Laserfibre Vorso String Review

Power - Score: 55 / Control - Score: 87

Our team gave Vorso a very respectable score for control. According to Andy, there's also some power under the hood. He said, "I found Vorso to offer pretty decent power for a co-poly, yet that power was manageable and controllable. It seemed like I could feel the elasticity of the string at impact, as the ball pocketed well and came off the strings with a fairly lively response. Control was good, but not as good as some stiffer, more traditional co-polys like Solinco Tour Bite or Luxilon 4G. If you are looking for a low powered string with tons of control, Vorso might not be for you, but if you want a bit more pop out of your poly than usual, Vorso is worth a look."

Although he prefers a crisper feel, Chris still managed to get good control from this string. He said, "Vorso is another string that fits right in my wheelhouse for power and control. I found just enough power to maximize the pop from my Babolat Pure Drive Plus. However, this string is mostly about control, and I found plenty of it. I had Vorso in my racquets at 54 lbs and at 46 lbs. Although I didn't like the sound of the string at impact as much at 46 lbs (it sounded a bit pingy), I really liked the response of the string. The launch angle was nice and high, giving me clearance over the net and depth toward the baseline. I also had more feel for the ball at the lower tension and found I could control the depth and pace of my shots better. At 54 lbs the string had a more muted feel to it, which left me a little disconnected from the ball."

Spin - Score: 87

In addition to control, the other top score for this playtest was awarded for spin. With sound mechanics, Chris was able to bring the ball down effectively with this co-poly. He said, "I really liked the spin from this string. At the lower tensions my slice had a tendency to float a little bit. However, I was able to tap into enough spin to get that shot to drop consistently. Once I made that adjustment I was really happy with the spin I was getting out of Vorso. At 54 lbs I had to put more effort into getting big hopping topspin off the ground, but it was still there if I focused on maximum racquet head speed and aimed higher."

For Andy, Vorso's spin potential was very solid, but it stopped well shy of GOAT (greatest of all time) status. He explained, "I thought the string offered good, but not outstanding, spin. Personally, I find that shaped polys grab the ball a bit better than twisted polys. During my playtest of Vorso the ball sunk into the strings nicely and seemed to slide off the strings with some decent rotations. While it's not necessarily a spin monster, the spin potential is above average for a poly."

Comfort - Score: 69

Long known for making uniquely comfortable multifilaments, it's not surprising that Laserfibre would make a comfortable, well dampened co-poly. According to our crew, Vorso doesn't have a harsh bone in its body. Andy explained, "This was one of the standout features of the playtest for me. Compared to other polys/co-polys, I thought Vorso was very comfortable and offered a nice dampened feel at contact. I strung it at a slightly higher tension than I've been using recently and the string still provided good comfort and never felt harsh on my arm. While it may not be as soft as most multifilament or synthetic gut strings, Vorso offers good comfort for a co-poly."

Chris tried Vorso at a few different tensions and had zero issues with discomfort. He said, "I liked the response of Vorso. It never felt overly harsh or board-like. I thought it pocketed the ball well and had decent give for a poly based string. At the lower tension it felt even more forgiving, and it pocketed the ball very, very well."

Feel - Score: 73

For our team, Vorso's impressive comfort came with a flip side, namely that it lacked the kind of crisp and direct feedback that both our playtesters prefer. Chris explained, "The feel of Vorso at 54 lbs was a little muted for me. I felt a tad disconnected from impact with it. While it felt like Vorso was more comfortable than many co-polys, it didn't connect me to my shots like a crisp-feeling string does. Interestingly, at 46 lbs the muted feel went away. I could feel the ball much more, and the way the string reacted at impact made it feel like a completely different string. I much preferred the feel of Vorso at the lower tension even though it didn't last as long in my racquet."

Like Chris, Andy would have preferred a slightly crisper and more direct feel. He said, "I thought Vorso felt fairly soft and dampened at impact. It was quite muted as well, which helped provide comfort but at the same time left me feeling a bit distant from the ball. I liked the softer feel, but I think I would've traded some of that muted feel for a little more responsiveness and connection to the ball."

Playability Duration - Score: 60

As with the majority of softer co-polys we've playtested, Vorso lost its fair share of tension over time. This resulted in a livelier feel for Andy. He said, "I thought the tension maintenance and playability duration were pretty average compared to other polys. The string lost tension fairly quickly, and when it did it got pretty lively. I broke the 17 gauge string fairly quickly (after about five hours of use), but I think I would have to re-string it for playability purposes after about two to three weeks. The stiffer response of the 16 gauge allowed me to get maybe one more week out of it before I had to cut it out."

Chris had some control issues after the inevitable tension loss. He explained, "Vorso lasted three weeks in my racquet at 54 lbs before control dropped off and I cut it out. At 46 lbs the string started to bag out after two weeks, and I cut it out at the start of week three. I was getting too much launch into the third week and started to miss long if I didn't get lots of spin. I was no longer able to hit flat shots as effectively as I liked, but a fresh set of Vorso took care of the problem."

Overall - Score: 82