Did going from a low-end cue to high-end improve your game?

[GoldCrown]

I have a sneaky with an upgraded wood/wood joint. No extra charge.

 

[Highmiles]

Going from a low end cue to a high end cue didn’t make much difference. Going to the right high end cue did.
Not a big difference in shot making, but a big difference in position play. Feel, feedback, and touch, all improved with the right cue.

 

[CocoboloCowboy]

It's all in your head, Fred!
Vanity cues are just that.
Working cues come in various uh visual impact. The tip to ball impact is what counts.
The cue to hand feel is what can seal the deal. Feeling how long the tip to ball contact lasts is very enlightening.
My preference (now) is to a Stealth cue. $70 and 3 piece with phenolic tip minimal ferrule and wood to wood joints. A stiff shaft with a snooker cue like taper to 12 mm.
Marketed as a jump/break cue.
Looks like a bar cue performs like a Balabushca. A Wallabushca for sure.

 

[The Old Jaybird]

Well, yes, but some of the members here change cue sticks as often as they change their underwear, so they have no long run.

Nearly all of the playing quality of the cue is in the shaft. Some very high-end cues I've tried have lousy shafts -- for me.

Some cues off the wall play better -- for me -- than most high end cues. Sorry, guys, a joint in a cue is inherently a defect; the best joints play as if no joint is there.

had a chance to hit some balls with an old one-piece Meucci stick....eye-opening...like a chunk of re-bar. Not a pro taper, shaft was "fat" probably 13+ at the tip. but it was solid as hell, really, really solid.

 

[Mensabum]

Just cues, let's leave aside shaft/deflection discussion. I don't mean to commit a sacrilege here, but... If you're playing with, say, a Schmelke with a nice Kamui tip added, I don't see that a more expensive cue is going to help you stroke straighter. As regards other presumed benefits of high end cues (hit?, balance?), on a scale of 1 to 10, how much has an expensive cue improved your runout percentage?

What's a run out??

 

[Mensabum]

Well, yes, but some of the members here change cue sticks as often as they change their underwear, so they have no long run.

Nearly all of the playing quality of the cue is in the shaft. Some very high-end cues I've tried have lousy shafts -- for me.

Some cues off the wall play better -- for me -- than most high end cues. Sorry, guys, a joint in a cue is inherently a defect; the best joints play as if no joint is there.

You heard it here fellas!!
Truth be spoke.
There's something to be said for the new cue syndrome.
Mostly placebo effect, but many players seem to play a wee bit better for a short period with a new cue in their paws.