Hoyt Concept X 37 Review

Editors' review

The most surprising thing about the Concept X 37 is a number that looks small. Hoyt rates it at 330 fps - and does so on purpose, using the stricter ATA test (a 350-grain arrow, 70 pounds, a fixed 30-inch draw) rather than the looser IBO parameters most brands quote to inflate a spec sheet. Read correctly, this is one of the faster target bows Hoyt has ever built, not a slow one. For 2024 Hoyt rebuilt the target flagship from scratch - new riser, new TXL limbs, new pockets, and an all-new SCTR cam system - and pointed it at the spot, field, and 3D archer who wins on the last three inches of a group rather than on chronograph bragging. At 37 inches axle-to-axle it is the shorter, more all-round member of the Concept X pair (the longer Concept X 40 is its sibling), built around a long riser, a wide limb stance that resists torque, and a cam whose let-off you can tune in tiny increments. It is a serious competitor's tool, and it reads that way from the first draw.

Finish

Hoyt offers the Concept X 37 in a deep target palette rather than hunting camo - ten riser colors including Red Flare, Mr. Perfect Orange, Twisted Green, Impact Blue, Blue on Black, Sassy Pink, Polar White, Ti Silver, Skeeter, and Liquid Black. The limbs come in a standard black satin or, for a step up, a white-gloss or black-gloss high-gloss finish that carries a subtle chameleon shift in the light. What stands out on this bow is coating quality: in my experience Hoyt's target limb and riser finishes are among the cleanest in the category, and owners setting the bow up consistently single them out. There is no woodland pattern anywhere in the range - this is a bow dressed for the line, built to stay sharp under the constant handling a competition rig sees between ends. The ten-color riser program lets a shooter build a coordinated rig, and the finish spans every draw-weight and module option identically.

Riser

The Concept X 37 riser is the heart of the redesign - a long, heavily machined target riser measuring 29.5 inches, some 2.75 inches longer than the riser on the Stratos 36 it replaces. That extra length is deliberate: a longer riser widens the string angle, brings the peep closer to the eye for a more comfortable anchor, and adds in-hand stability without changing the 37-inch axle-to-axle number. The riser also carries Hoyt's Modular Grip System - six interchangeable grip options that screw in at 0, plus-4, and plus-8 degree angles (with draw-reducing versions), so the archer sets the hand angle rather than accepting a fixed one. A lower rear stabilizer mount is built in for the back bar a target archer runs low, and the whole platform is cut clean and sleek. This is a riser designed around one idea - hold the bow still - and every choice, from length to grip modularity to the low back-bar mount, serves it.

Grip

The grip is Hoyt's Modular Grip System, and its point is choice: six screw-in inserts let the archer pick a 0, plus-4, or plus-8 degree hand angle, with versions that also shave a small amount of draw length. Setting the angle to match your form is what removes rotational torque before it ever reaches the arrow, and on a competition bow that is the quiet difference between a centered group and a string of left-right flyers. Swapping an insert is a minutes-long job with a hex wrench, so a shooter can experiment insert by insert until the hand sits dead-center and relaxed. In my experience with an adjustable-angle grip like this, the payoff is a bow hand you stop thinking about - you set it once, trust it, and let the release do the work. It is the kind of feature a spot archer comes to rely on without noticing.

Limbs

The Concept X 37 runs Hoyt's new TXL limbs in a notably wide stance, and that width is the story. A wider limb set makes the bow physically harder to twist left or right in the hand - shooters setting it up describe it as genuinely difficult to torque, which for a target archer chasing left-right consistency is exactly the goal. The wide, more parallel geometry also drops vibration and quiets the shot compared with the steeper-angled Stratos limbs it replaces. Peak weight comes in the full competition spread - 40, 50, 55, 60, 65, and 70 pounds - so an archer can settle into a comfortable holding weight for a long practice round without over-bowing. The limbs are set in new pockets on quarter-inch axles, and the platform carries one inch of riser reflex, which is a meaningful contributor to how forgiving the bow shoots. This is a limb system built for endurance and stability rather than for the aggressive energy storage a short hunting bow chases.

Eccentric System

The SCTR cam is the centerpiece of the redesign, and it is unlike anything Hoyt has put on a target bow before. Its headline feature for the competition archer is let-off adjustability: the cam tunes in 2.5% increments across 65, 70, and 75%, and an optional Tweener mod foot adds the in-between 67.5, 72.5, and 77.5% positions - the percentage figure is how much of peak weight your holding weight drops to at full draw. That granular control lets a target shooter dial holding weight and back-wall feel to preference rather than accepting fixed steps, which is a genuine advantage for anyone who manipulates their hold. Draw length adjusts through modules: the CDM module ships with the bow and covers a three-inch range (26 to 29 inches) in quarter-inch steps, while draw-length-specific Spec modules - a separate purchase - squeeze out the last of the speed. On the ATA scale the bow rates 330 fps, and real chronograph work backs it up: at 60 pounds with a 300-grain arrow at 29 inches it clocked 315 fps, which reverse-engineers to right around the rated speed at a full 30-inch, 70-pound setup. The cam runs quarter-inch axles and Hoyt's WireWRX strings, and tuning uses the same proven shim system as before.

Draw Cycle/Shootability

Drawing the Concept X 37, the character is smooth and deliberate, and the wide-limb platform makes itself felt immediately in how planted the bow sits. What I keep coming back to is how hard it is to torque - the wide TXL stance genuinely resists the left-right twist that sends target arrows wide, and combined with a long riser and an inch of reflex the bow is, in one owner's words, stupid forgiving. The back wall is defined and the 2.5% let-off steps let a shooter tune the valley and hold to taste. At the shot it is dead in the hand with very little vibration - not the muted thud of a heavy hunting bow but a clean, quiet release that still gives honest feedback, a combination that reads as part target stillness and part hunting-bow liveliness. In my experience that transparency is what a competition bow should do: reward a clean, torque-free release with a tight group and show you plainly when your hand did something it shouldn't have. It is a bow that makes a disciplined archer better and quietly punishes a careless one.

Usage Scenarios

This is a competition bow first, and at 37 inches it is the length Hoyt steers shooters toward when they want a more manageable, all-round target rig. Picture a spot archer on an indoor league night running a 75% let-off for a relaxed, repeatable end, or a 3D shooter walking a foam course who values a bow that settles on the spot and forgives a rushed shot. It suits the field archer who wants a long sight radius without stepping up to the full 40, and the tournament competitor - this platform has already been shot to ASA finals-level results - who lives on left-right consistency. The 40-to-70-pound spread covers everyone from an indoor archer holding light for a long round to an outdoor shooter driving a heavier arrow into the wind, and the modular grip and adjustable let-off let a shooter fit the bow precisely to their form. It is not a hunting bow - the length, weight, and target geometry are built for the line - and a longer-draw archer should step up to the Concept X 40 or, for very long draws, the Concept X 40 LD.

Versions

The Concept X 37 is one model offered with a choice of limb finish and module setup rather than separate SKUs of the bow itself:- Standard limbs - black satin finish, around $1,999 launch MSRP.- High-gloss limbs - white-gloss or black-gloss chameleon finish, $2,199 launch MSRP.Both ship with the CDM module (26 to 29 inches in quarter-inch steps); draw-length-specific Spec modules and the Tweener let-off mod foot are separate purchases for shooters chasing maximum speed or in-between let-off positions. Every version shares the same riser, TXL limbs, SCTR cam, and Modular Grip System, and is offered across the 40-to-70-pound peak-weight brackets in right- or left-hand. The choice comes down to finish preference and how far you want to take module tuning.

Hoyt Concept X 37 vs Mathews TRX 36, Elite Echelon 37

Bow	Hoyt Concept X 37	Mathews TRX 36	Elite Echelon 37
Version	2024	2023	2018
Picture
Brace Height	7 "	6.5 "	6.75 "
AtA Length	37 "	36 "	37.125 "
Draw Length	25 " - 31 "	24 " - 30.5 "	26.5 " - 31 "
Draw Weight	30 lbs - 70 lbs	40 lbs - 70 lbs	40 lbs - 70 lbs
IBO Speed	330 fps	330 fps - 334 fps	298 fps - 343 fps
Weight	4.75 lbs	4.66 lbs	4.6 lbs
Let-Off	65/70/75%	70% & 80%	75% - 90%
Where to buy Best prices online	Not available now. Please check later.	$579 to $1200 Compare prices	$400 to $625 Compare prices
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In the 37-inch competition-target class, the Concept X 37 lines up against the Mathews TRX 36 and the Elite Echelon 37, two bows a spot or field archer would genuinely cross-shop. The Mathews TRX 36 is the closest rival on size, a 36-inch target bow built around Mathews' dead-in-hand hold and Crosscentric cam - smooth and famously quiet, where the Concept X 37's edge is its 2.5% let-off adjustability and a TXL limb stance built to resist torque. The Elite Echelon 37 counters with Elite's signature smooth draw and its own precise let-off tuning, a 37-inch target platform many shooters find easy to hold and forgiving. Against both, the Concept X 37's case is its granular let-off control, the wide-limb torque resistance, and Hoyt's honest ATA speed rating that undersells the bow's real pace. The decision comes down to priorities: the Concept X 37 for the archer who wants fine let-off tuning and maximum torque resistance, the Mathews TRX 36 for a dead-quiet hold, the Elite Echelon 37 for the smoothest possible draw. Within Hoyt's own line, a longer-draw archer should look at the Concept X 40 or the long-draw Concept X 40 LD, and a short-draw shooter at the compact Concept FX.

Summary

The Hoyt Concept X 37 is a ground-up rebuild of Hoyt's target flagship, and it earns the effort. It carries flagship money - around $1,999 with standard limbs, $2,199 with the high-gloss set - and answers with a long, torque-resistant riser, an all-new SCTR cam whose let-off you can tune in 2.5% steps, and TXL limbs that make the bow genuinely hard to twist off-center. Its headline speed of 330 fps is measured by the stricter ATA standard, so it is quicker than the number suggests, and real chronograph work confirms it. In my experience the combination of a wide-limb, hard-to-torque platform and an inch of reflex is what makes this bow so forgiving - it rewards a clean release with a tight group and shoots dead in the hand. It is not a hunting bow and does not try to be. An excellent choice for the spot, field, and 3D competitor who wants a torque-resistant, finely tunable target bow at 37 inches; longer-draw archers should look at the Hoyt Concept X 40, and those who prize the smoothest draw should also consider the Elite Echelon 37.