Don't take this as gospel as there are far more experienced guys on here who might disagree.

String choice is a purely personal thing, they all “feel” a little different so it's just trial and error to find which you prefer.

With tension, the higher you have it strung, the smaller the sweetspot, meaning it can be very unforgiving if you mistime a smash.

With a lower tension you will lose a degree of control, especially noticable at the net.

I think your choice of tension/string will be particular to you and your style of play, not to mention technique.

The other factor is durability, a lot of big smashes is going to take it's toll on strings, especially if you aren't hitting the sweet spot consistently.

Unless you are playing at a seriously high level you will probably be looking at somewhere between 20 and 24lbs playing tension, I'd say go for 22 and try up and down from there to see what you are most comfortable with.

As a rough guide to strings, BG65 is described as soft feeling (and recognised as the most durable), BG66UM is medium and BG65Ti/BG80/BG80P as hard feeling.

I have no experience with anything but Yonex strings so I can't comment but I am hearing enough good comments about Li Ning to give them a go when I run out of my favourite reel.

There's also the question of how long the strings hold their tension, I'm sure technique has a part to play but that's just another thing you'll have to try for yourself and decide.

Unfortunately there's too much to consider to give a simple answer, it's mostly down to individual preference in my opinion.

Good luck in finding what suits you and let us know how you get on

How do you find the comparison between BG80 and BG66UM, Paul ?

I can't quite put my finger on why I prefer BG80 and I'm hoping I'll get the same feel with Power as it looks as though they may stop doing 80.

That's a good point about the shuttles Peter, I tend to assume everyone uses feathers as I haven't played with plastics for so long.

I think trial and error is still the way to go if the shuttles aren't a variable.

I'm not sure if it's worth mentioning but I get some funny results when I use coloured string, it looks pretty and after a few games you can see a certain amount of wear which lets people know if they are hitting off centre too much but there's a noticable inconsistency compared to the standard white stuff.

Might be interesting to ask your sponsorship guy about string production and if the string is just dyed or made that colour.

I think bg80 feel harder than bg66um and also i have strong arms so i play at 27lbs it is high for some people but feel just right for me as i have a few of vt z force and i strung them with bg80 and at 27lbs it feel best. I got used to high tension so if i change to use low tension it doesnt work it is hard to explain.

Hi Paul
Those are the two strings im trying to decide which to use next on my vt80

Was wondering which u felt to be the better string. Been reading that the 66um is alot less durable, have u found that to b the case.

Thanks
Lee