specialized road bikes - venge vs tarmac

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robeambro
Posts: 1826
Joined: Sat Jul 07, 2018 6:21 pm

by robeambro

ryanw wrote:
Wed Apr 17, 2019 7:52 pm
SL6 on CLX50s and Aerofly II bars. Perfection.
This. It’s a bike that can do anything and everything. Almost the lightest, almost the most comfy, almost the most aero. You’re not sacrificing anything and you’re not making any compromise*.

Being short or long distance, road or the odd gravel ride, mountains or flats, you will never find yourself saying “oh I can’t do that on my SL6”. So if you have only ONE bike, that is the natural choice.

Otherwise, the Venge will be a great choice too,I’ve not read one single person complaining about it, but you might, at times, find yourself a bit limited in what the bike is naturally great at.

*on this forum, loads of people get way too excited about minuscule wattage savings and sometimes this doesn’t allow to see the broader picture.

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Alex222
Posts: 120
Joined: Wed May 09, 2018 4:09 pm
Location: Surrey, United Kingdom

by Alex222

This is probably worth a watch, comparing the Tarmac to the Venge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHuXjNavX1Y

AJS914
Posts: 5392
Joined: Tue Jan 28, 2014 6:52 pm

by AJS914

Alex222 wrote:
Thu Apr 18, 2019 1:33 pm
This is probably worth a watch, comparing the Tarmac to the Venge
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OHuXjNavX1Y

Very comprehensive if not a bit wordy. I felt like he could have conveyed the same information in half the time.

It's too bad that he didn't equalize wheels. I mean usng 64mm depth wheels on the Tarmac and 35mm or 50mm wheels on the Venge. It felt like at times he was reviews the wheels rather than the bikes. For example, is the Venge transformed into a great long distance cruiser with 35mm wheels and 28mm tires?

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mcw
Posts: 72
Joined: Thu Sep 25, 2014 6:11 pm

by mcw

SL6 S-Works/Rimbrake/DA mech./CL50 vs. Venge Pro Disc/Ultegra Di2/CL50, both in Size 56, both on S-Works Turbo 26mm.

I feel faster with the Venge, but strava tells me another story.
I prefer the Tarmac, it is the more complete bike for me.

dim
Posts: 596
Joined: Fri Oct 13, 2017 11:25 am
Location: Cambridge UK

by dim

I looked very closely at the Tarmac but ended up getting a Trek Emonda SL6 and I am very happy

my next bike might be a Tarmac
Trek Emonda SL6
Miyata One Thousand

thedanplasse
Posts: 94
Joined: Sat Nov 03, 2018 11:04 pm
Location: Rhode Island

by thedanplasse

I have a 2018 tarmac sl5. Da mech/rim brakes I love it. Great all rounder.

I have clx64's/corsa g+/latex tubes that I'll be picking up saturday. I will check back in once they're on.
2020 S-Works Tarmac SL6
2018 Specialized Tarmac Expert Sl5

Stueys
Posts: 673
Joined: Sat Nov 22, 2014 1:12 pm

by Stueys

mcw wrote:
Thu Apr 18, 2019 6:06 pm
SL6 S-Works/Rimbrake/DA mech./CL50 vs. Venge Pro Disc/Ultegra Di2/CL50, both in Size 56, both on S-Works Turbo 26mm.

I feel faster with the Venge, but strava tells me another story.
I prefer the Tarmac, it is the more complete bike for me.
Interesting. How do they compare riding against each other? Handling, comfort etc.

pk1
Posts: 14
Joined: Mon Apr 22, 2013 1:05 am

by pk1

mcw wrote:
Thu Apr 18, 2019 6:06 pm
SL6 S-Works/Rimbrake/DA mech./CL50 vs. Venge Pro Disc/Ultegra Di2/CL50, both in Size 56, both on S-Works Turbo 26mm.

I feel faster with the Venge, but strava tells me another story.
I prefer the Tarmac, it is the more complete bike for me.
what sort of segments are you talking here? KOMs i can understand that but flat would be surprising.
it is known that harsher riding setups feel fast but are actually slower than smooth

calleking
Posts: 386
Joined: Sun Sep 13, 2015 3:20 pm

by calleking

I have a SL6 with Aerofly bars and Enve 4.5s. switched from an Aeroad. Both bikes are equal on the flats but going uphill the SL6 feels super stiff. Puts a smile on my face every time I hammer it. It's also more comfy. Can't speak for the Venge as I haven't tried it but I wouldn't trade my SL6 for any other bike.
2022 Wilier Filante SLR Dura-Ace/Ultegra Di2 12sp
2021 Cannondale Scalpel Carbon 2

Retired:
2018 S-Works Tarmac SL6 Sagan Superstar DA 9150
2016 Aeroad CF SLX UDi2
2016 CAAD12 - SRAM Red 22 - Hyper 50mm

Bordcla
Posts: 250
Joined: Wed Dec 20, 2017 3:42 pm

by Bordcla

If you travel and have to disassemble the bike, as I do with my Orucase, the Tarmac is the only one that works due to the external hydraulic cables. Venge would not allow to take the fork and handlebar out without somehow disconnecting the brakea a non starter.

I rode an SL6 S-Works for a solid day in Boulder and it's a great bike. Stiff, responsive, yet comfortable (was on the CLX50 and Turbo Cotton tires).

That said, that was a $11k bike as configured, and I wouldn't say it was better than my $4.6K Canyon. Just different but generally more similar than different.

Personally, if I wanted a Spec, I'd buy an Expert Level frameset or affordable build, upgrade to Ultegra Di2 and wheels of my choice (Enve 4.5 or 3.4, Zipp 303 or other similar...)

No performance benefit to the S-Works stuff. Pure status symbol now.

MRM
Posts: 532
Joined: Sun Jun 14, 2015 8:15 pm

by MRM

You can travel with the Scicon Aerocomfort 3.0 with the Venge without having to disassemble anything except removing the wheels. I do that and it works great.

robeambro
Posts: 1826
Joined: Sat Jul 07, 2018 6:21 pm

by robeambro

Bordcla wrote:
Mon Apr 22, 2019 1:12 am
That said, that was a $11k bike as configured, and I wouldn't say it was better than my $4.6K Canyon. Just different but generally more similar than different.
Personally, if I wanted a Spec, I'd buy an Expert Level frameset or affordable build, upgrade to Ultegra Di2 and wheels of my choice (Enve 4.5 or 3.4, Zipp 303 or other similar...)
No performance benefit to the S-Works stuff. Pure status symbol now.
That's true not only for Specialized, for pretty much any top-tier frame (eg. Cannondale's HiMod, Canyon SLX, etc). Especially when the shapes are the same (which may not be the case for the Expert frameset though, but I'm lazy to check), then there is very very, very little to be gained from going to a better carbon layup. Especially if the money saved can go into upgrading the rest of the bike.

I still got my S-Works for the status though. :mrgreen:

Bordcla
Posts: 250
Joined: Wed Dec 20, 2017 3:42 pm

by Bordcla

MRM wrote:
Tue Apr 23, 2019 12:52 am
You can travel with the Scicon Aerocomfort 3.0 with the Venge without having to disassemble anything except removing the wheels. I do that and it works great.
Yeah, but with $100 bike fees each way, that quickly becomes expensive. That's why I'm using what I'm using.

If I planned on not traveling or didn't mind carrying something as comparatively bulky as a Scicon or EVOC and paying extra hundreds in fees each time, I'd probably go with the Venge.

packetloss
Posts: 36
Joined: Fri Dec 11, 2015 2:29 pm

by packetloss

robeambro wrote:
Tue Apr 23, 2019 8:16 am
Bordcla wrote:
Mon Apr 22, 2019 1:12 am
That said, that was a $11k bike as configured, and I wouldn't say it was better than my $4.6K Canyon. Just different but generally more similar than different.
Personally, if I wanted a Spec, I'd buy an Expert Level frameset or affordable build, upgrade to Ultegra Di2 and wheels of my choice (Enve 4.5 or 3.4, Zipp 303 or other similar...)
No performance benefit to the S-Works stuff. Pure status symbol now.
That's true not only for Specialized, for pretty much any top-tier frame (eg. Cannondale's HiMod, Canyon SLX, etc). Especially when the shapes are the same (which may not be the case for the Expert frameset though, but I'm lazy to check), then there is very very, very little to be gained from going to a better carbon layup. Especially if the money saved can go into upgrading the rest of the bike.

I still got my S-Works for the status though. :mrgreen:
I'd recommend the pro level frames. About 100 grams difference to the S-Works and I have both and can't tell the difference. Expert level I think you have to get as a full build and there would be a ton of stuff to swap out.

As far as Venge vs Tarmac, if you can only have 1 bike and don't ride on flats almost all the time, then hands down it's the Tarmac. It's arguably within 10 watts of the Venge on the flats. For climbing, the Venge is horrible. It's not the bike weight difference or even the ever so slightly harsher ride of the Venge, it's that it just feels slugish, like you are fighting the bike when climbing. On the flats, it's definitely faster, especially when when on the front doing 30+. Considering that most of my rides have some climbing and thats where everyone really picks it up, I always end up taking out my Tarmac. They still have a ways to go before aero bikes can be your all around go to bike. Well, perhaps you can argue the Tarmac is that all around bike. Perhaps to get to the Venge level will always require compromises that will hinder certain aspects of the ride quality.

Jugi
Posts: 678
Joined: Sun Jun 24, 2018 8:10 am

by Jugi


packetloss wrote:For climbing, the Venge is horrible. It's not the bike weight difference or even the ever so slightly harsher ride of the Venge, it's that it just feels slugish, like you are fighting the bike when climbing.
After all the praise surrounding the Venge, that's a bit surprising to read. Could some of that difference be accounted by wheel choice?

by Weenie


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