Somethings Got To Go
Comments
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I subscribe to WMB and get MBUK on a swop with a mate each month. We have both decided we are too old for mbuk and it is rare for anyone other than Jo Burt to get me going. and II really can't buy a mag just for a cartoon that is either spot on or off the planet!
I like WMB but agree with comments about the buyers guide. It would be much better to tackle 2 or 3 subjects a year and print a top 10 or 20 items in that list. I like and trust the reviews. They are well written and at least appear to be fairly neutral in bias. However the star rating system is too narrow to be helpful - percentages would be better. When it comes to subscribing or not I will probably go for MBR for it's slightly more mature production and for the pull out route guides which quickly build into a nice national collection of great rides.
Having said that as a previous poster said it is likely to be what's on offer with the subscription that sways me in my final decision.
Scott Genius 08, Marin Rock Springs 08, Marin Pine Mountain 890 -
As this is a Future Publishing site, I'll focus my comments on those mags.
MBUK, seems to have got a bit better over the last couple of years. Free gifts are mostly terrible (but they are free). I'm not sure I understand the gurning in pretty much every picture, I guess I'm more interested in the bikes than how daft the rider can make themselves look.
WMB, I always used to enjoy reading this when I was in the UK (haven't been able to find it over here, and overseas subscription costs are a joke) so I may be a little out of touch. Has the remit of reviewing lots of bikes and kit (clue is in the name) and does it well IMO. The buyers guide at the back has become less relevant with the effort that's been put into bike radar, I can find the same info, usually more, very quickly by coming online. Shortening the section and replacing some pages with more ride guides or tech articles would make me very happy.
Would be seriously interested in a paid download edition of WMB, if it was available.0 -
Dirt FTW!
Ok, so I don't do any dirt jumping, and I'm not ''sick to the power of rad'' (
) but I love the photographs - some of the best in the business no doubt. And the cleverly written articles use words with more than 4 letters in!
And it's about bikes and riding them - not ''what can I / can't I wear on the trails'' or ''those shoes / helmet / jacket (etc etc) you bought 5 mins ago, and you will SELF DESTRUCT in an UNCOOL BLOODBATH if you don't INSTANTLY go out and buy X, Y and Z clothes...!!!Boo-yah mofo
Sick to the power of rad
Fix it 'till it's broke0 -
who sells these x ,y, z clothes ???!!!
for the love of god tell me , theres no way i can go out now
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Well... I'm sorry to tell you this biff55, but you are ABOUT TO EXPLODE IN AN UN-CONTROLL BLOODY UNCOOL MESS...!!!
MBUK tried to warn you , but you just didn't listen... Tut tut. Boo-yah mofo
Sick to the power of rad
Fix it 'till it's broke0 -
so long as my coffin is sick to the power of rad. 0
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biff55 wrote:so long as my coffin is sick to the power of rad. Boo-yah mofo
Sick to the power of rad
Fix it 'till it's broke0 -
Started with WMB, then MBUK, then I realised they were much the same (apart from the MBUK juvenille fashion / drool section) but then got a gift sub to WMTB. I cant renew this due to the random star system and factual errors (eg a Conti Supesonic tyre reviewed a few months back didnt exist - they since fixed it online but nothing in the next months mag about their error and there are lots more inaccuracies).
I have since paid for an online STW sub and much prefer it. The bike doesnt matter as much as the rider type of attitude. Get your head right before changing the shock / fork.... Real refreshing.
The reviews tend to be for higher end gear tho(shoes, wheels etc) but the best bits are about the rides and races.0 -
Currently subscribe to MBR for last 2 years as they have some good freebies to entice you to join and its a good mag, especially with the ride pullouts.
I would subscribe to WMB too as I buy it every month but the freebies to join just arnt as good as MBR's, the savings alone isnt enough to make me subscribe either (I'd rather pay the little extra to get the monthly freebie if I cant get a good subscription freebie).0 -
If you are older than 12, drop MBUKStumpjumper FSR 09/10 Pro Carbon, Genesis Vapour CX20 ('17)Carbon, Rose Xeon CW3000 '14, Raleigh R50
http://www.visiontrack.com0 -
FSR XC,
Just got the Doddfest that is MBUK through the door. Trying to locate my Subs account number at the moment to cancel the magazine. You're bang on target.0 -
I was quite into Singletrack and had a sub but got sick of them constantly interviewing industry "experts." I don't give a stuff about them.
So cancelled it.
I find all MTB mags get very samey - unless you are after a specific bit of kit or they do a route near you (which you'll know anyway) and they are testing a few bits then it's just an MTB brochure to me.0 -
I think WMB does a good job,but it has to remebered that it is effectively,a bit like the "What car?" of the bike world,in that it is aimed mainly at those in the market to buy a new bike,possibly someone new to the game,that may buy it as a one off purchase to make an informed decision,so it does inavariably become a little repetitive if you read it every month.
It`s nice to read articles in WMB when the writers are able to go outside of its normal remit,for instance when Jen,Guy or Steve writes about one of their epic rides.
I also think the writers are better able to convey the riding characteristics of a bike without getting too bogged down in the technobabble and numbers of MBR.
MBR I think,get a bit too immersed in bike testing and lose their target audience.I agree too they seem to miss out the budget end of the market,and test a lot of stuff that is just not relavant to the majority of riders.
Singletrack is a bit hit and miss,but its slightly amateurish quality is almost part of its appeal.
MBUK and dIrt just aren`t relevant to me as I`m not a gnarly dirt jumping/freeriding sort of dude....
I do wonder if there is a gap in the market for something with the bike reviews of WMB but some of the lifestyle stories of Singletrack.2006 Giant XTC
2010 Giant Defy Advanced
2016 Boardman Pro 29er
2016 Pinnacle Lithium 4
2017 Canondale Supersix Evo0 -
talking of magazines did anyone see the 9 page mtb article in GQ this month?0
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just got the latest wmb and if they keep the new bike guide in the back I'll be switching to mbr (or possibly singletrack, although I've only read it once) when the subscription runs out. the slimmed 'top three bikes for each category and price point' went down to 4 pages, which is good. however, the new 'every bike ever made' bit takes up 30+ pages (yes, I counted), about a sixth of the mag, and as far as I can tell is of almost no use whatsoever- if you're looking for a specific bike you'll use the internet or ask a bike shop, and most of them have very little information anyway. right, rant over.Rock Lobster 853, Trek 1200 and a very old, tired and loved Apollo Javelin.0
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I felt the same. Initially, I was excited that WMTB was more than the thickness of a Leisure Lakes catalogue and the brake test initially looked promising, but there actually wasn't a lot too it. I think MBR did a better job a little while back, but will stand corrected.
The Future Publishing offerings just seem to have got more like a tabloid with no real info. This months Dirt wasn't too special, but I will be renewing my MBR again after a 6 month break in subs and adding Dirt also. MBUK and WMTB now cancelled until things pick up.0 -
i agree that mbr has lost the plot, not only was the hammerschmidt articel total bollocks irrelevant to every human being on the planet, they're "control tyres", spesh 2.0's, were totaly unfitting to the bikes tested :shock: who the frick fits 2.0 xc tyres to bikes with over 160mm of travel??????? and dont get my started on the "oh we went for a large to get the wheelbase longer, then the headtube was too long and the seat tube was too long, so we want a medium thats as long as the lagre but with a 0.000000007 slacker headangle and 0.15 inches of the seat tube, and minor adjustments to the air can size cos we like to see how ................" it just goes on and on. they always bang on about rear shock and how iof they fitted a smaller air can it would make the bike tauter in the mid stoke, last months review of the marin sayed they wanted a larger one!!!!!! make your bloody mind up :roll:
as for the rest i like dirt and singletrack, but only buy them if i like the look of a review in it, mostly i buy mbuk, and tbh i find it rather good :oops: im only 18 tho so its ok 0 -
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as for paying for mags I buy Dirt and Singletrack, although singletrack sometimes goes all weird with niche bikes nobody is gonna buy.
I do buy the others but am usually dissapointed0 -
Si.Ozzy wrote:sailor74 wrote:www.imbikemag.co.uk
its all you need and doesnt cost a penny!!
+1 only free online bike mag i can find
Wideopen mag? More of a DH/gravity bent though.0 -
+2, as you can probably tell from my sigsailor74 wrote:www.imbikemag.co.uk
its all you need and doesnt cost a penny!! 0 -
That's not a patch on IMBmag, it's just a PDF. IMB has tons of video's, video tutorials and the interface is 3 gazillion times better. Click the sig below and check it out!GHill wrote:Si.Ozzy wrote:sailor74 wrote:www.imbikemag.co.uk
its all you need and doesnt cost a penny!!
+1 only free online bike mag i can find
Wideopen mag? More of a DH/gravity bent though.0 -
the interface is 3 gazillion times better
I think I just died of old age waiting for it to load, and I didn't even get to page 1! It could be a good mag for all I know, but the amazing user interface is either borked, or a bit too fancy for its own good.0 -
i just don't subscribe. sure it saves you money of you were going to buy every one, but i don't want to, i want to look, see what's in it and then buy it, ends up cheaper than a sub most the time.
i used to read mbuk, but tbh, i don't want to know what they think is a cool tshirt they've been given this month. the moment any special interest mag has a fashion section, i'm usually out the door tbh.0 -
I subscribe to MBR and find there is always something interesting in it, especially yhte natural trails ...They've done some crackers in Scotland which i intend to visit this year. The equipment and bike reviews always seem to be varied from high end to best bang for your buck. All in a good read
Singletrack is Ok but can be a bit flowery and pndering in their prose. However some of the articles are excellent such as the one about the race in Alaska which was a great bit of bike journalism. However it can become a bit tiresome at times.
The other I tend to think of as aimed at the teen market and have never really warmed to them they also tend to focus on areas which to be honest are of litle interest to me other than novelty
MBR is the only one I'd subscribe to...which I doEnough bikes to open a bike shop but always room for one more...0 -
Antony_de_H wrote:I think I just died of old age waiting for it to load, and I didn't even get to page 1! It could be a good mag for all I know, but the amazing user interface is either borked, or a bit too fancy for its own good.
Personally I like the layout of the mag and have never had any problems with loading or using the interface.
I find MBUK rather irritating and tedious "I'm so cool I sh#t icecubes cos I'm a pyjama wearing rad mtb ninja" that seems to proliferate each issue. The gear section can sometimes be ok but not enough to make me buy it.
WMB & MBR are much of a muchness month to month although as noted above the buyers guide is excessive. As Supersonic mentioned a review of this which would be a good idea.
Out of all the high street mags I'd be more inclined to buy STW as I find it holds my interest more and seems to be written by people who like riding for people who like riding.
There we go, my tuppence worth in the ring lol 0 -
Antony_de_H wrote:I think I just died of old age waiting for it to load, and I didn't even get to page 1! It could be a good mag for all I know, but the amazing user interface is either borked, or a bit too fancy for its own good.
Must be your web connection or something as mines fine.IMB is a superb mag, good content, interesting and more importantly, relevant reviews. Also love the video content, different to anything else out there. Best of all its totally free! 0 -
treaclesponge wrote:Antony_de_H wrote:I think I just died of old age waiting for it to load, and I didn't even get to page 1! It could be a good mag for all I know, but the amazing user interface is either borked, or a bit too fancy for its own good.
Must be your web connection or something as mines fine.IMB is a superb mag, good content, interesting and more importantly, relevant reviews. Also love the video content, different to anything else out there. Best of all its totally free!
I just subscribed to IMB after spending the last hour and a half reading the current mag and bits from their last two.
I really like the video content and the articles are good.
Very impressed, especially for free!0
