Gosen OG Sheep Micro String Review

Power - Score: 64 / Control - Score: 66

OG Sheep Micro provided a great balance of power and control for our playtesters. With his penchant for firmer polys Chris appreciated the crisp response of this string, especially compared to a soft multi. He said, "I was very impressed by the blend of power and control I found when hitting with this string. It offered a very predictable response -- much more so than I expected going into the playtest. I felt more connected to the ball with this string than I do with many high end multifilaments. If I unintentionally hit slightly outside the sweetspot I never had to worry about a sudden drop-off in power. I felt way more confident on court with this string than I expected, and I would choose this string over many multifilaments based on that fact alone."

Mark also appreciated the user-friendly blend of power and control, saying, "This string comes very close to having a middle ground rating in terms of power and control. The solid core keeps it playing on the control side, while the multi-stranded wrap provides a bit of liveliness off the stringbed."

Spin - Score: 74

Although not as spin friendly as a poly, our playtesters were satisfied with the level of spin they got from OG Sheep Micro. Mark was quite impressed until string movement became an issue. He said, "The OG Sheep Micro grabs the ball very well, especially for the first five hours of hard play. After the 8-10 hour mark the friction caused enough sawing that the strings didn't move back into position."

Finding decent, if not great, spin, Chris said, "Spin generation with this string was decent. While I couldn't generate the heavy spin I get from most poly-based strings, I was getting enough to help me control my shots. I was happy with the level of slice I could hit on serves and backhands. I was able to knife through the ball aggressively and get the bite needed to hit a skidding slice. My serves and groundstrokes felt consistent, and I felt the level of spin plus the controlled response allowed me to play freely. I liked the response of this string the most when strung tightly. With a higher tension I was able to get more racquet head speed into my shots without losing control. The added swing speed resulted in more spin. This string differs from the poly strings I usually hit. I can string polys low and let the inherent stiffness and snap back provide the spin and control I like."

Comfort - Score: 85

OG Sheep Micro is slightly stiffer than the average multifilament, making it quite comfortable, especially compared to the firm polys our playtesters typically use. Chris was impressed, saying, "This is a very comfortable string -- especially for its price. I have recently been testing some multifilament strings with polyester fibers mixed in. This string felt more forgiving than those but not as forgiving as a high-end multi. Still, it wasn't far off, and it felt plenty comfortable even up around 60 lbs."

Also finding an impressive level of comfort was Mark. He said, "I most often play with full beds of monofilaments, so with a full bed of the Gosen OG Sheep Micro natural my arm let out a big sigh of relief. This string rates very high on the comfort scale, which is sometimes an overlooked part of the overall performance of a racquet. "

Feel - Score: 78

Our two playtesters reported very favorably on the feel of OG Sheep Micro. For Mark, the comfortably crisp response and pleasant sound at impact was tough to argue with. He said, "I add a dampener to most stringbeds, but the full set of the Gosen OG Sheep Micro was an exception. At 56 lbs it produced a nice 'thud' rather than a 'ping.' The string itself is soft and pliable while stringing and easy on the arm during play. This string has a crisp comfort even in my racquet with a tight 18x20 string pattern."

Also appreciating this string's feel, Chris said, "I liked the feel of this string. It had some crispness to it but it never felt too harsh. At lower tensions the string offers a nice comfortable response, and I could feel the ball pocketing into the stringbed well. At a higher tension the crisper response gives the string a faster, snappier feel, and it really felt like the ball was getting in and out of the stringbed quicker."

Playability Duration - Score: 75

OG Sheep Micro posted an impressive score for tension maintenance in the Tennis Warehouse University String Lab. This helps explain why the playability held up so well for Chris. He said, "I liked the way this string held tension. My playing style, combined with the racquet I used for the test, resulted in some good durability. I would expect some earlier breakage in a very open string pattern, but this string proved durable in the Super G 10 295. Combine that with the consistent response that lasted for the duration of the test, and I was very happy with this aspect of the string."

"The Gosen OG Sheep Micro natural stacks up well against any other synthetic gut string," said Mark. "The core does let the string elongate earlier than a truly multi-stranded string, but when you measure the price/performance against the tension loss/stringbed life, it is impossible to go wrong. When I was growing up playing tennis in the 1980s my dad insisted that I play with strings like Leoina 66, kevlar or some other nylon string due to how fast I was sawing through stringbeds. I wish my dad had known about this string because I would have loved to have played with it."

Overall - Score: 78

Scores

(Scores are determined by averaging individual play test scores)

Playtester String Setups

Review date: November 2014. If you found this review interesting or have further questions or comments please contact us.

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