Head to head

Solinco Hyper-G 18 (1.15) vs Volkl Cyclone 18L (1.15)

They split the measurements 3–3. The widest gap is string friction, where Cyclone 18L (1.15) is 23 percentile points ahead. Every figure is a testing-machine result at a fixed reference tension.

Measured, side by side

Solinco

Hyper-G 18 (1.15)

Polyester · 18 ga

Volkl

Cyclone 18L (1.15)

Polyester · 18L ga

Stiffness lower = softer, kinder on the arm
18046th pct
18855th pct
Tension loss lower = stays where you strung it
2844th pct
2947th pct
Energy return higher = livelier, more free power
8850th pct
8848th pct
Spin potential higher = more spin off the string bed
7.595th pct
9.099th pct
Ball bite higher = grabs the ball harder
0.61797th pct
0.64198th pct
String friction lower = strings slide and snap back
0.08228th pct
0.0716th 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 Hyper-G 18 (1.15) at 52 lb

String Cyclone 18L (1.15) at 49.8 lb 22.6 kg

Coming from Cyclone 18L (1.15) at 52 lb

String Hyper-G 18 (1.15) at 54.3 lb 24.6 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.

Hyper-G 18 (1.15) mains / Cyclone 18L (1.15) crosses

Stiffness50th pct · 1 measured
Tension loss44th pct · 1 measured
Energy return49th pct · 1 measured
Spin potential96th pct · 1 measured
Ball bite97th pct · 1 measured
String friction22nd pct · 1 measured

Cyclone 18L (1.15) mains / Hyper-G 18 (1.15) crosses

Stiffness52nd pct · 1 measured
Tension loss46th pct · 1 measured
Energy return49th pct · 1 measured
Spin potential98th pct · 1 measured
Ball bite98th pct · 1 measured
String friction10th 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.

Hyper-G 18 (1.15)

~27 hours of play

Cyclone 18L (1.15)

~26 hours of play

Both strings in full

Every published measurement
StringGaugePriceStiff lb/inLoss %Power %SpinBite COFFriction COF
Solinco Hyper-G 18 (1.15) Polyester18$13.9918028887.50.6170.082
Volkl Cyclone 18L (1.15) Polyester18L$9.9918829889.00.6410.071

Add a third string Hyper-G 18 (1.15) in full Cyclone 18L (1.15) in full