed more stable to me today...So I want to let people know that this is definitely an overstable disc that is meant to be powered in the same manner as a Roc/Buzzz/Warrior etc. It is not a finesse disc, at least not at 177g, and not when new. It glides well, but it does need to be thrown at medium to high speeds to "go". I got to throw a lot of hyzers today with different wind directions and the Vector really excels at this. It is great for hyzers...I also got a better idea of it's speed/range...I really don't think it is any faster/farther flying than a Buzzz, but it can be thrown with much more abandon without worry. It really is as if the Buzzz and Roc had a child...Buzzz speed and glide with Roc stability, which BTW is all I've ever wanted in a mid.

So far I haven't missed my Buzzzes...My Fuses have been awesome (I added a new one to compliment the one that's been in the bag for a year now), and the Vector seems to compliment it seamlessly with very little overlap. They also feel almost the same in the hand. The sidewall is the same size, the way the flightplate meets the wall is the same, and the round feel on the bottom of the discs is the same as well.

It will be interesting for me to see more different people throw it, especially those in the lower spectrum of power.