Mountain Biking - I need a new bike. Any suggestions would be great.

I own a older diamondback mountain bike now that has seen better days and I plan on buying something new soon. I want a good bike at a good price. I know you can buy bikes starting at $100 to thousands of dollars. I want something with a moderate cost but good quality, until I am sure I will use the bike enough to justify paying more money. Any suggestions would be much appreciated.

:confused:

What is moderate cost to you? To some, that may be $200, to others, $1200.

What type of riding do you do now? Are you looking for a hard tail, full suspension?

Pick a price range and go from there. Most decent hardtails will run you between 400 to 600 USD and fs will run you between 800 to 1200 depending on yr/mk/components. You can get bikes cheeper but if you plan on doing any serious riding I would not suggest it.
Slainte:beer:

Thanks for the advice. I plan on doing some on road riding but am wanting to more off road. Would FS or hardtail be better for this type of riding?

If you are going to do some road riding I say go with a ht(hardtail). The pedaling will be much more efficient.
Slainte:beer:

The Diamondback I own now is a rigid bike (no Suspension). I assume these bikes have gone the way of the dinosaur? The hardtail sounds like what I am looking for. Anyone got suggestions on a good hardtail at around $300-600?

Closer to 600 and you can basicaly just pick one from a reputable company. I prefer Kona or Giant but any of the major companies will have a good bike with decent components. The most important consideration is fit. Find the one that fits you and you'll be good to go. Try to find a good LBS that is not just interested in sales and ask them for help.
Slainte:beer:

dobbur,

looks like you're in the right direction... l can't recommend anything specific, but i would look for a used quality hardtail at best 1-3 years old - or a new one is you find a good deal.

DO NOT buy a full suspension for less than say $600 -- i personally wouldn't go FullSuspension for less than $1000... cheap FS are heavy and have inefficient pedalling --- unless you're doing special riding (like downhill only) ONLY buy a 4-bar-linkage rear-suspension (like Specialized FSR, Trek Fuel, Giant NRS, etc) -- most others have too much rear "bob"

i personally am a fan of buying a slightly used top-of-the-line bike rather than a cheaper new one...

Thanks for the advice.:)