Thoughts on the Cube Analog 2019

jujitsoup

Getting back into MTB after years away from any form of cycling. Looking to spend around £600 on an HT. It'll be mainly trails and the odd short commute. I'm 5' 11' and weighing (ahem) 15st after years of inactivity.

Having been to a few shops and looked around the net the Cube Analog is a bike I really like the look of in terms of spec and also style. (my 13yr old has a 2019 Cube Aim SL which he loves and rides well). Reviews for the Analog seem pretty good but I can't find much on the forums about it. Wondered what the general vibe was about this bike and if there are better alternatives out there for the money.

robertpb

I wouldn't buy the Cube, better off buying a Voodoo Bizango from Halfords which is much better bike in every way.

Long_Time_Lurker

What robertpb says.
Used to be a great value bikes with great specs.
However, since the rise of direct sales companies (Chain Reaction's Vitus range and anything coming from Canyon) and massive improvements in bikes sold by Halfords (Voodoo) or Go Outdoors (Calibre) they offer far less value for money.

jujitsoup

robertpb wrote:

I wouldn't buy the Cube, better off buying a Voodoo Bizango from Halfords which is much better bike in every way.

I've checked the bikes specs and the components fitted to the Cube seem to be of a higher spec than those on the Bizango and there's not much in the way of difference in bike price. If this is correct what the differentiating factor that makes the Voodoo the better bike? Is it frame and geometry?

steve_sordy

Look at the reviews to see what is deemed the better bike. If the frame is an old design, made from low spec alloy, and the whole does not work together well, then it doesn't matter how good the bits of kit are that are bolted to it.

I have seen group reviews where a bike that all the testers thought would be nothing special because of the kit list turned out to be the one they were fighting over before testing was completed. For example, a bike from Mondraker when it first came out with its forward geometry concept. It beat bikes that were double the price, and promptly set a trend for short stems. If you read the best trail bike for under £1000, or best budget bike, whatever.... You will nearly always find that the tester's initial views were confounded. Don't dismiss a bike because it is heavier, or has a reduced spec in some category. You really must ride it, or at least read the reviews by someone who knows what they are looking for.

Don't forget that the price of the bike as a guide is often thrown out of the window at this time of the year as the shops try to get rid of this year's bikes to make room for next year's.

The geometry must fit me for starters, but I would only buy a bike without having ridden it if it had at least several 4* reviews and preferably 5* to its name.

The Rookie

JuJitsoup wrote:

I've checked the bikes specs and the components fitted to the Cube seem to be of a higher spec than those on the Bizango ?

Did you really check the specs?

If so you think an RS XC30 coil fork is a better spec than a 32mm raidon with air spring and adjustable rebound damping? (the Fork is the single most important component, its the costliest and makes the biggest difference in terms of how a bike rides)

You'd prefer 3x9 (ten year old tech) to 1x11?

You think square taper is better than external bearing GXP?

The Bizango also has the better brakes, wider bars (though 720mm isnt that wide, 680 is pretty old school), better tyres for UK use, (although like most OE tyres not a great compound) and a through axle front.

The Cube is 14.2Kg, the Bizango is 13.2Kg from the BikeRadar reviews.

The Cube also has a 27.2mm seatpost narrowing your dropper options severely.

Which spec is actually better (except the headline XT rear mech) pray tell, I'm intrigued!

I think you were wowed by the XT rear mech (as Cube intended - ignoring that it has cheap Altus shifters and cranks) not by everything else where the Bizango is a whole heap better. the XT rear mech will have the shift feel of an Altus anyway as that is the shifter they have chosen, making it pretty pointless anyway beyond being a cynical marketing ploy.

jujitsoup

The Rookie wrote:

If so you think an RS XC30 coil fork is a better spec than a 32mm raidon with air spring and adjustable rebound damping? (the Fork is the single most important component, its the costliest and makes the biggest difference in terms of how a bike rides)

You'd prefer 3x9 (ten year old tech) to 1x11?

You think square taper is better than external bearing GXP?

The Bizango also has the better brakes, wider bars (though 720mm isnt that wide, 680 is pretty old school), better tyres for UK use, (although like most OE tyres not a great compound) and a through axle front.

The Cube is 14.2Kg, the Bizango is 13.2Kg from the BikeRadar reviews.

The Cube also has a 27.2mm seatpost narrowing your dropper options severely.

Which spec is actually better (except the headline XT rear mech) pray tell, I'm intrigued!

So are you the resident antagonist that all forums seem to have? Wondering if you're 15 because your defensive tone is just odd and pretty childish.

I'm no expert in MTB's, hence the reason why I'm here. The forum title is "Buying Advice" and that's what I'm looking for. From my limited MTB knowledge the spec looked good. It appears from the sarcasm that it's probably not. My bad, but as I said, I'm no MTB expert, and the comparative lower spec could easily have been put across without the smart-arse tone. At no point did I provoke or antagonise anyone so this just wasn't required. I'm simply trying to glean as much info from the knowledgeable folk on here as I can so I don't waste my money.

robertpb

JuJitsoup wrote:

The Rookie wrote:

If so you think an RS XC30 coil fork is a better spec than a 32mm raidon with air spring and adjustable rebound damping? (the Fork is the single most important component, its the costliest and makes the biggest difference in terms of how a bike rides)

You'd prefer 3x9 (ten year old tech) to 1x11?

You think square taper is better than external bearing GXP?

The Bizango also has the better brakes, wider bars (though 720mm isnt that wide, 680 is pretty old school), better tyres for UK use, (although like most OE tyres not a great compound) and a through axle front.

The Cube is 14.2Kg, the Bizango is 13.2Kg from the BikeRadar reviews.

The Cube also has a 27.2mm seatpost narrowing your dropper options severely.

Which spec is actually better (except the headline XT rear mech) pray tell, I'm intrigued!

So are you the resident antagonist that all forums seem to have? Wondering if you're 15 because your defensive tone is just odd and pretty childish.

I'm no expert in MTB's, hence the reason why I'm here. The forum title is "Buying Advice" and that's what I'm looking for. From my limited MTB knowledge the spec looked good. It appears from the sarcasm that it's probably not. My bad, but as I said, I'm no MTB expert, and the comparative lower spec could easily have been put across without the smart-arse tone. At no point did I provoke or antagonise anyone so this just wasn't required. I'm simply trying to glean as much info from the knowledgeable folk on here as I can so I don't waste my money.

Well I think you've just blown your bridges, good advise was given 'The Rookie' gave you his exstensive knowledge of the parts, for which I can concur with him, I advised you not to buy, but then I only have 35 years of this MTB milarky.

Perhaps you were looking for everyone saying what a great bike you've chosen, but it's not, it's very dated in parts and geometry. If you think that the Rookie comes across as the resident antagonist, you are far from the truth, they've all left, not that we've had many, in fact you're the first person in a long while to take a pop at any of us scribblers.

The Rookie

JuJitsoup wrote:

So are you the resident antagonist that all forums seem to have? Wondering if you're 15 because your defensive tone is just odd and pretty childish.

I'm no expert in MTB's, hence the reason why I'm here. The forum title is "Buying Advice" and that's what I'm looking for. From my limited MTB knowledge the spec looked good. .

You were told the Anolog was poor, you were recommended the Bizango, YOU chose to state the specs were better on the Analog, had you put it less definitively I wouldn't have been as harsh, there really is no part where the Analog is better (yes the rear mech is blingy XT but it's 9 speed)

YOU asked for advice and twice now have responded negatively to the advice given.

As for 15, no, not by a huge margin. As for defensive tone, I thought it was fairly combative actually, I'll make sure I try harder next time.


Back to trying to help if you still want it, the Analog is a really poor buy, the spec is 10 years out of date, so is the geometry, the Bizango is bang up to date, a much better ride for just about any use and a much better base to build upon for the future, it really isn't even a competition, it would be like you or me going into the ring against Anthony Joshua, the knock out blow wouldn't be far away and utterly predictable when it arrived.

avalanche_expert

To be fair to the OP, he has said he doesn’t have much knowledge. I don’t think he’s upset about people disagreeing with his preferred choice, just things could have been put across a bit more politely maybe? He was only asking for clarification, he wasn’t challenging the advice as far as I could tell.

I’m sure some posters here wouldn’t be quite so abrupt talking about bikes with a total stranger face to face, so why do it here?

jujitsoup

Avalanche Expert wrote:

To be fair to the OP, he has said he doesn’t have much knowledge. I don’t think he’s upset about people disagreeing with his preferred choice, just things could have been put across a bit more politely maybe? He was only asking for clarification, he wasn’t challenging the advice as far as I could tell.

I’m sure some posters here wouldn’t be quite so abrupt talking about bikes with a total stranger face to face, so why do it here?

Thanks fella, that's exactly what I was saying and the way I was saying it. At no point was I slagging anyone's advice, it was just as I read it all with my limited knowledge and wanted some clarification. I'm really surprised anyone could get offended or feel I was challenging their superior knowledge from I'd written in the thread to that point.

Your comment about talking face to face is also spot on but then forum's can become echo chambers. Never experienced anything like this on a forum before. Is this the way it goes on here or I have I just caught some on a bad day?

avalanche_expert

JuJitsoup wrote:

Thanks fella, that's exactly what I was saying and the way I was saying it. At no point was I slagging anyone's advice, it was just as I read it all with my limited knowledge and wanted some clarification. I'm really surprised anyone could get offended or feel I was challenging their superior knowledge from I'd written in the thread to that point.

Your comment about talking face to face is also spot on but then forum's can become echo chambers. Never experienced anything like this on a forum before. Is this the way it goes on here or I have I just caught some on a bad day?

No worries, try not to let it bother you. Unfortunately I think the tone of these forums is a little lacking in tact and basic manners most of the time. Sadly Isn’t that just the internet in general?

There is no doubt that the knowledge here is good and you can takeaway the good parts to your responses and use that to help you choose something better than the Cube.

steve_sordy

@JuJitsoup: Whether you like Rookie's choice of words or not, his advice is good. it would be in your own interests to just breath in and accept it.

mattyfez

The advice is correct in my opinion, the tone has been a bit off though, just my thoughts.

It's a common misconception that rockshox or fox forks are better than suntour as the cheaper suntours in the range tend to get put in a lot of bikes to keep costs down, but the forks above the XCt/m/r such as the Raidon and epixon are actually quite good, or at least better than bottom of the range rockshox for example.

A newbie isn't going to know that, or know the difference between a 1x or 3x drive chain.