This suddenly hit the market. Numerous pro's are hawking it on YouTube. Again it sounds too good to be true. Anyone try it yet? This guy gave it an unbiased casting test.

He'd seemed fairly objective. I watched another review from a sponsored guy who made it look like it was impossible to backlash. :) I'll be interested to see how theyi pan out. I've been seeing KastKing advertising their own "backlash free" reel.

All i am seeing is heavy marketing.

But i gotta say this, isn't it dumb how Shimano's DC is mostly just 4 or 5 adjustments on the dial? 10 adjustments should be the standard, and i see no reason why it can't be.

38 minutes ago, WetBlanket said:

All i am seeing is heavy marketing.

But i gotta say this, isn't it dumb how Shimano's DC is mostly just 4 or 5 adjustments on the dial? 10 adjustments should be the standard, and i see no reason why it can't be.

I made mention of that in the comments section of one of those review videos and the Shimano fanboys almost tar and feathered me and tried to run me out of town on a rail. lol It was sad to see so many people so close minded and unable to think anything other than what their favorite brands tell them to think.

1 hour ago, WetBlanket said:

All i am seeing is heavy marketing.

But i gotta say this, isn't it dumb how Shimano's DC is mostly just 4 or 5 adjustments on the dial? 10 adjustments should be the standard, and i see no reason why it can't be.

The ones who can utilize 10 adjustments aren't the ones who're interested in DC reels. IMO DC reels are marketed for versatile but easy handling, just like iPhones, so everyone can use them. Anglers who want many settings and options with reels won't be the target market of DC reels. So, why bother.

It's still basically a 4 setting reel but with 10 notches. Abu Garcia markets it like this:

1-3 Pro Mode.

4-6 Sweet Spot. (The optimal mix of control and distance. Perfect for all-around use.)

7-9 Advanced Control. (Ideal for windier conditions)

10 Maximum

1 hour ago, newapti5 said:

The ones who can utilize 10 adjustments aren't the ones who're interested in DC reels. IMO DC reels are marketed for versatile but easy handling, just like iPhones, so everyone can use them. Anglers who want many settings and options with reels won't be the target market of DC reels. So, why bother.

Disagree. If this was the case, the very first DC reels wouldn't have 8 adjustments.

There's literally no disadvantages of having 10 adjustments on the dial when almost all daiwas have 20 for over 25 years.

45 minutes ago, WetBlanket said:

Disagree. If this was the case, the very first DC reels wouldn't have 8 adjustments.

There's literally no disadvantages of having 10 adjustments on the dial when almost all daiwas have 20 for over 25 years.

Actually, I believe that's why the first DC reel had that many settings and the modern ones are getting simpler.

Again, Daiwa reels with 20 settings are not specially targeting novice baitcaster users like modern DC reels are, but they certainly are trying to make everything simpler with less settings, like zero adjuster and sv spools. Magforce 3D are so versatile with many settings, but see soon how they retired it.

One big disavantage of having that many settings is confusion, especially for most novice users. In marketing, often less is better. Surdies show that when customers have too many choices of merchandises, their satisfaction after purchase would actually go down. That's why we only see a few coke favors on the market instead of a hundred.

13 minutes ago, newapti5 said:

Actually, I believe that's why the first DC reel had that many settings and the modern ones are getting simpler.

Again, Daiwa reels with 20 settings are not specially targeting novice baitcaster users like modern DC reels are, but they certainly are trying to make everything simpler with less settings, like zero adjuster and sv spools. Magforce 3D are so versatile with many settings, but see soon how they retired it.

One big disavantage of having that many settings is confusion, especially for most novice users. In marketing, often less is better. Surdies show that when customers have too many choices of merchandises, their satisfaction after purchase would actually go down. That's why we only see a few coke favors on the market instead of a hundred.

Lets be real here, how is having 10 settings not simple? They're not designing these reels for 5y olds, especially the higher end models. And while you say that Daiwa isn't targetting novice users, it just happens that Daiwa, with its 20 adjusments, is the most novice friendly brand on the market because of SV spools, so again, i completely disagree.

Shimano uses 4-5 settings on most of their DC reels because they're 1000000% cheaper to produce. They're not removing additional adjustments to make it simple, but only to decrease the cost of their DC modules. And i find this ridiculous because Aliexpress/Temu DC reels sold for $40 have way more adjustments, and so does these Abu's, but shimano has a hard time having more than 5. Ridiculous, and i actually do care greatly about having a higher resolution of dejustments because i always fish at the edge of backlashing, and the more adjustments you have access to, the better/easier you'll achieve that.

5 minutes ago, WetBlanket said:

Lets be real here, how is having 10 settings not simple? They're not designing these reels for 5y olds, especially the higher end models. And while you say that Daiwa isn't targetting novice users, it just happens that Daiwa, with its 20 adjusments, is the most novice friendly brand on the market because of SV spools, so again, i completely disagree.

Shimano uses 4-5 settings on most of their DC reels because they're 1000000% cheaper to produce. They're not removing additional adjustments to make it simple, but only to decrease the cost of their DC modules. And i find this ridiculous because Aliexpress/Temu DC reels sold for $40 have way more adjustments, and so does these Abu's, but shimano has a hard time having more than 5. Ridiculous, and i actually do care greatly about having a higher resolution of dejustments because i always fish at the edge of backlashing, and the more adjustments you have access to, the better/easier you'll achieve that.

The original Shimano Curado and SLX DC'c have only 4 settings but the SLX DC XT, Scorpion DC and Metanium DC technically have 15 settings. They have 5 on the external dial and 3 on the inside (P,N,F). The Metanium has all the settings on the outside which is handy but double the price of the Voltiq.

48 minutes ago, Tarpon Hunter said:

The original Shimano Curado and SLX DC'c have only 4 settings but the SLX DC XT, Scorpion DC and Metanium DC technically have 15 settings. They have 5 on the external dial and 3 on the inside (P,N,F). The Metanium has all the settings on the outside which is handy but double the price of the Voltiq.

Modes are set and forget. External adjustments are your settings, and 4-5 settings is ridiculously low.

I got a brand new 24 Met DC back in February last year for $290 Canadian from japan, so it's real far from being twice as expensive.

7 hours ago, wvhunt said:

He'd seemed fairly objective. I watched another review from a sponsored guy who made it look like it was impossible to backlash. :) I'll be interested to see how theyi pan out. I've been seeing KastKing advertising their own "backlash free" reel.

I can’t speak for the whole Bass Resource family here but I would think that if a company actually made a “backlash free” reel, everyone would want that immediately.

Logically speaking, it doesn’t make any sense to me to buy a reel that has a “chance” to backlash vs one that does not backlash. I would buy the no backlash reel 100/100 times.

I’m getting older now so I want to continue working smarter not harder. Not saying that you are not a hard worker, just eliminating the stupid mistakes.

I still occasionally have backlashes but it is operator error and not as many backlashes as when I was learning initially.

I bought the Daiwa Tatula CT 7:3.1 to help me learn with minimal backlashes. I’m happy with it so far. And I have straight mono just in case the backlashes got out of control. I needed to keep the cost of fishing line low while I learned the process. 😊

I am curious to see how they are. I think that more settings is generally better for dialing in too. One click on the dial can take your daiwa from fluffing during the cast to fully backlash free, and there are 20 settings.

1 hour ago, WetBlanket said:

Lets be real here, how is having 10 settings not simple? They're not designing these reels for 5y olds, especially the higher end models. And while you say that Daiwa isn't targetting novice users, it just happens that Daiwa, with its 20 adjusments, is the most novice friendly brand on the market because of SV spools, so again, i completely disagree.

Shimano uses 4-5 settings on most of their DC reels because they're 1000000% cheaper to produce. They're not removing additional adjustments to make it simple, but only to decrease the cost of their DC modules. And i find this ridiculous because Aliexpress/Temu DC reels sold for $40 have way more adjustments, and so does these Abu's, but shimano has a hard time having more than 5. Ridiculous, and i actually do care greatly about having a higher resolution of dejustments because i always fish at the edge of backlashing, and the more adjustments you have access to, the better/easier you'll achieve that.

No matter how "real" we are getting, the fact that we are here debating about a fishing reel means we are not the majority of consumers. So out opinions about how simple a reel should be won't matter as much as what novice buyers think to major reel makers. You believe a 5 years old should be able to use a 10setting reel is because you and I are all biased.

Daiwa started its business with catering to hardcore fans chasing high end equipment, and before sv spools and zero adjuster appeared, 20 setting reels were not "the most novice friendly" reels. They designed SV concepts not because they are the most user friendly brand, but because they realized they should try harder towards that.

As why Shimano designed their DC reels like that, cost is definitely one factor. Daiwa also must have considered that. But it could never be the only factor. To save cost but to lose customers wouldn't be the worthy gamble for a huge business like Shimano. They must also have considered the majority customers' thought about how simple a reel should be.

Oftentimes, less is better. Businesses like Shimano and Daiwa definitely understand a simple market rule like that, by now.

5 minutes ago, Brycecover said:

I am curious to see how they are. I think that more settings is generally better for dialing in too. One click on the dial can take your daiwa from fluffing during the cast to fully backlash free, and there are 20 settings.

I definitely like all the settings. I think so far, I’m good at the 10 spot. Off the top of my head, if I don’t change the settings and throw like a super light hula popper, that’s when I might get a little backlash unless I’m trying to launch that hula popper too hard across the pond. 😂

Unless I messed with that tension knob at one point and messed that up. At some point initially after purchase, I did the fall technique with a lure to test the speed of the fall and see if it backlashed. After the videos I watched I thought it was supposed to be a slow fall to the ground.

If I had a choice though of no backlashes ever vs occasional backlashes, I’m still going with the reel that has no backlashes.

I 100% will never buy a reel with a side plate that needs to be removed to set everything. I’m sure after you learn the process it’s fine but I don’t want to learn that process when there are smarter options available. 😉

36 minutes ago, FLYING HIGH said:

Logically speaking, it doesn’t make any sense to me to buy a reel that has a “chance” to backlash vs one that does not backlash. I would buy the no backlash reel 100/100 times.

If there was a reel that never backlashed and the mechanism for preventing backlash didn't also decrease casting performance then that would indeed make sense. However, there's no free lunch. They all use some form of braking and that braking force slows down the reel and reduces casting performance.

It's all about finding the right balance for you. Most of the reels these days, whether that be magnetic, centrifugal, DC or something else will have a multitude of settings to strike that balance for the given conditions.

15 minutes ago, newapti5 said:

No matter how "real" we are getting, the fact that we are here debating about a fishing reel means we are not the majority of consumers. So out opinions about how simple a reel should be won't matter as much as what novice buyers think to major reel makers. You believe a 5 years old should be able to use a 10setting reel is because you and I are all biased.

Daiwa started its business with catering to hardcore fans chasing high end equipment, and before sv spools and zero adjuster appeared, 20 setting reels were not "the most novice friendly" reels. They designed SV concepts not because they are the most user friendly brand, but because they realized they should try harder towards that.

As why Shimano designed their DC reels like that, cost is definitely one factor. Daiwa also must have considered that. But it could never be the only factor. To save cost but to lose customers wouldn't be the worthy gamble for a huge business like Shimano. They must also have considered the majority customers' thought about how simple a reel should be.

Oftentimes, less is better. Businesses like Shimano and Daiwa definitely understand a simple market rule like that, by now.

All i am saying is that Shimano, for the price they're charging their higher end DC reels, should, without a question, have a higher adjustablity on their DC modules. It's not a deal breaker, but when a $40 Temu reel has 10, and a 24 Met from TW for $540 has 5, it just doesn't make any sense. I know most don't care stuff like this, but i do. I take the price into consideration, see what's out there, and can clearly tell Shimano is falling off.

I set my Shimano sv brakes 3 pins on 3 off no slack in spool tension and never adjust anything except maybe slight spool tension. Set it and forget it

3 minutes ago, WetBlanket said:

All i am saying is that Shimano, for the price they're charging their higher end DC reels, should, without a question, have a higher adjustablity on their DC modules. It's not a deal breaker, but when a $40 Temu reel has 10, and a 24 Met from TW for $540 has 5, it just doesn't make any sense. I know most don't care stuff like this, but i do. I take the price into consideration, see what's out there, and can clearly tell Shimano is falling off.

Yeah I totally agree with you that Shimano DC reels, or all DC reels, should have as many settings as possible. If it allows me to customize settings and upload my own casting brake force profile, that'll be even better. But, from a business standpoint I understand their decision. So yeah, sadly it makes sense to me.

25 minutes ago, FLYING HIGH said:

I definitely like all the settings. I think so far, I’m good at the 10 spot. Off the top of my head, if I don’t change the settings and throw like a super light hula popper, that’s when I might get a little backlash unless I’m trying to launch that hula popper too hard across the pond. 😂

Unless I messed with that tension knob at one point and messed that up. At some point initially after purchase, I did the fall technique with a lure to test the speed of the fall and see if it backlashed. After the videos I watched I thought it was supposed to be a slow fall to the ground.

If I had a choice though of no backlashes ever vs occasional backlashes, I’m still going with the reel that has no backlashes.

I 100% will never buy a reel with a side plate that needs to be removed to set everything. I’m sure after you learn the process it’s fine but I don’t want to learn that process when there are smarter options available. 😉

Like the other reply this would be ideal but if you set to never backlashing then you are missing distance. If you set your tension tight you don’t have to thumb some reels when they hit the water. But this will decrease your casting distance and make the cast require more effort in my experience.

10 minutes ago, brophog said:

It's all about finding the right balance for you. Most of the reels these days, whether that be magnetic, centrifugal, DC or something else will have a multitude of settings to strike that balance for the given conditions.

For me now, I like the Daiwa magnetic system with the 20 settings. I’ve gotten used to it for the most part. I’m sure I can dial it in even more and fine tune it.

I’m a casual bass angler. Strictly a catch and release guy that wants to get the biggest fish vs buddies. 🤪

So I don’t need to be so technical with the highest end equipment, but I do want some nice things though, just not the lowest of the low. Only saying that because you have to spend a little more on a rod to get a nice warranty. Careless moments can happen and I don’t want to be out of luck with no coverage.

I really enjoy fishing as a sport and I’m sure that will never change. I might consider trying a local tournament as a co angler someday but just a thought. 😊

12 hours ago, WetBlanket said:

Modes are set and forget. External adjustments are your settings, and 4-5 settings is ridiculously low.

I got a brand new 24 Met DC back in February last year for $290 Canadian from japan, so it's real far from being twice as expensive.

If you are aware of the Japanese websites to begin with, yes.I bought mine for $324 from Japan Lure Shop. But if you're not, it's $540 from Tackle Warehouse.

Shimano Metanium DC A Casting Reels

$539.99

14

Shimano's lightest DC reel to hit the market, Shimano Metanium DC A Casting Reels offer elite performance with a CoreSolid magnesium frame, I-DC5 Digital Braking System, and MGL Spool III technology for unmatched precision and durability.

Even if a Baitcaster was made by magic elves, robots from the future, or supreme beings from another planet, I guarantee, I not only could, but would backlash the reel on a daily basis. No matter how far I cast, I will always try for one more foot of distance.

11 hours ago, Brycecover said:

Like the other reply this would be ideal but if you set to never backlashing then you are missing distance. If you set your tension tight you don’t have to thumb some reels when they hit the water. But this will decrease your casting distance and make the cast require more effort in my experience.

If you watch the entire video, in the second half, he's throwing into the wind. Home plate to 1st base is 90' but he's casting way beyond that without a hint of back lash. That's more than enough in the typical fishing situation. I have Diawa Tatulas, Zillions, Coastals and recently the Shimano Metanium DC, Scorpion DC and SLX DC XT. I've been able to blow them all up when I get too cocky and lower the setting to get more distance. The distance he got on on level 10 into the wind with no back lash triggered my inner tackle junky to give it a try. I'm waiting for the YouTuber "The Reel Test" to do his casting impressions which might be soon. He's already did a paper review of it.

Yesterday Tackle Warehouse had these reels. Today they are sold out until May 13