Advice on new road bike (my final 3)
 

I am considering the following:

Specialized Tarmac SL 7 Pro
Specialized Aethos Pro
Specialized Roubaix Pro.

Would appreciate opinions on any of these. I pretty much live on the dirt and am branching out to the road. Looking in the 5K to 8K range. Any comments are welcome.

Thanks

Tarmac. More aero than the Aethos and hasn't got the weird future shock thingy.
Though they are all over priced and personally wouldn't get any of them.

Road bike categories mostly exist as a matter of manufacturer convenience rather than having a direct relationship to end-user requirement. For example, the "aero" road bike category mostly came about because manufacturers wanted to experiment with "aero" frameset designs without putting all of their eggs in that basket, rather than because there's any obvious need to draw a sharp line between them and "lightweight climbing" bikes or whatever.

And it's not like MTB where the design differences between categories can have dramatic effects on how the bikes perform in different contexts. Using a gnarly downhill bike in a cross-country race would be a pretty bizarre move, and if you actually won, people would be pretty surprised. But there are people who ride 1200km brevets on "aero" racing bikes without trouble, and there are people who win short and punchy criteriums on "endurance" bikes, and people mostly don't really care.

If all three of those bikes will work for your fit, and you can't choose between them on their functional merits, just get whichever one speaks to you the most. Even if that's just based on color scheme. They're all great road bikes.
If you still can't decide even when it's just a matter of color scheme, get the Aethos, as it's less bound to proprietary "standards" than the other two.

At that price range, you'd better test ride them rather than ask strangers on the Internet. If your Specialized dealer doesn't have them in-stock, then don't blind buy, especially with only a vague goal of getting a bike for the road.

And at least try to get a bike fit of some kind, as your body may work better on the race frame or endurance frame, but not both. My dealer throws in a complimentary Retul fit with any Specialized bike purchases at the Pro or higher levels (technically, they'll apply a credit to the price of the bike when getting the fit). I don't know if that's a common practice, but at the very least you should find a LBS you can trust to give your pre- and post-purchase advice.

Sounds like you are partial to the Specialized brand and just named its carbon fiber road bikes (except the e-bike). Geometry-wise, one of these is not like the others. The Roubaix is an endurance bike while the Tarmac and Aethos have a more race bike geometry (lower stack height, more reach) that requires the rider to bend more and keep his/her torso more parallel to the top tube. So while it makes sense to cross-shop the Tarmac and the Aethos, it is rare to cross-shop all three of these bikes, at least when buying a first road bike. Best to get a test fit and test ride to see which type of geometry you prefer.

Which one says "ride me" to you?

They are all good choices. If you think a rough road is going to bother you then go for the Roubaix. If you think you might want a more aero position sometime in the future, then the Tarmac will let you get there.

I haven't looked at the geometry for the Aethos, but it's a very pretty bike to me. Even without being aero, it generally has less weight to make up for that somewhat compared to many other bikes.

The only thing I'll add is that the Roubaix's headtube shock ("FutureShock") does feel a bit weird if you're coming from another road bike. I hadn't touched a bike with suspension in over 10 years when I rented the Roubaix - definitely felt like I was climbing with a suspension fork. Coming directly from the mountain side of things, maybe it'll be more to your liking?

If your LBS does day rentals (instead of just test rides), might be worth it to take your finalists out for a 'real' ride instead of just a couple of laps around the block or parking lot. Some bike shops even credit your rental fee to the price of the new bike, too.

I am riding an Aethos and have but about 250-300 miles on it so far. I think the ride is great. The Aethos has the same geometry as the SL7, but obviously in not an aero bike. From what I understand the stiffness is between SL7 and the Roubaix. The bike is very responsive when I put the power in to it and when cornering. I do not race so having an aero bike was not as important as having a bike that was light. As everyone has said, ride each on and get the one that feels the best to you.

Aethos seems like a fun one if you are light enough for it. Unless you are racing the Aethos is probably the way to go or Roubaix might be a little more comfortable.

Me personally I would say
F. None of the above
G. a nice titanium bike

The Moots Vamoots DR Ultegra mechanical is $7546 and made here in 'Murica and is way cooler. I buy that over a crabon bike any day of the week. Plus it will last a lifetime and rhymes (ti is fly)

It’s what you get when you say any comments are welcome on BF lol
:rolleyes:

I get the feeling that the carbon superbike customer is a bit different from the titanium forever-bike customer. I have a Lynskey, btw - so no hate on metal.

What do you want from your bike?

The Tarmac is designed to be a stiffer, more aero race bike.

The Roubaix is designed to be a more compliant riding bicycle for racing over rougher roads.

The Aethos is designed to be a lightweight bike for pure enjoyment.

This is kind of like comparing a sports coupe to an SUV to a sedan. Pick the one that fits your needs/purpose.

Based on the list you've presented I'd say Tarmac SL7. Mrs. NoWhammies has the bike and likes it a lot.

I now have a Roubaix Expert 2021 and came from a 15 year old aluminum bike - the difference for me is extreme. I feel like riding on a comfy chair, but still far more agile and with better handling than my old bike. Part of it are the broader tires (28 for the Roubaix at 95psi vs 23/25s with 125 psi on my old bike), but the seatpost and the FutureShock make it a very smooth ride - when climbing in a standing position I lock the FutureShock out, otherwise it feels a little weird, so the 2.0 version is a must in my opinion (the Pro has it).

I'd definitely buy it again, but I have no comparison to other modern bikes.

You said dirt. You said road. You didn't say race. I think I know your type. You go Roubaix.

My vote would go to the Tarmac SL7 Pro for its versatility, but since you said dirt, I'd go with the Roubaix.

Have you considered the Diverge? It's a freaking nice bike!

Sometimes yes and no. Some people see carbon as the best because it is what is being pushed and they may not know of other options out there or may have passed on them for silly reasons. I see it with some regularity.

I thought the Tarmac was their lightweight climbing bike, with a few recent updates to make it a little more aero?

To the OP: Ive just bought a Spesh Tarmac SL6 and absolutely love it. I can only imagine the SL7 will be even better, so I'll vote for that.

It's been 5 days RichStu99 . What did you get? Or are you still undecided.......

5 days? Give the guy a chance :p. I took several months to decide :D

Yeah, but I figured it probably took the OP a few months to come up with that list. So any encouragement for them to pull the trigger will get them riding sooner. :giver:

If they wind up not liking the bike, then they'll have some experience for their next purchase. Maybe even learn why you don't ask strangers on the internet for opinions. <grin>

They all look good

Not sure where he is located but getting any of those right now is almost impossible from my experience.

Well, he only had one post back in March. Maybe he bought a bike, maybe the forum turned him off.