Anyone try TAAN strings from China?

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
So as someone who currently lives in China and works at a tennis club, I've tried a lot of polys. Almost all Lux strings, almost all Solinco strings, Black Widow, Quadro Twist, RPM, MSV Focus Hex, Cyclone, you get the picture. When I first came to China, I found that a lot of high level players (5.0-5.5+, usually city/provincial team or former provincial team players) used very cheap TAAN strings and were very happy with them. I tried TAAN 5600, which is a smooth round thin 18g poly and found that it indeed played super well and maintained playability for far longer than many of the name brand polys I've tried (especially Lux, eugh).

TAAN 8580 is a 10 sided poly that gave me great spin but a little less feel, 8600 is a 6 sided twisted string that also plays well for me, while 5600 is literally my preferred string over Hyper-G 18g and Confidential 17g, despite being smooth (not twisted, textured, or sided). I just bought a reel of 5600 for 175 RMB, which is 25USD, an absolutely absurd value for how much I actually like the string. I'm curious if anyone else has tried TAAN strings?

(Quick note, the brand is pronounced "Thai Ah-ng" (泰昂) in Chinese, and not "Tan")
 
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KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
A Chinese reviewer calls it as the "king of value" of all strings

The categories are:
Power (bounciness)
Control
Bite
Pocketing
Topspin
Comfortability
Durability (duration)
Value
Cost
Attributes
Test Racket
Tension (I will note that this string plays FAR better at lower tension, which I prefer anyways. My current tensions in Speed Pro and Aux Radical with this string are in my sig)
1520760292-1904034919_wn.jpg
 

kevonian

Semi-Pro
So as someone who currently lives in China and works at a tennis club, I've tried a lot of polys. Almost all Lux strings, almost all Solinco strings, Black Widow, Quadro Twist, RPM, MSV Focus Hex, Cyclone, you get the picture. When I first came to China, I found that a lot of high level players (5.0-5.5+, usually city/provincial team or former provincial team players) used very cheap TAAN strings and were very happy with them. I tried TAAN 5600, which is a smooth round thin 18g poly and found that it indeed played super well and maintained playability for far longer than many of the name brand polys I've tried (especially Lux, eugh).

TAAN 8580 is a 10 sided poly that gave me great spin but a little less feel, 8600 is a 6 sided twisted string that also plays well for me, while 5600 is literally my preferred string over Hyper-G 18g and Confidential 17g, despite being smooth (not twisted, textured, or sided). I just bought a reel of 5600 for 175 RMB, which is 25USD, an absolutely absurd value for how much I actually like the string. I'm curious if anyone else has tried TAAN strings?

(Quick note, the brand is pronounced "Thai Ah-ng" (泰昂) in Chinese, and not "Tan")
I'm always interested in offbrand tennis strings! Do you have any pictures?
 
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Alexrb

Professional
Can they be bought and shipped to the US? All I see is Ali Express and I don’t have much experience with that site
 

Nostradamus

Bionic Poster
So as someone who currently lives in China and works at a tennis club, I've tried a lot of polys. Almost all Lux strings, almost all Solinco strings, Black Widow, Quadro Twist, RPM, MSV Focus Hex, Cyclone, you get the picture. When I first came to China, I found that a lot of high level players (5.0-5.5+, usually city/provincial team or former provincial team players) used very cheap TAAN strings and were very happy with them. I tried TAAN 5600, which is a smooth round thin 18g poly and found that it indeed played super well and maintained playability for far longer than many of the name brand polys I've tried (especially Lux, eugh).

TAAN 8580 is a 10 sided poly that gave me great spin but a little less feel, 8600 is a 6 sided twisted string that also plays well for me, while 5600 is literally my preferred string over Hyper-G 18g and Confidential 17g, despite being smooth (not twisted, textured, or sided). I just bought a reel of 5600 for 175 RMB, which is 25USD, an absolutely absurd value for how much I actually like the string. I'm curious if anyone else has tried TAAN strings?

(Quick note, the brand is pronounced "Thai Ah-ng" (泰昂) in Chinese, and not "Tan")
is it better than Solinco hyper G or confidential ?
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
is it better than Solinco hyper G or confidential ?

I wouldn't say it's better than HyperG or Confidential, but I personally actually like it more than both Hyper-G 18 and Confidential 17. Also its way way cheaper to string once every two weeks. I'm a broke college kid and I'd rather string 5600 once every two three weeks than try to play with Hyper-G for 2 months and have it feel like sh*t for the last 3 weeks.
 

j1mster

New User
No idea, ironically I haven't found any Pros Pro strings in China
I’ve used t8600( hexagon), has very sharp edges stiff poly reminds me of other cheap OEM Asian strings like solinco. The t5850 decagon feels just like volkl cyclone too bad they only make 18 gauge. As a stringers a lot of my customers love the pros pros strings but at the same time I wouldn’t suggest taan 1.25g or thicker unless they are stringing lower tension or high level players without elbow issues. N@zi German made strings tend to be more softer m in my opinion it’s not necessarily a bad thing these Asian made strings are just harder feel in my opinion.
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
I’ve used t8600( hexagon), has very sharp edges stiff poly reminds me of other cheap OEM Asian strings like solinco. The t5850 decagon feels just like volkl cyclone too bad they only make 18 gauge. As a stringers a lot of my customers love the pros pros strings but at the same time I wouldn’t suggest taan 1.25g or thicker unless they are stringing lower tension or high level players without elbow issues. N@zi German made strings tend to be more softer m in my opinion it’s not necessarily a bad thing these Asian made strings are just harder feel in my opinion.
5850 is 1.20
 

ChimpChimp

Semi-Pro
I strung TAAN once for someone else. It was a sided string. I touched through the string. The diameter as felt by my fingers were highly, highly irregular. Thin somewhere, thick elsewhere. I didn't have precise tools to objectively measure it.
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
I strung TAAN once for someone else. It was a sided string. I touched through the string. The diameter as felt by my fingers were highly, highly irregular. Thin somewhere, thick elsewhere. I didn't have precise tools to objectively measure it.
Wouldn't be surprised at this price point, but then again I've strung up 5600 over 30 times and it hasn't ever broken when it shouldn't have (whether during stringing or during use)
 

bomtempo

New User
So, anyone else using these taan strings? I'm trying to talk to aliexpress seller in order to buy one set of each!
 
So, anyone else using these taan strings? I'm trying to talk to aliexpress seller in order to buy one set of each!
I’ve used both the tt5600 and tt8600, both are nice strings. just brought a reel of tt8600 after just trying a set but have had a reel of 5600 for a while now. 5600 plays quite soft due to its thin nature but I just upped the tension a bit and it suited the dense bed of my ezone 98 well, opening up the string pattern a bit. I’ve just strung up a hybrid Of 8600 in mains and 5600 crosses to try up the spin a touch but maintain the benefits of the 5600. I only just stumbled upon the cyclone equivalent ts 5850 I think it is. I’ll definitely be getting that for a test soon
 

7.akkun

New User
My goodness I'm glad I found this thread. I'm currently in China testing out 8600. Looking to try the 5600 next.

Is there anywhere else we can get these strings in the US aside from Aliexpress?
 

thebigz

Rookie
Grew up in China living in the US the last 10 years. Yes many people I know back how uses their strings. In general, I'm not a big fan. It can play nice for a session or two but if you are 4.0 or above the performance of the string don't last at all.

A lot of the playability and feel people like comes just from how thin their string generally is. If you get a 1.15mm gauge of any big name strings, you will also find it more comfortable, spin friendly, powerful, more pocketing, etc. It suited the Chinese market due to cheap stringing cost and most players would never cut a poly out if it doesn't break, and rec players simply don't have the swing speed to take advantage of the control and playability longevity of thicker premium strings. But 1.15mm strings let's people break them faster also it's cheaper to restring. Also to note, the quality of stringers regular people have access to (common sports shops) is just terrible. When I last visited hometown, I went to get my racquet restrung at the place my dad usually goes to, requested my regular 50lbs tension and it came back much looser than probably 38 lbs on my own machine back in the US. The knots are so badly tied that there's almost no tension on the outside strings. Most rec players I know still strings their polys at 58-60, I thought they were crazy at first but now I know why.

To me most TAAN strings just don't encourage modern acceleration on the ball and it's a terrible value in the US market given the stringing cost. No harm if you string yourself to get some to try for fun but I definitely don't think it's anywhere near the feel or performance of premium polys. Not worth the time
 

HappyMilk

Rookie
As cheap as this stuff is, China has fakes of this stuff.
Just spoke with a shop owner and bought 2 genuine reels from him instead of Aliexpress.

I’ll be taking these back to the US to play test with a few friends.

IMG-0159.jpg
 

HappyMilk

Rookie
Can they be bought and shipped to the US? All I see is Ali Express and I don’t have much experience with that site
If my play test goes well, I’ll probably bring in a few crates of genuine reels in from China.

I’ve always been importing and exporting goods, just never thought I’d ever do it for my hobby (tennis).
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
As cheap as this stuff is, China has fakes of this stuff.
Just spoke with a shop owner and bought 2 genuine reels from him instead of Aliexpress.

I’ll be taking these back to the US to play test with a few friends.

IMG-0159.jpg
Great to see! I recommend 5600 low and 8600 maybe 2lbs higher. I string 5600 at 56-48lbs and 8600 at 48-50lbs.
Let me know how you like the strings, they surprised me for sure
 
As cheap as this stuff is, China has fakes of this stuff.
Just spoke with a shop owner and bought 2 genuine reels from him instead of Aliexpress.

I’ll be taking these back to the US to play test with a few friends.

IMG-0159.jpg
Could you tell me what’s printed on the 8600 string, I brought a set to try and it was fantastic, said Taan TT8600 therma axe on the string or something, went to buy a reel but that Ali store didn’t have one so I found the best alternative I could and brought a reel. On the string it has printed taan tt8600 2111, doesn’t seem to have the same playability as my intial set, wondering if I’ve been scammed with a cheap knock off
 

HappyMilk

Rookie
Could you tell me what’s printed on the 8600 string, I brought a set to try and it was fantastic, said Taan TT8600 therma axe on the string or something, went to buy a reel but that Ali store didn’t have one so I found the best alternative I could and brought a reel. On the string it has printed taan tt8600 2111, doesn’t seem to have the same playability as my intial set, wondering if I’ve been scammed with a cheap knock off
I do not know enough about the manufacturer’s history of they’ve changed the print on the strings / swapped factories or processes that might affect string playability.

Perhaps it is my eyesight but I checked 3-4 feet and could not find any print so far. Once the play test is over, I’ll let you know if the print shows up.
String is genuine though —purchased through main distributor in the city.
 

SkyFather

New User
Really happy to see the discussions of this brand because I am from China lol.
Even Chinese college players are using this brand because they frequently restring their rackets
Personally I used 8800, 8600, 5850, 5600 before. Right now I like 5600 the most because of the feel and the power if you do the full bed, and others feel pretty stiff.

For hybrid setup most common recommendation is the 5850 x 5600, I just bought a reel of 5850 and 5600 and try to take a look how it goes.
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
Really happy to see the discussions of this brand because I am from China lol.
Even Chinese college players are using this brand because they frequently restring their rackets
Personally I used 8800, 8600, 5850, 5600 before. Right now I like 5600 the most because of the feel and the power if you do the full bed, and others feel pretty stiff.

For hybrid setup most common recommendation is the 5850 x 5600, I just bought a reel of 5850 and 5600 and try to take a look how it goes.
That's an interesting idea, 5850 feels softer than 5600 to me, would be an interesting hybrid! Where in China are you?
 

vokazu

Legend
Has anyone tried Optum ALU Power from Taiwan or Yawings ALU Power or Yaqi ALU Power from China?


How do they compare to Luxilon ALU Power?
 

TimePlease

Semi-Pro
Has anyone tried Optum ALU Power from Taiwan or Yawings ALU Power or Yaqi ALU Power from China?


How do they compare to Luxilon ALU Power?
I would think their companies have higher legal bills for trademark infringement for starters! Are they really all using that same name?!
 

Chrisc51

New User
Is Zarsia brand also good like TAAN?
Got myself a reel of Zarsia round poly and feels like just cheap poly, very plastic fell, stiff, low powered even on lower tensions. Also got a couple of sets of taan 5600 and think those are way better, way better spin and feel, though they are quite stiff for my taste
 

KungfuTennis

Semi-Pro
I would think their companies have higher legal bills for trademark infringement for starters! Are they really all using that same name?!
Lol its China, Nike lost the lawsuit against the Chinese “乔丹” brand, which is just a Chinese transliteration of the name Jordan, using a very similar logo to make very similar shoes.
 
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