Bandersnatch

lol. There’s not much mod fast about the 7’3 xh. 
 
it’s certainly fast and there isn’t a rod on the entire market that comes close to matching that particular blank for weight to power ratio. Is an NRX a little more sensitive? Yup, they don’t make an NRX that can hold a candle to the expride 7’3xh in terms of power and balance.  Nobody does as far as I can tell. There’s plenty of great jig rods for 1/2 oz but most of them start to get pushed to their limits and become mushy with 3/4 oz jigs.
 
894, 873, power pitch, perfect pitch, Brailist, bottom contact 2, all fantastic rods that lack the power effectively with full 3/4oz jigs. 
 
I need to admit that there are plenty of rods that I haven’t tried. If there’s another stick that is rated or as capable at heavier as much as the 7’3xh expride then let me know. Hard to beat a rod under 4.8 ounces that’s balanced decent, sensitive and is rated to 2oz. You also have to remember that Shimano had the previous expride xh’s rated to 3oz and the blank isn’t any different. This is a true jig rod that you can throw a 1oz full trailerd jig on and it’s not mushy

I've fished my new steez bottom contact three times so I'm not ready to give a full review. Understand I'm coming from the 893 not the 894 but I knew I wanted something with more 894 power. So far, I can say the following. 
 
Sensitivity - it's hard to be the sensitivity of the 893 but that's also imo because it's just a light power rod. The steez feels plenty sensitive but most of my bites have been big largemouth that have just had a mushy weight like bite. I'm fairly new to jig fishing as well. I find myself just using the weight of the jig, slightly lifting to notice if one is there. My lake is super grassy so I have had a chance to really drag something on rock to see the feel. 
Balance - it floats in your hand, I'm currently using a Metanium B but you could also potentially go lighter. I love the float. 
 
Power- Holy cow power. Again, I'm coming from the 893 but knew I needed more power. This rod has got the power to really pull these fish. I've been fishing 40lb smackdown to a short 16-20lb fc100 leader. When I hook one they are coming my way and in a hurry, even a few 4.5s I've caught in the last week. 
 
Tip- the tip is soft enough to throw a 1/8 tungeston weight with a 3/0 pin grip and rage craw, I found that impressive. It loves a 1/2oz jig and appears to be able to handle a lot more weight, just haven't tried. The tip is soft yet fast if that makes sense. I've watched some videos of my jig hooksets and they aren't a powerful hookset like I usually like to do. What I've noticed is a quick reaction most likely from feeling the bite a just a slight upswing a that jig hook is buried without much effort. Overall this rod has me building confidence unlike my 893. I feel totally in control with whatever happens. 
 
Also, my understanding from a few megabass p5 xbites owners is that it's a nice rod but I've heard the butt is small and it's not anywhere near as powerful as the bottom contact steez, however, I haven't fished the x bites, just was considering one when trying to replace my 893 due to nrx availability