Tennis Warehouse playtest: Hyper-G Round 1.25

[TW Staff]

Solinco Hyper-G Round 1.25 playtest




HYBRID OPTION - read carefully
The hybrid review is in addition to the full-set review. When we send notifications to those selected for this playtest, we will let you know if you've also been selected to provide a hybrid review.


Review deadline: Feb 28

Include the following in your review:
Tension(s) used for playtest
Regular string setup & tension
Racquet used for test
Power/Control of test string
Feel (Stiff? Mushy? Muted? Crisp? Comfortable?)
Spin
Playability Duration
Tension Recommendations (would you string it differently next time - why)
Other comments (optional)

HYBRID Section (this is only for those selected to provide an additional review)
Which string for mains/crosses
Tension(s) used for playtest
Racquet used for playtest
Provide a short summary (one paragraph is fine), briefly touching upon the control, power, spin, feel and any other details you'd like to share. Of particular interest are the frictional properties, specifically whether manual straightening of the mains is required. Please also comment on whether you prefer Hyper-G Round in a full bed or hybrid, and briefly state your reasons.

Feel free to start discussing Solinco strings. Hyper-G Round will be released in Feb.

All playtesters will receive a complimentary overgrip (prototype)! ​

 

[mhkeuns]

Do shaped poly strings really produce more spin? Or, do round poly strings produce just as much? I don’t seem to see a big difference.

 

[Chairman3]

Do shaped poly strings really produce more spin? Or, do round poly strings produce just as much? I don’t seem to see a big difference.

I think they can, but really I think it's more a matter of feel.
Shaped strings may produce more of a "biting" feeling than their round counterparts.
However, the usual downside, and why I prefer round strings, is that feeling goes away as the edges wear down.

Very curious on this HG round as i thought the whole appeal of HG was its shaped nature.

 

[Fighting phoenix]

In advance of this playtest and string release, it might be helpful to understand the positioning of Solinco's core string options:

Tour Bite - stiff, crisp, firm, spin oriented
Confidential - stiffer and more firm, also spin oriented but underpowered compared to TB and Hyper G
Hyper G - firm, muted, grippy and spin oriented, somewhat more lively than the others
Hyper G round - a more consistent/control oriented version of Hyper G?

Does this sound about right at a high level?

 

[Dunlop300g]

I think they can, but really I think it's more a matter of feel.
Shaped strings may produce more of a "biting" feeling than their round counterparts.
However, the usual downside, and why I prefer round strings, is that feeling goes away as the edges wear down.

Very curious on this HG round as i thought the whole appeal of HG was its shaped nature.

One additional thing is that the rounded strings are easier on the stringer's fingers, lol. Maybe another thing is that the rounded strings may help a multi or gut hybrid string setup last longer; thinking that the will bite into the softer strings less.

 

[Jung]

One of my biggest grief with normal Hyper G is how the string bed locks out, so there's less string movement and thus making it play stiffer. I'm curious to see if the strings are going to play softer and livelier.

 

[jugheadfla]

In advance of this playtest and string release, it might be helpful to understand the positioning of Solinco's core string options:

Tour Bite - stiff, crisp, firm, spin oriented
Confidential - stiffer and more firm, also spin oriented but underpowered compared to TB and Hyper G
Hyper G - firm, muted, grippy and spin oriented, somewhat more lively than the others
Hyper G round - a more consistent/control oriented version of Hyper G?

Does this sound about right at a high level?

Confidential actually sits between TB and Hyper G as far as stiffness goes where TB is the stiffest and Hyper G the least stiff and Confidential stiffer than Hyper G.

 

[SinneGOAT]

I’ll sit this one out but very curious for people who have played with hyper g what they think. The regular and soft are some of the best strings on the market and I wonder if they can maintain that high spin production with a round shape.

 

[the_faceless_player]

Definitely has potential in hybrids. Neither myself or any of the guys I string for who play full poly (mostly Hyper G & Confidential) liked it in a full bed by comparison and none of my regular Hyper G users had plans to switch. Look forward to seeing some additional feedback on it from more people. Probably good for them to add another round option to their portfolio.

 

[SlowTiger]

I think they can, but really I think it's more a matter of feel.
Shaped strings may produce more of a "biting" feeling than their round counterparts.
However, the usual downside, and why I prefer round strings, is that feeling goes away as the edges wear down.

Very curious on this HG round as i thought the whole appeal of HG was its shaped nature.

But by the time the edges wear out, the snapback does too. I do think shaped strings add spin but the more aggressive the shape, the less consistent string

 

[Chairman3]

But by the time the edges wear out, the snapback does too. I do think shaped strings add spin but the more aggressive the shape, the less consistent string

The inconsistency is kind of what I meant by the feel changing.
But some, like diadem elite xt, had a super aggressive shape and the feel changed basically everytime I played with it. But i don't necessarily think it was tension loss.
I guess it could've been, it's been awhile now

 

[mad dog1]

I’ll sit this one out but very curious for people who have played with hyper g what they think. The regular and soft are some of the best strings on the market and I wonder if they can maintain that high spin production with a round shape.

I was given a set of Hyper G round 1.20 to playtest in two different hybrid setups. One was Hyper G 1.20/Hyper G round 1.20 and the other was Hyper G round 1.20/Hyper G 1.20. With the round in the mains and shaped in the crosses, the string bed didn’t grip the ball well. With the shaped main with the round cross, the string bed offered lots of grip and had no trouble generating spin.

 

[mad dog1]

Do shaped poly strings really produce more spin? Or, do round poly strings produce just as much? I don’t seem to see a big difference.

regular Hyper G definitely produces more spin and action than Hyper G round. Shaped Confidential 3.0 definitely produces more spin and action than round Confidential 3.0. Pretty surprised that as a former college player, you don't see a big difference. my go to string setups are TB 1.25/Outlast 1.25 and BK 1.24/GW 1.27 because the shaped mains can put a ton of work on the ball.

 

[Trip]

Going to sit this one out as well (got picked for the Pure Strike playtest, so going to be plenty busy with that). Although I'm not much of a Hyper-G player myself, I do have clients who like it. Not really sure if Hyper-G Round will have as much of a foothold in the market, among so many excellent round polys that are available, but keen to see the feedback here nonetheless!

 

[mhkeuns]

regular Hyper G definitely produces more spin and action than Hyper G round. Shaped Confidential 3.0 definitely produces more spin and action than round Confidential 3.0. Pretty surprised that as a former college player, you don't see a big difference. my go to string setups are TB 1.25/Outlast 1.25 and BK 1.24/GW 1.27 because the shaped mains can put a ton of work on the ball.

I’m kind of numb like that, I guess. I can tell certain poly strings do not provide as much spin, like the RPM Power and Lynx Touch. But mostly, I’m happy with spin & control with most poly strings. I questioned the shaped vs round because certain round poly strings were preferred over the shaped (RS Lyon vs RS Paris, I believe) and not noticing much difference from hitting against a player who absolutely fell in love with Hyoer G’s performance. I like full bed of most poly strings. I mostly look for differences in feel, but I honestly don’t notice huge difference from round vs shaped.

Also perhaps because I use mostly the 18x20 pattern, I‘m not getting the most benefit from using poly strings

 

[TW Staff]

The first round of samples has been shipped. We will notify the remaining playtesters over the next few days.

Jon

 

[mhkeuns]

Sample strings received! Hyoer G is obviously a poplular string because of its playability. I’m pretty certain it’s going to offer premium poly string’s playability, so I’m mostly curious about Hyoer G Round‘s feel & how it plays in the hybrid set up.

 

[Dunlop300g]

I received the strings today and should have them in by tomorrow.

I'm excited about this test since I haven't hit with any Hyper-G string yet. I have hit with Confidential which I liked. Hyper-G has such a solid reputation, so it's been on the radar for quite some time. I may be comparing this to Kirschbaum Super Smash Orange which I have in one frame right now and is a round poly. The other two round polys I have used in recent years are Head Sonic Pro (not Sonic Pro Edge), and Tourna Big Hitter Silver Original (Not Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7). I find these round polys really are great for making hybrid setups; so that's probably why there's a hybrid piece (if elected) for this test. I've only elected the mainline full-bed test since I haven't ever hit with Hyper-G before I want to give it more focus by itself. So anyway thanks so much to TW and Solinco for making this test possible.

 

[Chairman3]

Sample strings received! Hyoer G is obviously a poplular string because of its playability. I’m pretty certain it’s going to offer premium poly string’s playability, so I’m mostly curious about Hyoer G Round‘s feel & how it plays in the hybrid set up.

What hybrid are you going with?
I have several in mind
Jealous of you and @Dunlop300g, my strings aren't expected for a week. (Guess it's the weather, i don't know)

 

[mhkeuns]

What hybrid are you going with?
I have several in mind
Jealous of you and @Dunlop300g, my strings aren't expected for a week. (Guess it's the weather, i don't know)

Weather for sure. I just made a trade, and it took a long time for my racket to get to the destination and same for the racket that I received.

I’m thinking about going with Hyper G Round mains with multi crosses in my Prestige Tour, or multi mains with Hyper G Round crosses in CX 200 Tour 18x20. Deciding which racket to put the full bed of poly in. I’m probably going to compare the regular Hyper G vs the Round on each of my Prestige Pros. Having a fun time deciding right now.

 

[Chairman3]

That is the good and bad part of my delay, deciding what racquets and strings.
I was thinking of doing a poly/poly hybrid with hyper-g and hyper-g round; similar concept to lynx spin² which I've playtested a few times. Seems like a good comparison to full bed HGround.
But I also have half set of Xalt I could use with hyper-g round.
Decisions, decisions

 

[cd3768]

Strings received - going to put a full bed in my 360+ Speed MP and a hybrid w/ Gamma TNT 17 in the crosses in my Boom Pro.
I've been using Hawk Touch 1.25 in my Speed and have used Yonex Poly Tour Drive 1.25/Gamma TNT 17 in the Boom (currently Cream 1.28) both at 54 lbs.
I've played with Hyper-G in numerous demos and I know what it feels like fresh and not. I have a reel of Hyper-G 16 that I use for friends but I may string up a different generation Speed to compare.
I prefer round strings in general so I'm interested to see how this compares to round strings I like and my previous experiences with regular Hyper-G.

 

[cd3768]

This packaging is interesting. It’s textured - how ironic!

 

[dandruffkb]

passed on applying for this one! interested to see how everyone likes it though. color matters too much to me, and bright neon green will never be on-brand with me lol

 

[EggSalad]

So does this mean Hyper G round will be or is in production for Solinco for retail markets? I guess so?

 

[taydbear7]

I'll be following along. Hoping this would be a good hybrid string.

 

[Chairman3]

I'll be following along. Hoping this would be a good hybrid string.

What would you hybrid it with?
Looking for ideas since I'm killing time waiting for my strings.

 

[taydbear7]

What would you hybrid it with?
Looking for ideas since I'm killing time waiting for my strings.

My usually setup is natural gut in the mains with poly (round) in the crosses.

 

[Chairman3]

My usually setup is natural gut in the mains with poly (round) in the crosses.

Oh interesting, I don't usually use Natgut, but that could be interesting.

 

[mad dog1]

What would you hybrid it with?
Looking for ideas since I'm killing time waiting for my strings.

Hyper G mains crossed with Hyper G Round.

 

[badmice2]

Special Delivery!!!!

 

[Chairman3]

Hyper G mains crossed with Hyper G Round.

I mentioned that in a previous post.
But...would you go same guage mains or thicker guage?

 

[mad dog1]

I mentioned that in a previous post.
But...would you go same guage mains or thicker guage?

I would use the same gauge. When I use a different gauge, I typically use the thicker gauge as the cross.

 

[mad dog1]

Special Delivery!!!!

So playtesters should expect a Ghost2 delivered with the string?

 

[mad dog1]

https://imgur.com/a/IbViM1h

2 sets of Hyper G Round 1.25, 1 set of Vanquish 1.30, 1 prototype overgrip.

Unfortunately UPS did not deliver the Ghost 2…maybe that will come tomorrow or next week.

 

[ClownCar96]

One of my biggest grief with normal Hyper G is how the string bed locks out, so there's less string movement and thus making it play stiffer. I'm curious to see if the strings are going to play softer and livelier.

Try Lynx Tour. Grey is my favorite in 1.2. Doesn’t notch or lock

 

[Chairman3]

I would use the same gauge. When I use a different gauge, I typically use the thicker gauge as the cross.

I was thinking of doing a thicker main a la lynx spin² hybrid where the shaped main is thicker than the round cross.

 

[mad dog1]

https://imgur.com/a/uxbgK7U

Full bed of Hyper G Round 1.25 in the 2012 Pure Drive @ 43/42# strung on an electronic constant pull machine.

 

[Dunlop300g]

Strings are in! First Impressions ... having never played with any Hyper-G Strings before; (only Solinco I've tried has been Confidential); mostly want to compare this string to Kirschbaum Super Smash Orange which is in another Dunlop 300g at this time.

Played with this string this morning, having strung it up last night, for about an hour session on the ball machine to compare it with Super Smash Orange which has been in for a while now so it's lost some tension. Strung this Hyper G Round up at 50 lbs. The hitting session was good. This string provides a lot of control. It is a soft poly. It is nowhere near as crisp as Confidential; for feel it is on par with Super Smash Orange. I can hit out completely with this string in the Dunlop 300g which is pretty control oriented; I get a pretty low launch angle; I felt extremely confident hitting out from both side with about as much ball shaping as I felt like doing; at first I felt like I wasn't getting as much court penetration but I think the string just needed some time to break in. By the time I went to play three sets of doubles (on clay) this afternoon everything felt dialed in.

On the three sets of doubles the strings were very consistent on all shots and very good with serves and returns; no problems putting a lot of spin on kick serves, and shot placement was absolutely fine; telling me to go for whatever I wanted. And I did. Touch shots and volleys also were fine with better than average feel for a poly around the net. The two sets we won I used this string, so that was a good feeling, coming back a break down in the third set. But it's not about that, it's about having a great time with this string and just going for shots because it's a confidence inspiring string, and it is also very comfortable to play with. Full review to come later ... first impressions ... I'm finding out what all the "Hype" is about ... It's Hyper-G ... now in Round! Rain expected (ya it does rain in NorCal.) tomorrow; should be back at it on Monday.

Cheers and thanks again to Solinco and TW for making my day!

Dropbox

www.dropbox.com

 

[DropvolleysRhard]

I tried these, the TB round and the blue round one (I was told was confidential 2.0 or something) this summer. Decent round poly that feel like their shaped counterparts.

 

[ryohazuki222]

Got accepted for the playtest. (First one I ever caught in time and lucked into getting picked…!)

In addition to the full bed, going to try as a main and/or cross in a hybrid to swap out with my typical poly setup. Will make the decision after first playing with it in a full bed.

So
1- full hyper g round
2- rev mains, hg round cross
3- hg round mains, rpm rough cross

Anyone have a guess at stiffness measurement of hg round? Is it as stiff as hg?

 

[mhkeuns]

Went with Hyoer G Round mains at 48lbs and Vanquish crosses at 52lbs in the CX 200 Tour 18x20. Normally, I would string it up with full bed of poly (*18G) at the similar tension, but the provided Hyper G Round 16L with Vanquish 16G felt very comfortable, not boardy. It took a few minutes for me to get familiarized with the.new set up, but the results were just as good as using the full poly. Spin, control, power and comfort were all there. It actually felt much more comfortable than using even thinner guage poly at lower tensions without losing control or spin. The set up didn’t lock up or went out of position even after three hours of play. It will be interesting to see how Hyoer G plays as the cross string in a hybrid set up.

 

[CVT]

This is my first time in a playtest too. I'm doing the full bed and the hybrid test. I've started with the full-bed, as I usually do when I get to know the string. I strung it at my current reference tension, which is 51.5 lbs in the mains and 49.5 lbs in the crosses.

One thing, though is that my current hybrid strings are normally 16g main and 123mm crosses. This string was 16L for both. In my opinion, I should have added a few pounds to the reference tension, as it was more lively than I expected.

It's too early to publish details yet, but my first impression is good. I would agree that a strength of this string is comfort - for a poly. It provides muted and smooth feedback. It may be better than any strings on that front I can think of, with possible exceptions of Hyper-G Soft and PolyTourPro. I even tried it without a dampener for a while, and it played well despite a few odd pings. The string has very good power. It gave me great pop, spin, and control on my serve. It reminds me of Barb Wire and Cyclone in its power levels. Its control is more like Barb Wire than Tour Bite. Its spin levels are quite good - similar to Cyclone. It is Hyper-G with slightly less spin but slightly more consistency. I'll have more notes after completing multiple test hits over time.

As I mentioned, I should have strung a bit tighter than reference to try to bring the power and control levels to a similar range as my normal setup. I'm now going to adjust my test plan. I'm going to string my first hybrid with a Tour Hex cross so that I can compare mains with my normal setup (tour bite mains) apples-to-apples. Then I'll do it with the same strings at a tighter tension that I think will be better suited for this string to let me see how the string behaves after compensating for more control.

One last thing - my first impression with the Solinco overgrip is really good. I am a SuperGrap guy, and this grip has a tackier and stickier feeling - with slightly more cushion. I love SuperGrap, but this may have a chance to unseat it as my go-to grip.

More to come!

 

[mad dog1]

Some initial feedback after playing with the full bed of HGR 1.25 for ~45 mins on Saturday morning and another ~45 mins on Sunday evening. The hitting sessions were 90 mins on each day but because I was switching back and forth to compare the different setups, i am estimating approximately 45 mins spent hitting with the HGR setup each session. I have two other 2012 Pure Drives with the same specs that are strung with TruPro Black Knight 17/Ghost Wire 17 in one and Tour Bite 1.25/Outlast 1.25 in the other. These two are my go to setups so I wanted to have them available to directly compare with the 2012 Pure Drive strung with a full bed of HGR 1.25.

I was able to grab all three sticks and play with them with minimal adjustment. They all felt like they hit a great ball but the feedback I received from the two different hitting partners on Saturday and Sunday told a different story. Both said they had trouble dealing with the ball being hit by the HGR strung stick. The launch angle and ball trajectory was more direct like a line drive but there was plenty of spin because they both said they felt a number of balls would sail long but they dive bombed down well inside the baseline and exploded forward through the court. The other two setups generate plenty of spin but the trajectory and launch angle is higher so the ball stays in the air longer. The HGR ball drives through the court very direct with plenty of spin so the ball penetrates so they felt a lot of time pressure. They both commented that because the bottom would drop out from the ball before the bounce, it gave them issues timing the ball.

I didn’t feel any difference between my 3 setups but I could see the difference in trajectory. The two guys I hit with so far have assured me they saw and felt a big difference on their side. One partner said I would be a fool if I didn’t switch to Hyper G Round 1.25 once it’s released. Now I’m just curious to see how long HGR 1.25 lasts.

One last note for now…I playtested HGR 1.20 in hybrid setups with HG 1.20 in March of last year and no one mentioned those setups doing anything extraordinary to the ball. I felt 1.20 was good. Based on the feedback I’m getting from the guys on the other side of the net, 1.25 is something else - like really special.

 

[FrankyRelax]

I haven't strung it up yet but just came in to quickly say that this over grip is really good. Very tacky. I usually use volkl super grip iis which i previously thought were the tackiest and longest lasting. This solinco og is definitely tackier. We'll see how long it lasts

 

[Cowboy]

I haven't strung it up yet but just came in to quickly say that this over grip is really good. Very tacky. I usually use volkl super grip iis which i previously thought were the tackiest and longest lasting. This solinco og is definitely tackier. We'll see how long it lasts

How does that compare to the Wilson Pro og?

 

[FrankyRelax]

How does that compare to the Wilson Pro og?

I found Wilson pro grip to have decent tackiness but not as much as Yonex supergrap and not as much as my volkl's. It's been a while, but I recall Wilson really absorbing sweat a lot and therefore losing its tackiness quickly and becoming dirtier faster.

 

[Cowboy]

I found Wilson pro grip to have decent tackiness but not as much as Yonex supergrap and not as much as my volkl's. It's been a while, but I recall Wilson really absorbing sweat a lot and therefore losing its tackiness quickly and becoming dirtier faster.

My first OG was the Wilson Walmart special. It was....meh, at best. It basically added thickness to the grip. That is all.

I string for a neighbor and asked what OG he uses because his racquet always had a plush and super tacky OG on it. He gifted me a white Wilson Pro to try. Since then, it's all I've used. I will agree that it loses the tackiness quickly. The neighbor said he replaces his for every match. I might replace it every 3 matches or so.

 

[mad dog1]

My first OG was the Wilson Walmart special. It was....meh, at best. It basically added thickness to the grip. That is all.

I string for a neighbor and asked what OG he uses because his racquet always had a plush and super tacky OG on it. He gifted me a white Wilson Pro to try. Since then, it's all I've used. I will agree that it loses the tackiness quickly. The neighbor said he replaces his for every match. I might replace it every 3 matches or so.

Wilson Pro doesn’t last long. Solinco’s Hyper-Grip, TF’s ATP Pro Contact, Gamma Supreme and Tourna’s Tac OG all last much longer.

 

[m1yeh]

Tension(s) used for playtest: 45 lbs (16L-1.25)
Regular string setup & tension: Confidential 45 lbs (17-1.20), Hyper-G 48 lbs (17-1.20)
Racquet used for test: 2022 Regna 98
Power/Control of test string: Low power, high control
Feel (Stiff? Mushy? Muted? Crisp? Comfortable?): Muted, Does not feel stiff but my elbow tendons tell me it is stiffer then hyper-g regular.
Spin: Not easy to access (technique dependent), spin as much i can offer. All you can spin buffet.
Playability Duration: Similar to regular hyper-g, extra pop first 30 min then becomes steady, slowly deadening out, i can’t break them the way i play, i cut them out after 12 hours because i started to feel my elbow complaining.
Tension Recommendations (would you string it differently next time - why): I didn’t like Hyper-G regular as low as 42 lbs, so 43 or 44 would be as low as i would try.
Other comments (optional): 4.0 ntrp, i have a bad tendency to contact late and arm the ball. The round strings really exposed my bad technique. It helped me pay attention to contact in front and racquet drop swing path. The strings would load up as much spin as i could offer. They are confidence inspiring to take full big cuts at the ball. I felt the strings excelled in flat shots. Due to my own technique limitations, i felt they made my flat+slice shots easier to execute and my topspin more difficult. I do miss the bite of textured strings, which i feel the exact opposite about (easier topspin, harder flat+slice results)

Edit: Counted my hours wrong. Also maybe i just played too much tennis this week.