I would suggest reading up about Hoyt here on At.
You will find all different opinions on the Hoyt bows.
This would be a good place to start. Good luck


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Having not owned all of them, but several....

Carbon Matrix - 35" ata made this a tack-driver. Mine had the cable slide which is still a favorite for folks who dislike roller cables.
Carbon Element - arguably of the best ever. Short ata but generous brace height. Mine had the RKT cam, which I believe is the best hybrid cam ever for speed and valley. This rig is still my hunting bow!
Carbon Spyder 34 - great bow, not a speed demon but good feel and well balanced. I believe it was a lightweight compared to the newer models.
Carbon Defiant - DFX cam very smooth, some had trouble with tuning the #2 cam. Dead in the hand and shot great.

Now, couldn't tell you which to avoid, but many didn't like the FX because it was just too short at 28" ata, the Defiant #2 cam for tuning reasons, and nobody I know liked the Turbo model in the Defiant or Spyder.

Hope this helps!

 

Having not owned all of them, but several....

Carbon Matrix - 35" ata made this a tack-driver. Mine had the cable slide which is still a favorite for folks who dislike roller cables. a little bulky but it was their first.
Carbon Element - arguably of the best ever. Short ata but generous brace height. Mine had the RKT cam, which I believe is the best hybrid cam ever for speed and valley. This rig is still my hunting bow!
Carbon Spyder 34 - great bow, not a speed demon but good feel and well balanced. I believe it was a lightweight compared to the newer models.
Carbon Defiant - DFX cam very smooth, some had trouble with tuning the #2 cam. Dead in the hand and shot great.

Now, couldn't tell you which to avoid, but many didn't like the FX because it was just too short at 28" ata, the Defiant #2 cam for tuning reasons, and nobody I know liked the Turbo model in the Defiant or Spyder.

Hope this helps!

 

I love my CARBON defiant turbo. My favorite bow before I bought the RX-1

 

Avoid the 2016 Carbon Defiant 34 with the #2 cam. There are tuning issues with the 2016 #2 cam. The 2017 Carbon Defiant 34 with the #2.1 cam is good.


Also I would avoid any with the air shox. Mine failed. It broke and just fell off my bow. I shoot a lot, but shouldn't happen. It is a bad design.

 

Avoid the 2016 Carbon Defiant 34 with the #2 cam. There are tuning issues with the 2016 #2 cam. The 2017 Carbon Defiant 34 with the #2.1 cam is good.


Also I would avoid any with the air shox. Mine failed. It broke and just fell off my bow. I shoot a lot, but shouldn't happen. It is a bad design.

 

Only you really need to decide that. Make sure you shoot before you but if so. All the carbon's are fine bows, just keep it well tuned and you'll be very happy.
Theirs a lot of nice bows out their to choose from, but if you really want a carbon get that right cam and if you don't work on your own bows find someone who really knows Hoyt bow and pay them the extra money
too fine tune it and you'll be good to go. They also have some real great deals on some non-current years which is fine but being Hoyt just did a lot of good changes on their 2018 carbon you might want to lean toward it.
Good Luck

 

Only you really need to decide that. Make sure you shoot before you but if so. All the carbon's are fine bows, just keep it well tuned and you'll be very happy.
Theirs a lot of nice bows out their to choose from, but if you really want a carbon get that right cam and if you don't work on your own bows find someone who really knows Hoyt bow and pay them the extra money
too fine tune it and you'll be good to go. They also have some real great deals on some non-current years which is fine but being Hoyt just did a lot of good changes on their 2018 carbon you might want to lean toward it.
Good Luck

 

I've owned 4 Hoyt Carbon bows, and still own 3. Started with the Matrix Plus, which was the roller guide second year Matrix, had Fuel cams. Great bow.

Next traded that in on a Element RKT cam. Awesome little bow ! Made one of the best hunting shots in my entire life with it and @ an old age even of 47 yeards on a deer while stalking.

Bought a used Element with Fuel cams because I couldn't resist the price. Sent it to my brother in Connecticut to be used as a back up bow. He ended up liking it and set it up for himself,,,,,lol

My favorite of them is the Carbon Spyder Turbo with the Z5 cam. It cranks up the speed, draws and holds so easy, shoots like a rocket and has no hand shck or recoil and I do NOT have it weighted down.

So I am a fan of all these Hoyt bows I owned.

If I was to defer away from any of the Hoyt Carbons, it would be this years model. The bow balances so awesome,,,,however, it weighs as much as a metal riser. I'm like *** is Hoyt doing here making this bow so heavy ? I can only think they are trying to go into the target arena and 3D with it. To me it is not a sensible option as a lite weight hunting bow anymore. I decided to not partake this year. I shot it and I LOVE the freaking cam, but hate the weight. I'd love to place those cams on an older riser !

Just my opinion.

 

The RX1 is 1.6 oz heavier than my 2014 CST..... whoopee

 

I've owned 4 Hoyt Carbon bows, and still own 3. Started with the Matrix Plus, which was the roller guide second year Matrix, had Fuel cams. Great bow.

Next traded that in on a Element RKT cam. Awesome little bow ! Made one of the best hunting shots in my entire life with it and @ an old age even of 47 yeards on a deer while stalking.

Bought a used Element with Fuel cams because I couldn't resist the price. Sent it to my brother in Connecticut to be used as a back up bow. He ended up liking it and set it up for himself,,,,,lol

My favorite of them is the Carbon Spyder Turbo with the Z5 cam. It cranks up the speed, draws and holds so easy, shoots like a rocket and has no hand shck or recoil and I do NOT have it weighted down.

So I am a fan of all these Hoyt bows I owned.

If I was to defer away from any of the Hoyt Carbons, it would be this years model. The bow balances so awesome,,,,however, it weighs as much as a metal riser. I'm like *** is Hoyt doing here making this bow so heavy ? I can only think they are trying to go into the target arena and 3D with it. To me it is not a sensible option as a lite weight hunting bow anymore. I decided to not partake this year. I shot it and I LOVE the freaking cam, but hate the weight. I'd love to place those cams on an older riser !

Just my opinion.

 

I agree with this!

 

Following

 

thanks guys
haven't been following the hoyt tech for a long time so wanted to see if there were any standouts in the carbon line. Keeping an eye on the AT classifieds but trouble is you can't shoot one before you buy it (unless local sale of course). Looking for smooth draw and Quiet for whitetails. speed is nice but not at the cost of accuracy i.e. my form might not be great with a critical to shoot bow -especially from a treestand. So a forgiving bow would be nice too.
thanks again for your thoughts.

 

Very helpful. A nice, used Matrix is at the top of my wish list.

 

Truth is, it’s not the bow that really makes any difference from one Carbon to an other. It’s the cam first and secondly the axle. Brace really doesn’t impact me any as much as cam then axle.

That’s my opinion.

My cam choices would be

#1 Z5
#2 RKT
#3 DFX


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I agree with MIKEY-CUSTOM the Carbon Spyder Turbo was probably the best or second to the Matrix 35 for Hoyt carbon bows. Both were absolute shooters and easy to tune with about any arrow set up. I don't think there are any carbon Hoyt bows that you would need to stay away from. 2016 with the #2 cam was hit and miss but once you get it tuned it is a shooter also.

 

014 CST Z5 Cams Hard to beat

 

Don't wanna jack this thread, but what are the issues on the 2016 Carbon Defiant with the #2 cam? Is it on all of them with the #2? I'm looking at one and curious because this may be a deal breaker. You can PM replies if you want.

 

Hoyt replaced them free of charge for the 2.1. So most definitely they were defective. Sorry to say this did not come about fast enough for me. I unloaded my bow. Go with the 2.1.


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How can you tell the difference in the standard and 2.1?
Thanks

 

It is stamped on the cams either 2.1 or 2. I had both a Defiant Carbon 34 and a Defiant 34 and a Hyperedge with the #2 cam. My CD34 was awesome no problems tuning but the Defiant34 and Hyperedge were a nightmare. I sold the 34 but had the Hyperdge cams warrantied and they sent me 2.1 cams and new strings and cables. It was perfect after that.

 

Also cuttingedge, Hoyt would only warranty the Hyperedge cams and strings.

 

Going to list my 60/70 RKT G3 Element black/Carbon if anyone is interested.. pm me


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If anyone is wanting a great used Carbon Hoyt, the RKT cam Element is as good as it gets. I own the same bow and though I’m not using it, it’s not for sale either. I made one of the best shots in my life with it on a stalk.

I highly recommend anyone wanting a nice little Carbon bow to check this one out.


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I've owned 3 Matrix, 2 Elements, a Carbon Spyder, a Carbon Spyder Turbo, a Carbon Defiant, a Carbon Defiant Turbo, and my RX1 Turbo is supposed to be here Wednesday. So far the only ones I didn't care for are the matrix and Element with the fuel cams, but they all shot good. My favorite so far has been the Carbon Defiant. I've only shot the rx1 and the rx1 Turbo a few times at the shop and I gotta say the draw on the rx1 turbo blew me away, it's very similar to the Carbon Defiant. The one I regret selling is the Element I had Ray Knight do the RKT conversion on.

One thing I know is, after owning carbon bows for so long I can't go back to an aluminum riser, I tried...... twice.

 

An 014 CST Blacked Out.
Just found one in mint condition. Z5 Cams were the best in my opinion.
Waiting for Limbs from Hoyt.


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I just listed my G3 Element RKT 50/60 #3 Cam if anybody is interested


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The only one that made me actually spend money on a hoyt (alot of money) is the rx-1. I've shot the defiant series as well as the spyder series. Just felt that the draw is absolutely phenomenal and feels great with an 85% letoff. Also the grip is much much better than previous models. Also balances better as well so it is more than just the cams here.

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Did you shoot the PSE Carbon Stealth? The reviews on it seem to be pretty good, my only reserve is the finish possibly flaking off. I'm not worried about paint wearing or fading,I'm worried about chips flaking off.

I wanted to buy the Stealth because of the reviews I've seen but because of the availability I went with the RX1 Turbo. I know either one is better than what I'm shooting now so I'm happy either way, I just haven't been fortunate enough to shoot both side by side.

 

Me neither but I will be in about a week. Nervous to say the least. I can't end up with 2 $1600 bows this year! Everyone told me the pse has the better cam. I had an evolve last year and the letoff was al.ost scary at 90%. I will say the hoyt kills pse in the cosmetic dept (besides the crappy paint job)

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