Thoughts of Roubaix and Synapse owners

odessouky

Hi all..

I'm looking at getting a road bike with the tallest possible Head Tube, and I have narrowed my choices to the Roubaix and Synapse...based on specs, reviews etc..

I had a couple of test rides today at my local Evans.... on a Roubaix SL4 Elite Disc 2016 £1800 size 54...and a Synapse Carbon 105 5 2016 £1600 size 54...

My primary aim is comfort....

The Roubaix was unbelievably comfortable...but I hated the disc brakes...and the SRAM Rival shifting...and it felt heavy...

The Synapse was also comfy...not as comfy as the Roubaix...but I enjoyed the 105 shifting, rim brakes...and felt like a lighter more nimble bike...

My heart says Synapse....but my head says Roubaix...wish I can get some thoughts from actual owners of either these 2 bikes...

Also, I'm 5'10"...I tried size 54 in both...the Synapse felt a touch SMALL, and the Roubaix a touch large??

Hope to get some feedback guys...

Thanks

xslbmlqo

Can you test drive rim brake version of the Roubaix somewhere? Keep this in mind if you end up going for the disc version:

"Like most of the bikes I’ve evaluated for this post, the stock wheels on this Roubaix SL4 Comp Disc limit its potential, especially if you want a more responsive, faster moving machine. But unlike the other bikes in this post, with all the Specialized Roubaix (and racing oriented Specialized Tarmac) disc brake models, you have few options when upgrading your wheels. Because Specialized decided not to lengthen the chain stays on their road disc bikes to accommodate the wider dropouts for disc brake wheel hubs to prevent rubbing or ‘fouling’ of the chain on the stays, they developed a unique hub solution that only comes on the Axis and Fulcrum stock wheels Specialized have made for these bikes and on Specialized Roval brand of higher end wheels.

Roval makes good 40mm and deeper wheelsets but if you like choice and the option to get other wheels I and others feel are better and/or less expensive than the Rovals, you won’t be able to put them on the Roubaix disc bikes. Unless pride goeth before Specialized’s fall, I suspect later model year versions of this frame will come up with a better design to accommodate more wheel choices."

https://intheknowcycling.com/2016/02/05 ... akes-2016/

I have a Synapse Carbon 105 and I'm not sure if it is anything special. I'd saved quite alot of money if I had gotten Rose CGF/Canyon Endurace CF, but I liked the look of Synapse and believed the hype about the frameset.

kajjal

Specialized have standard gear hangers to use on scs bikes and have left the standard open for wheel / hub manufacturers to use but it is a fair point.

stueys

I can't really give you a direct comparison of the two bikes, but;
1) I know two guys who ride Synapse's, both love it, it looks like a special bike. A subjective, personal view I would go synapse over spesh
2) I've got rival 22 on my cx bike (with hydro dics), it performs really well, I've not touched it re maintenance or adjustment through a year of hard use. Rear shifting is typical sram, very exact and precise, front shifting is where sram lag Shimano (though the auto yaw works really well). But I think it compares well with 105. Of course you need to be able to get on with sram and double tap.

Not sure that helps ;-)

devonboy

I have the 2015 Roubaix Sport because it had the highest headtube I could find.I have an inflammatory back condition and need a straight back/head up position.My son has a 2014 Synapse which frame size for frame size is slightly shorter on the headtube I believe.

Both needed the standard wheels upgrading,and both of us swopped to Zondas plus 25c GP4000s.Equipped like for like the Synapse is slightly lighter and feels slightly more sporting,the Roubaix is slightly smoother while still handling well.You could buy either and be well pleased.My favourite LBS does Specialized and that swung the decision for me,now they stock Cannondale as well I could easily try a Synapse if there were to be a next time.

Having said all this I could also easily blow the budget and buy a Look 765 Ultegra in team colours because I love how it looks.

gaffer_slow

A Domane is higher and closer than both.

odessouky

thanks for all the input...very helpful..

so the synapse in 54 is slightly smaller than the Roubaix...?

odessouky

gaffer_slow wrote:

A Domane is higher and closer than both.

Which Domane please? Never considered Trek...and their models are completely confusing...3.2, 4.5, 6.7...etc...??

odessouky

devonboy wrote:

Having said all this I could also easily blow the budget and buy a Look 765 Ultegra in team colours because I love how it looks.

Ok...that was not very helpful!!! You've just swayed my mind again...

:evil: :twisted: :shock:

Just checked out the LOOK 765...and it looks absolutely bloody awesome...!! and the head tube in the M size is 19cm!! excellent..!!

Where can I test ride one in London??

gaffer_slow

Domane 54

stack 75.5
reach 37.4

Roubaix 54

stack 564
reach 380

Synapse 54

stack 570
reach 378

you could probably find a good deal on a Domane as they have just released the SLR.

It is MUCH easier and better to make a Higher bike lower and a Short bike longer than the opposite.

gaffer_slow

Trek 4.5 or 5.2 depending on how far you can stretch

5.4 is 2,200 at RRP.

AFAIK the 4.x series is a lower quality frame in comparison to the 5.x
the 5.2 has better components speced that the 4.5


pedal on have quite a generous "podium points system"
http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/trek- ... 4-5-c.html
£1800 with 20% of "free accessories"
http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/trek- ... mpact.html
£2200 with 20% of "free accessories"


Evans list the 56cm 5.2 @ 7.6kg and the 4.5 at 9kg so quite a difference.

Personally i would phone around trek dealers, mentioning that "the New SLR model is released" and try ands get 15% off the RRP price of the 5.2C (the C is compact chainset) which would be ~£1880...
............... For a ~7.6kg (weighed without pedal no doubt) Ultegra Bike.

And if you value comfort, it will be more comfortable than the Roubaix .... if the internet is to be believed, which i rarely do, but in this case everyone seems to find a Domane VERY comfortable.

If you can stretch price wise to the 5.2C Domane, it would be the best choice, if not i am sure the Synapse is a great bike.

odessouky

gaffer_slow wrote:

Domane 54

stack 75.5
reach 37.4

Roubaix 54

stack 564
reach 380

Synapse 54

stack 570
reach 378

you could probably find a good deal on a Domane as they have just released the SLR.

It is MUCH easier and better to make a Higher bike lower and a Short bike longer than the opposite.

Thanks for that...very informative...

I never looked at Frame Stack before!

The head tube is only 16cm on the Medium Domane 5.2, yet a much higher stock than the Roubaix and Synapse, inspire of them having head tubes of 18 and 19cm? How is that possible?

odessouky

gaffer_slow wrote:

Domane 54

stack 75.5
reach 37.4

Roubaix 54

stack 564
reach 380

Synapse 54

stack 570
reach 378

you could probably find a good deal on a Domane as they have just released the SLR.

It is MUCH easier and better to make a Higher bike lower and a Short bike longer than the opposite.

just checked...you meant 57.5...?

gaffer_slow

well 775mm but yes my error.

trek geo was listed in cm

compared with the synapse, it is only 5mm either way, but still short and higher.

personally of the two, i would rather a domane. bb3o possible issues for one, 5.2 light bike with ultegra for poss less than £2000 the other. great value

79543dean

Have you considered Felt Z series?

This is my Felt Z1



This is my Felt Z2 disc

[/URL]

They are both 56cm and I am 5ft 11. Fantastic frames. Light and very comfy.

devonboy

My LBS also does Trek,but I kept coming across threads on various forums about cracked frames especially in the seat post area.Naturally cautious so went in another direction.

rando

devonboy wrote:

My LBS also does Trek,but I kept coming across threads on various forums about cracked frames especially in the seat post area.Naturally cautious so went in another direction.

I have 2 Trek Domane's (2.3 & 5.2) and done about 10k miles between them and suffered no cracked frames and I am not particularly light so bikes get some rough treatment on our crap UK roads. One thing I would say about Trek though is that the frames have a lifetime warranty so a cracked frame at seat post would more than likely be replaced . I have used the Trek warranty as the wheels on my 5.2 cracked on the rim and have been replaced twice. Both my Domane's are great to ride and comfortable .

Giraffoto

Look around for the cheaper Roubaix model with rim brakes. I've got one of last year's and it's comfortable, high enough at the front for 6'4" and a dodgy back, and makes me want to go faster all the time.

lakesluddite

xslbmlqo wrote:

Can you test drive rim brake version of the Roubaix somewhere? Keep this in mind if you end up going for the disc version:

"Like most of the bikes I’ve evaluated for this post, the stock wheels on this Roubaix SL4 Comp Disc limit its potential, especially if you want a more responsive, faster moving machine. But unlike the other bikes in this post, with all the Specialized Roubaix (and racing oriented Specialized Tarmac) disc brake models, you have few options when upgrading your wheels. Because Specialized decided not to lengthen the chain stays on their road disc bikes to accommodate the wider dropouts for disc brake wheel hubs to prevent rubbing or ‘fouling’ of the chain on the stays, they developed a unique hub solution that only comes on the Axis and Fulcrum stock wheels Specialized have made for these bikes and on Specialized Roval brand of higher end wheels.

Roval makes good 40mm and deeper wheelsets but if you like choice and the option to get other wheels I and others feel are better and/or less expensive than the Rovals, you won’t be able to put them on the Roubaix disc bikes. Unless pride goeth before Specialized’s fall, I suspect later model year versions of this frame will come up with a better design to accommodate more wheel choices."

https://intheknowcycling.com/2016/02/05 ... akes-2016/

I have a Synapse Carbon 105 and I'm not sure if it is anything special. I'd saved quite alot of money if I had gotten Rose CGF/Canyon Endurace CF, but I liked the look of Synapse and believed the hype about the frameset.

Ah..the penny drops...

I had replaced the heavy Axis wheels on my Roubaix SL4 disc with some nice new disc wheels, but couldn't work out why I was having such trouble getting into the higher gears (not so much of a problem for a slow coach like me), and saw that the smallest cog was right up against the rear hanger. Strange, I thought, must be something wrong with the placement of the hanger, or the rear derailleur. So from this I'm guessing the Pro-Lites I put on are actually incompatible with this frame? Damn, they're really nice wheels as well (well they were until I shoved the chain into the spokes yesterday and snapped one!).

You live and learn! (and spend!)

lakesluddite

Actually, from reading a bit more, it seems that this is only applies to 2016 models? Mine is a 2015, so I might actually be okay...

odessouky

79543dean wrote:

Have you considered Felt Z series?

This is my Felt Z1



This is my Felt Z2 disc

[/URL]

They are both 56cm and I am 5ft 11. Fantastic frames. Light and very comfy.

those look awesome..!! :shock:

gaffer_slow

some handbuilds are available for SCS. 240s can be adapted, and Hope have an SCS version.

mcxfisher

After trying a whole raft of endurance geometry bikes in eluding the Roubaix around a standard 12 mile course I chose the Synapse Carbon 105 on the grounds of superior comfort, and I'm delighted with the result. A ride of 70 miles without the least discomfort speaks for itself. I am 5' 8.5", with a problem back and at 66, not hugely flexible. The 54 frame Synapse matches my pro-fit data without any modification (I haven't bothered to change the 420 bars for 400s).
You will have difficulty finding 2016 model Trek Domanes at size 54. When the local main dealer checked there were no 5.2 in that size anywhere in the UK supply chain. It's a great bike, 2nd in my selection, but I preferred the Synapse (despite being offered a massive price cut on the Domane). The 2017 Domanes will have the new SLR front end damping: I haven't yet seen the pricing scale.

odessouky

mcxfisher wrote:

After trying a whole raft of endurance geometry bikes in eluding the Roubaix around a standard 12 mile course I chose the Synapse Carbon 105 on the grounds of superior comfort, and I'm delighted with the result. A ride of 70 miles without the least discomfort speaks for itself. I am 5' 8.5", with a problem back and at 66, not hugely flexible. The 54 frame Synapse matches my pro-fit data without any modification (I haven't bothered to change the 420 bars for 400s).
You will have difficulty finding 2016 model Trek Domanes at size 54. When the local main dealer checked there were no 5.2 in that size anywhere in the UK supply chain. It's a great bike, 2nd in my selection, but I preferred the Synapse (despite being offered a massive price cut on the Domane). The 2017 Domanes will have the new SLR front end damping: I haven't yet seen the pricing scale.

Thanks for that...great info...have you ridden the Roubaix...and chose the Synapse over it?

odessouky

Also...a friend of mine has a Scott Solace...He absolutely loves it...

He's 5'7"...so I cannot ride his bike to try it...I'm 5'10"...

Why do I notice that there is no love for the Solace...anywhere?

Its got a reach of 38cm and Stack of 57...very close to the Domane...and a massively tall head tube, at 165mm...comparable to the Roubaix....yet no one seems to give a mention to the Solace at All.....the numbers suggest its pretty comfy...?

gaffer_slow

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/scott ... -2016.html

~£2200 with 44 "podium points" ... if you need helmet, garmin and shoes etc etc i am sure its a good bike. similar spec to the Domane.

44 points would get you shoes and a garmin at least, with some left over for tools - like a torque wrench (essential for carbon bikes)

http://www.pedalon.co.uk/acatalog/podium_points.php

mcxfisher

odessouky wrote:

Thanks for that...great info...have you ridden the Roubaix...and chose the Synapse over it?

Yes: the Roubaix came third in my order of preference - but it's a very good endurance bike by any standard.

By the way, I also tried a Scott and found the front end vibration damping less good than the Synapse, Domane and Roubaix.

daniel_b

I LOVE my Alu Synapse, with SRAM Rival and Hydraulic brakes - just treated it to a pair of Carbon clinchers in fact!