Head to head

Luxilon Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) vs Tecnifibre Ruff Code 16 (1.30)

Ruff Code 16 (1.30) leads on 4 of 6 measurements. The widest gap is ball bite, where Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) is 16 percentile points ahead. Every figure is a testing-machine result at a fixed reference tension.

Measured, side by side

Luxilon

Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25)

Polyester · 16 ga

Tecnifibre

Ruff Code 16 (1.30)

Polyester · 16 ga

Stiffness lower = softer, kinder on the arm
20876th pct
20875th pct
Tension loss lower = stays where you strung it
3457th pct
3150th pct
Energy return higher = livelier, more free power
8735th pct
8741st pct
Spin potential higher = more spin off the string bed
5.056th pct
4.851st pct
Ball bite higher = grabs the ball harder
0.53387th pct
0.48371st pct
String friction lower = strings slide and snap back
0.10772nd pct
0.10063rd pct

Bars are percentile against all 791 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 Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) at 52 lb

String Ruff Code 16 (1.30) at 52.1 lb 23.6 kg

Coming from Ruff Code 16 (1.30) at 52 lb

String Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) at 51.9 lb 23.5 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.

Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) mains / Ruff Code 16 (1.30) crosses

Stiffness76th pct · 1 measured
Tension loss54th pct · 1 measured
Energy return39th pct · 1 measured
Spin potential55th pct · 1 measured
Ball bite85th pct · 1 measured
String friction70th pct · 1 measured

Ruff Code 16 (1.30) mains / Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) crosses

Stiffness76th pct · 1 measured
Tension loss52nd pct · 1 measured
Energy return40th pct · 1 measured
Spin potential53rd pct · 1 measured
Ball bite74th pct · 1 measured
String friction66th 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.

Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25)

~23 hours of play

Ruff Code 16 (1.30)

~25 hours of play

Both strings in full

Every published measurement
StringGaugePriceStiff lb/inLoss %Power %SpinBite COFFriction COF
Luxilon Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) Polyester16find20834875.00.5330.107
Tecnifibre Ruff Code 16 (1.30) Polyester16find20831874.80.4830.100

Add a third string Alu Power Vibe 16 (1.25) in full Ruff Code 16 (1.30) in full