Massage Gun Power - How Much Is Enough? Amplitude vs Stall Force vs Speed

Summary

In this informative review, Scott from 'Before You Buy' discusses the critical features to consider when purchasing a massage gun: speed, amplitude, and stall force. He explains that amplitude is the distance the massage head travels, with 10-12mm being average and less leading to less effective hits. Stall force, the pressure needed to stop the gun, is vital for deep muscle work. Speed, usually with at least three settings, is less crucial. Scott emphasizes the importance of matching these features to individual needs, whether for a professional athlete or a busy individual seeking relief. His honest approach ensures viewers get a massage gun that fits their lifestyle and requirements.

Takeaways

• 🔧 Amplitude is the distance the massage gun head travels, with 10-12mm being average and 16mm offering a deeper massage.
• 💪 A massage gun needs sufficient power to effectively massage and loosen muscles, otherwise it might as well be useless.
• 🛑 Stall force is the pressure required to stop the massage gun, indicating its ability to penetrate deep into muscles effectively.
• 🔨 Low amplitude without sufficient stall force means the massage gun won't provide the necessary 'hit' or deep muscle impact.
• 👶 Scott shares a personal anecdote about a child's vibrating toy as an example of low amplitude and stall force leading to ineffective massage.
• 🔄 Speed is generally the least important factor as most massage guns offer at least three speed settings to suit different preferences.
• 🔊 Noise increases with power and amplitude, but it's a trade-off for deeper muscle penetration and effectiveness.
• 🎚️ While some massage guns offer up to 20 speed settings, most users find three to be sufficient for varying muscle groups.
• 👜 Portability and quiet operation can compensate for a slightly lower amplitude if the stall force is still effective.
• 🏋️‍♂️ Consider your physical needs and activity level when choosing a massage gun; professional athletes might need higher amplitude and stall force.
• 👍 Scott emphasizes the importance of honest reviews and providing value, suggesting that not everyone needs the most powerful massage gun.

Q & A

What are the three key factors to consider when evaluating massage guns according to Scott?

The three key factors to consider when evaluating massage guns are speed, amplitude, and stall force.

What does amplitude refer to in the context of massage guns?

Amplitude refers to how far the massage gun head travels back and forth, which determines the depth and intensity of the massage.

What is the average amplitude range for massage guns?

The average amplitude range for massage guns is typically between 10 to 12 millimeters, with 12 millimeters being a common standard.

Why is having a sufficient amplitude important for a massage gun?

Having a sufficient amplitude is important because it ensures the massage gun can effectively reach and work on deeper muscle layers, rather than just lightly vibrating on the surface.

What is stall force and how does it relate to the effectiveness of a massage gun?

Stall force is the amount of pressure it takes to stop a massage gun. It is important because it indicates whether the massage gun can provide enough force to effectively massage muscles and not just vibrate without penetrating deep enough.

How does the mini massage gun with only six millimeters of travel compensate for its lower amplitude?

The mini massage gun compensates for its lower amplitude with a strong stall force, allowing it to still provide a decent massage even though it doesn't penetrate as deeply.

What is the general opinion on the number of speed settings on a massage gun?

Most massage guns have at least three speed settings, which is usually sufficient for most users. Having more than three speeds is not necessarily better, as it can be difficult to distinguish between many closely spaced speed levels.

Why might someone choose a massage gun with fewer speed settings?

Someone might choose a massage gun with fewer speed settings because it simplifies the user experience and reduces the need to micro-manage the speed, focusing instead on the essential differences between low, medium, and high.

What are some trade-offs to consider when choosing between a larger massage gun with higher amplitude and a smaller, more portable one?

When choosing between a larger massage gun and a smaller one, one must consider the trade-off between the depth and intensity of the massage (higher amplitude) and the convenience of portability and lower noise levels.

How does Scott determine the value of a massage gun?

Scott determines the value of a massage gun by weighing its features such as amplitude, stall force, and speed against its portability, noise level, and suitability for the user's specific needs and lifestyle.

What advice does Scott give for users who may not need the most powerful massage gun?

Scott advises that users who are not professional athletes or those with very specific muscle needs may be able to get by with a smaller, less powerful massage gun, as long as it has adequate stall force and is convenient for their lifestyle.

Outlines

00:00

🔧 Understanding Massage Gun Power: Amplitude, Speed, and Stall Force

In this paragraph, Scott from 'Before You Buy' introduces the key features to consider when evaluating massage guns: speed, amplitude, and stall force. He emphasizes the importance of power for a massage gun to be effective, explaining that without it, the device would be useless. Amplitude is described as the distance the massage head travels, with an average range of 10 to 12 millimeters and a preference for higher values to ensure a deep massage. Scott also introduces the concept of stall force, which is the pressure needed to stop the massage gun, indicating a more effective device. He uses a personal anecdote about a child's vibrating toy to illustrate the ineffectiveness of low amplitude and stall force. Lastly, he touches on speed, suggesting it's the least important factor since most massage guns offer multiple speed settings.

05:00

🏋️‍♂️ Balancing Massage Gun Features for Personal Needs

Scott continues the discussion on massage guns by focusing on how the features of amplitude, stall force, and speed interplay to meet individual needs. He points out that while speed is less critical as most guns offer a range of settings, the other two features are more nuanced. Using the example of a mini massage gun with only six millimeters of amplitude but a strong stall force, Scott shows that even with limited amplitude, a device can still be valuable if it can penetrate deep into muscles. He also talks about the practicality of a portable and quiet massage gun, suggesting that some users might prefer a less powerful device for its convenience. Scott relates his personal experience as a busy gym owner and American Ninja Warrior, explaining how a compact massage gun fits his lifestyle despite not having the maximum amplitude. He concludes by advising viewers to consider their physical needs and lifestyle when choosing a massage gun, comparing the decision to choosing a car—whether one needs a high-performance vehicle or a reliable one for daily commuting.

Keywords

💡Massage Gun

A massage gun is a handheld device used to apply percussive therapy to muscles, which can help with muscle recovery, relaxation, and pain relief. In the video, Scott emphasizes the importance of considering the power of massage guns by looking at their speed, amplitude, and stall force to ensure they meet the viewer's needs. The massage gun serves as the central theme of the video, with Scott providing insights into what features to look for when choosing one.

💡Amplitude

Amplitude refers to the distance the massage gun head travels, which indicates the depth of the massage it can provide. In the video, Scott explains that a higher amplitude, such as the 16 millimeters of travel in the Life Pro Pulse FX, allows the gun to 'hit' the muscles harder and more effectively. He uses the Life Pro Pulse FX as an example to illustrate the concept, noting that lower amplitudes result in a lighter, less effective massage.

💡Stall Force

Stall force is the measure of the pressure required to stop the massage gun's movement against muscle resistance. It's an indicator of the gun's ability to penetrate deep into muscles. Scott mentions that a good massage gun needs to have enough stall force to be effective, using the example of a massage gun that stops too easily under pressure as being 'worthless' in his review.

💡Speed

The speed of a massage gun refers to the number of oscillations per minute it can perform. Scott discusses that most massage guns come with multiple speed settings, which can range from low to high. He mentions that speed is probably the least important factor when choosing a massage gun because almost every gun has at least three speeds, and having more than that doesn't significantly impact the massage experience.

💡Product Reviews

Product reviews are evaluations of products that provide consumers with information to help them make informed purchasing decisions. In the video, Scott is conducting a review of massage guns, offering his honest opinion on their features and performance. His aim is to guide viewers to make the right choice before buying a massage gun, which is the primary purpose of his 'Before You Buy' channel.

💡Value

Value, in the context of the video, refers to the worth or usefulness of a product in relation to its price and the user's needs. Scott talks about weighing the value of massage guns by considering their features like amplitude, stall force, and speed against the price and the individual's requirements. He uses the example of a smaller, less powerful massage gun that, despite having a lower amplitude, still provides value due to its portability and sufficient stall force.

💡Portability

Portability refers to how easily a product can be carried or moved from one place to another. Scott highlights the portability of a particular mini massage gun, which allows him to take it anywhere in his backpack. This feature is valuable for someone like him who is always on the go and needs a convenient way to massage muscles.

💡Quietness

Quietness is the level of noise produced by a device during operation. In the video, Scott points out that one of the massage guns he reviews is particularly quiet, which is an advantage for those who prefer a less noisy massage experience. He demonstrates the noise level of different guns to show the contrast between quiet and loud models.

💡Muscle Recovery

Muscle recovery refers to the process of restoring muscle function after exercise or injury. Scott discusses how massage guns can aid in muscle recovery by loosening up muscles and releasing knots. The effectiveness of a massage gun in aiding recovery is tied to its amplitude and stall force, as these features determine how deeply the gun can penetrate and work on the muscles.

💡Honest Reviews

Honest reviews are unbiased evaluations that provide a true reflection of a product's quality and performance. Scott emphasizes that he provides honest reviews of the massage guns, regardless of any incentives from companies. His goal is to help viewers make informed decisions and avoid purchasing ineffective products.

💡Before You Buy

Before You Buy is the name of Scott's channel, which focuses on providing product reviews to assist consumers in making informed decisions before making a purchase. The channel's name is indicative of its purpose, which is to offer guidance and reviews to ensure that viewers are satisfied with their purchases, as demonstrated by Scott's detailed analysis of massage guns in the video.

Highlights

Importance of considering massage gun power in terms of speed, amplitude, and stall force for personal needs.

A massage gun lacking power can be ineffective and essentially useless.

Explanation of amplitude as the distance the massage gun head travels.

Life Pro Pulse FX has 16 millimeters of travel for amplitude.

Average amplitude is between 10 to 12 millimeters, with 12 being more effective.

Low amplitude results in a lighter, less effective massage.

Comparison of massage gun amplitude to a child's vibrating toy, illustrating ineffectiveness.

Introduction of stall force as a key factor in massage gun effectiveness.

Stall force determines how much pressure is needed to stop the massage gun.

A massage gun with low stall force may not perform its job effectively.

Amplitude and stall force work together to provide a quality massage.

Mini massage guns can have good stall force despite lower amplitude.

Speed as the least important factor since most massage guns have at least three speed settings.

Pulse FX has three speed settings, while the mini massage gun has five.

Having more than three speed settings is unnecessary and hard to differentiate.

Personal preference for using about three different speed settings depending on muscle group.

Value of massage guns depends on weighing amplitude, stall force, and speed against personal needs.

Portability and quiet operation can compensate for smaller amplitude in certain scenarios.

Different needs for athletes versus everyday users when choosing a massage gun.

Encouragement for viewers to consider their specific needs and preferences when selecting a massage gun.

Transcripts

so in my review videos i always talk

about the power of massage guns you have

to look at the speed

the amplitude and the stall force to

make sure it's going to fit your needs

so let's see how much of those you need

hi guys i'm scott with before you buy

where we do product reviews to make sure

it's what you want before you buy it

and if you're interested in some more

honest product reviews and quick tips

consider subscribing so if a massage gun

doesn't have enough power

it'll quickly become obvious and you

might as well just

throw it away because for massage gun to

actually do its job you have to have

that power but how much of each do you

need and what

do they even mean well first things

first

let's look at amplitude i'm going to cut

over here so you can see

amplitude is how far this head travels

see that so this is the life pro

pulse fx and it has 16 millimeters

of travel okay so that means this head

travels back and forth most range

from the 10 to 16

mark uh 10 to 12 is probably the average

probably 12

and i will say that once you start

getting to those lower numbers it

doesn't

hit you as hard what does that mean so

think about it like if your

your travel isn't very far you're you're

just

doing this right you're just going back

and forth

and it's just lightly vibrating okay

it's not actually

hitting you okay so now you think of

some travel

on your punch there hitting you and you

actually get that

that hit okay you're trying to loosen up

your muscles these

knots in your muscles right so you do

kind of need that

hitting uh my my daughter when she i

think was three or four years old

was christmas shopping for me and she

found this little

uh vibration tool that you could put on

your neck or something and you turned it

on and just had a little vibrating motor

on it

it it was so cute because she was three

years old but it was also absolutely

worthless

um you know i think she just picked it

out with mom or whatever but

uh it was absolutely worthless because

all it did is sit there and

you know vibrate you know put your hand

on your other arm and just go back and

forth

it doesn't do anything it doesn't hit

you

okay so that's the whole point if it

doesn't have enough travel

it doesn't hit you that's amplitude

but speaking of amplitude there can be a

catch there

which is called stall force okay so

stall

force is what i showed at the beginning

how much force does it take to stop a

massage gun

now i don't care i could stop every

single massage gun doing

this so that's not a good judge a good

judge is how much pressure it takes

by the time you start pushing down on

your muscle

does it stop before it actually does the

job

the one i showed at the beginning that's

a massage gun i've done a review on

it's it's worthless and that's what i

say in the video because i always try to

provide those honest reviews

uh i don't care how much a company gives

me the massage gun or tells me they're

gonna pay me

i don't care i'm gonna give you my

honest opinion about it and if it's

garbage

i don't want you to buy some garbage so

stall force it has to have enough stall

force to

do the pounding right so going back up

to amplitude they kind of work hand in

hand

now the catch comes into play

when you talk about this mini one for

instance

this mini only has six

millimeters of travel here see that

there's just

there's just not much to it but the

stall

force is actually really

really good so i can actually put this

on my muscle

and even though the stall force isn't

very long right it's not hitting

super deep but

the deeper you go and now it's still

able to punch you

that's where it starts to still bring

some value

so the last thing to look at is the

speed now this is probably the least

important factor because almost every

massage gun has

at least three speeds so this is the

pulse fx

and has three different speeds as i

mentioned it's a little bit louder

medium and high okay

you're getting into some serious

business when you've got that much

amplitude this much power

and you pay for it in the noise right um

even this little mini massage gun has

five different speeds

i've never seen a massage gun that i

haven't said i wish it was faster or i

wish it was slower

okay because they all have enough speeds

now you don't need to be crazy

there's some that i even recommend but

the softer spot has

20 speeds okay you don't need 20 speeds

it's not a bad thing that it has 20

speeds but i don't need 20 different

speeds because

you just with your eyes closed you're

never going to be able to tell the

difference between them

right low medium high i can tell the

difference

so i personally use about three

different speeds depending on

which muscle group i'm using so again

speed is probably the least issue

of an item to look at so real quick

before we kind of talk about how they

all tie together

if this video is helping you consider

subscribing consider using the links

down below to my massage guns and review

videos

because it helps buy me a cup of coffee

and

you know it's it's late it's 12 48

and this is when i record my videos and

then i start working on them because

i got a family and i own a gym and i

want to just provide you guys with some

honest

reviews so uh if that helps you

scratch my back help buy me a cup of

coffee keep me going

thanks you have to weigh it all out

right um and that's what i

often talk about is the value of massage

guns

you have to weigh it all out you got to

know what you're buying you got to see

if it

hits your needs um so for instance this

one

yeah it doesn't quite have the 16 meter

of travel

millimeters 60 millimeters of travel

so it's not going to hit you as hard but

maybe it's a different

scenario right so this one is so small

you can carry this one with you anywhere

this one's so

quiet i mean let me just give you a

quick comparison

even this is on low

this is on low low

i mean even on low and if i turn this up

to high it's going to be even louder

right

so the fact that this one's super quiet

super portable

you might be able to sacrifice

the smaller amplitude as long as it has

enough stall force i'm a

39 year old american ninja warrior my

dad of three

foster parent i mean a gym owner i'm a

busy guy

and this thing can come around with me

in my backpack okay i'm an i.t guy by

trade

so this thing is just always in my

backpack in fact my backpack always sits

right there

who's noticed that comment down below if

you've always noticed my backpack sits

right there

but this is always in my backpack why

because it's super portable

it's light enough it's actually heavier

than you think because it's a giant

battery and motor in there

but um it always is with me because

i can get a good enough massage probably

at least 90 percent of the time if not

more

out of this little guy because again it

has enough stall force

and the amplitude even though it's short

i can still

dig deep into those muscles to actually

help release those knots

now would would i rather have 16

millimeters of amplitude

yes in fact if you're a power lifter

you got a lot of strong deep muscles

maybe you're a track athlete

you know a lot of deep glutes hips maybe

you do want to think about something

that has a little bit longer amplitude

or a little bit stronger stall force but

i just want you to say like

to yourself am i a strong

incredible athlete shooting to continue

to improve

or am i like kind of a weakened warrior

maybe just trying to get healthy again

maybe an old dad like me that could

literally just get by with a smaller

less performance one

okay because yes we all want the

the tesla or corvette or whatever floats

your boat for cars

but uh do we need it no i

pretty much just want some good gas

knowledge to get to work

so i know there are a lot of opinions

out there and i hope this just kind of

helped explain the difference between

amplitude stall force and speed and kind

of how they also

work together yet different

and again this is just my opinion if you

have a different opinion

or you agree please let me know down in

the comments down below

i'm willing to talk about it this is

just my experience

and i hope this helped if so consider

using those links down below

and until next time see ya