PV Audio's Playtest Thread
- Thread starter pvaudio
- Start date
No no, not plays like, feels like. MCS doesn't really have any power at all, but the feel is almost the same as the natural stuff.
Hey PVaudio, have you playtested any smooth poly mains, twisedted poly cross setups. I know kiteboard has suggest SPPP mains with Barb wire crosses (I think that's what it was). If so, have you found this to have a similar effect to the champions choice, providing a sliding surface for the shaped cross to give great access to spin and added feel.
I am thinking of going for black magic or polystar energy mains with typhoon or barb wire crosses. Seems like that kind of setup could give you a perfect full poly string bed, with great power, spin, and even some feel and comfort at the right tension. May break quickly though. Any thoughts?
I am thinking of going for black magic or polystar energy mains with typhoon or barb wire crosses. Seems like that kind of setup could give you a perfect full poly string bed, with great power, spin, and even some feel and comfort at the right tension. May break quickly though. Any thoughts?
mikeler
Moderator
Precisamente, senor. That's exactly what I mean
Nope, can't say that I have! If you have a poly/poly hybrid that you want to see, then just list it and I'll get it done up when I get back to campus and have my Aria.
iTennis2609
New User
Sorry, I don't. I find Kirschbaum Spiky Shark to have as much if not more spin than the Barbwire, but I can't really speak on the tension maintenance. I haven't had a lot of problems with polys dropping tension or going dead before I restring except for Luxilon Alu Rough, which went dead at about the 12-15 hour mark and RPM Blast which went dead around the same time.
On another note, I decided to string up a set of Pro Redcode (full bed at 62lbs) and am really happy with it so far. I hit with it for 2 hours this morning. This description might suck but it's just a good all around poly. The stringbed feels soft but not mushy. I get just enough pop on my shots to have some pace but not have them sail on me. Spin is also good but not outstanding. The only issue I have with it is it was a mess to string. It kept wanting to fold over on itself when I tried to push it through blocked grommets and it might be a little shorter than the 40 ft it says on the package because it barely reached the tension head when I got to the last main. I've never had that problem with any other string sets.
Summary: Good all around string, 8/10
iTennis2609
New User
Also, in case this adds anything to my review, I'm a 4.0 female with a big serve and big forehand. I hit with a moderate amount of spin. I'm mainly a singles player but play a lot of doubles now because it's been hard to play competitive singles outside of USTA ever since I got too old to play junior tennis 8)
Barb wire mains with alu power cross. Good pocketing feel.
Couldn't break the Mosquito Bite. It's ITCHING to break, I can feel it. SNGPS has the most unique feel when it's on its last leg, and I can't get it to break! I am not cutting that stringbed out: no way, no how!!!In other news, I played with my sister's PRC setup. That **** has so much power it's ridiculous. It is, however, extremely soft, and that I do like. I think I might break out my mini reel of PRC and try it out in my frames as a main string. Then again, I've really been wanting to try out Big Hitter Blue and Cyber Blue in my sticks as well. A poly/poly hybrid that I think would work well would be Silverstring mains with Mosquito Bite crosses. I think that might be a beautiful, spin crazy setup.
The Big Kahuna
Hall of Fame
Have you tried the TORNADO with the MANTIS COMFORT yet? I found it to be a nearly perfect blend of control, spin, feel, and comfort - precise, yet with a lot of touch. I tried perhaps 24 different combination of leading polys and multis as a hybrid, and this - for me - was the clear winner.
The Big Kahuna
Hall of Fame
My review of the playtest using Torando and Mantis Comfort from this past Fall:
Mains: 48/52 Signum Pro Tornado 17 (1.23) / Mantis Comfort 17g in the Crosses
Power: A-
Control: A
Feel: A
Comfort: A
Spin: A
Tension Stability: A
OVERALL: A
Starting RA 52 / after 2 hrs RA 48 / after 12 hours RA 43
Great blend of spin, power, and comfort. Buttery, solid, with lots of feel. AWESOME! Plays soft and cushioned like gut with similar spin potential. Signum Pro Tornado Rated 5th best overall string by Stringforum.net - top Poly. Compares to TF Black Code. - lively and explosive. Mantis Comfort added good touch and precision. Closest comparison is to MSV Pro HEX 17. Good for hybrids as the main string, however the cross string should not be too thin, otherwise it will be sawed by the Tornado. My recommendation: Don't string too high (decrease tension by 10%). Provides a bit better feel than the Black Code. Additionally, I found good comfort in the Tornado. Spin was also better with the Tornado. This will be my standard string for the season. This is my set-up to beat.
Mains: 48/52 Signum Pro Tornado 17 (1.23) / Mantis Comfort 17g in the Crosses
Power: A-
Control: A
Feel: A
Comfort: A
Spin: A
Tension Stability: A
OVERALL: A
Starting RA 52 / after 2 hrs RA 48 / after 12 hours RA 43
Great blend of spin, power, and comfort. Buttery, solid, with lots of feel. AWESOME! Plays soft and cushioned like gut with similar spin potential. Signum Pro Tornado Rated 5th best overall string by Stringforum.net - top Poly. Compares to TF Black Code. - lively and explosive. Mantis Comfort added good touch and precision. Closest comparison is to MSV Pro HEX 17. Good for hybrids as the main string, however the cross string should not be too thin, otherwise it will be sawed by the Tornado. My recommendation: Don't string too high (decrease tension by 10%). Provides a bit better feel than the Black Code. Additionally, I found good comfort in the Tornado. Spin was also better with the Tornado. This will be my standard string for the season. This is my set-up to beat.
This laserfibre is laughing at me!!! It's about as thin as fishing line, and yet I still can't break it!!!!
I think I need to switch from the Supergrap, because I find that when I don't play for a long time, and pick up a racquet, I get blisters which eventually settle into calluses. That never happened when I was using the Pro Overgrip. I just love the feel of the Yonex grips more, but I think they may be too tacky and might be shredding my hand.
I think I need to switch from the Supergrap, because I find that when I don't play for a long time, and pick up a racquet, I get blisters which eventually settle into calluses. That never happened when I was using the Pro Overgrip. I just love the feel of the Yonex grips more, but I think they may be too tacky and might be shredding my hand.
The Big Kahuna
Hall of Fame
For what it's worth - on the subject of hybrids - I would highly recommend these three multis for most poly/multi blends - they deliver the most playability for the dollar from my perspective. Chris Edwards suggested them and I have found them all to be excellent values and hold their own against the best multis twice the piece. They are:
√ Yonex Tour Super 850 Pro 16 String 8.95 / no reels available
An innovative structure of high elastic multifilament and our exclusive "Power-Spin Coating" that will generate superior spin while maintaining the response and feel of natural gut. A distinctive "Pre-Stretch" method combined with double winding nylon wraps helps maintain string tension and optimizes playability. Noted: Stringforum reports that string plays well at lower tensions (51#). Pro version stiffer with more control.
√ Mantis Comfort Synthetic 16 String 9.00 / 99.00 reel
MANTIS Comfort Synthetic has been specifically developed to provide a soft string with gut like feel and playability whilst the special double coating enhances durability. Thousands of micro fibres are compressed and then nano coated to provide a core with superb feel. This is covered with highly durable monofilaments before the string is coated by a special elastic resin bonding process.
√ Tourna Quasi Gut String 17 8.06 / 99.00 reel
RSI reviewed: Our playtest team found Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 impressive even for a soft nylon, giving it ratings in the top 20 in four separate categories: 5th overall for Touch/Feel, 6th overall (tie) for Playability, 7th overall (tie) for Comfort, and 11th overall (tie) for Power. Bolstering these results are the teams’ well-above-average ratings for Tourna Quasi-Gut for Control, Spin Potential, and Tension Retention. As a result, Unique Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 is tied for 16th overall out of the 140 strings we’ve playtested to date for publication. Additionally, our playtest team told us that Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 doesn’t sacrifice playability for durability or vice versa.
√ Yonex Tour Super 850 Pro 16 String 8.95 / no reels available
An innovative structure of high elastic multifilament and our exclusive "Power-Spin Coating" that will generate superior spin while maintaining the response and feel of natural gut. A distinctive "Pre-Stretch" method combined with double winding nylon wraps helps maintain string tension and optimizes playability. Noted: Stringforum reports that string plays well at lower tensions (51#). Pro version stiffer with more control.
√ Mantis Comfort Synthetic 16 String 9.00 / 99.00 reel
MANTIS Comfort Synthetic has been specifically developed to provide a soft string with gut like feel and playability whilst the special double coating enhances durability. Thousands of micro fibres are compressed and then nano coated to provide a core with superb feel. This is covered with highly durable monofilaments before the string is coated by a special elastic resin bonding process.
√ Tourna Quasi Gut String 17 8.06 / 99.00 reel
RSI reviewed: Our playtest team found Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 impressive even for a soft nylon, giving it ratings in the top 20 in four separate categories: 5th overall for Touch/Feel, 6th overall (tie) for Playability, 7th overall (tie) for Comfort, and 11th overall (tie) for Power. Bolstering these results are the teams’ well-above-average ratings for Tourna Quasi-Gut for Control, Spin Potential, and Tension Retention. As a result, Unique Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 is tied for 16th overall out of the 140 strings we’ve playtested to date for publication. Additionally, our playtest team told us that Tourna Quasi-Gut 16 doesn’t sacrifice playability for durability or vice versa.
mikeler
Moderator
I'd only recommend Quasi for flat hitters since it gives absolutely no spin. The Mantis is fantastic but not durable. Looking forward to hitting with the Yonex in the next few weeks.
mikeler
Moderator
I change my Supergrap about every 4 sets, but I've never had anything like that happen to me. I was in a tennis store feeling the new Dunlop Gecko-Tac and it feels tackier than anything I've ever used. It might be too tacky but I'll try it out in the summer.
-Bobo-
Semi-Pro
You might also want to try the solinco and mantis Og's very comfy and not too tacky, pretty durable too, though supergrap lasts me a while too, i grip very loose and don't sweat in the hands too much.
Alrighty! After launching 500 balls, the Mosquito Bite setup is finished. Total hours logged, I don't know. Maybe 6? I had two private lessons using it, and hit around intermittenly with it since I was using so many other frames at the time. I guess the main thing to note here is that the tension never dropped until the LF became stretched out when it got really thin. So, the final verdict is as follows:
WeissCANNON MosquitoBite 1.16 Vein Blue / Laserfibre SNGPS
Power: 8/10
Control: 8.5/10
Feel: 9.5/10
Spin: 7/10
Durability: 7/10
Tension Maintenance: 9.75/10
Total: 49.75/60
Final Total: 83/100
- Dave
WeissCANNON MosquitoBite 1.16 Vein Blue / Laserfibre SNGPS
Power: 8/10
Control: 8.5/10
Feel: 9.5/10
Spin: 7/10
Durability: 7/10
Tension Maintenance: 9.75/10
Total: 49.75/60
Final Total: 83/100
- Dave
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parasailing
Legend
Alrighty! After launching 500 balls, the Mosquito Bite setup is finished. Total hours logged, I don't know. Maybe 6? I had two private lessons using it, and hit around intermittenly with it since I was using so many other frames at the time. I guess the main thing to note here is that the tension never dropped until the LF became stretched out when it got really thin. So, the final verdict is as follows:
WeissCANNON MosquitoBite 1.16 Vein Blue / Laserfibre SNGPS
Power: 8/10
Control: 8.5/10
Feel: 9.5/10
Spin: 7/10
Durability: 7/10
Tension Maintenance: 9.75/10
Total: 49.75/60
Final Total: 83/100
Pictures to follow shortly
- Dave
PVaudio - If you can post the pics of the Laserfibre on the other laserfibre thread, that would be great. McTennis and I are trying to get resolution to the fake strings we received from Laserfibre.
I don't have any of my digital cameras with me, let alone my SLR, so I took this pic with my camcorder. The key, however, is clearly visible: note the sinewy pattern of the string towards the right (out of the flash). No other string on the market has a similar looking construction, and it looks like what you see there when strung up.
I have not tried anything from Golden Set. I'm not familiar with them at all, to be quite honest. Can you give me a comparable string guide? Something like Golden Set MAXMULTI (I just made that up haha
) is similar to Technifibre X-1 Biphase, etc.:shock::shock::shock:You have got to be kidding me, that was exactly what I was looking for.
Dominik
Rookie
I looooooove their kevlar! So nice.
EDIT: I've tried pretty much all of their strings. The polys are where the value is, the silver hex poly in 17 played really nice for me too.
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nvottennis
Semi-Pro
Thanks, although when I tried spiky shark at 30lbs, the spin was decent, but nothing to that of barbwire.
mikeler
Moderator
I had a feeling that might freak you out! A few guys down at my club have been talking it up. I'd never heard of it before. I may test out one or both of their multis.
Alrighty guys, the 4 3/8 sticks are going in the closet. I just purchased 4x 4 1/2 AG100s, so now I have 8 in my arsenal along with the other 4 3/8 just in case. I'll be heading back up to school tomorrow and have 3 empty frames (4 1/2, my favorite) to string up, so if you want to see something play tested, please speak now. The string list is below.
Natural Guts:
Babolat Tonic 15L
Babolat VS Team 17g
Global Gut 17g
Klip Legend 17g
Pacific Prime 17g
Performaxx HighTension 1.25
Performaxx Touch 17g
Performaxx WhisperTouch 1.20
Multifilaments:
Alpha Gut 2000 18g
Gamma LiveWire XP 16g
Head C3 Rocket 17g
Head Rip Perfect Control 16g
Isospeed Professional Classic 17g
Laserfibre Supernatural Gut Pro Stock 17g
Mantis Comfort Synthetic 1.30
Mantis Power Synthetic 1.25
Pro Supex MaximTouch Original 17g
Technifibre NRG2 1.18mm
Technifibre X-One Biphase 1.18mm
Tourna Quasi Gut 17g
WeissCANNON Explosiv! 1.30
Wilson K-Gut 16g
Synthetic Guts:
Forten Sweet 17g
Gosen OG Sheep Micro 17g
Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex Blue 16g
Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex White 18g
Prince Synthetic Gut Original Black 15Lg
Prince Synthetic Gut Original Gold 17g
Prince Synthetic Gut Original White 17g
Prince Topspin Plus 16 Yellow 16g
Pro Supex FT Ruff 17g
Pro Supex Spiral Flex 16g
Pro Supex SynGut Titan 17g
Pro Supex Synthetic Gut 18g
Smooth Polyester:
Genesis Black Magic 17g
Kirschbaum Pro Line II 1.15
Luxilon Adrenaline 1.25
Luxilon Big Banger Ace 1.12
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power 1.25
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power Fluro 1.23
Luxilon Big Banger M2 Pro 1.30
Luxilon Big Banger Timo 1.10
Pro Supex Big Ace Micro 1.15
Signum Pro Poly Plasma
Solinco Tour Bite 18g
Technifibre Pro Red Code 17g
Topspin Cyber Blue 17g
Topspin Cyber Flash 17g
Tourna Poly Big Hitter Blue 17g
WeissCANNON Mosquito Bite 1.16
WeissCANNON Scorpion 1.22
WeissCANNON Silverstring 1.20
Textured Polyester:
Babolat Pro Hurricane Tour 17g
Babolat RPM Blast 16g
Genesis Hexonic 1.09
Genesis SpinX 17
Genesis Typhoon 16L
Kirschbaum Spiky Shark 1.30
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power Rough 1.25
MSV Hex 1.10
PolyFibre Hexablade 1.18
Polystar Turbo 17g
Pro Supex Blue Gear 18g
Signum Pro Plasma HEXtreme 17g
Signum Pro Tornado 1.23
Technifibre Black Code 1.18
Topspin Cyber Twirl 1.27
Volkl Cyclone 17g
WeissCANNON Turbotwist 1.18
Natural Guts:
Babolat Tonic 15L
Babolat VS Team 17g
Global Gut 17g
Klip Legend 17g
Pacific Prime 17g
Performaxx HighTension 1.25
Performaxx Touch 17g
Performaxx WhisperTouch 1.20
Multifilaments:
Alpha Gut 2000 18g
Gamma LiveWire XP 16g
Head C3 Rocket 17g
Head Rip Perfect Control 16g
Isospeed Professional Classic 17g
Laserfibre Supernatural Gut Pro Stock 17g
Mantis Comfort Synthetic 1.30
Mantis Power Synthetic 1.25
Pro Supex MaximTouch Original 17g
Technifibre NRG2 1.18mm
Technifibre X-One Biphase 1.18mm
Tourna Quasi Gut 17g
WeissCANNON Explosiv! 1.30
Wilson K-Gut 16g
Synthetic Guts:
Forten Sweet 17g
Gosen OG Sheep Micro 17g
Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex Blue 16g
Prince Synthetic Gut Duraflex White 18g
Prince Synthetic Gut Original Black 15Lg
Prince Synthetic Gut Original Gold 17g
Prince Synthetic Gut Original White 17g
Prince Topspin Plus 16 Yellow 16g
Pro Supex FT Ruff 17g
Pro Supex Spiral Flex 16g
Pro Supex SynGut Titan 17g
Pro Supex Synthetic Gut 18g
Smooth Polyester:
Genesis Black Magic 17g
Kirschbaum Pro Line II 1.15
Luxilon Adrenaline 1.25
Luxilon Big Banger Ace 1.12
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power 1.25
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power Fluro 1.23
Luxilon Big Banger M2 Pro 1.30
Luxilon Big Banger Timo 1.10
Pro Supex Big Ace Micro 1.15
Signum Pro Poly Plasma
Solinco Tour Bite 18g
Technifibre Pro Red Code 17g
Topspin Cyber Blue 17g
Topspin Cyber Flash 17g
Tourna Poly Big Hitter Blue 17g
WeissCANNON Mosquito Bite 1.16
WeissCANNON Scorpion 1.22
WeissCANNON Silverstring 1.20
Textured Polyester:
Babolat Pro Hurricane Tour 17g
Babolat RPM Blast 16g
Genesis Hexonic 1.09
Genesis SpinX 17
Genesis Typhoon 16L
Kirschbaum Spiky Shark 1.30
Luxilon Big Banger ALU Power Rough 1.25
MSV Hex 1.10
PolyFibre Hexablade 1.18
Polystar Turbo 17g
Pro Supex Blue Gear 18g
Signum Pro Plasma HEXtreme 17g
Signum Pro Tornado 1.23
Technifibre Black Code 1.18
Topspin Cyber Twirl 1.27
Volkl Cyclone 17g
WeissCANNON Turbotwist 1.18
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rudester
Professional
Thanks for the confirmation, I have recently become quite a fan of Mosquito bite. great feel.
Too many problems from the manufacturer. I'd not risk trying to get some from them. Lots of delays and very poor communications once you do order from them. Long waits to get product IF you ever get it and get the right strings you've ordered. I ordered some and what they sent in the packages isn't the right string ( by the looks of what pvaudio posted). Sad to see a company with a very good product do so poorly in customer service. Save yourself a headache and ulcer.
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g4driver
Legend
Alrighty guys, the 4 3/8 sticks are going in the closet. I just purchased 4x 4 1/2 AG100s, so now I have 8 in my arsenal along with the other 4 3/8 just in case. I'll be heading back up to school tomorrow and have 3 empty frames (4 1/2, my favorite) to string up, so if you want to see something play tested, please speak now. The string list is below.
Multifilaments:
Technifibre NRG2 1.18mm
Technifibre X-One Biphase 1.18mm
Textured Polyester:
Genesis Typhoon 16L
PVAudio,
Love to see your review of Genesis Typhoon 16L Mains / and either NRG2 or X-One Bi-phase. (I love X-One, but based on your reviews and others just ordered 5 sets of Laserfibre SNGPS.) I called and spoke to one the guys on Thursday. He was a very nice and informative, he told me the order won't ship until Monday. No worries.
I have a Typhoon16L (M) / Prince Premiere LT 16 (X) setup that I am comparing to Babalot Hurricane Feel 17g (M)/ X-One Bi-phase 16g (X).
I like both, but when I use a 17g cross in the Hurricane setup, they pop in about 10-12 hours. I am sure Typhoon will pop a 17g cross even sooner, so I sticking with the fat 16g for now.
The Typhoon does give more topspin, and since I'm more of a flat hitter, I am really starting to like the Typhoon.Thanks again for all you efforts.
g4driver
Legend
Understand Laserfibre has numerous reports of bad customer service. So I called them on Thursday to make sure the string was in stock, and ready to ship before I placed my order. Had a nice five minute conversation with one of the guys there. The guy told me about a special promo they were offering to get a free pack of Kryptonite, that I didn't notice on their website. So, he basically gave me a tip, which gave me a free pack of strings which they sell for $10.75.
I let you know how many experience with them goes, and sorry to hear of your troubles.
niketennispro
Rookie
Hi pvaudio, can you do mantis comfort in the mains and lexicon adrenaline in the crosses? Or vice versa, I really wanna see how that set up plays
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Linguistic adrenaline, eh?
I honestly would, but you're going to have to tell me what frame you use. I absolutely hate adrenaline and think it's the worst string that Lux makes because unlike any of the BB line, it has no power or spin, and unlike M2, if has no feel.
niketennispro
Rookie
ughhh auto text on iphone is terrible -.- I use a tecnifibre T-fight 335 18x20 but am most likely gonna switch to wilson blx six-one 95. Really? i tried the playtest of it and found it quite nice. How would Unique Big hitter silver and Mantis comfort play? I'm trying to look for some nice power and touch on my shots as I play an aggressive all court game.
finalfantasy7
Semi-Pro
how about:
Technifibre X-One Biphase 1.18mm - crossses
WeissCANNON Mosquito Bite 1.16 - mains
Technifibre X-One Biphase 1.18mm - crossses
WeissCANNON Mosquito Bite 1.16 - mains
Have already done the MB/NRG, which IMO is superior to X-1 in every regard, and even then, it was a shadow to the SNGPS cross. The NRG cross simply makes the stringbed more lively and crisper. Having used X-1, it has terrible tension stability and its playing characteristics depend on what you had for breakfast.
rodrigoamaral
Hall of Fame
Alrighty! Next round of reviews:
1. Genesis Typhoon / Technifibre NRG2
2. Genesis Hexonic / Mantis Power Synthetic
If someone can list up one more, I'll get that strung up before I return home
did you every try the Hexonic as a full setup?
I have not. Does it play well? If so, then I'll do a full bed playtest of that instead.
Okay guys, I'm stringing up the first frame with Typhoon right now. Hopefully by the time I'm finished, someone else will have another suggestion. I think that I'm going to do a Silverstring setup since I've never tried it at low tension. What would be a nice cross from my list up there, do you think?
1. Genesis Typhoon / Technifibre NRG2
2. WeissCANNON Silverstring / ?
3. ???
1. Genesis Typhoon / Technifibre NRG2
2. WeissCANNON Silverstring / ?
3. ???
rodrigoamaral
Hall of Fame
I have not. Does it play well? If so, then I'll do a full bed playtest of that instead.
Yes, I have tried as a full and liked it a lot.. Just wondered if you were going to do a review of it in a hybrid, if you had experience of it as a full so I can compare my opinion to yours...
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