Creature of habit using ALU Power for years. Sell me on something new to try.

[tennisjaz]

I am a creature of habit and have been using for years a full bed of ALU Power @51 lbs and sometimes mix it up and go ALU cross and Babolat VS Gut on mains if I want a different feel.

Lately, I feel like trying something new for a bit and seeing what is out there and how string technology has changed. I know there is so much out there in regards to strings but just have not played with much beyond Luxilon (Used blast for a bit a couple of years ago but moved back to ALU). I am hoping that the community can sell me on something new to try out as I am willing to break my habits a bit to play with the latest string tech and see what is out there.

I have restrung every 6-8 hours of playing time so probably plenty of chances to try different setups.

• Some characteristics about me and playing style so you can understand what type of strings I might like.
• Age 45+
• 5.0 / UTR 11 level when I feel like putting the energy/effort in on the court as my lung capacity has trouble keeping up with most in this skill level anymore as many are half my age and can run marathons.
• I rely on my stroke mechanics/form to create spin not my strings
• Like to take full cracks at the ball and feel that it has the control from the strings to land in the court where I aimed.
• Sticks in bag that I will experiment with.
  • Preferred stick APD+ 2013 (my last one as others have cracked over the years, but still rotate to this one when I can)
  • PA+ 2019 x3 (main sticks) and 1 PA Tour
  • Vcore 98 (2021) Received as bday present from wife as she looked over my shoulder and saw I kept reading and watching reviews of this racket so she bought it for me. Glad she did as I am having a little fun with it at the moment as a change in feel which is most likely what sparked me to experiment some as if I can like and try a different racket why don't I give a whirl on some strings too.

Thoughts on what I should experiment around with and why should I try that over my current?

 

[SinneGOAT]

Luxilon 4g could be one to try, or maybe rpm blast. Those are some more popular ones but maybe try a solinco string?

 

[tennisjaz]

Luxilon 4g could be one to try, or maybe rpm blast. Those are some more popular ones but maybe try a solinco string?

Tried Blast a few years ago, didn’t like it more than the ALU so I switched back to ALU. I just finished reading a few reviews of 4G and think I will give that a try seems to meet the characteristics I am looking for. As for Solinco, I hear everyone always talking about confidential would that be the solinco that is closest match or one of the others from the brand?

 

[Rosstour]

Volkl Cyclone Tour. I've never played better than I am right now, with this string.

 

[jdub486]

I still don’t think anyone has captured the magical and responsive feel of fresh/ relatively fresh alu power.

 

[StefanosWillSaveTheWorld]

I would definitely try a Solinco string. My vote would be for Hyper G if you're looking to get close to that Alu connectedness with a softer, more spin friendly feel. Confidential is a good string. I love the feel but it lacks power. Both are better for spin than Alu Power.

Another string that I think is hugely underrated is Head Hawk Touch. I think it's a much more comfortable Alu Power with the feel and connectedness. It isn't outstanding at tension maintenance but better than Alu.

I will say that when Alu Power is fresh, it is tough to beat. For me, the problem with Alu is that after a couple sets of heavy hitting, the ball flies all over the place. With Hyper-G, I do not have this issue and the playability is very close. With both Hyper G and Hawk touch, the balls hit outside the sweetspot feel so much better. Good Luck!

 

[Sir Faultalot]

I’m going rogue: poly tour rev? It’s got plenty of power and loves racket head speed. Very very comfortable for a moderately firm poly

 

[SinneGOAT]

Tried Blast a few years ago, didn’t like it more than the ALU so I switched back to ALU. I just finished reading a few reviews of 4G and think I will give that a try seems to meet the characteristics I am looking for. As for Solinco, I hear everyone always talking about confidential would that be the solinco that is closest match or one of the others from the brand?

Confidential is shaped but I think it would be a good string to try. Many say tour bite is solinco’s version of Alu power but it is shaped as well, so perhaps those two.

 

[tennisjaz]

I would definitely try a Solinco string. My vote would be for Hyper G if you're looking to get close to that Alu connectedness with a softer, more spin friendly feel. Confidential is a good string. I love the feel but it lacks power. Both are better for spin than Alu Power.

Another string that I think is hugely underrated is Head Hawk Touch. I think it's a much more comfortable Alu Power with the feel and connectedness. It isn't outstanding at tension maintenance but better than Alu.

I will say that when Alu Power is fresh, it is tough to beat. For me, the problem with Alu is that after a couple sets of heavy hitting, the ball flies all over the place. With Hyper-G, I do not have this issue and the playability is very close. With both Hyper G and Hawk touch, the balls hit outside the sweetspot feel so much better. Good Luck!

Remember one of my hitting partners who plays with RPM said he tried HyperG once and couldn’t stand it as he said he felt no control whatsoever and instantly went back to Blast. I have heard enough from others about confidential to spike my curiosity so I think I will give that a try first then cicle back to hyperG and give it a go as well.

 

[tennisjaz]

I’m going rogue: poly tour rev? It’s got plenty of power and loves racket head speed. Very very comfortable for a moderately firm poly

The vcore that the wifey bought me was strung up with the PolyTourRev, I have only played with it for about 3 hours so far but really like what I am feeling. Was going to string up one my my PA+ where I am familiar with the racket as the vcore is still foreign to me, but definitely loving the string so far. Good call.

 

[tennisjaz]

Confidential is shaped but I think it would be a good string to try. Many say tour bite is solinco’s version of Alu power but it is shaped as well, so perhaps those two.

Friend plays with tour bite and swears by it, I am playing with him this weekend, might try to borrow his racket and see how it feels.

 

[McGradey]

Solinco Tour Bite

I'm pretty late to the bandwagon but this is a great string. I'm finding it similar to Alu Power Rough, which I also loved but can't get from my local stringer.
Tour Bite is predictable, huge amount of feel, and tons of spin. Should be fine to string at your preferred tension if you play with Alu.

I've only played Hyper G from Solinco other than this, and much prefer Tour Bite

 

[socallefty]

For the first 5 hours, there is still nothing better than ALU Power fullbed or as a cross with VS gut mains - of course, it goes dead within 7-8 hours and you need a big budget to restring a gut hybrid that often. Otherwise, try HyperG for the best combination of spin/control that lasts about 12-15 hours. If you want a more comfortable string that plays almost identical to HyperG, try HyperG Soft. I’ve been hybriding HG Soft strings with VS mains and enjoy it for about 20 hours on a Pure Strike Tour at 47/44 lbs.

While there are many Cyclone Tour admirers, I personally like HyperG and HyperG Soft better especially in thinner gauges like 17g or 18g.

 

[am1899]

Nothing in Solinco’s (or anyone else’s) lineup feels anything like ALU IMHO.

That said, check out Tier One Black Knight.

 

[One Handed Dynasty]

ALU is still the goat after two decades. Kirshbaum max power basically feels like prestreched ALU/after the first few hours. Black knight is nice too.

 

[tennisintheeighties]

I would say : Nothing.
Because Alu Power is unique and the best.

 

[blai212]

+1 volkl cyclone tour 16g but I would use it as mains with a slightly thinner slick round copoly cross signum pro poly plasma/ghostwire work well. It really comes down to what you’re looking for from your string. Solinco’s offerings are on the stiffer side but maintain tension/playability duration quite well. Confidential and tour bite are on the crisper side while hyperG is on the muted side. I believe they are also lower powered. I have actually found Signum pro poly plasma hextreme to maintain its sharpness longer than HG so there’s also that. VCT has higher power level, great ball pocketing but not so great tension maintenance. Tier 1 black knight is also quite good...muted/lower powered but great spin control

 

[Ph4ntom]

I’ve heard RS Lyon to be highly reviewed and similar to alu power!

 

[taydbear7]

I'm going add as well that ALU power is great when it's fresh. I loved it hybrid with NRG2. The problem was I was breaking those strings in the first set every time so I had to look for an alternative. Hyper G is one of my top 5 strings and I also really like Gosen Sidewinder (very underrated).

 

[FIRETennis]

Stick to ALU. If you want something softer, give Luxilon Element a try as a cross to ALU or as a cross to VS.

 

[one-hand]

For the first 5 hours, there is still nothing better than ALU Power fullbed or as a cross with VS gut mains - of course, it goes dead within 7-8 hours and you need a big budget to restring a gut hybrid that often. Otherwise, try HyperG for the best combination of spin/control that lasts about 12-15 hours. If you want a more comfortable string that plays almost identical to HyperG, try HyperG Soft. I’ve been hybriding HG Soft strings with VS mains and enjoy it for about 20 hours on a Pure Strike Tour at 47/44 lbs.

While there are many Cyclone Tour admirers, I personally like HyperG and HyperG Soft better especially in thinner gauges like 17g or 18g.

Same here. First 4 hours...incredible everything. After that....expensive POS.

 

[FIRETennis]

Same here. First 4 hours...incredible everything. After that....expensive POS.

At the 11+ UTR level, any string is going to feel *significantly* different after 4 hours compared to a fresh string job.
Same can be said about Volkl Cyclone Tour or Hyper-G / Hyper-G Soft.
The only thing that will stay consistent with heavy hitting will be gut/poly.

 

[jangotango]

ALU Soft. Too easy.

 

[blai212]

hyperG has good playability duration/tension maintenance much like SPPP hextreme but SPPPHex retains sharp shape longer. SPPP 1.25 hex mains with SPPP 1.18 round cross is my new favorite setup. Lux strings and VCT 16g are ok but feel somewhat heavier than hyperG/SPPP for whatever reason so my arm appreciates the lighter feeling strings.

 

[denoted]

I like hyper g because it dies lively. It would be playable for a long time if the edges didn't seem to wear off, but it doesn't have that plummet into harshness that some polys do. I also don't think the feel is bad, at least in the 17g.

 

[Sir Faultalot]

PS- I would add Signum Firestorm to the recommendation. I think the power levels of Firestorm are close and the drop off is more gradual than most polys. It has a nice blend of touch and feel, not quite Alu level, but it’s playable for longer

 

[gebruikershaes]

Don't bother. I used to play with ALU power for years untill I started to develop elbow issues. After that I went down the string rabbit hole trying dozens of strings. Old and new. And no poly feels as good as ALU. The feel, the pop, adaquate spin, the power. ALU has it all. Only thing worth trying imo is a NG/Poly hybrid.

 

[movdqa]

I'm in a similar place. ALU Power since 2010 in Prestige MP. It feels so good for 8-10 hours. I'd love something that maintained tension for longer. I've read about Solinco Confidential and am interested - anyone have a direct comparison to ALU Power? I played around with strings a long time ago and it's a real PITA trying a bunch of different strings. ALU Power works so it's up to another string to give me enough reasons to try something else. Reasons for switching for me:

More spin
More control
Lasts longer
Easier on the arm

There's nothing wrong with ALU Power but I'm wondering if there's something better for my game.

 

[FIRETennis]

More spin
More control
Lasts longer
Easier on the arm

And half the price

 

[movdqa]

And half the price

If it lasts longer, then price is less of a concern as it means fewer trips back and forth to the stringer.

 

[am1899]

Tourna Silver 7 Tour 17 would be another one to look at. It’s a shaped string that has a little of the ALU “magic feel,” which isn’t quite as intense, but it lasts longer. It also holds tension longer than ALU. Some people had problems with shearing, but that never came up for me.

 

[movdqa]

I started a list with the Strings podcast from TW and have added suggestions. It's amazing how many strings there are out there.

 

[aaron_h27]

Max Power?

 

[movdqa]

Max Power?

I think that people using full poly are looking for control and spin.

 

[crash]

I think that people using full poly are looking for control and spin.

I'm guessing he's suggesting Kirschbaum Max Power which has some similarity to ALU power.

 

[jdub486]

Max Power has a similar feel to Alu but is a touch less responsive and less spin friendly. But it makes up for it with incredible tension holding and consistent control. It’s also 1/3 the price right now.

 

[18x20 ftw]

I have had reels of hyper g and tour bite. I tried confidential yesterday and liked it better than both. Played a guy with atp points with it. I also like Yonex ptp in 1.20.

 

[WYK]

Prince Synthetic Gut

 

[TennisManiac]

You're traveling down a rabbit that you'll never get out of. I too have been using Alu Power "full bed" at 48 lbs. for 15 years now. Every year I try a few different strings to see if perhaps I can find a replacement that plays just as well but lasts longer than a couple of hours... but to no avail. There simply isn't anything on the market that can fit the bill once you'e use to Alu. That's just the way it is.

 

[movdqa]

You're traveling down a rabbit that you'll never get out of. I too have been using Alu Power "full bed" at 48 lbs. for 15 years now. Every year I try a few different strings to see if perhaps I can find a replacement that plays just as well but lasts longer than a couple of hours... but to no avail. There simply isn't anything on the market that can fit the bill once you'e use to Alu. That's just the way it is.

The easiest thing to do would be to do nothing. I've done this with racquets and it's a lot of money, time and disappointment.

 

[Injured Again]

@movdqa I agree with @am1899 - give 17 gauge Silver 7 Tour a try at about 8-10% lower tension than you would use for Alu Power 1.25. Definitely meets your criteria of more spin and lasts longer. Probably not quite as easy on the arm, and control kind of depends on how you define it for your specific game. For me, how I'd define control even differs between singles and doubles.

I'm one of those who have had terrible shear problems with Silver 7 Tour and I tried to get away from it for several months but I'm back to using it because it does so many thing well for me. Fortunately, I'm now on my fourth string job of Silver 7 Tour this go-around and the breakages have been from wearing through and not shearing.

 

[FIRETennis]

I agree with @Injured Again that Tourna Silver 7 Tour is probably the closest you can get to ALU Power compared to SignumPro Firestorm, Kirschbaum Max Power or RS Lyon, but it still lacks that magical ALU feeling. The two biggest issues with it are random sheer breakage, so an unreliable string, as well as playing much stiffer than ALU in my opinion. It has caused some arm issues for me in the past.

 

[PKorda]

The easiest thing to do would be to do nothing. I've done this with racquets and it's a lot of money, time and disappointment.

Sounds like my story with women...

 

[tennisintheeighties]

I agree with @Injured Again that Tourna Silver 7 Tour is probably the closest you can get to ALU Power compared to SignumPro Firestorm, Kirschbaum Max Power or RS Lyon, but it still lacks that magical ALU feeling. The two biggest issues with it are random sheer breakage, so an unreliable string, as well as playing much stiffer than ALU in my opinion. It has caused some arm issues for me in the past.

All theses strings are in my opinion, inferior to the Alu power

 

[Injured Again]

All theses strings are in my opinion, inferior to the Alu power

Yes, for about two hours. Hours two through ten are way better with Silver 7 Tour. For a recreational hack like me, paying 40% the cost for a string that is better 80% of the time is a better choice, especially since I'm not earning any money that first two hours.

 

[one-hand]

I'm in a similar place. ALU Power since 2010 in Prestige MP. It feels so good for 8-10 hours. I'd love something that maintained tension for longer. I've read about Solinco Confidential and am interested - anyone have a direct comparison to ALU Power? I played around with strings a long time ago and it's a real PITA trying a bunch of different strings. ALU Power works so it's up to another string to give me enough reasons to try something else. Reasons for switching for me:

More spin
More control
Lasts longer
Easier on the arm

There's nothing wrong with ALU Power but I'm wondering if there's something better for my game.

I was using ALU Power (regular and rough) exclusively for about 5 years until I discovered Solinco Confidential. Below is my comparison between the two.
Feel: Confidential more muted/plush and more ball pocketing
Control/Power: Confidential has less power hence more control
Power: Confidential has more spin potential even after the edges wear out
Tension: Confidential has much better tension maintenance. Slightly more powerful after 15 hr
Durability: Confidential breaks after ~25 hr for me. ALU not playable after 20 hr. Cannot compare because ALU never stayed in until breakage for me.

My switch to Confidential was easy.

 

[am1899]

Tell ya what. I just tried Lynx Tour for the first time this weekend. It’s decidedly not ALU. But I was really impressed. Pretty crisp, good pop, excellent control. Might have found a new go to string.

 

[nuclearmedicineman]

I am a creature of habit and have been using for years a full bed of ALU Power @51 lbs and sometimes mix it up and go ALU cross and Babolat VS Gut on mains if I want a different feel.

Lately, I feel like trying something new for a bit and seeing what is out there and how string technology has changed. I know there is so much out there in regards to strings but just have not played with much beyond Luxilon (Used blast for a bit a couple of years ago but moved back to ALU). I am hoping that the community can sell me on something new to try out as I am willing to break my habits a bit to play with the latest string tech and see what is out there.

I have restrung every 6-8 hours of playing time so probably plenty of chances to try different setups.

• Some characteristics about me and playing style so you can understand what type of strings I might like.
• Age 45+
• 5.0 / UTR 11 level when I feel like putting the energy/effort in on the court as my lung capacity has trouble keeping up with most in this skill level anymore as many are half my age and can run marathons.
• I rely on my stroke mechanics/form to create spin not my strings
• Like to take full cracks at the ball and feel that it has the control from the strings to land in the court where I aimed.
• Sticks in bag that I will experiment with.
  • Preferred stick APD+ 2013 (my last one as others have cracked over the years, but still rotate to this one when I can)
  • PA+ 2019 x3 (main sticks) and 1 PA Tour
  • Vcore 98 (2021) Received as bday present from wife as she looked over my shoulder and saw I kept reading and watching reviews of this racket so she bought it for me. Glad she did as I am having a little fun with it at the moment as a change in feel which is most likely what sparked me to experiment some as if I can like and try a different racket why don't I give a whirl on some strings too.

Thoughts on what I should experiment around with and why should I try that over my current?

Yes, there are thousands of strings out there, and the choices can make one's head spin!! Here is my two cents on my latest string experimentation:
Mayami strings is a relatively new company from Ukraine. A couple of their strings - Big Spin and Tour Hex - have incredibly high marks on stringforum.net and positive reviews here in the threads.
I have two racquets that I just got strung with full bed Tour Hex and Big Spin crossed with Magic Twist - aka the "Big Twist" hybrid. I was hitting against the wall on Sat and the "Big Twist" gave noticeable spin. Tour Hex could be the "Goldilocks" of all strings in that it does everything well. It seems that there are many other good poly options now than the old iconic Big Banger or ALU power setup. Good luck!

 

[one-hand]

Looks like ALU is facing a lot competition now and even more in the near future. Expect Luxilon to develop something new or market something old to fight all these competitors.

 

[movdqa]

One other factor is whether or not my stringer has the string in stock. I may give Confidential a shot. He's a high-volume stringer in a busy club (normally) and he's the only stringer in the area as all of the guys I used to use retired from stringing. I have considered getting my own machine and doing it myself but it's just a lot easier to drop off a load of racquets at the stringer.

I have two Berdych frames that need stringing but I will keep them with ALU Power at 56 I think to keep the racquets authentic.

Power is not a problem for me - I think that it's a bit odd that they call it ALU Power when the idea of the string is really control.