Head to head

Dunlop Pearl 17 (1.25) vs Tecnifibre E-Matrix 16

Pearl 17 (1.25) leads on 4 of 6 measurements. The widest gap is ball bite, where Pearl 17 (1.25) is 14 percentile points ahead. Every figure is a testing-machine result at a fixed reference tension.

Measured, side by side

Dunlop

Pearl 17 (1.25)

Nylon · 17 ga

Tecnifibre

E-Matrix 16

Nylon/Polyurethane · 16 ga

Stiffness lower = softer, kinder on the arm
1458th pct
1437th pct
Tension loss lower = stays where you strung it
1811th pct
2019th pct
Energy return higher = livelier, more free power
9388th pct
9493rd pct
Spin potential higher = more spin off the string bed
3.111th pct
2.76th pct
Ball bite higher = grabs the ball harder
0.40929th pct
0.38415th pct
String friction lower = strings slide and snap back
0.13489th pct
0.14291st pct

Bars are percentile against all 788 strings, and the marked side is the one that measures better, which is not always the one you want. A firmer bed is worse for your elbow and better for your control, and no measurement knows which of those you came for.

Which one wins, by problem

Each string's standing on the site's rankings, out of every measured string in the database. This is where a comparison stops being arithmetic and starts being a decision.

Swapping between them: what tension?

Bed stiffness is published at one reference tension, so the only honest conversion is to scale it. These are starting points from 52 lb, not prescriptions. The calculator takes your own tension.

Coming from Pearl 17 (1.25) at 52 lb

String E-Matrix 16 at 52.7 lb 23.9 kg

Coming from E-Matrix 16 at 52 lb

String Pearl 17 (1.25) at 51.4 lb 23.3 kg

Hybrid: what if you used both?

Estimated, not measured. No hybrid combination has been tested as a bed. These figures are the two strings' own lab measurements weighted by how much of the bed each one actually is. Treat them as a guide to which way a pairing moves, never as lab data.

Pearl 17 (1.25) mains / E-Matrix 16 crosses

Stiffness8th pct · 1 measured
Tension loss14th pct · 1 measured
Energy return91st pct · 1 measured
Spin potential10th pct · 1 measured
Ball bite27th pct · 1 measured
String friction90th pct · 1 measured

E-Matrix 16 mains / Pearl 17 (1.25) crosses

Stiffness8th pct · 1 measured
Tension loss16th pct · 1 measured
Energy return91st pct · 1 measured
Spin potential7th pct · 1 measured
Ball bite17th pct · 1 measured
String friction91st pct · 1 measured

Open this in the hybrid builder

Which goes dead first?

Estimated from tension loss, which is the only thing the database measures about ageing. This is when the bed stops playing the way you strung it, not when the string breaks.

Pearl 17 (1.25)

~37 hours of play

E-Matrix 16

~34 hours of play

Both strings in full

Every published measurement
StringGaugePriceStiff lb/inLoss %Power %SpinBite COFFriction COF
Dunlop Pearl 17 (1.25) Nylon17find14518933.10.4090.134
Tecnifibre E-Matrix 16 Nylon/Polyurethane16find14320942.70.3840.142

Add a third string Pearl 17 (1.25) in full E-Matrix 16 in full