Luxilon ALU Power Soft String Review

Control - Score: 91 / Power - Score: 61

With its somewhat firm feel and very predictable response on fast swings, it's not surprising that our team gave Luxilon ALU Power Soft a near perfect score for control. On the flipside, Brittany could have used a tad more pop. She explained, "This string is definitely on the control-oriented side of the spectrum. I strung it up at 57/58 lbs in my current racquet of choice, the Yonex EZONE Ai 100. My initial impression was that the control was excellent, but I was left wanting a tad more power from the string, especially when I was on defense. Nonetheless, I was able to take advantage of the control this string offered. I was taking full, aggressive swings, and the ball was landing in the court. My placement was excellent and I could go for bigger shots."

For Chris, this string's exceptional control translated into confident ball striking. He said, "I liked this string from the first hit to the last. The power level was perfect for me. I'm a big fan of ALU Power and ALU Power Rough, and this Soft version is not far removed from those two strings. On the power front it is similar to my regular string, Volkl Cyclone. It is a lower powered string so the response is more on the controlled side. I liked that it allowed me to supply the power, and I felt confident going for the lines with this string. I was able to stay aggressive even during tighter portions of a match, as I had a lot of confidence in the consistent and controlled response of this string. I was able to generate all the power I wanted when I wanted, but for the most part this string was all about control."

Spin - Score: 88

Although not the most spin friendly string our playtesters have hit, Luxilon ALU Power Soft still received a very impressive score for spin. Chris was impressed, saying, "I really liked the spin I was getting with this string. I didn't find crazy levels of spin like I did during our test of YTex Quadro Twist, but I was able to generate some solid topspin and slice. The amount of spin I was getting vastly added to the control I had. The level of spin I was getting was also very predictable. I felt confident hitting close to the lines and I could trust I'd get the needed spin to keep the ball in. I was getting some nice movement on my serves and again found the spin upping my consistency."

Brittany also found decent spin. She said, "I got the amount of spin I expected and needed from this string. While I tend to hit flatter shots, I also appreciate access to spin when I am trying to hit angled groundstrokes to pull my opponent off the court. When I was playing heavy slicers, like Chris, I was able to get under the low slice and hit with enough topspin to get the ball up and over the net. I would say the spin was above average compared to other polyester strings, but not exceptional like the shaped or textured polyester strings."

Comfort - Score: 72

Contrary to its name, ALU Power Soft is made from very firm material, which means it is not intended to deliver the comfort found in natural gut or the majority of nylon-based strings. This also means it may deliver excessive shock to less experienced players, especially if they have a light racquet or a tendency to hit the ball off center. For advanced players like Brittany, impact shock is less of a problem. She explained, "I don't have arm or elbow issues, so I've never had an issue with the comfort of a string. While hitting with this string I never felt any jarring sensations when the ball hit outside the sweetspot. I would say, though, that I could feel the ball coming off the stringbed and there were some vibrations, but for me that was not necessarily a bad thing. While this string was slightly more comfortable than the original ALU Power, I would not consider this a comfortable string compared to other strings out there."

Given his preference for firm polys, it's not surprising that Chris had no complaints about this string's comfort level. He said, "This is not a truly soft co-poly, but I had no comfort issues at all. At 55 lbs in my Wilson Six.One 95S the string felt plenty comfortable, and it felt like the stringbed was pocketing the ball pretty well. I was impressed that the string remained comfortable for the duration of the test. Some poly-based strings get buzzy and harsh as they bag out, but as I've found with other Luxilon strings, this string remained comfortable for three weeks of hitting."

Feel - Score: 87

Although it is a firm control string, our playtesters found the feel of ALU Power Soft to be wonderfully crisp as opposed to overly stiff. The crisp feel delivered the kind of direct feedback that made Chris feel more connected to the ball and more plugged into the resulting shot. He said, "I really liked the feel of this string. Although it is called soft, I thought it felt pretty middle of the road when it came to stiffness for a monofilament. I felt very well connected to the ball with this string. I loved that I could sense the power, depth, spin and accuracy of my shots the instant they left my racquet. The overall feel of the string was crisp, yet there was some inherent forgiveness in it, which kept everything comfortable."

Brittany also found that the firmer feel and crisp response helped with control. She said, "With 'soft' in the name of this string I was expecting a softer, dampened feel. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I still got a crisp, firm response off the stringbed. ALU Power Soft has a slightly softer feel than the original but isn't as soft as polys like Polyfibre TCS and Cyclone Tour. I enjoyed this firm, crisp feel from all areas of the court. It made me feel more in control of the ball. Up at net, I could really feel the ball coming off the stringbed, and I found I had options to punch the ball deep in the court or soften my hands to hit a shorter volley."

Playability Duration - Score: 90

Luxilon has long claimed that its proprietary string material (poly-ether-ether) holds tension and playability longer than the average polyester string. According to our team, ALU Power Soft has delivered on this promise. Brittany was impressed. She said, "The highlight of this string was the consistency of the playability over time. I playtested this string for around three weeks and found it held tension extremely well. After three weeks it feels like I've lost minimal tension, maybe 2-3 lbs max. I could easily use this string for several more weeks. Because this string holds tension so well I would probably string it 2-3 lbs looser to start."

Chris also got great mileage from this string. He said, "The playability duration was excellent compared to a poly. I hit this string for over three weeks and it felt great for the entire test. I was very impressed by how consistent the response remained. At the end of the test I was still getting impressive spin, the string still felt comfortable and the response felt consistent. ALU Power Soft is one of the most impressive strings in this category for me."

Overall - Score: 88

Scores

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Playtester String Setups

Review date: January 2015. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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