2016 Adidas EQT X3 RBZ BBCOR Review

By Bat Digest | Last Updated November 17, 2022

We got a chance to take the new 2016 Adidas RBZ EQT X3—which Adidas made in conjunction with TaylorMade—into the cage and can happily report the bat feels fantastic. It’s a noticeably light swing with really smooth feel through contact and the grip and handle size feel right. Well hit balls have real sense of standing in the tee box watching a little white ball zoom away from you.

As a bit of history, you may recall, for the 2015 season, Adidas showed us a single piece alloy BBCOR bat (EQT X1) and a Hybrid (Composite handle, Alloy Barrel) in the EQT X2. This year, at the NCAA Collge World Series, Adidas revealed they were making a new bat called the EQT X3 RBZ (Adidas Site). The RBZ stands for Rocketballz and is a trademark of TaylorMade, an Adidas golf company. The RBZ EQT X3 was produced with the help of the TaylorMade golf brand known for long drives and high end equipment.

Price Check

2016 EQT X3 Video

2016 EQT X3 Video

2016 EQT X3 Models

The 2016 Adidas RBZ is a high-end two-piece composite bat with two general claims. The first claim is the swing weight is at the absolute bottom of the permissible spectrum. (In fact, the rumor is, they had to actually add weight to the bat for it to pass the minimum standard). This remarkably low swing weight (which we confirmed with our trust swing weight calculator) should be helpful for the host of younger players looking for a light swinging BBCOR bat.

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General Recomendations

The second general claim from Adidas, which we can also confirm as far as possible, is the RBZ’s performance is at the absolute peak of .50 BBCOR standards. When the barrel of a bat is composite, manufacturers expect it to increase in performance pop over time. Subsequently, bats with composite barrels are usually designed to have an out of the wrapper performance below the .50 standard (like, say .47). Then, after the break in period, the .50 standard is reached. We have no reason to doubt that Adidas didn’t reach this maximum.

Model Recommendations

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Construction

As players get stronger they tend to prefer aluminum barrels due to their generally higher swing weight and hot out of the wrapper performance. Hence the reason we saw a few collegiate players in 2015 swinging the Adidas EQT X2 or EQT X1 due to its bigger beef, heavier swing weight, and an alloy barrel. But, in the beginning of their BBCOR career, a light swinging two-piece composite is a smart way to go.

The rumor is Adidas will also release a couple of youth and big barrel bats in the EQT X1 and EQT X2 for the 2016 season. As well, the EQT X1 and EQT X2 will continue to be produced for the 2016 season. This gives Adidas a full complement of bats in a single piece aluminum, hybrid, and two-piece composite bat all built for peak performance to serve a particular part of the market.

Overall Ratings

The overall rating uses seven different weighted metrics to determine our overall score. Half of total rating comes from the player and our exit speed tests (Player Rating: 25%, Performance: 25%).The other categories are Relevance (20%), Demand (10%), Durability (10%), Resell Score (5%), and Tech Specs (5%).

*: When a bat is denoted by a star (*) it is a preliminary rating. Expect it to be updated as we learn more about the bat and gather more data.

(PlaRa) Player Rating: We measure player rating from user reviews. Those users include our own hitters that we test at the lab as well as reviews we find online.

(ExVe) Performance: Performance measures the exit speeds and distances we capture in our hitting lab with HitTrax using these bats.

(Relv) Relevance: We measure the number of sizes and the MOI of the bat. Bats with a wider range of options get a better score.

(Dmnd) Demand: Demand is measured by consumer sentiment and the buzz around the bat.

(Drb) Durability: A bat’s durability is measured by user reviews as well as feedback from manufacturers.

(ReSl) Resell Score: Based on the price the bats go for used. Higher prices mean greater user demand which means, generally, a better bat. A resell value closer to its original price means a higher score.

(Tech) Tech Specs: We rate the bat on its technological advancements from previous years and compared to the industry at large. This is our chance to reward companies who are trying to innovate.
MOI
MOI or Mass Moment of Inertia is a measurement of bat swing weight. This quantifies how difficult it is to swing a bat. The industry often refers to this as things like End Load or Balanced but those words have been overused to the point of meaninglessness. We measure the actual swing weights of each bat we test using the industry-standard pendulum period, balance point, and scale weight. You can read more about that here.
Price
The price is the original MSRP price of the bat.
Type
The types of bats are single-piece alloy (SPA), two-piece composite (TPC), single-piece composite (SPC), hybrid (Hyb.), and wood (Wood). Hybrid bats are made of composite handles and alloy barrles.
Date
The estimated date the bat began distribution.