The Pickleball Apes Harmony V is the cheapest top-tier control paddle I've tested, and if your game is dinks, blocks and resets, it's an easy buy at this price. It's a 16.5mm honeycomb widebody with a raw carbon face, and it scored 92 out of 100 for control, so only eight paddles I've tested have more. Its sweet spot scored 90 out of 100, it swings light and it barely twists on a mishit. What you give up is pop. It scored 44 out of 100 for pop, so counters and speed-ups only go as fast as you swing, and that's the one reason I'd tell a hands player to look elsewhere. Pickleball Apes launched the Harmony at $179.99 in 2025, and as of October 21, 2026, it's $79.99. The code STSPICKLEBALL takes 10% off, which brings it to $71.99. I earn a commission when you use my codes.
Pros and cons
Pros
- The Harmony V scored 92 out of 100 for control, and only eight paddles I've tested have more.
- Seven paddles I've tested score 90 or better on both control and sweet spot. The Harmony V is one of them, and it costs the least.
- Its twist weight is 7.33, and only eight paddles I've tested have a higher one. Twist weight is how much the face resists twisting when you miss the center, so off-center blocks stay on line.
- Its swing weight is 106.0, and only 17 paddles I've tested swing lighter. Swing weight is how heavy the paddle feels when you swing it, lower means faster hands.
- It plays dense and quiet, and the response is very predictable, so a soft shot comes off the face the way you meant it.
Cons
- Pop is its weakest score, 44 out of 100, and all but 28 paddles I've tested pop more, so you don't win hands battles on pace.
- Its power score of 52 out of 100 is clearly less than the average widebody's, which is about 65, so drives and put-aways take a full swing.
- The face is raw carbon with no grit, and its spin is about the same as the average widebody's.
- It's approved by USA Pickleball only, and the warranty is one year.
Quick answers
Is the Pickleball Apes Harmony V a control paddle?
Yes, and a strong one, because its control score is clearly more than the average widebody's 76. It also has clearly less power and far less pop than the average widebody, so you bring the pace.
Is the Harmony V good for beginners?
Yes. Control and sweet spot are the two scores that keep a newer player's ball in play, and the Harmony V is at 90 or better on both. My No. 1 beginner pick is still the 11SIX24 Pegasus Jelly Bean, which scores about the same on control and sweet spot and has clearly more pop, but the Harmony V does the same job for $18 less with the codes.
Harmony V or Harmony X?
The Harmony V, unless you need the reach. The two shapes have the same build, and power, pop and spin come out about the same. The Harmony V has a far bigger sweet spot, 90 out of 100 against 53 on the Harmony X, and far more control, 92 against 71. It also swings far lighter, with a swing weight of 106.0 against 118.0. Take the Harmony X if you want an elongated for extra reach and a longer 5.75 inch handle. The V's 5.5 inch handle still fits a two-handed backhand. Both are $79.99, or $71.99 with the code STSPICKLEBALL.
Is the Pickleball Apes Harmony discontinued?
No. As of October 21, 2026, Pickleball Apes still sells the Harmony on its own store, with the Harmony V listed as available at $79.99, marked down from $179.99. Pickleball Apes hasn't announced an end date. The newer Charm line uses the same foam corner idea with a full foam core. Pickleball Apes sells the Charm alongside the Harmony, and the Charm hasn't replaced it.
Dense, plush and quiet, with a face that stays calm
So, the Harmony V plays dense and on the soft side. The ball meets a solid, plush face at contact instead of a springy one, and the sound is quiet with no hollow ring. It isn't mushy, though.
The face stays calm on soft contact. There's some pop when you swing through the ball, but a dink or a block doesn't jump off the face on its own. And the response is very predictable. The pace you get tracks the swing you give it, so when a ball goes long, it's your swing and not the paddle.
It's also quick and steady at the same time. The Harmony V's swing weight is a little lighter than the average widebody's 108.8. Its twist weight of 7.33 is higher than the average widebody's 6.92, so the face holds its line when you catch the ball off center. A light swing usually costs you some stability, and no other paddle I've tested pairs a swing weight this low with a twist weight this high.
Built for resets and blocks, and you bring the pace
How its spin stacks up against other widebodies you can buy
About average spin for a widebody, 12 RPM below the average
The top three for spin
- 1Honolulu J3CR Crystal Blue2,436
- 211SIX24 Pegasus Jelly Bean 22,37561 RPM behind
- 3RPM Q2 Widebody2,36967 RPM behind
- 27Pickleball Apes Harmony V2,261175 RPM behind
Dinks, resets and third-shot drops
This is why you buy a Harmony V. Control and sweet spot are my scores from the same ball-machine dink, drop and reset drills every paddle gets, and control is where the Harmony V shines. When the other team drives at you, the honeycomb core soaks up the pace, so a reset comes off slow and drops short instead of floating up. Dinks are precise and consistent, which is what keeps you in a long dink rally without popping up a ball they can attack.
Since the face adds so little pace, your third-shot drops need a smooth, full lift. A drop you only poke at can land in the net.
Blocks, speed-ups and counters
On defense, it's excellent. Blocks feel stable and controlled, and the light swing gets the paddle in front of you in time. The high twist weight means a block you catch off the edge still goes where you aimed it.
On offense at the net, it's a different story. Pop is the pace you get off short swings at the net, and it's the Harmony V's weakest score. A counter or a speed-up won't jump off the face, so in a fast exchange you win with placement, not pace.
Drives, serves and put-aways
You supply the power. The Harmony V's power score is clearly less than the average widebody's, so you can hit a solid drive or serve with a full swing, but nothing extra comes off the face, and put-aways come from placement more than force.
Spin is about average. It spun 2,261 RPM in my spin test, for a spin score of 68 out of 100, and the average widebody comes in at about 2,270 RPM, so that's about the same. That means topspin drives and serves dip the way you'd expect, with no help from a grit face.
Mishits
It's very forgiving. Only 14 paddles I've tested have a bigger sweet spot. Add the high twist weight, and off-center hits still go over with close to the pace you meant.
How it feels in your hand next to other widebodies you can buy
Quick in your hands, and steadier than most when you miss the middle
How heavy the paddle feels when you swing it. A lower number swings quicker.
Swings lighter than most widebodies.
How much the paddle fights twisting when you miss the middle. A higher number is steadier.
Only four widebodies you can buy are steadier.
How its sweet spot stacks up against other widebodies you can buy
Only nine widebodies you can buy have a bigger sweet spot
Both rings are sized to their score.
A honeycomb core with foam corners and fiberglass walls
Inside is a 16.5mm polypropylene honeycomb core with polyurethane foam inserts in the corners, and the perimeter is walled with fiberglass. The face is raw T700 carbon fiber with a raw peel-ply texture and no grit, and the whole paddle is a thermoformed unibody. Pickleball Apes says the foam corners help maneuverability and damp vibration, and that the fiberglass walls add stability.
Against other honeycomb widebodies, which average 80 for control, the Harmony V has clearly more control. Its power is about the same as other honeycomb widebodies, which average 49 for power. Its pop is clearly lower than other honeycomb widebodies, which average 58 for pop. So the build does what a control paddle should and takes pace off the ball.
The Harmony V is 15.8 inches long and 8.1 inches wide, with a 5.5 inch handle and a 4.25 inch grip circumference. It weighs 7.9 to 8.1 oz, and the handle has room for a two-handed backhand.
The warranty is one year, and Pickleball Apes lists a 30 day demo on the product page.
Marked down from $179.99, in stock and approved by USA Pickleball only
As of October 21, 2026, Pickleball Apes sells the Harmony V on its own store at $79.99, with $179.99 shown as the original price. The Harmony V is listed as available, and the Harmony X shares the same listing and price.
The Harmony V went on USA Pickleball's approved paddle list on June 3, 2025, so it's legal in USA Pickleball sanctioned events. Pickleball Apes lists USA Pickleball approval only. UPA-A is the PPA Tour's approval list, and the Harmony V isn't on it, so it isn't a pick for UPA-A events like PPA qualifiers.
Owners praise the control, and I found no repeat defect
The Harmony has been on sale since summer 2025, so owners have had it about 15 months. Pickleball Apes' Harmony page pools reviews for every shape, and as of October 21, 2026, it shows 80 owner reviews averaging 4.7 out of 5 stars. Six owner reports I found, from October 2025 to September 2026, praise its control, touch and forgiveness, though most don't say which shape they played. One Harmony V owner, from about January 2026, says it "plays with phenomenal control."
The only complaint that came up more than once was the old $179.99 price, from August to October 2025, and the markdown to $79.99 settled that. As of October 21, 2026, I haven't found a defect that three or more owners report.
Harmony V or 11SIX24 Pegasus Jelly Bean?
The original 11SIX24 Pegasus Jelly Bean is the paddle I'd weigh the Harmony V against first. It's $99.99, or $89.99 with the code STSPICKLEBALL, so the Harmony V is $18 less with the codes. Both are honeycomb widebodies with a raw carbon face, both are USA Pickleball approved, and both have a one-year warranty.
On my scores, they're close to twins on the soft game. Control, sweet spot and spin all come out about the same. The Pegasus Jelly Bean scored 95 for control and 93 for sweet spot, against 92 and 90 on the Harmony V. The swing weights are about the same too, 106.0 on the Harmony V against 106.9 on the Pegasus Jelly Bean.
The gap is in where the pace shows up. The Harmony V has clearly more power, 52 against 36, so drives and serves carry more depth for the same swing. The Pegasus Jelly Bean has clearly more pop, 58 against 44, so counters and speed-ups come off quicker. The Pegasus Jelly Bean is 16mm thick with a 5.75 inch handle and a 4.125 inch grip, and the Harmony V is 16.5mm with a 5.5 inch handle and a 4.25 inch grip.
So get the Harmony V if you want more depth on your drives and you'd rather keep the $18. Get the Pegasus Jelly Bean if you play more at the net than from the baseline, want more pop on your counters or prefer a longer handle and a smaller grip.
Where I'd look instead, for more control, more pace or more spin
Two paddles you might pick instead
How it stacks up against the Mach 2 Forza and the Pegasus Power
A paddle only wins a score when it leads by 5 points or more.
Harmony VWidebody · $71.99
Mach 2 ForzaWidebody · $107.99The Harmony V hits harder and spins more. The Mach 2 Forza has more pop and is more controllable. Sweet spot is about the same. The Mach 2 Forza costs about $36 more.
Harmony VWidebody · $71.99
Pegasus PowerWidebody · $89.99The Pegasus Power hits harder, has more pop, spins more and has a bigger sweet spot. Control is about the same. The Pegasus Power costs about $18 more.
Volair Mach 2 Forza 16mm, $119.99, or $107.99 with code STSPICKLEBALL. If you want even more control, this is the one. It's $36 more with the codes, and its control score of 100 out of 100 is the highest of any paddle I've tested, a little more than the Harmony V's 92. Sweet spot and spin come out about the same, and it has far more pop, 64 against 44. You give up drive pace, with clearly less power, 34 against 52, and it swings a little heavier, with a swing weight of 110.1. It's a honeycomb widebody, USA Pickleball approved, with a one-year warranty. It's the pick if you want the most control there is and far more help on counters.
11SIX24 Pegasus Power, $99.99, or $89.99 with code STSPICKLEBALL. If the low pop is what holds you back, this is the fix. It's $18 more with the codes, and control and spin come out about the same as the Harmony V. It has far more pop, 74 against 44, clearly more power, 64 against 52, and a little bigger sweet spot, 97 against 90. It swings clearly heavier, with a swing weight of 111.8 against 106.0, and the warranty is only six months. It's USA Pickleball approved. It fits players who want the same easy soft game with real pace at the net.
11SIX24 Pegasus Jelly Bean 2, $169.99, or $159.99 with code STSPICKLEBALL. If spin is what you'd miss, this is the step up. It's $88 more with the codes, and control and sweet spot come out about the same as the Harmony V. It spins far more, 2,375 RPM against 2,261, and it has far more pop, 72 against 44, and clearly more power, 63 against 52. That spin lasts, too, because in my wear test, 11SIX24's HexGrit face lost about 1% of its spin over 75 games. It swings clearly heavier, with a swing weight of 112.5, and it's approved by UPA-A only, so you can't use it in USA Pickleball sanctioned events.
Buy it if you win with touch on a budget, and skip it if you live in hands battles
If your points come from dinks, blocks and resets, and you play USA Pickleball events or rec games, the Harmony V is one of the best values I've tested. No other paddle I've tested at $79.99 or less scores above 81 for control. It forgives mishits, swings light and costs $71.99 with the code.
Skip it if you win at the net with counters and speed-ups, because pop is its weakest score. The Pegasus Power gives you the same soft game with far more pop for $18 more. Skip it if you need UPA-A approval, too. And if you want spin from a grit face, look at the Pegasus Jelly Bean 2.
Testing details
- Tested
- September 3, 2026
- Power and pop
- 20 full serves for power and 20 punch volleys for pop, every ball speed read on a Stalker radar gun.
- Spin
- 20 more serves on the radar. I drop the outliers and average the rest, which gave this paddle 2,261 RPM.
- Swing and twist weight
- Measured on a Briffidi SW1 swing weight machine.
- Sweet spot and control
- The same dinks, drops, resets and drives off a Titan ONE ball machine, for every paddle.
- The scores
- Out of 100, with the same tests for every paddle. The top paddles I've tested score 100.
- Published
- Scores from
- My database, updated October 21, 2026. How I test
No. 2
No. 4
No. 1
No. 2
