Construction: Co-Polyester Monofilament

Color: Black

Gauge: 16G (1.30 mm), or 16L (1.25 mm)

Length: 40 feet (12.2 M)

Test Racquet / Tension
Wilson Ultra 100 CV Reverse/1.25 mm @ 48 lbs

Intro
We have known Luxilon for many years to produce some of the best polyester strings on the tennis market. Now Luxilon is changing with the times to create a new string that is both powerful and feel oriented - LXN Smart. Smart is the first string that will intelligently know your swing speed and adapt in real time to give you more flex on touch shots and more stiffness on power shots. Three fibers within the polymer material work together to adjust for either more stiffness or more touch depending on your swing. The brand is aiming to make it an effortless string that won’t require you to do a lot of thinking when you play. With this being said, Luxilon still recommends stringing at a lower tension for the best results.

Power/Spin/Control
What I did like about this string is its ability to generate power and spin. When I was hitting from the baseline I could easily generate enough power to drive the ball deep into corners. Topspin and slices were rewarding because the ball could get more bite making it harder for my opponent to adjust. Although it is supposed to stiffen when you swing faster, it doesn’t have that dialed in controlled feel of Luxilon ALU Power or other top polyesters out there. Control was there for the first couple hours of hitting, but soon depleted making the string bed feel mushy. I felt my accuracy went down and it was harder for me to continue to dictate play.

Feel / Comfort
The feel and comfort is definitely noticeable with LXN Smart. For a polyester string, I was pleasantly surprised how well the feel was at the net with dropshots and volleys. This string is rounded, but plays more like a textured pattern string allowing you to get more flex and ball pocketing on contact. Around the baseline, the feel especially helped me generate more topspin than normal and slices were easier to direct. It absorbed shock more often on off-center hits giving it a more arm-friendly sensation.

Durability
Durability and tension maintenance were okay, but not the greatest. In terms of durability, the string will last a pretty long time but the main area of concern is tension maintenance. After about 6-8 hours of play, I noticed a significant difference in the tension which made me want to cut it out. This is similar to the Luxilon M2 tennis string which was released back in 2009. Players will want to mess around with the tension since it is still recommended to string at a low tension (+/- 40 lbs).

Overall
Luxilon has made an interesting update to their line of strings. LXN Smart will provide players with plenty of power, spin, feel and comfort when they hit. Control and tension maintenance are a little lacking so players may need to restring more often or tinker with their setups a bit to get the right feel. Smart may be great for players that currently are heavy monofilament string users and want something a little bit more user friendly. Players that are looking to switch from a multifilament or synthetic gut, will want to start at the lower recommended tension and work their way up.

About the Reviewer: Chris Virk-Brown currently works at Tennis Express on the Content Marketing team. He previously played at Neumann University and coached at the collegiate level for 3 years. He is an active USTA League and Tournament player.