If your system is giving you results that feel off, then why not change the system? For example, you don’t have to tie the tiers to the points, the overall letter assignment can be separate (this is Gingie’s review system as an example).
A reviewing system is only useful if it serves to explain your thoughts.
good point, i feel like it’s a mix of “too far gone” and “i do that already”. my review system DOES explain my thoughts pretty well, but the combining of the numbers into an overall score is always going to show some issues. that’s the problem with spreading myself too thin between the sum of ranked qualities and “vibes”, and also the nature of “overall” rankings imo. my results don’t feel off per se, i just felt a kind of dissonance with the quality of the string (feel, branding, vibes) versus the actual grading of it. that wasn’t incorrect to me, i feel like i judged it accurately, it was just shocking :3
i just like to think the overall ranking serves as a very general guide for differentiating quality compared to the ideal string in my head. that’s why i always encourage looking at the scores that interest you versus just reading the overall and assuming my word is gospel.
omg i’m so sorry, guess that’s an example of that playstyle i talked about! i throw hard and always push myself while trying to keep a sort of elegance, so i felt like the string was for an audience that wasn’t me. just shows how different we all are!
Fwiw, string is such a subjective matter and to make matters worse, there’s all different kinds of string all from different companies. Even further, different throws use different strings, and even the string length between throwers is different. Even different throwers throw differently; some casual, some performance, some both, and others something else entirely.
IMO, there’s just too many variables to account for when doing volunteer string reviews on top of all of your other duties as a person. I think the way you have it set up is perfect. You tell people what kind of thrower you are, the things you like, and the rubric for your grading points. That way people can shift their expectations based on your playstyle and theirs.
My only contention, if I had any, was to either use the same throw for all of your tests (to eliminate variables) OR mention which throw you are using for any particular test.
Nothing to be sorry about! It definitely shows the difference in string opinion we can have 
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with your system fwiw. Like I said, I love the objectivity of numbers that you put on it and you put such a good description of why you think the way that you think about what you’re reviewing. It’s the nature of reviews that there’s going to be a little bit of personal bias in there, so I can take that into account pretty easily.
All reviews are super opinion driven and biased even if there is an attempt at a system. I don’t look at the score as the end all for anything but the content of the review to understand why cake got to the score. Often some of the stuff cake doesn’t like about a string are a quality I personally jive with so cake is just base lining things and I can get a sense off that for what I might like without having to buy it myself first.
This goes for all reviews especially yoyo reviews cause like everything in this hobby is very personal preference driven
oh that’s every review! i think the end goal of most reviews (string in this case) is to remove variables as much as possible to capture the true “essence” of the string and then grade that (ex. same tricks, same length, same yoyo, etc). however, that kind of deprives the string of the context that it’s used in, so what use is chasing perfect repeatable conditions if no circumstances in actual use are perfect or repeatable? this isn’t science class, it’s a personal writeup of a hobby accessory i enjoy! something i’ve been thinking about 
this is exactly the takeaway i want, that’s the intended goal and interpretation. i’m glad it was achieved 
Also I really really appreciate you linking to the reviews in the main thread
I just hope if and when you force yourself to use watieoboo string again it drops in points on the newer scale
Honestly, as long as expectations are managed and there’s an effort made to allow the ability to scale the aforementioned expectations, that’s a perfect type of review.
And I agree with @Captrogers, number or letters are a nice way to skim and/or filter reviews, but the meat of the review is where the important stuff is. This is where I manage my expectations based on my expected playstyle.
I love to use prestige on my RBC. Both the throw and the string are not great for fancy tricks, but instead are MEGA comfortable. Sometimes that’s all I need.
welcome to Solutions April! resident boomer, cool guy, and graphic designer @rkalajian sent some stuff for review! as a late april fools joke, i started with the worst string first 
Throw-Yo SOLUTIONS Rope || F- (17/100)
This string is for “unmodded responsive play”, and the only thing it can do is make a yoyo go up and down. If you’re able to do a sleeper with this, you have a talent that i don’t. It makes the yoyo go up and down and that is IT. Binding it was terrible, the string was so thick it would just rub against the response pads and kill the spin time. The gap on the Monarch is 4.5mm, and i bet this string is about 4 mm. The only redeeming quality was the open slacks (for old school stuff like trapeze slacks and suicides because that’s the only thing I can DO), which had a nice speed to it if you ignored everything else. Whips were insanely fast, maybe the most so far. Please never make me do this again. I can’t get through this review. Get a responsive player to do this, please. This is awful. Stats below.
Durability 30 min (n/a)
Durability 1 hr (n/a)
Personal Thickness Feel (0) i wish i could give negative points.
Whip Feel Break-In (2) WHIPPY. AAAA
Whip Feel 1 hr (n/a)
Slack Feel Break-In (3.5) not bad??
Slack Feel 1 hr (n/a)
Tension Hold over 1 hour overall (n/a)
Softness during break-in (3) plush
Overall consistency over 1 hour (n/a)
Total: 7.5 x 2 = 15, 15 = F-, graded based on letter system (A: 100-90, B: 89-80, C: 79-70, D: 69-60, F: 60<)
I now hold a record! 
I just hope my ACTUAL strings fare better 
I love “boomer” rope. It’s majestic in how it plays so simple. Yo goes down and then it goes up.
I can’t wait to see the rest of the throw yo reviews. My current favorite custom string guy.
@rkalajian Solution April! Part Two! Yay!
Throw-Yo SOLUTIONS Ink || C- (70/100)
FAST. PRETTY. COARSE . DURABLE. FAST AGAIN.
All of these are words to describe this string. This colorway is an amazing shiny white and yellow (FRI, for fellow Splatoon fans) and it never goes away. Besides the aesthetics, this is the most tightly wound string i’ve used so far (so expect TIGHT/SNAGGY binds). That, along with the rayon and trilobal blend, makes for a string so breakneck zippy you need to adjust to the string. It doesn’t compliment you, it DEMANDS of you the competence to wield it. It’s a slippery little squid of a string, which makes the name INK very appropriate.
Whips were kind of hard to succeed with due to how fast it is, but it helped me cheat a bit. I don’t think arms can move fast enough for high hooks with this, but give it a shot, what do i know! Slacks were so fast the string would actually close on itself sometimes, like it caught up to itself and closed the slack formation. If you go purposefully slower you’ll be fine, but I shouldn’t have to do that in my opinion. All of these were definitely worse in the first 30ish minutes, but you start to warm up to how it works. It didn’t get much better, but it got better. Not by any quality of the string, but by muscle adjustments.
There’s not much to say about the tension holding and consistency, it’s so durable that none of ANY quality really changed, so in that sense the consistency is high. For doing the same tricks over and over, i also felt like it had a fairly repeatable feel. It’s not soft though, maybe it’s soft by rayon/trilobal metrics? Not to anything else though.
Overall, VERY unique string. Not my cup of tea at all, but definitely gets style points. Maybe i’ll put it on a shelf queen throw for the look. Stats below.
Durability 30 min (6)
Durability 1 hr (6)
Personal Thickness Feel (2)
Whip Feel Break-In (2.5)
Whip Feel 1 hr (3)
Slack Feel Break-In (2.5)
Slack Feel 1 hr (3)
Tension Hold over 1 hour overall (3.5)
Softness during break-in (2.5) coarseish
Overall consistency over 1 hour (4)
Total: 35 x 2 = 70, 70 = C-, graded based on letter system (A: 100-90, B: 89-80, C: 79-70, D: 69-60, F: 60<)
I love it!
I appreciate all the time you put into describing each string because despite despite this one not getting a super high rating, it sounds like one I might really like.
This is an awesome thread but so far a lot of the top rated string is really hard to come by. For instance, A&A String, a quick search, it looks like you can only buy from their website and literally all of their string is sold out. Looking for a great string that I can jump on the internet and buy any time without worrying about it selling out all the time. I’ve just skimmed the top of the list and I just couldn’t find any available. I’m currently using the Throwback poly string, costs about $22 per 100. I have 500 of their strings but before I settle, I’d like to explore more what’s out there. There are so many options, it’s a bit more overwhelming than I was hoping. I actually like the Throwback string the best so far out of the strings I’ve tried but I haven’t tried much, the main con to their string is it seems to wear out pretty quick but I love the feel of them when they are new. The only others I’ve tried are MYY, Watieoboo & Twisted Stringz.
Anyway, if anyone knows where I can try some other high rated string, please let me know where I can buy, feel free to DM me if we can’t mention other places of business. Oh yeah, I also looked for String Werx and came across a guitar tutorial site with that same name… maybe I’m spelling it wrong, I’ll go back to the top to find the spelling.
Currently zipline is the king of string when it comes to US availability. Can’t say it’ll be that way for all countries. Throw yo also has been pretty consistent. Kitty and Sochi are good go to and so is original throw for bulk stuff.
So many other amazing options but those are the ones I know have reviews above for some of their string right now
Take it easy on strings mate, there are so many nice bulk options you do not need to stress yourself much with weird boutique impossible to find stuff.
Generally it goes down to those bulk:
Zipline - Alphaline, Monkey finger - Vines, Sochi - Phoenix, OT string, Kitty - First Class, Aceyo (yellow)
I tried all of them (neon yellow and fat) and they all work pretty much in the same way at the end of the day, the rest is just hobbism and a bit of obsession, between those there are some that last more than others but it seems you are pretty new to the game so is not important, all those difference come and can be felt with time and experience, just take a bulk string you see around easily available and start to play like a madman!
Ive said it before and I’ll say it again. All aspects of YoYo are very personal preference driven especially string.
I personally treat boutique string like a treat I get occasionally. I’ve got my bulk string but sometimes I grab something different and enjoy the feel and slight differences in play.
There are so many good string and most is fantastic to play with. There are however objectively bad quality string that make YoYo less enjoyable and many of those are in cake’s reviews above.
