In this post, I am going to give you an introduction to Yonex badminton strings. To make this easier, I'm going to split the strings into different categories, repulsion, durability, hitting sound and control. I'll then go through each of them and tell you how they feel. If you would like to know what they sound like at 24lbs and 30lbs in tension, check out my YouTube video!
If you are new to badminton strings, first thing you need to know is that they normally come in two types of packaging: the 10-metre pack and the 200-metre reel. A 10-metre pack would be enough to string a racket, and a 200-metre reel would be enough for around 20 to 22 rackets. Nowadays, we also have hybrid pack strings, like the Yonex Aerobite and Aerobite Boost, which have two different types of strings for your mains and your crosses in a single pack. These hybrid strings also come in a reel, and naturally, there will be two types of strings in a reel.
Each Yonex string is rated on five characteristics: (1) repulsion power or quick repulsion; (2) durability; (3) hitting sound; (4) control; and (5) shock absorption. Yonex then categorizes the string based on its highest-rated characteristic. There are four major categories: (1) durability; (2) repulsion power or quick repulsion; (3) hitting sound; and (4) control. Shock absorption is not a category on its own. Here are the strings in each category:
Category | Strings |
Durability | |
Repulsion Power / Quick Repulsion | Yonex BG 66 Force Yonex BG 80 Power Yonex Exbolt 65 |
Hitting Sound | Yonex BG 68 Titanium |
Control |
Since Yonex categorizes its strings based on the string's highest rated characteristic, you will find that there are similarities or overlaps in characteristics between strings in different categories. For instance, both the BG 66 Ultimax and the Aerobite Boost are rated 10/10 for control, but the Aerobite Boost is placed in the Control category whilst the BG 66 Ultimax is placed in the Repulsion Power or Quick Repulsion category. Therefore, the first tip you should remember when choosing your badminton racket string is to look at the ratings for all five characteristics, and not decide based on the category in which the string is placed. You can typically find this information on the string packaging or, if you are buying online, at the specification section of the product information.
Next, I will break down the characteristics of some of the Yonex badminton strings that I have played with, and share with you my experience of playing with them. I'll start with the strings in the Durability category.
Yonex BG 65 and Yonex BG 65 Titanium
The Yonex BG 65 and Yonex BG 65 Titanium have been around for ages and they are really really popular worldwide due to their excellent durability. Both strings are 0.7mm in diameter, which are considered rather thick for badminton strings.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex BG 65 | 10/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 |
Yonex BG 65 Titanium | 7/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 |
Texture-wise, the BG 65 is quite smooth and doesn't have much texture so it's really nice to string with. On its packaging it's stated that it's a "soft feeling" string, but of course, you will not be able to tell if it's hard or soft just by touching the string. You will only be able to distinguish them by hard, medium or soft feeling after you string them on your rackets and have a few hits. For me, the BG 65 feels soft in the sense that it doesn't have a very crisp feeling unless you string it to really high tensions.
The BG 65 Titanium, on the other hand, feels a lot harder and crisper than the BG 65. It also has slightly more texture in comparison to the BG 65. However, as you can see from the table above, durability-wise, it is only rated at 7/10 whereas the BG 65 is rated at 10/10. Personally, I have not had any issues with the durability of the BG 65 Titanium though and I still think it's an excellent durability string.
Nanogy 95
The Yonex Nanogy 95 is a newer string compared to the Yonex BG 65 and BG 65 Titanium. It is also slightly thinner, at 0.69mm in diameter. I used to play a lot with this string and I find it to be extremely durable. It has textures similar to the BG 65 Titanium, but when you play with it, it's rather slippery, in the sense that it doesn't produce much friction when it gets in contact with a shuttle. It doesn't have much "bite" on shuttles, which means that shuttles tend to slide past it quickly when you slice at them.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex Nanogy 95 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 |
Next, we move on to the Repulsion Power strings.
Yonex BG 66, Yonex BG 66 Ultimax and Yonex BG 66 Force
First, let's look at the popular Yonex BG 66 Ultimax. I use this string a lot and it is quite slippery in terms of play and feel. Texture-wise, it's pretty smooth with only a little bit of texture. It sounds absolutely amazing and if you string them at decent tensions and hit hard and with clean technique.
If you think the Yonex BG 66 Ultimax is smooth, the Yonex BG 66 Force has even less texture in comparison. Personally, I don't feel like there's a lot of difference between these two strings so if you are someone who likes high repulsion strings, these are amazing options to go for. The BG 66 Force, in particular, has a perfect 10/10 score in terms of repulsion power and control, and also scores very highly on shock absorption and hitting sound.
The Yonex BG 66, on the other hand, is pretty similar to the BG 66 Ultimax in terms of texture, hence I would also consider it to be a pretty smooth string.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex BG 66 | 5/10 | 9/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 | 7/10 |
Yonex BG 66 Force | 6/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 9/10 | 9/10 |
Yonex BG 66 Ultimax | 6/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 10/10 |
Yonex BG 80
Personally, I would place this string under the Control category, but it also has very good repulsive power, very crisp when it hits a shuttle. I suppose that's why Yonex put it in the Repulsion Power category. The BG 80 is slightly thicker and stiffer than the BG 66 and BG 66 Ultimax strings and it's pretty rough with a lot of texture and bite. It also has a decent repulsion power as well so that's why it is super popular worldwide.
Yonex Exbolt 63
The Yonex Exbolt 63 is the latest kid on the block. I think it was launched sometime around 2020 or 2021. This string is 0.63mm in diametre, one of the thinnest Yonex strings available. I think only the Yonex Aerosonic (0.61mm) is thinner.
The Exbolt 63 is a super repulsive string. It is smooth with just a bit of texture on its surface, sounds amazing and is extremely durable as well. However, I find it a little stiff, in fact, it is stiffer than the BG 66 Ultimax and so it may be more demanding for off-center shots.
I have previously done a review on the Exbolt 63 so I will not bore you with the details here. Check out this link to read the review!
Yonex Exbolt 65
This is Yonex's latest string. As with the Exbolt 63, check out this link to read the review.
Yonex Nanogy 98
Next, we look at the Yonex Nanogy 98. In terms of pros, this string sounds absolutely amazing and it feels incredible. However, it is pretty slippery and a touch stiffer than the BG 66 Ultimax, perhaps due to the carbon nanotubes. One issue it has is durability, it breaks pretty easily and hence overall, I would say it's a 6 to 6.5/10 for me.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex BG 80 | 6/10 | 8/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 |
Yonex Exbolt 63 | 7/10 | 11/11 | 10/10 | 7/10 | 10/10 |
Yonex Exbolt 65 | 8/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 9/10 |
Yonex Nanogy 98 | 7/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 |
Next, we move on to the Control category strings.
Yonex Aerobite
Many of you may know that the Yonex Aerobite is my favorite string of choice. I really like the control you get out of the Aerobite and it really bites onto the shuttle.
As mentioned above, the Aerobite is a hybrid string that consists of two different strings in a single pack. The main string is 0.67mm in diameter. It is really sticky and bites onto the grommets as well as your shuttle really well, although its stickiness also makes it one of the worst strings to string with because they are so grippy. The cross string is actually the Aerosonic and it is one of the smoothest strings made by Yonex. It does not have a lot of texture going on, very smooth and super fine at 0.61mm in diametre.
The two types of strings balance out really well and the combination makes the Aerobite super repulsive. Yonex markets this as a medium-feeling string but I would say it is medium-stiff. In fact, it is stiffer than the BG 66 Ultimax and the Nanogy 98, but less stiff in comparison to the BG 80.
Yonex Aerobite Boost
Moving on to the Yonex Aerobite Boost. I've tried this string a few times and my initial impression of this string wasn't very good. Like the Aerobite, this is a hybrid string with two different types of strings in a pack with the thinner string being the Aerosonic. The main string is thicker than the Aerobite main string at 0.72mm in diametre and it is also very sticky, I would say, stickier than the Aerobite. This is a hard-feeling string with slightly less repulsion power.
Yonex SkyArc
I've not played with SkyArc before, but I have strung a racket with it recently. It has a lot of texture on its surface, making it feel rather bumpy when you run it between your fingers. Apparently, this is supposed to be a super high-end beginner string so it should really help people who are struggling to clear shuttles. It has super high repulsive, flexible strength and is extremely stretchy as well.
Yonex Nanogy 99
The Yonex Nanogy 99 is a very steady string. It doesn't bite onto the shuttles as much as the Aerobite does, and it is also nowhere near as thin as the BG 66 Ultimax or the Aerosonic. It's actually quite thick, but for a thick string it has quite a lot of bite to the shuttle. I would say it feels pretty similar to the Aerobite, just a touch softer.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex Aerobite | 6/10 | 10/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 9/10 |
Yonex Aerobite Boost | 7/10 | 8/10 | 10/10 | 6/10 | 7/10 |
Yonex SkyArc | 7/10 | 8/10 | 10/10 | 11/11 | 6/10 |
Yonex Nanogy 99 | 7/10 | 9/10 | 10/10 | 8/10 | 8/10 |
The last category of strings is the hitting sound category. This category is a relatively old category, and it's worth noting that Yonex has not released new strings in this category for quite some time now.
Yonex BG 68 Titanium
The Yonex BG 68 Titanium is a rather old-school string for hitting sound. Nowadays, any thin string would have an amazing hitting sound. As long as you hit a shuttle right it will sound good anyway no matter which string you use. Hence, to me, hitting sound is a relatively insignificant characteristic and category.
The BG 68 Titanium doesn't have too much texture on the string and it feels soft when you're playing and hitting with it. Additionally, in my experience, it breaks very easily.
String | Durability | Repulsion Power | Control | Shock Absorption | Hitting Sound |
Yonex BG 68 Titanium | 5/10 | 8/10 | 4/10 | 4/10 | 6/10 |
Apart from the BG 68 Titanium, other strings that I remember being in this category are the BG 85, and the BG 66 Sharp which was famous because Lee Chong Wei was using it exclusively for a very long time.
I hope this gives you a good introduction to badminton strings. If you have any questions, feel free to put them down in the comments section below. See you in the next post!
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