The search for my own 'OG' tennis string. The 81 tennis strings playtest

The tests from Oehms Alu Pearl Pro to Dyreex Pro Player, are the ones I’m more interested about. There are at least 2-3 hidden gems on that segment alone. Let us know!
 
BallsOfFire said:
To start your stringing biz you just need:
Babolat Syn Gut 1.30 Blue. best syn gut out there and slick. also inexpensive.
Big Hitter Silver 16 (which is 1.25) round and last long and has high spin potiential and not too stiff ... Price is 1/3 of Confidential
long lasting MSV Focus Hex red 1.23 is in top 3 of all time heavy hitting tour player strings IMO and have high (alons full bed) to very high Spin potiential if crossed with round slick cross strings.
.....1/2 price of Head Lynx Tour.
Cross strings: Pros Pro Intense Heat 1.25/ Black Force/Cyclone power 1.25.... Topspin Cyber Blue/Msv Co-Focus 1.18
Alu Power equivalent : Pros Pro Cyber Power 1.25 (made by Gosen?)

With these strings you are covered from beginner to intermidiate to pro.... and you can charge a fair price that match your in-experience.
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The black felt more slick then blue babolat syn gut, to me that is... have you tried black babolat syn gut? The natural color felt sticky n would be good as a main string with poly cross
 
maksp said:
The black felt more slick then blue babolat syn gut, to me that is... have you tried black babolat syn gut? The natural color felt sticky n would be good as a main string with poly cross
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All your posts are like this, the black is slicker than the blue, the white stretches more than the silver… it’s the same string, stop trying to overcomplicate everything.
 
what_army said:
All your posts are like this, the black is slicker than the blue, the white stretches more than the silver… it’s the same string, stop trying to overcomplicate everything.
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If it's got 1 ingredient different , its NOT same . If it also plays n stretches differently. It's Not the same string. If you put apples in a carrot cake and not put any carrots in, is it still a carrot cake?
 
Update
So I've finally got around testing all the round strings. Before elaborate on those, a little overview
I've ended up adding Hyper G Round at the last minute. So total of strings get up to 125

59 of them are round strings of which we already have a set selection of Multi, Syn Gut, Nat Gut, and a bargain deal not to miss out on. Those are
Head Velocity and Signum Pro Micronite as Multi's
Head Syn Gut PPS, Gosen OG Sheep Micro as Syn Gut's
Babolat Vs Touch as Nat Gut
Tru Pro Ghostwire as Cross String
PolyStar Classic as Bargain deal

So 52 strings left over of which I'll list my personal favorites. First off, which strings didn't make the final selection and briefly main reason mentioned.

Yonex Poly Tour Pro, Luxilon Alu Power, Luxilon Alu Power Soft, LaserFibre JB Tour 100, Grapplesnake Mako, Kirschbaum SuperSmash fall short on Tension Maintenance
Yonex Poly Tour Air, Pro's Pro Cyber Power, Pro's Pro Cyber Spin, Gamma IO Soft, IsoSpeed Cream, Head Lynx, Topspin Cyber Blue, Topspin Cyber Flash are to soft for me
I Do like Silver Coloured Strings in Genereal but the following didn't make the cut: Weiss Canon SilverString, Tour Big Hitter Silver, Tru Pro Atomos, Oehms Alu Star, Oehms Alu Pearl Pro Classic,
Toroline Enso Pro, Dyreex Alu Tour, IsoSpeed Grey Fire play too powerfull for me
Pacific Xcite and Grapplesnake Paradox Pro are not bad in any way but lack in cost effectiveness, for what they bring to the table those seem overpriced
Isospeed Baseline Control has Durability Issues (broke in second playtest)
Strings I Found pretty average in general: All of MSV offerings, Tecnifibre Razor Code, Tecnifibre Razor Soft, Wilson Revolve, Gamma Explosive Speed
Toroline Wasabi X and Yonex Poly Tour Fire are replaced as a cross string bye 2 others
Despite all the testing i do, i haven't come around a black coloured string that i like, so Tourna Blackzone and IsoSpeed Black Fire didn't make the cut.
Mayami Hit Pro is more out of stock than it actually is available, so for practical reasons i walk away from that one.
Strings that I consider very good but felt short for other reasons then the onces mentioned already
Regular 4G: I like strings on the stiffer side, but this one may be just a bit to much
Yonex Poly Tour Strike: I liked it a lot actually except for the mediocre spin versus a higher price point. There are enough options that do better.
Head Hawk and Dyreex Super Tour are inferior to certain strings of the same brand respectively.
Restring Sync: the hardest one to put here. It's a great string but my selection also takes value for money into acount. At that price point I have a slight preference for something else, and which is more easy accesable for Europeans.
And know for the actual list

8 Ytex Pro Tour Blue : sits in between Yonex Poly Tour Pro and Fire. Comfy, Powerful but not to much, Spin is nothing special, but other strong suit of this string is it's tension maintenance. Replace Fire as a cross string, but also works good as FB

7 Signum Pro Firestorm: Decent string overal at interesting pricepoint, does have some Alu Power properties (I Did not say it plays like Alu). Tension Maintenance could be bit better.

6 Solinco Hyper G Round: Nice suprice for me, as i did not like it's shaped brother. But for people who love Hyper G or prefer Round strings. This is a great option, as it has pretty much all you want. Control, not overly stiff, Spin is above average for round string. Holds tension well. Only minor point could be it's price, which is not cheap nor is it that expensive

5 Head Hawk Touch: The most versatile string of the bunch. It doesnt have assets where it really excels, nor does it have anything where it falls short. Spin is good, comfort level Check, Tension is good, not musshy, not stiff, not super controlled, but just good control and you get that at a price point below 100€

4 Kirschbaum Max Power / Rough: Probably the most consistent of the bunch, very low power, super controlled, on the stiffer side. So not really for everyone, but it's right up my alley. If you have a spin based game choose the Rough over the regular.

3 Signum Pro Poly Plasma: This was one a the greatest suprises for me for several reasons. Can't believe i didn't give that one some attention earlier. As this is one of the 'in house strings' at my club. If control and tension maintenance are you priorities, you prefer round strings over shaped strings and you are on a budget. This is the best choice you can me. This string is also the reason why Oehms or Pro's Pro strings didn't make the cut. As this string are at +- 55 €. You just cant find something of this quality for the pricetag it has

2 Luxilon 4G Soft: what is all the fuss about Alu Power, where the same brand has a string that does most things better. This string is the only execption of what i've mentioned in earlier posts. 'You can find your string of choice for 130 or lesss. Well to me this is the only string that really deserves it higher pricetag. 4G Soft is the string that has a slight edge over Restring Sync.
If 4G Soft is so great why isn't it on the nr 1 spot ? Well cause there is a string that actually fits me almost perfectly and yes it is a hidden gem

.......
1 Dyreex Pro Player: That string blew me away, the level of control, tension maintenace is nothing short of excellent. The spin potential is just sick for a round string, in that degree that i get more spin out of this than a lot of shaped strings. It's crisp, firm, on the stiffer side, without being jarring or uncomfortable. The only downside I can see is that it aint a string for beginners and low level players, cause it is pretty demanding. 3.0 and 3.5 players I advice to look elsewhere.

Dyreex is a brand that deserves more attention, and althoug pro player is more in the wheelhouse of players with decent fundamentals and prefer a bit stiffer set up. Players who are more into the realm of softer strings, should also have a look at the brand as most of their offerings are on the softer, to really soft side.

Normally I could start playtesting the shaped string selection as of next thursday. I'll do and update of those just like i did now with the round strings
 
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Interesting views. I am surprised SPPP and firestorm made it that high in your list and though PP cyber power and either Dyreex alu or super tour had potential to do better. In which racquet did you string and at what tension?
 
what_army said:
Interesting views. I am surprised SPPP and firestorm made it that high in your list and though PP cyber power and either Dyreex alu or super tour had potential to do better. In which racquet did you string and at what tension?
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I was surprised myself about SPPP
The more different strings you test, the more you know for yourself what you excactly want from a string in terms of behavior and feeling. That's why classifying strings objectively is nearly impossible, because we all want different strings and different preferences on how a string should behave.
For me personally a string should have a like a certain level of firmness or i tend to have a 'nah that's not it' feeling. Between PP strings and Alu Tour and Super Tour, Super Tour was definetly the best pick for me, in fact if it would have play just a little firmer, i would be perfectly ok with putting it at SP Firestorm's spot on my list.

Everything is playtested with Yonex Vcore 100L and 98L's (2021 version) at 24 kg/53 lbs.

When playtesting fase 1 is complete, i'm gonna take my best picks and put them in my Vcore 100L 2023 version. Just to see which one is best suited for that frame.
Also have a Diadem Nova V3 lying around that needs to be strung up.
For further reference I'm going back and forth, between Confidential and TBHS7T as string of choice demanding on which frame I Play. Tour Hex is also something I use from time to time.
 
Dont like Black strings which is what I found as Xs not for Mains.
Ive settled for the 3mason Dark vs Light Theme :)

Black
1.24mm PPs BO Mains (BO is the most rated amongst PP users) @ 44lbs
(WC Black5edge rebranded stiffer than Technifibre Blackcode)

White
1.22mm PPs Concept Xs @ 40lbs (rebranded WC Scorpion)
nothing notches it as a X ever, super shiny slippery 4G like but softer

Snapback> longer dwell for powerful modern light racquets

Red Devil has more feel than Concept yet less pop, both need -40lbs to shine

Ive adjusted to lower tensions as I found Polyester and similar Polymers all
lose elasticity after reaching a certain stretch level hence poor durability.
To overcome this using lower 10-15lbs than the Pros increases their life
almost 70% and this is vital since we can restring every change of balls etc.

Lux 4G is a very popular string but more suitable to softer racquets like your 21 98L
Also strung at lower tensions performs best BUT Lux should make a Square 4G for mains.

Your 98L and 100L are worlds apart in stiffness ratings and in general
maybe 3lbs difference is required between them.

Also how did you go with Revolution? TW reviews are great but no one uses them?
 
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Have you tried the Tru pro hybrid of pure rush in the mains and ghost wire in the crosses? I tested it in my head extreme pro a few weeks back and it felt great. Beckett from tenncom recommended it.
 
MikeAlder said:
Have you tried the Tru pro hybrid of pure rush in the mains and ghost wire in the crosses? I tested it in my head extreme pro a few weeks back and it felt great. Beckett from tenncom recommended it.
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I intend to test that too, but main focus for now is full bed. Beckett was the main reason to get myself some Pure Rush to begin with. Hope to be ready as there is a Christmas/ New Years Tournament coming up. Still 14 strings to go.
Saw that you investing in some Tru Pro. Enjoy playing around and testing.
 
DariaGT said:
Dont like Black strings which is what I found as Xs not for Mains.
Ive settled for the 3mason Dark vs Light Theme :)

Black
1.24mm PPs BO Mains (BO is the most rated amongst PP users) @ 44lbs
(WC Black5edge rebranded stiffer than Technifibre Blackcode)

White
1.22mm PPs Concept Xs @ 40lbs (rebranded WC Scorpion)
nothing notches it as a X ever, super shiny slippery 4G like but softer

Snapback> longer dwell for powerful modern light racquets

Red Devil has more feel than Concept yet less pop, both need -40lbs to shine

Ive adjusted to lower tensions as I found Polyester and similar Polymers all
lose elasticity after reaching a certain stretch level hence poor durability.
To overcome this using lower 10-15lbs than the Pros increases their life
almost 70% and this is vital since we can restring every change of balls etc.

Lux 4G is a very popular string but more suitable to softer racquets like your 21 98L
Also strung at lower tensions performs best BUT Lux should make a Square 4G for mains.

Your 98L and 100L are worlds apart in stiffness ratings and in general
maybe 3lbs difference is required between them.

Also how did you go with Revolution? TW reviews are great but no one uses them?
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I Personally prefer stiffer set up, but i do get it that some do invest in PP strings. Nothing wrong with that. If you enjoy and they offer you what you like in a string. Why should you change to a more expensive brand.
I did like Lux 4G Soft in my Yonex 21 98l a lot actually yeah.
Tw Reviews got my attention too, that's why i gave those strings a shot. Of all Solinco strings I like Confidential the most (just not in my Vcore's) Revolution wasn't bad, just needed a break in period, as for me it felt a bit boardy, but not harsh tho
 
@Tennis And Anime Lover

Which string is relatively comfortable and slow to produce notches?

I am currently using boom mp2024

I like hawk power, signum firestorm, wilson nxt control/yonex air, but after 3-4 hours of use, the vertical line is stuck by the notches and cannot rebound. The string bed becomes very stiff and cannot be used anymore. Forcing it to be used will only make the wrist uncomfortable after playing.

I have tried hard strings with fewer notches such as lynx tour, lynx tour/firestorm, black code 4s, but they feel too hard and make the wrist and arm uncomfortable after playing.
 
Try softer and easily notched string as main and the harder as cross... comfy strings notch fast but you don't want mains going into the cross n locking up string bed...
Nxt mains/ hawk power cross or Yonex air is great for cold weather.
 
maksp said:
Try softer and easily notched string as main and the harder as cross... comfy strings notch fast but you don't want mains going into the cross n locking up string bed...
Nxt mains/ hawk power cross or Yonex air is great for cold weather.
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Yonex Air is a really good string.
 
lee.jake said:
@Tennis And Anime Lover

Which string is relatively comfortable and slow to produce notches?

I am currently using boom mp2024

I like hawk power, signum firestorm, wilson nxt control/yonex air, but after 3-4 hours of use, the vertical line is stuck by the notches and cannot rebound. The string bed becomes very stiff and cannot be used anymore. Forcing it to be used will only make the wrist uncomfortable after playing.

I have tried hard strings with fewer notches such as lynx tour, lynx tour/firestorm, black code 4s, but they feel too hard and make the wrist and arm uncomfortable after playing.
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Yonex Poly Tour Air is a really nice soft and slick string. Fantastic as a cross. Its biggest issue though is tension maintenance, it loses its playability quickly. Better alternatives would be MSV Swift, Isospeed Cream or Tru Pro Ghost Wire. These three would be great in the crosses and because of their slickness, they will generate great snapback but at the same time being nice and soft on the arm.

I would suggest a hybrid if you are after a string setup that is comfortable on the arm. Use one of the slick soft poly's I mentioned above in the crosses and then go for a non poly in the mains, a multi like Head Velocity MLT or similar.

@Tennis And Anime Lover I believe prefers stiffer setups which will not be as kind on the arm. We all have our preferences, its a very personal thing.
 
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lee.jake said:
@Tennis And Anime Lover

Which string is relatively comfortable and slow to produce notches?

I am currently using boom mp2024

I like hawk power, signum firestorm, wilson nxt control/yonex air, but after 3-4 hours of use, the vertical line is stuck by the notches and cannot rebound. The string bed becomes very stiff and cannot be used anymore. Forcing it to be used will only make the wrist uncomfortable after playing.

I have tried hard strings with fewer notches such as lynx tour, lynx tour/firestorm, black code 4s, but they feel too hard and make the wrist and arm uncomfortable after playing.
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First off,
About the strings you mention, you mean as full bed?
If so, i would consider to switch over to hybrids. As most are actually not considered as very stiff or harsh, but you mention that some of those are wrist sensitive to you.
About the notching prob, realise that every string does notch. There are some things you could consider to extend the playability/durabilty.
Secondly, string selection is also a bit based upon available budget, for instance, most of us will say or suggest X One Biphase. But that will also be to costly for some users.

But i think although you clearly need soft set ups, multifilmanents will not be the answer to your problem as multis are known for notching quite easily.
The best option for your you imo seems to be Low Cof Syn Guts like Bab Syn Gut or Head Syn Gut PPS, or maybe even better a pre streched Asahaway Zx string (pre strech is mandatory here for reason of tension maintenance)
When going for a poly/ syn gut -multi set up, have a 4lbs lower tension on the poly.
When going for a poly/poly set up, have a 4lbs lower tension on the strings in the crosses
Also to consider, go on a thinner gauge on the cross string. when your main string is 1.25mm, go 1.2mm with the cross

Thirdly, when going about cross strings, ghostwire, cream, swift, wasabi x are names you will hear frequently. I'd like to add a lesser mentioned name, being Ytex Protour Blue.
Reason being 2 fold.
Soft string and above average tension maintenance is very rare to find
On the contrary of ghostwire, cream, swift, wasabi x which are pretty much average as full bed strings, so most of use will only play them as cross string. Ytex on the other hand works perfectly fine as a full bed string also, and is therefor more versitale and thus has a better value for money ratio.

Lastly, although i haven't playtested those myself, Dyreex is a low budget brand to look into, as most of their offerings are on the soft/comfortable side. On their website they give a good overview of the strings charactheristics.
In fact, although totally different to your preferences, it does have a small selection of stiffer strings, which holds my favourite round string.

Hope this is of any help to you.
 
MikeAlder said:
Yonex Poly Tour Air is a really nice soft and slick string. Fantastic as a cross. Its biggest issue though is tension maintenance, it loses its playability quickly. Better alternatives would be MSV Swift, Isospeed Cream or Tru Pro Ghost Wire. These three would be great in the crosses and because of their slickness, they will generate great snapback but at the same time being nice and soft on the arm.

I would suggest a hybrid if you are after a string setup that is comfortable on the arm. Use one of the slick soft poly's I mentioned above in the crosses and then go for a non poly in the mains, a multi like Head Velocity MLT or similar.

@Tennis And Anime Lover I believe prefers stiffer setups which will not be as kind on the arm. We all have our preferences, its a very personal thing.
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You are right about my preferences, but tried to help out nonetheless. Just posted my 2 cents. I can apreciate soft/comfortable strings on occasion, like Grapplesnake Alpha and Ytex Protour Blue do stand out for me in that particular segment of tennis strings.
But if i had to play a match with my life on the line, I'll go for the mosted controlled shaped string that does not break my elbow, with above average spin and good tension maintenance. Not surprising that Tourna BHS7T is my string of choice. But maybe that'll change in about a week or 5. I'll be updating my stringtesting by then normally, Pure Rush will be up for testing somewhere begin december.
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
You are right about my preferences, but tried to help out nonetheless. Just posted my 2 cents. I can apreciate soft/comfortable strings on occasion, like Grapplesnake Alpha and Ytex Protour Blue do stand out for me in that particular segment of tennis strings.
But if i had to play a match with my life on the line, I'll go for the mosted controlled shaped string that does not break my elbow, with above average spin and good tension maintenance. Not surprising that Tourna BHS7T is my string of choice. But maybe that'll change in about a week or 5. I'll be updating my stringtesting by then normally, Pure Rush will be up for testing somewhere begin december.
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Love having these discussions with everyone, really opens up ones knowledge and experiences.

I too love a shaped poly, just my elbow can't handle a full bed unless it is strung/tensioned low lol That's why I lean towards the hybrid setups with either a softer string in the crosses. Love the pure rush and ghost wire hybrid though, as per Becketts recommendation.

I'm going to be testing the non poly in the mains and the slick soft poly in the crosses to compare.

I really want to try tourna BHS7T but it's not as readily available here in the UK or is more on the expensive side.
 
MikeAlder said:
Love having these discussions with everyone, really opens up ones knowledge and experiences.

I too love a shaped poly, just my elbow can't handle a full bed unless it is strung/tensioned low lol That's why I lean towards the hybrid setups with either a softer string in the crosses. Love the pure rush and ghost wire hybrid though, as per Becketts recommendation.

I'm going to be testing the non poly in the mains and the slick soft poly in the crosses to compare.

I really want to try tourna BHS7T but it's not as readily available here in the UK or is more on the expensive side.
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isn't sharing experiences the main goal of a forum?
Having a sensitive elbow, i think your train of thought is pretty logical. Hybrid set ups seems to be the right thing to do.
O bummer. Wasn't aware of that much price differences with BHS7T. Over here i can get those for 70 €/reel
 
We have 66 shaped strings to cover so let’s briefly go over them to where I am for now

aside 2 strings of reference (Tourna BHS7T and Mayami Tour Hex) we still have 4 other strings to cover (Signum Pro Poly Plasma Hextreme, Solinco Tour Bite, Grapplesnake Tour Sniper, Tru Pro Pure Rush)
From the remaining 60, RMP Blast and Rough broke on the stringer (still have a rough as spare, but will hold on to it to test with VS Touch later on)
Was unable for now to get my hand on a single set of Laserfibre Laser Gt (only available in reels by the time of ordering) and Confidential is excluded in the testing round

That leaves 56
I found all of the shaped offerings of MSV, Yonex and Weiss Canon to be average (11 strings)
From the Toroline strings in a full bed, Super Toro was a clear winner in a full bed, O Toro and Snapper aren’t bad, but to soft for me Was a fan of Caviar M and Wasabi X C, but Super Toro in full bed has a slight edge (9 strings)
From The offerings of Diadem, Dunlop, Dyreex, Gamma and Genesis, Hexonic Power 1.23 was clear winner but played a bit to muted (10 strings)
The Volkl String all have the same weakness, tension maintenance aint good enough (4 strings)
Aside Tour Hex, Mayami does not offer something that is equally as good (3 strings)
From The Solinco Strings, some already know I aint that big of a fan of Hyper G, Revolution plays boardy, and Tour Bite Soft is inferior to Confidential (4 strings)
Ytex has 3 offerings of which one plays to muted, one Is black which Is generally not my liking, and another plays too boardy (3 strings)
Other strings that didn’t make the cut: Eco Power Is inferior to 4G Soft, Restring Zero Played To Powerfull, Oehms Alu Pearl Rough had playability Issues, Tourna Black 7 is not as good as Silver 7 Tour, Black Knight Drops Tension to quick, Firewire showed why triangle strings are not my preference, Head Lynx Tour Played Boardy, Where 4S was way to muted, Kirshbaum Xplosive is to expensive for what It brings to the table, M8 is pretty expensive too, its quite good, but good use some more crispness and control (10 strings)

Alpha and SP Xperience are the remaining strings wich I put 1 step below TBHS7T, Tour Hex and Confidential, because of less control with those but aside that playing quite good. (2 strings).

So aside TBHS7T and Tour Hex still being on top, there are only 4 strings in the running.
Solinco Tour Bite, Grapplesnake Tour Sniper, Tru Pro Pure Rush, Signum Pro Poly Plasma Hextreme, with that last one potentially could overtake Xperience, as its round counterpart proved to have very good control and tension maintenance.

Obviously, Tour Bite and Tour Sniper will be directly Compared to TBHS7T and Pure Rush will take on Tour Hex and Super Toro. With SPPPH as a potential surprise in the mix

If one of the strings beats out my current top 2, Guess I'll be just in time to participate in Christmas Tournament with new string of choice
 
CVT said:
I cringe to ask this late in the thread, but what gauge did you typically use for your demos?
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I usually play 1.25. It's a good middle ground.

1.3 i never play with the exception of Volkl Cyclone Tour
1.2 or thinner i don't like that much
Some brands deviate from the standard 1.2-1.25-1.3. In that case i just go for what is clossest to 1.25. Lets say it can vary from 1.23 to 1.26. Strung at 53 lbs/24 kg in Vcore Rackets.
 
Final update for now

went through all shaped strings this time around, and also have a 'top 8' for those

8 Caviar X (aka Caviar Mains, Wasabi X Crosses). Played all of Toroline with exception of Absolute. In a full bed I actually had a slight preference for Super Toro, but that one lacks decent tension maintenance and therefor hasn't great playability. Also something to note in my experience. Toroline seems in to play better overal in hybrid set ups then as full beds. Ultimately Caviar X come out on top.

7 Initially had a different string on this spot (it went up a place) so number 7 goes to Grapplesnake Alpha, for those who seek decent spin and power but want something comfortable. Alpha is as good as it gets. Didn't put it higher cause i'll always trade some extra control for less power, and generally have a preference for firmer set ups

6 Probably a first little surprise here, Spot 6 is going to => Genesis Hexonic Power Yellow: a string that checks all the boxes without being exceptional, just very good allround. Spin above average, Comfort level is more than ok, Power is pretty much in the middle, not underpowered, not overpowered, holds tension really well and has a very acceptable price range too. So Value for money is great. For it to be placed higher same as the above, would have loved a bit less power and a bit more control

5 Confidential: a string that would easily be placed even higher. Have been a fan of it from the first hit. Actually the first strings that gave me a 'holy **** wow' effect. But as things progressed I've turned and commited to Yonex as racket brand. 8 out of 10 playing my Vcores, 2 times Ezone. Cause i like that one too. But in Vcores Confidential did not play and feel the way i liked and expect unlike in any other frame.

4 and 3: Actually a split decision here being Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour and surprise number 2 aka Signum Pro Poly Plasma Hextreme. Won't go deeper into the Tourna string, cause practically everyone knows what its qualities are. About SP PP Hextreme contrary to Hyper G where the Round variation plays pretty differently that it's original shaped counterpart. With Poly Plasma, the shaped and round variation play pretty identical, with logically easier spin on the Hextreme. Knowing i've put the round variation in my top 3 as far as round strings go. It's no surprise SP PP Hextreme would be high on my shaped poly string list. Has the qualities of the round one + easy spin. Always nice to see a string perform as you expect it to perform.

2 Mayami Tour Hex: Despite the business not run as smoothly as it should, this remains one hell of a string. Despite hearing Alu Power Lovers swear there is nothing similar to their holy grail. There are actually quite a few that play similar in some way of another. Aside that why would you invest in a string which plays great for about 3 hours max. Why people still invest in that string is beyond my comprehension. But hey, to eacher their own, right?
Contrary to Alu Power, statements of their being nothing similar to tour hex is pretty much a fact. After play testing 125 different strings, it's safe to say that Tour Hex has pretty much a unique hitting sensation that you won't find anywhere else.
Aside that, it's great quality overal. Spin is very good, tension maintenance, top notch control, competitive pricing (after it being all over the place), underpowered, comfy put crisp. It's that kind of string that if you like it, is very hard to walk away from, similar to a nicotine addiction lolz.
The only knock on Tour Hex has nothing to do with the string, but with how the brand is run as a whole. I'm being frugal with the reel i still got from it, because of it being out of stock frequently for god knows how long. As European it has been harder to get your hands on it.

The Top spot???
.......

1 Grapplesnake Tour Sniper: people who followed my posts here and some other topics know that i really like TBHS7T and was ideally searching for something that played pretty much exactly the same, but just a bit easier, a tad less demanding, a tiny bit more power and comfort would be welcomed with pleasure.
Tour Sniper did do just that

If we should make a ranking of round+ shaped strings as a whole and only mention the strings I'd be ok to use in tournament play, it would be as simple as
Current top 3 shaped strings (Tour Sniper, Tour Hex, Hextreme)+ nr 1 round string (Dyreex Pro Player)
 
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NewcomerfromBalkan said:
Very detailed reviews.Thank you for sharing your efforts and testing a lot of strings.
Glad to see 1st old school gen polys like SPPP still rocks solid.
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Thx man. Always nice to see appreciation. Glad to hear some find the thread has interest and value to some.
I'll be in the minority liking SPPP and Hextreme as much as I do, but yeah to me it's much better as i tought it would be. A no brainer at the price range it is at.
Courious to hear feedback about your own testing you are about to do also
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
Thx man. Always nice to see appreciation. Glad to hear some find the thread has interest and value to some.
I'll be in the minority liking SPPP and Hextreme as much as I do, but yeah to me it's much better as i tought it would be. A no brainer at the price range it is at.
Courious to hear feedback about your own testing you are about to do also
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I have a long list for testing cause i do not play tpp much in 2024,but SPPP went to the top of the list,just because I always give advantage to ol'school.Also thing which comes to mind is that all main brands make stuff in China,hope that signum pro like other german brands hold their production in Germany.
 
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Hi, are these the top 7 strings you’re going to carry? For yourself, are you playing w tour sniper or a natural gut hybrid.
 
NewcomerfromBalkan said:
I have a long list for testing cause i do not play tpp much in 2024,but SPPP went to the top of the list,just because I always give advantage to ol'school.Also thing which comes to mind is that all main brands make stuff in China,hope that signum pro like other german brands hold their production in Germany.
Click to expand...
Looking forward to hear about your assessement
 
Roforot said:
Hi, are these the top 7 strings you’re going to carry? For yourself, are you playing w tour sniper or a natural gut hybrid.
Click to expand...
Nat Gut / RMP Rough will be for personal Use only (still have to test that one, as RMP R broke on the stringer.

Reels to stock as cross:
Tier One/ Tru Pro Ghostwire
RPM Rough
Ytex Pro Tour Blue

Multi:
Head Velocity
Signum Pro Micronite

Syn Gut
Head Syn Gut PPS
Gosen OG Sheep Micro

Bargain string
Polystar Classic

Round Strings:
Signum Pro Firestorm
Head Hawk Touch
Kirschbaum Max Power / Rough
Signum Pro Poly Plasma
Dyreex Pro Player

(Luxilon and Solinco are popular in tennis community but not that much in my club or region)

Shaped Strings:

Grapplesnake Alpha
Genesis Hexonic Power Yellow
Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour
Signum Pro Poly Plasma Hextreme
Grapplesnake Tour Sniper

(Mayami is not that easy to get your hands on, Toroline with the 100m reels is actually not that cheap to invest in, and I’m the only one at my club who actually plays Confidential regularly.

As I will play tournaments again this year, will have a look what’s most used in clubs pretty close by. Most dont have inhouse stringers so it's usefull to know what players outside my club mainly use.

Mayami Tour Hex will be used as one of my primary back up strings tho

With my selection i Pretty much have a lot covered.
As for my personal play. Now I'm going back and forth between Tour Sniper, SPPP Hextreme, Dyreex Pro Player, with a slide edge for TS.
Will try out Nat Gut sooner or later.
Another thing I'd like to try out, as i'll only stock Tour Hex for personal use. There is nothing similar to it, except maybe .... If there would ever come a release of a blend of Hexonic Power and SPPPP with a bit more crispness. That would be the clossest thing to Tour Hex we ever gonna get.
So a Hybrid of Hexonic Power with SPPPP in the cross makes me curious how that combo would play.
 
Roforot said:
I thought alpha was a round string? And tour sniper as well? Looks like you have a great selection.
Click to expand...
Alpha as TS are both mildly pentangonal shaped. So not very pronounced. But they're there.
I always look at Alpha as an improved YPTP with its slight edges has more spin potential, bit crisper and a tad more power also
Where TS is kinda rather een toned down TBHS7T. 5 edges instead of 7. Less pronounced. Crisp but not as much, but easier to use, with a bit more pop to it.
Also tried to make a strong value for money selection. Looks like the selections comes to 95 per reel on average. I guess that worked out really well :)
 
After the honeymoon fase of excessive string testing, there has been some slight changes in string preference ranking.
we got 9 favo round and 9 favo shaped strings
About the rounds: the ranking from 9 to 1 is: Signum Pro Firestorm, Ytex Pro Tour Blue, Hyper G Round, Kirschbaum Max Power, Head Hawk Touch, Dyreex Pro Player, Signum Pro Poly Plasma, Restring Sync, Luxilon 4G soft.
So what has changed? Dyreex dropped from 1 to nr 4 as it became clear after more hitting hours, this string is frame sensitive. With frames with higher RA, the strings tend to play boardy and having a longer break in period, before playing as they used to. I want my strings to play as i want them to right of the stringer, so that's why they dropped in ranking.
4G soft was number 2, so now they take the top spot.
Restring Sync comes into second place out of nowhere. They kinda grew on me.
For personal use concerning round strings I'll only invest in 4G Soft. More easily available in my region and can get those cheaper than Sync.

About the shaped one's: The Ranking from 9 to 1 is: Genesis Hexonic Power, Toroline Caviar, Grapplesnake Alpha, Solinco Confidential, Signum Pro Poly Plasma Hextreme, Grapplesnake Tour M8, random top 3 Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour, Mayami Tour Hex, Grapplesnake Tour Sniper.
I'll invest in current top 3 + Tour M8: weird firstly didn't like M8 at all, second time around i appreciated it more, but found it's price tag as overpriced and not worth the investment. But the more i play it, the more i'm liking it.
So of the 18 strings remaining the alround top 5

Grapplesnake Tour Sniper
Mayami Tour Hex
Tourna BHS7T7 (still king of budget strings)
Grapplesnake Tour M8
Luxilon 4G Soft
 
I can't stand strings that lose tension and playability fast- saw within 5-6 hours of play. That, to me, is such a waste of time and money. Seems like you are always restringing or getting ready for a new string job. I will sacrifice some string playabilty for longivity. i must have touch and feel with a string. It cannot play like a board.
 
we're about on the same page. there is often said if you don't break strings, you don't need poly. But to me that only one side of the story. I just hate it when string get stuck out of plays and generally dont like how non poly strings play and feel. Having a spin oriented game and always liked control oriented strings more. Going for poly strings seems logical.
The 'weakness' of poly strings is the tension maintenance. But contrary to pro players we dont have the luxury to restring every time we play.
To me a good poly string is a combination of control, spin, tension maintenance, playability duration. Other things to consider are crispness, gauge, pricetag, general feel of a string.
I've been restringing a lot because of being on a string journey. But as of now I'll only commit to the 5 strings mentioned above for personal use.
As for new string releases, there aint anything at the horizon that has my interest for now
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
we're about on the same page. there is often said if you don't break strings, you don't need poly. But to me that only one side of the story. I just hate it when string get stuck out of plays and generally dont like how non poly strings play and feel. Having a spin oriented game and always liked control oriented strings more. Going for poly strings seems logical.
The 'weakness' of poly strings is the tension maintenance. But contrary to pro players we dont have the luxury to restring every time we play.
To me a good poly string is a combination of control, spin, tension maintenance, playability duration. Other things to consider are crispness, gauge, pricetag, general feel of a string.
I've been restringing a lot because of being on a string journey. But as of now I'll only commit to the 5 strings mentioned above for personal use.
As for new string releases, there aint anything at the horizon that has my interest for now
Click to expand...
Seems like all the " new" strings are a lot of hype not transferred to the actual court side when you play.
 
Tennis and Anime Lover's Best Tennis Strings top 20

1 Grapplesnake Tour Sniper: Does do everything that TBHS7T does, but in a better way
2 Luxilon 4G Soft: Best round string on the market
3 Grapplesnake Tour M8: This one has it all, Comfort, Power, Tension Maintenance, Spin. The only knock is finding the right tension to let it work as you want it to.
4 Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour: Still the budget king
5 Restring Sync: Great Round offering, full bed, and as cross. The only knock is that it's not easy to get your hands on over here, and have to play it again as it has been couple of months.
6 Mayami Tour Hex: The string is excellent, the brand/company not so much, but if muteness doesn't bother you, be sure to give this one a try
7 Signum Pro Poly Plasma/ Hex Hybrid: when you are on a budget, and TBHS7T is to stiff for you, give this one a chance.
8 Solinco Confidential: Has been one of my favorites for most part of 2024, but went down the list as playability duration wasn't so great on this one.
9 Grapplesnake Alpha: You love Yonex Poly Tour Pro, but want to adress it shortcomings? Choose this one. It's an improvement in also every way
10 Toroline Caviar X Hybrid: Tried all Toroline offerings, with this hybrid coming out on top
11 Genesis Hexonic Power: Feels and plays quite similar to full bed of Caviar, with a tad less control, but bit more power
12 Solinco Hyper G Hybrid: Was not a big fan of full bed of Regular Hyper G, but combined with the Round version as cross, played a lot better.
13 Dyreex Pro Player: exceptional not so well known round string, as long as you dont play it in stiffer frames, tends to be boardy. Aside that it just plays great.
14 Head Hawk Touch: Propably the most versitale round string out there, no clear weaknesses, no clear strong points, does everything well above average
15 Kirschbaum Max Power and or Rough: Same remarks as with Yonex Poly Tour Strike. If put this one a bit higher for its more competitive price point.
16 Signum Pro Firestorm: Very good allround round string at competitive pricing with soms hints of Alu Power
17 Ytex Pro Tour Blue: One of the few strings that play both good als full bed or in a hybrid. It also has a rare property of being soft and comfortable but with great tension maintenance
18 Yonex Poly Tour Strike: Yonex's best string, could have been more up the list if spin potential was greater

Honorable Mentions
19 Wilson Revolve and or Yonex Poly Tour Fire: 2 of the most slick strings out there. Perfect as a cross, less so as full bed. I'd pick Revolve over Fire, as it is slightly better and cheaper.
20 Babolat RMP Rough : Rough Strings are best options to use in Hybrid as a cross with Nat gut like Babolat VS Touch
 
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Tennis And Anime Lover said:
Tennis and Anime Lover's Best Tennis Strings top 20

1 Grapplesnake Tour Sniper: Does do everything that TBHS7T does, but in a better way
2 Luxilon 4G Soft: Best round string on the market
3 Grapplesnake Tour M8: This one has it all, Comfort, Power, Tension Maintenance, Spin. The only knock is finding the right tension to let it work as you want it to.
4 Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour: Still the budget king
5 Mayami Tour Hex: The string is excellent, the brand/company not so much, but if muteness doesn't bother you, be sure to give this one a try
6 Signum Pro Poly Plasma/ Hex Hybrid: when you are on a budget, and TBHS7T is to stiff for you, give this one a chance.
7 Solinco Confidential: Has been one of my favorites for most part of 2024, but went down the list as playability duration wasn't so great on this one.
8 Grapplesnake Alpha: You love Yonex Poly Tour Pro, but want to adress it shortcomings? Choose this one. It's an improvement in also every way
9 Restring Sync: Another Great Round offering, that plays both well as full bed or as a cross. Ain't higher on the list of for reasons of accessability/ availability over here
10 Toroline Caviar X Hybrid: Tried all Toroline offerings, with this hybrid coming out on top
11 Genesis Hexonic Power: Feels and plays quite similar to full bed of Caviar, with a tad less control, but bit more power
12 Solinco Hyper G Hybrid: Was not a big fan of full bed of Regular Hyper G, but combined with the Round version as cross, played a lot better.
13 Dyreex Pro Player: exceptional not so well known round string, as long as you dont play it in stiffer frames, tends to be boardy. Aside that it just plays great.
14 Head Hawk Touch: Propably the most versitale round string out there, no clear weaknesses, no clear strong points, does everything well above average
15 Kirschbaum Max Power and or Rough: Same remarks as with Yonex Poly Tour Strike. If put this one a bit higher for its more competitive price point.
16 Signum Pro Firestorm: Very good allround round string at competitive pricing with soms hints of Alu Power
17 Ytex Pro Tour Blue: One of the few strings that play both good als full bed or in a hybrid. It also has a rare property of being soft and comfortable but with great tension maintenance
18 Yonex Poly Tour Strike: Yonex's best string, could have been more up the list if spin potential was greater

Honorable Mentions
19 Wilson Revolve and or Yonex Poly Tour Fire: 2 of the most slick strings out there. Perfect as a cross, less so as full bed. I'd pick Revolve over Fire, as it is slightly better and cheaper.
20 Babolat RMP Rough : Rough Strings are best options to use in Hybrid as a cross with Nat gut like Babolat VS Touch
Click to expand...
Which color revolves did you try? Orange I tried was not slick
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
Tennis and Anime Lover's Best Tennis Strings top 20

1 Grapplesnake Tour Sniper: Does do everything that TBHS7T does, but in a better way
2 Luxilon 4G Soft: Best round string on the market
3 Grapplesnake Tour M8: This one has it all, Comfort, Power, Tension Maintenance, Spin. The only knock is finding the right tension to let it work as you want it to.
4 Tourna Big Hitter Silver 7 Tour: Still the budget king
5 Mayami Tour Hex: The string is excellent, the brand/company not so much, but if muteness doesn't bother you, be sure to give this one a try
6 Signum Pro Poly Plasma/ Hex Hybrid: when you are on a budget, and TBHS7T is to stiff for you, give this one a chance.
7 Solinco Confidential: Has been one of my favorites for most part of 2024, but went down the list as playability duration wasn't so great on this one.
8 Grapplesnake Alpha: You love Yonex Poly Tour Pro, but want to adress it shortcomings? Choose this one. It's an improvement in also every way
9 Restring Sync: Another Great Round offering, that plays both well as full bed or as a cross. Ain't higher on the list of for reasons of accessability/ availability over here
10 Toroline Caviar X Hybrid: Tried all Toroline offerings, with this hybrid coming out on top
11 Genesis Hexonic Power: Feels and plays quite similar to full bed of Caviar, with a tad less control, but bit more power
12 Solinco Hyper G Hybrid: Was not a big fan of full bed of Regular Hyper G, but combined with the Round version as cross, played a lot better.
13 Dyreex Pro Player: exceptional not so well known round string, as long as you dont play it in stiffer frames, tends to be boardy. Aside that it just plays great.
14 Head Hawk Touch: Propably the most versitale round string out there, no clear weaknesses, no clear strong points, does everything well above average
15 Kirschbaum Max Power and or Rough: Same remarks as with Yonex Poly Tour Strike. If put this one a bit higher for its more competitive price point.
16 Signum Pro Firestorm: Very good allround round string at competitive pricing with soms hints of Alu Power
17 Ytex Pro Tour Blue: One of the few strings that play both good als full bed or in a hybrid. It also has a rare property of being soft and comfortable but with great tension maintenance
18 Yonex Poly Tour Strike: Yonex's best string, could have been more up the list if spin potential was greater

Honorable Mentions
19 Wilson Revolve and or Yonex Poly Tour Fire: 2 of the most slick strings out there. Perfect as a cross, less so as full bed. I'd pick Revolve over Fire, as it is slightly better and cheaper.
20 Babolat RMP Rough : Rough Strings are best options to use in Hybrid as a cross with Nat gut like Babolat VS Touch
Click to expand...
this thread is amazing. Appreciate what you’re doing for the community.

If accessibility for the sync wasn’t an issue, how high on the list would it be? Also wondering what your thoughts on tour bite was in comparison to BHS7T and Tour Sniper specifically ? I mainly use tour bite and love a crisp stiff string, but am wondering if it is worth it for me to try out tour sniper at least. I’ve heard from some others that tour bite just has a slight bit more spin/bite on the ball compared to BHS7T so I’ve stuck with tour bite.

my main go to setup right now is tour bite 1.25 mains at 50lb and sync 1.20 crosses at 47lb
 
@K1Y Yes i have. Razor Code, Razor Soft, 4S and Black Code. Razor Soft played to powerfull for me. 4S was great on spin, but generally dislike how black strings feel, way to muted for my taste, while black code was average on spin. Best overal for me would have been regular Razor Code, kinda middle of the road string, but I'd rate something as Head Lynx Touch superior to that.

@maksp . Surprised to hear that. I generally like black and white strings in general a little less. So when I have other options to choose from I'll pick that. So in this case i played the orange one. Revolve to me is a string that only works as a cross, its coating will wear off over time. But right of the stringer that string should feel slick. Something is off when in your case it was not the case. Maybe a bad batch of strings??? dont know, does sound weird.

@hdjs94 Thx for the positive words :)
Well, I'll Edit the post and put it where it should be solely based on overall quality
Everything below sync, is locked into place ranking wise. Sync and above is still not set in stone, and thus interchangable until i settle on string set up choice.
You proabably are a bit surprised that Tourbite didn't make my top 20 list. To be honest I did like it quite a bit, it is a good string but has 1 major drawback as a fullbed. Tension maintenance aint the best. What also plays its part is value for money, and i've noticed that prices for strings can greatly differ depending on where you can get them. TBHS7T I can get for 70 per reel.
Which was my string of choice after a most part of my string testing. My top 3 couple of months ago was. TBHS7T, Tour Hex, Confidential.
In a perfect world i was looking for something that played exactly the same, but a tiny bit less demanding. Some extra pop and more easy ball accellaration would be welcome.
That's where Tour Sniper comes in, as i've stated above post. Does everything that Tourna does, but in a better way. So Tour Sniper i kinda my new benchmark string.
When you look at my top 3 before Tour Sniper, you have 3 strings that all bite the ball pretty well. And as my string testing yourney continued, became convinced i prefer shaped strings.
Today I'm not so sure. String profile seem to matter less, so became less focused on 'ball bite'.
Second reason to not give it that much attention, is the fact that edges do wear off gradually, and thus are losing the 'advantage' you have of shaped string over time.
Third, importance of ball bite is imo overrated, as producing spin primarily and mostly comes tecnique /stroke mecanics/ racket head speed
As you i have a preference for crisp and more firm strings, but less focus on string profile.
I do want my strings to act/ do what i expect them to do, aka predictabilty and thus cant neglect round profile strings. I still apreciate a shaped profile, but rather not that pronounced or sharp. Tour M8 shaped but plays more like a round one. Tour Sniper 5 sided but not sharp.
You should try out every string that is remotely interesting hahah :P
Out of the 3 strings, Yeah Tour Bite will have to most bite. If that is your main concern, sticking with it will be fine.
In terms of firmness and crispiness, Tour Bite and Tourna are about the same. Tour Sniper is still crisp, but less crisp and firm then the other 2. Which make Tour Sniper the most comfortable of the 3. In terms of tension maintenance. Tour Bite comes last and Tour Sniper comes first as it is prestreched.
As for value for money . Tourna is at 70, Tour Bite at 115 and Tour Sniper at 129 per reel. Knowing that Tour Bite loses the quickest, and for 15 bucks extra you get a string that holds much longer, you know it is worth the extra cost of +-1 €/$ per set and that investing in TBHS7T aint a waiste of money. So yeah long story short but Tour Bite falls of the value for money cliff mainly for tension maintance reasons and is therefor not in the top 20 list.
But i've read somewhere, Sync in the crosses does expand the lifespan of your mains quite a bit, so i guess you're good. Still have a set of Sync left, will have to try it again sooner or later.

@ckhirnigs113 I actually did. On Paper that string should have suited me perfectly, but for some reason i cant put my finger on, it just didn't. Sometimes a string just doesn't click for unexplicable reason. That is what Pure Rush is to me. Ghostwire on the other hand losses tension to quick which leads to a loss in control, once i stubbled upon Ytex Pro Tour Blue, Ghostwire was kinda out of the picture.
In any case, judging tennis strings is still a very subjective thing. No TWE or Racketopedia figures or youtube or forum reviewers can tell you if a string will work for you. There is only one truth, and that truth is in the pudding. At the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is your own. Pure Rush did have string competition with Super Toro, Tour Hex, Tour Sniper, Poly Plasma Hybrid, TBHS7T.
I didn't put it aside entirely, will probably retry it sooner or later. As it happened before, that I initially didn't like a string that much, which after i while became 1 of my favourites.
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
But i've read somewhere, Sync in the crosses does expand the lifespan of your mains quite a bit, so i guess you're good. Still have a set of Sync left, will have to try it again sooner or later.
Click to expand...
Wow, really appreciate the in depth reply and comparisons. I'm definitely going to be trying out TBHS7T at the very least and like you said it is much budget friendly. Maybe I'll get around to tour sniper one day, maybe not as I know TB and TBHS7T is still more crisp and firm and I have zero discomfort with any strings.

And that is correct 100% that having sync in the cross increases the lifespan significantly with significantly decreased notching. It's been my go to cross for all my hybrids, but there is one last experiment for me which is to try out MSV Bussard as a cross string, which I've heard is much more crisp than sync albeit at slightly decreased slickness/durability maybe.

We shall see if I change my mains from tour bite to TBHS7T permanently and if the MSV Bussard can replace my sync in the crosses and that'll probably be my goldilocks string for the unforeseen longterm future.

For fun, Also will be trying out the new O-toro Tour in the mint color which I'm getting on Monday. Supposedly is the most crisp of all O-toro strings by 15% so I'm looking forward to it, but don't think it'll be crisper than the silver trio (TBHs7T, TB, TS)
 
Tennis And Anime Lover said:
@K1Y Yes i have. Razor Code, Razor Soft, 4S and Black Code. Razor Soft played to powerfull for me. 4S was great on spin, but generally dislike how black strings feel, way to muted for my taste, while black code was average on spin. Best overal for me would have been regular Razor Code, kinda middle of the road string, but I'd rate something as Head Lynx Touch superior to that.

@maksp . Surprised to hear that. I generally like black and white strings in general a little less. So when I have other options to choose from I'll pick that. So in this case i played the orange one. Revolve to me is a string that only works as a cross, its coating will wear off over time. But right of the stringer that string should feel slick. Something is off when in your case it was not the case. Maybe a bad batch of strings??? dont know, does sound weird.

@hdjs94 Thx for the positive words :)
Well, I'll Edit the post and put it where it should be solely based on overall quality
Everything below sync, is locked into place ranking wise. Sync and above is still not set in stone, and thus interchangable until i settle on string set up choice.
You proabably are a bit surprised that Tourbite didn't make my top 20 list. To be honest I did like it quite a bit, it is a good string but has 1 major drawback as a fullbed. Tension maintenance aint the best. What also plays its part is value for money, and i've noticed that prices for strings can greatly differ depending on where you can get them. TBHS7T I can get for 70 per reel.
Which was my string of choice after a most part of my string testing. My top 3 couple of months ago was. TBHS7T, Tour Hex, Confidential.
In a perfect world i was looking for something that played exactly the same, but a tiny bit less demanding. Some extra pop and more easy ball accellaration would be welcome.
That's where Tour Sniper comes in, as i've stated above post. Does everything that Tourna does, but in a better way. So Tour Sniper i kinda my new benchmark string.
When you look at my top 3 before Tour Sniper, you have 3 strings that all bite the ball pretty well. And as my string testing yourney continued, became convinced i prefer shaped strings.
Today I'm not so sure. String profile seem to matter less, so became less focused on 'ball bite'.
Second reason to not give it that much attention, is the fact that edges do wear off gradually, and thus are losing the 'advantage' you have of shaped string over time.
Third, importance of ball bite is imo overrated, as producing spin primarily and mostly comes tecnique /stroke mecanics/ racket head speed
As you i have a preference for crisp and more firm strings, but less focus on string profile.
I do want my strings to act/ do what i expect them to do, aka predictabilty and thus cant neglect round profile strings. I still apreciate a shaped profile, but rather not that pronounced or sharp. Tour M8 shaped but plays more like a round one. Tour Sniper 5 sided but not sharp.
You should try out every string that is remotely interesting hahah :p
Out of the 3 strings, Yeah Tour Bite will have to most bite. If that is your main concern, sticking with it will be fine.
In terms of firmness and crispiness, Tour Bite and Tourna are about the same. Tour Sniper is still crisp, but less crisp and firm then the other 2. Which make Tour Sniper the most comfortable of the 3. In terms of tension maintenance. Tour Bite comes last and Tour Sniper comes first as it is prestreched.
As for value for money . Tourna is at 70, Tour Bite at 115 and Tour Sniper at 129 per reel. Knowing that Tour Bite loses the quickest, and for 15 bucks extra you get a string that holds much longer, you know it is worth the extra cost of +-1 €/$ per set and that investing in TBHS7T aint a waiste of money. So yeah long story short but Tour Bite falls of the value for money cliff mainly for tension maintance reasons and is therefor not in the top 20 list.
But i've read somewhere, Sync in the crosses does expand the lifespan of your mains quite a bit, so i guess you're good. Still have a set of Sync left, will have to try it again sooner or later.

@ckhirnigs113 I actually did. On Paper that string should have suited me perfectly, but for some reason i cant put my finger on, it just didn't. Sometimes a string just doesn't click for unexplicable reason. That is what Pure Rush is to me. Ghostwire on the other hand losses tension to quick which leads to a loss in control, once i stubbled upon Ytex Pro Tour Blue, Ghostwire was kinda out of the picture.
In any case, judging tennis strings is still a very subjective thing. No TWE or Racketopedia figures or youtube or forum reviewers can tell you if a string will work for you. There is only one truth, and that truth is in the pudding. At the end of the day, the only opinion that matters is your own. Pure Rush did have string competition with Super Toro, Tour Hex, Tour Sniper, Poly Plasma Hybrid, TBHS7T.
I didn't put it aside entirely, will probably retry it sooner or later. As it happened before, that I initially didn't like a string that much, which after i while became 1 of my favourites.
Click to expand...
Pros pro concept is 30 to 40 dollars and an excellent cross but not available stationed here in Asia minor
 
This list is very well done. I've tested almost all the round strings on the market as well as a decent # of shaped ones. Quickly came to the realization that I don't like shaped strings so my portfolio is mostly round strings now. I also do not like super slick strings for I find them to launch and spin in an unpredictable way.

Hawk Touch is my all time favorite string as it's played remarkably well across multiple frames and multiple tensions for me. 4g Soft would be right there at #2 for me as being a super "consistent" and predictable string. Solinco Outlast, Poly Tour Pro yellow, and KB Evolution are more high quality strings that would fall in somewhere behind the first two. Razor code and PT Strike get sort of grouped together as strings that I like, want to use, but never seem to perform as good they feel.

Currently tinkering/testing with Head Hawk, KB Max Power, Toroline Enso Pro grey, and Restring Sync
 
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