Originally Posted by
ffftroutbum
I am in the market for a new road bike, so recently I road the Synapse (not the 2014 hi-mod version), Kona Zone 2, the R3, a 2013 Roubaix SL2 in Ultegra and 105 builds, Giant Defy Composite, and 6 series Domane. I liked the SL2 and the R3 the best. They both seemed to fit me the best. For me, I thought the harshest ride was the Giant Composite, but if i could have found an Advanced to ride I probably would have road that instead. it has gotten excellent reviews. I was a little disappointed with the ride of the Synapse with all the hype I have been hearing about the 2014 Hi-Mod version. The Hi-mod is out of my price range. The most comfortable bike to me was the Domane. You could literally ride it down the side walk and not feel the spaces between the slabs. Quite amazing. But, if I ran a pretty high cadence I could feel my butt bump around a bit which I did not like. Which got me to thinking I might not like that if i was pushing up some big hills in the saddle. Hard to say. I think the front end was a bit more comfortable on the Roubaix, but that might be splitting hairs. I salesman stated that the Roubaix was better at the smaller stuff and road buzz, but the Domane was better with the big stuff. I could not really disagree with that. I thought the SL2 was funner to ride while still being very comfortable. I also felt more connected to the road than with the Domane. It also seemed to fit me better. It probably has the best mix of what I am looking for. The R3 was a very nice bike as well. Fit me well, fun to ride, and was comfortable. I liked it very much. So now it's down to the Roubaix SL2 and the R3. But, I would suggest you test ride some of these bikes and form your own opinions. Good luck.
I guess what I am a bit surprised about ffftroutburn...is after your thorough testing against really top in class comfort bikes, you placed the SL2 at the top of the heap with the Cervelo R3. Why this is a bit surprising is the SL2 in theory isn't in the same price category as the R3 or a few of the other bikes you mentioned. The SL2 is a lower end Roubaix and $1K cheaper than the others. SL2 has the softer Fact8 carbon and doesn't have the same frame sections as the racier SL3 or new SL4. Any yet you really like the bike. Which begs the question for many of us...is the SL2 just fine and in fact preferred for those that ride on rough roads? In fact, the SL2 may have...likely does have...a more compliant ride than either the stiffer SL3 or SL4 and I would believe the R3 because it uses a lower modulus carbon and the geometry is a bit less stout. At the end of the day, if you put the SL2 and Cervelo R3 in the same company, then why shouldn't most of us just save $1K and opt for the SL2 versus ante up for the SL3 or SL4?. The SL4 Pro frameset alone retails for $2850 which btw has gone up quite a bit from the more cost effective SL3 which retailed for $2200 in 2012.
Ffftroutburn, I am hopeful you get a chance to ride either the SL3 or SL4 Roubaix as a basis for comparison with the Roubaix SL2 you like. I would be curious if you believe the higher cost of either bike is worth it in terms of more responsive performance and perhaps reduced ride quality over rough roads.