Tennis Warehouse Playtest: Ytex Square X 16L Playtest

[tlm]

Tension: Full job at 45 lbs mains and cross, 2 piece.

Regular string set up: I don't really have one at present. Lately I've been using either a Lux 4gR or ALu main with a MonoGut ZX cross. Also trying out various black poly's(full bed) so this was a welcome playtest.

Racquet brand: YY Vcore 95D 16x20

Power of test string: Medium at first then lowered some.

Feel: Firm and comfortable with some elasticity, smooth feel but not too slick for a shiny coated string. Definitely a plus+ for Square X with this play-tester.

Spin: Good, but not as good as compared to TourBite or AluRough. I tend to get the best spin out of stiffer textured strings.

Comfort: Very good for a copoly, please see my coments on the feel

Durability: Holding strong with about 5 hrs playtime on them. Square X's flat profile seems to resist the typical notching I see at the 3-5 hr mark with most polyesters.

Playability Duration: Initially the playability was as good as some of my favorite poly strings. Square X stood out in the feel and pop off the stringbed. Slightly inconsistent results when I did not nail the center but still not harsh nor unpleasant. The shiny sheen of the Square string diminished at around the 3 hr mark, after 2 pro sets worth of doubles on har-tru. Currently with 5 hrs play the mains are still moving back,cross's are not. My only knock on the Square X would be it's finer play longevity, but it's typical for most copolys that are very good out of the gate.

Control: Very good initially, but as mentioned stiffer strings give me the best in this dept.Depth of shot fell off as the the Square X aged.

Compare to the string you use most often: More comfort and power than 4g, but lacks 4g's control and longevity.

Tension recommendations: Satisfied with 45lbs in this raq and string.

List any additional thoughts: Very good overall, would have liked Square-X's initial characteristics to have lasted just a little longer. At $12 a good deal but at $9 would compete well with some of my favorites in that range.

Thank you TW and Ytex for this playtest!
__________________

Good review agree with everything except for 4G having more control, I found the square X to have better control than 4G.

 

[swfh]

Ytex Square X 16L Review

Tension(s) used for play test: Full bed strung at 52 lbs on a constant pull machine.

Regular string set up: I am in the process of switching strings at the moment, so I will say both my old and my current setup.
Old: Tourna Big Hitter Black 7 16 at 48 lbs
New: Head Sonic Pro Edge 16 at 55 lbs

Racquet brand and model used for test: Dunlop Aerogel 4d 300 Tour

Power of test string: The power of the string was interesting. I would not call it powerful, nor would I call it underpowered. Just middle of the road. It really depended on how clean of a shot I hit. I'll touch on this in the control section.

Feel (Stiff? Mushy? Muted? Crisp?): I rather liked the feel. It was a combination of the black 7 and the sonic pro edge. This string isn't crisp, yet I can feel the ball dwell on the racket, like the BHB7. What this string has that the black 7 does not is the response off of the string bed. I am not talking about crispness, but the feedback that you get when you hit a clean shot.

Spin: Spin shined off the ground. Balls were dropping in on my forehands as if I was using BHBR. Spin was both penetrating and high. However, on the serves, especially my kick serve, spin lacked. Whereas the Sonic Pro Edge kicks up high and to the right, Square X merely hit a weak topspin serve. Additionally, I was unable to hit the typical moving serve. For some reason, spin failed while serving.

Comfort: I have never had arm problems. That being said, the string was not stiff by any means.

Durability: Again, I rarely break string in my tight patterned Dunlop. I can only comment on the notching, which was even less than the thicker sonic pro edge.

Playability Duration (share thoughts on if/how the playability changed over time): I didn't really notice a difference over the weeks and hours (about 15) I put into this string. I think that the tension maintenance was very good because the string hasn't become launchy at all.

Control (predictable trajectory? Easy to control depth? performance on different strokes and swing speeds?): The ability to grab the ball off the ground helped dearly in the control department. Whatever I wanted to do, I could do it. High loopy rally balls, flat winners, and deep topspin shots to push the opponent back all came at ease. Being able to control the height means that I can also control the depth.

Compare to the string you use most often: Quite a bit of the comparison is in the review itself.That being said, I will break it down in a nutshell. Compared to Sonic Pro edge, Square X is almost equal from the ground. I give a slight edge to edge because it is a livelier string, which lets me know when I have hit a quality shot. At the net, both are great to volley with, especially Square X, which lets me knife my volleys. However, serving is where the sonic pro edge shined. Both the kick and the flat serves were far better than the Ytex.

Tension recommendations (after hitting it, would you recommend a different tension? Why?): I would keep it the same simply because of the ability to grab the ball and control the depth. Im sure it would work fine at any tension.

Thanks to Ytex and TW for letting me participate!!

 

[bigserving]

YTEX SQUARE X 16L - Full Bed

TENSION USED FOR PLAYEST - 50 lbs in both the mains and crosses strung on a lockout machine. Stringing was comfortable and easy. The surface of the string smooth the shape is sqarish but not so rough to make straining uncomfortable.

REGULAR STRING SETUP - The regular setup of Dunlop Black Widow 17 gauge, 50 lbs x 50 lbs, always strung on a lockout machine.

RACQUET BRAND AND MODEL USED FOR TEST - Dunlop Aerogel 4D 200 Tour 95.

POWER OF STRING TESTED - This would be a very low powered nylon. To compare to a poly, I would give this string a very above average power rating when compared to an average polyester string.

FEEL - These strings felt quite firm they had quite a nice feel. They offer much touch on every type of shot. These strings offer great touch on drop shots and volleys. Groundstrokes and serves offered enhanced control. The touch, feel and power of this string really shined while returning serve.

SPIN - The spin production was also very decent. Compared to a poly, the spin was about average to above average. Again, they provided great spin compared to nylon. This string's combination of power, spin, and feel makes it a very good string to attempt any shot.

COMFORT - For a co-poly this string is, very much, on the more comfortable side. There was no shock or twinge coming through the racquet from string on any shot. They feel quite soft, but not at all mushy.

DURABILITY - The test period was two singles matches per week for one and one-half weeks. The strings broke during the seventh set during the test. Was a little surprising as the strings still felt very good when they snapped.

PLAYABILITY DURATION- There was a slight, drop off in overall playability toward the end of the first singles match. After that, there was not any noticeable difference in the way that they played. they played very nicely right up until they popped.

CONTROL - Better than the usual control that comes from most polys. At times, the ball seemed to stick on the strings for my to throw wherever I wanted. The amount of power and feel, worked well with the amount of control of these strings.

COMPARE TO 17 G DUNLOP BLACK WIDOW - As usual, Black Widow was the clear winner in spin creation. Square X would be the winner in the in the playability duration category. Square X would be the winner in the power category by a very small amount. Black Widow may also have a slight edge in comfort. I always cut out Black Widow before it breaks so the durability would also go to Dunlops.

TENSION RECOMMENDATION - The 50 lb. test tension seemed pretty good for the test in such a low powered racquet. Next time I would string this a bit tighter. I think a bit firmer string bed would increase overall playability. The initial playability of these strings seems to leave room to either increase or decrease tension to an individual player's taste and playing style, and remain very playable.

LIST ANY ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS - Ytex Square X is a very good quality co-polyester and composite string. It has a very unique composition and shape and a useable blend of each of the major string aspects. Intermediate to Advanced players will be able to get the most out of these strings. They will, however, work well for players of any level and style. A very nice combination of each of the components of a string make for diverse racquet setups. These strings will work for some in a full bed for advanced, wanting additional power and playability from their polyester strings. It will work for others along with a softer cross powerful cross behind this polyester. Very good string and a must try for players looking to improve performance.

 

[Micalzon]

Ytex Square X 16L Playtest

Tension used for playtest: 50lbs.

Regular string set up: Cyclone Tour mains @ 46lbs and Babolat Origin crosses @ 49lbs.

Racquet brand and model used for test: Babolat Pure Drive.

Power of test string:
The power of this string was decent but nothing to rave about. While fresh, I had the ability to hit some good winners. My flat serves were very good with this string. For a heavy hitter like myself, it was near perfect in terms of power. May not work well for someone with lower swing speeds.

Feel - 8/10
I did enjoy the feel of this string at first. Somewhere between crisp and slightly muted. It was very easy to feel the ball on the string bed.

Spin - 8/10
Above average for a poly but not as much spin as I get with Cyclone Tour or Firewire but the potential for more was definitely there.

Comfort - 9/10
Relative to other poly's, the comfort of this string was one of the top features for me. It was very comfortable to use throughout the entire playtest, which, so far, is about 12 hours on the court.

Durability - 8/10
I'm not a string breaker and didn't have any fears that this string was going to break while I played with it. It held its tension fairly well during and seemed somewhat consistent throughout the first 8-9 hours.

Playability Duration - 7/10
It played great during the play test and didn't seem to change much during the first 8-9 hours. There was, at a certain point, where the playability had significantly declined. It suddenly got very springy and hard to keep in the court. The trajectory seemed to change fairly dramatically.

Control - 7.5/10
Honestly, I didn't love the control out of this string. It played great at the net, slice, and my backhand volleys but didn't feel I had great control at the baseline.

Compare to the string you use most often: This string had a little less spin, more comfort, and less control from my normal set up. I could see this being a popular string, depending on price. It definitely had a lot of highlights many people are looking for in a string. I've got a pack of Quadro Twist I'm using next.

Tension recommendations (after hitting it, would you recommend a different tension? Why?): I would use a higher tension next time. I think staying in the lower tensions lost some of the control I was hoping for.

List any additional thoughts: Thanks!

 

[tarzanbombard]

Y Tex Square X White

Tension used for playtest: 52 lbs, full bed.

Regular string set up: Babolat Pro Hurricane between 50-55 pounds is my preferred setup. Recently I’ve been playing with Iso Speed Baseline 17L.

Racket brand and model for test: Head Microgel Radical MP.

Power of test string: The power of this string was low to medium. It was on par with other polys I've played with.

Feel: It wasn't too stiff or mushy. It felt a little more firm compared to Iso Speed Baseline.

Spin: I was able to get a little more spin with these strings compared to my normal setup.

Comfort: This string felt a little stiff off of the stringer, but it broke in fairly quickly afterward. I didn't experience any discomfort through the rest of the playtest.

Durability: I don’t break strings often, but I didn't notice any signs of wear aside from some very slight notching.

Playability Duration: I've played with these strings for about 6 hours and the tension has held up pretty well.

Control: For groundstrokes, I found the control to be pretty good as long as I was putting spin on the ball. A couple of flatter forehands flew on me. This string felt good on volleys, and I was able to place the ball where I wanted to.

Compare to the string you use most often: I didn't like Square X from the baseline as much as Pro Hurricane, or ALU Power, but it was good on serves and volleys. I was able to get some extra spin on my serves, and volleys felt firm.

Tension recommendations: I’d probably keep the tension the same if I used this string again.

Thank you Tennis Warehouse for another playtest opportunity!

 

[NCAA2015]

Tension(s) used for playtest: 54 lbs

Regular string set up: Luxilon Alu Power 16L 54 lbs

Racquet brand and model used for test: Babolat Pure Drive Team Plus

Power of test string: This is the lowest powered poly that I have ever used. Lower than all the mainstream benchmark polys such as Alu Power, Lux Original, Lux 4G, Tour Bite, Pro Hurricane Tour, Pro Hurricane, RPM Blast, Pro Red Code and Yonex PTP. I have to swing really bigger and faster in order to get my rally shots deep to the baseline.

Feel (Stiff? Mushy? Muted? Crisp?): It feels pretty crisp at ball contact. But the coated smooth surface of the string makes you feel that the ball doesn’t dwell on the string bed at all. Yes this feel can help play fast by taking the ball on the rise, while I don’t get enough ball pocketing hitting heavy topspin loopy shots.

Spin: Again the topspin naturally generated by this string is below average. It has the lowest launching angle with my standard rally shots. I need to really brush up to get the ball spinning.

Comfort: The comfort is there though. No harsh impact or whatsoever on any kind of shots.

Durability: It’s above average in the durability department. Lasted about 15 hours of heavy hitting.

Playability Duration (share thoughts on if/how the playability changed over time): Actually contrary to some play testers’ comments, the fresh string bed gives me less playability in the first 2 hours. The string plays much better in terms of both control and power after the 2-hour break-in period.

Control (predictable trajectory? Easy to control depth? performance on different strokes and swing speeds?): Control is probably the most obvious standout feature of this string. It excels at directional changes from the baseline. I can hit to both corners from anywhere of the court with improved accuracy, never concerned about hitting long or wide. I feel like this string turns my Pure Driver the “rocket launcher” into a Head Prestige the “ping pong peddle”.

Compare to the string you use most often: Is it an imitation of Lux 4G or RPM Blast or Yonex PTP? Not too sure about the manufacturer’s intentions. But this string will have a hard time competing in today’s string market (power poly, control poly, value poly…).

Tension recommendations: 50 to 52 lbs

 

[swfh]

Any update on those shirts?

 

[TW Staff]

swfh,

We sent the list with sizes over to Ytex awhile back. They were going to ship out the t-shirts to all the playtesters.

Brittany, TW

 

[idono1301]

I just received the shirt today.

Wanted to thank Tennis Warehouse for organizing the playtest and to Ytex for the sample string and the shirt. I appreciate the opportunity!

 

[mikeler]

I have not worn the shirt yet since it is too cold, but the material seems great for the hot weather.