Cannondale Synapse Tiagra v 105

IamPlod

Hi,I'm relatively new to road cycling having had a mountain bike for the last five years. I am looking to buy a new road bike on the cycle to work scheme and and it's a choice between the Cannondale Synapse Tiagra or the 105.
There is about £130 between the two. Am I likely to notice much difference between these two bikes? I'm considering the Tiagra at the moment as I'll be able to buy more gear to use.
Any thoughts on these two bikes also welcome.
Many thanks,
Mike

germcevoy

Unless you ride the two back to back then you will be hard pressed to notice any difference. Wise to go for the cheaper option and use the change for kit.

bendertherobot

But Tiagra is 10 speed limiting upgrades. And the 105 has better wheels (and actually ok ones) and THAT chainset.

Get the 105.

germcevoy

Didn't realise there were wheel differences.

bendertherobot

Yeah, maddux v aksium and ugly fsa v Cannondale si hollowgramsexy

nwallace

Got one a couple of years back, went for the lower 105 spec that was on offer (105/Tiagra mix) because of the colour scheme...
Wasn't a big difference between wheels then, and well it was Green, Black and White and I can upgrade the rest...

So far all I've done is bought a 10 Speed Ultegra cassette for when the 32-12 isn't sensible, happy enough with the Tiagra brakes, the R500 wheels and the cockpit. And wheeled it into the LBS to get the cables changed, one look at the routing...
Oh and once the Lugano's were worn out Conti GP4000s' went on definitely worth it.

Looks like it's a full 105 drive train (except for the FSA crank) and obv the wheels; probably worth it at that small a difference.

Edit: Missed the change in Crank between the 2; totally worth it.

germcevoy

bendertherobot wrote:

ugly fsa v Cannondale si hollowgramsexy

Decision made.

IamPlod

Thanks for the advice so far..
I get that the 105 is technically a better spec so I guess my question is as a novice would I really notice any real difference or would the Tiagra be sufficient for my needs (social riding with friends etc) and would I be better investing the rest of the money in equipment?

gusm41

The 105 comes with the FSA chainset also, mine certainly did 2016 model.

bendertherobot

IamPlod wrote:

Thanks for the advice so far..
I get that the 105 is technically a better spec so I guess my question is as a novice would I really notice any real difference or would the Tiagra be sufficient for my needs (social riding with friends etc) and would I be better investing the rest of the money in equipment?

Assuming we're dealing with the 2016 models

You'll end up investing in better wheels because the ones on the Tiagra aren't very good, or, very light.

Now, the Aksium on the 105 aren't the last word but they are much lighter and will do you for a lot longer. Good wheels. So that's a wise investment.

IF you decide to tinker with bits and pieces in the future Tiagra limits you to 10 speed. So if you fancied an Ultegra rear mech you couldn't do that without adding shifters and a front mech. (That's a bit general, you might be able to find 10 speed Ultegra that works but I doubt it).

The Cannondale Chainset on the 105 is worth over £300 itself.

It's up to you. That's £200 odd between them that could buy a lot of kit. But, if you're budget won't stretch to kit then you might like to look at what else is available for cheaper anyway?

It's certainly fair that the Tiagra would definitely do for the purposes you describe but if the bug takes hold......

galatzo

Are we on about the carbon or alu versions ?
Just got the Mrs an alu Tiagra and £660 its a lovely bike, yes its "only" 10 speed but has new shape sti's which are a vast improvement and yes I think wheels are heavy but depends on what your coming from. The ride is dead smooth with the 25 tyres on about 85psi.
How many people bother to upgrade 10 to 11 ? Surely op will just be fully bitten by then and will be looking for a full bike upgrade ?

keef66

I bought a 10 speed bike when I returned to road riding 9 years ago. Apart from replacing the rear mech and a couple of cables it's all still working fine. So are the basic RS10 wheels. I don't feel the need to upgrade to the latest 11 speed kit just to get an extra cog. In fact when I had the opportunity to build up a second bike I went for R501 wheels and a second hand 9 speed Tiagra groupset.

So in your position I'd say go for the Tiagra bike and spend the difference on bibshorts, clipless pedals, tools etc etc.

type:epyt

You'll always get bit n bobs for birthday, xmas etc but a bike upgrade might be harder to come by so I'd go for the 105 ... 11spd, better wheels, much better chainset ... all of which would cost about £600 to sort out as an upgrade so £200 extra is a no brainer ...

edit: Just noticed it was £130 dif ... Easy decision to make as you're getting 105 and a hollowgram chainset for pretty much free ...

IamPlod

Thanks again so far for the help, it's great for newbies like me to get advice from other riders and not just the people in the shops trying to sell the bike! It's the aluminium frame with carbon forks I've been looking at. The Cadd8 also looks ok but seems to have more of an aggressive riding position so not sure it will suit a novice like me. I'm leaning towards the 105 and the moment but will hopefully take both for a test ride later this week.
Thanks again guys.