Medically reviewed by Dr Sin Yong · Last reviewed · 8 min read
Published 9 October 2026 · Reviewed by Dr Sin Yong
Vivace is made by ShenB in Korea, the same company that makes Virtue RF, and is marketed in the US by Aesthetics Biomedical. Secret RF is made by ILOODA. Both are bipolar fractional microneedle RF systems with depth set in 0.1 mm steps.
Short answerVivace files bipolar radiofrequency at 1 and 2 MHz through a 36-needle tip, with depth from 0.5 to 3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps; its 1 MHz setting carries FDA wording for facial wrinkles in skin types I to V. Secret RF files bipolar 2 MHz with the same depth range and step, and the Secret DUO adds a 1540 nm fractional laser. Neither is shown to outperform the other.
Why this site compares devices against Secret RF. Dr Sin Yong is a global Key Opinion Leader for ILOODA’s Secret RF platform and performs RF microneedling personally on the Secret DUO. He has been invited by the manufacturer to share his clinical expertise with doctors internationally. That is a disclosed relationship, so the comparisons on this site stick to what each manufacturer has filed with the US FDA and what published studies measured, and do not rank one device above another.
Secret RF and Vivace compared from their FDA 510(k) summaries
Secret RF / Secret DUO (used here)
Vivace
Maker
ILOODA Co., Ltd., Korea
ShenB Co., Ltd., Korea (US: Aesthetics Biomedical)
RF type and frequency
Bipolar, 2 MHz
Bipolar, 1 and 2 MHz
Needles
25- and 64-pin; DUO specialty cartridges
36 needles
Depth range
0.5–3.5 mm, 0.1 mm steps
0.5–3.5 mm, 0.1 mm steps
FDA 510(k)
K170325 (2017); DUO K202043 (2021)
K193070 (2021)
Cleared wording
Electrocoagulation and haemostasis
Electrocoagulation and haemostasis; at 1 MHz, facial wrinkles in skin types I–V
At this practice
Performed by Dr Sin Yong
Not offered here
RF microneedling places heat inside the dermis at a depth the doctor sets; the surface is spared when insulated needles are used.Vivace offers 1 and 2 MHz; Secret RF files 2 MHz.
How close are Vivace and Secret RF?
Very close on paper: both are Korean bipolar microneedle RF systems with identical depth ranges set in 0.1 mm increments. Vivace adds a choice of 1 MHz, and its 1 MHz setting carries US FDA wording for the percutaneous treatment of facial wrinkles. Secret RF files a single 2 MHz frequency, and its current platform, the Secret DUO, adds a 1540 nm non-ablative fractional laser on the same console.
What is the evidence for each?
For Vivace, a randomised trial in 20 patients (40 underarms) compared microneedle RF with botulinum toxin for axillary sweating and found it inferior to toxin at 12 months (Eid, Lasers Med Sci 2024) — a different use from facial skin. For Secret RF, a split-face randomised trial in 25 Korean patients with active acne found greater improvement with microneedle fractional RF than with a 1450 nm diode laser (Kwon, JEADV 2018); the device is identified in a later review rather than in the abstract.
Scar type, depth and skin type decide the plan, whichever device is used.
Which one should you choose?
Choose the doctor and the plan rather than the brand. Both devices deliver fractional microneedle radiofrequency; neither has been shown in a head-to-head trial to outperform the other. Ask which tip will be used, whether its needles are insulated, what depth is planned for each area and why, how energy will be set for your skin type, and who sets those parameters. Ask what RF microneedling will not help, and what would be done for that instead. A tethered scar needs subcision; pigment needs a different tool entirely.
Only the Secret DUO is used at this practice. Dr Sin Yong examines the skin, performs the treatment himself and sets out the plan and fee in writing; how fees are quoted explains why fees are not published.
Frequently Asked Questions
Neither has been shown to outperform the other. Both are bipolar with 0.5–3.5 mm depth in 0.1 mm steps; Vivace adds 1 MHz, and the Secret DUO adds a 1540 nm fractional laser.
ShenB Co., Ltd. of Korea, which also makes Virtue RF. It is marketed in the US by Aesthetics Biomedical and cleared under K193070 (2021).
No. RF microneedling here is performed on the Secret DUO. Dr Sin Yong is a global Key Opinion Leader for the Secret RF platform.
References
US FDA 510(k) summary K170325 — Secret RF (ILOODA Co., Ltd.), 2017: bipolar 2 MHz, needle depth 0.5–3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps. source
US FDA 510(k) summary K202043 — Secret DUO (ILOODA Co., Ltd.), 2021. source
US FDA 510(k) summary K193070 — Vivace (ShenB Co., Ltd.), 2021: bipolar 1 and 2 MHz; 36 needles; depth 0.5–3.5 mm in 0.1 mm steps. source
Kwon HH, et al. Microneedle fractional radiofrequency in acne: a split-face randomised trial versus 1450 nm diode laser in Korean patients. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. 2018. doi:10.1111/jdv.14714 (PMID 29178495). source
Kumar N, et al. Fractional microneedle radiofrequency: a systematic review of 41 studies with device-level tables. Aesthetic Plast Surg. 2026. doi:10.1007/s00266-026-05834-y (PMID 42047762). source
Eid RO, et al. Microneedle radiofrequency versus botulinum toxin A for axillary hyperhidrosis: a randomised trial (n=20, 40 axillae). Lasers Med Sci. 2024. doi:10.1007/s10103-024-04115-x. source
