Originally Posted by
njkayaker
"Absorbing shock" (compliance?), what [MENTION=23624]Trakhak[/MENTION] was talking about, is not the same as vibration dampening. Vibration dampening might be a thing (I'm not arguing that it isn't) but manufacturers sell the "laterally stiff/vertically compliant" stuff too, Given the variations in designs that apparently always improve this, I'm tending towards seeing this as BS. Look at manufacturers that add and remove shock absorbing "elastomere" elements from frames (even the same basic frame).
Most of the "shock absorbing" in a road bike is going to be in the tires. The frame doesn't appear to be able to do much there at all.
And on the topic of vibration-damping properties of frames built with various metals, both steel and titanium are denser than aluminum and thus transmit vibration more readily.
In any event, the vibration people worry about presumably has to pass through the tires and then through the rim and spokes and fork blades. In other words, I, too, am dubious regarding the idea that vibration damping happens much at all, as well as the idea that differences in vibration between diamond frames made of various materials are perceptible.