2013 Scott Genius 740 review

OK, it’s fair to say I have had a love/hate relationship with the Scott Genius, ever since I had one of the original versions back in back in 2004, when a 120mm travel bike was considered ‘All-Mountain’, before the term had really been invented! At the time I never was really happy with the bike, and in many ways it was just a little too clever for it’s own good, and never really felt like a great bike- and don’t start me on the idea of having a non-replaceable rear derailleur hanger or any of the other ‘Scott specific’ parts. At one stage it took over a month to get a simple bottom bracket, that needed to be just a little different in length to the standard.

So it was with mixed emotions I thought I should test the new generation Scott Genius– the 2013 models have reverted to a more conventional shock set-up (rather than the original pull-shock) and there has also been the introduction of the 650b wheels (or 27.5 wheels, as some call them) instead of a standard 26 inch wheel. The 27.5 Genius’ have 150mm travel front and rear, compared to the shorter 120mm travel of their bigger wheeled family members, the 29er Genius.

It is interesting to see that Aussie importer Avantiplus have chosen to stock only 2 of the new 700 Series Genius- the base model 740 (rrp $3, 399) and the carbon 720 (rrp $4,999), skipping a few of the other models. At first glance this looked like a mistake. Almost core to the Genius concept is the idea that you can change the amount of travel the bike has ‘on the fly’, yet the cheaper 740 model came only with a standard DT swiss M3 shock, rather than the ‘Nude 2’ shock found on every other Genius- it seemed odd to go for this model rather than the slightly higher model 730, which is the highest speced Alloy version.

So, on first hearing that the 720’s had all already sold out on pre-order, I was disappointed to find I would have to go for the alloy cheaper 740. However, in hindsight I am really glad this was the one I ended up on.

Straight out of the box, the 740 Genius is a pretty good bit of kit. The bike comes in at 13.5kg, which isn’t bad for an entry-level bike with 150mm travel. The kit is all shimano and syncros components, and it’s all really solid- the deore brakes are fantastic, and the 30 speed shimano drivetrain works well. The most obvious mistake though is not providing a shadowplus rear derailleur- instead it comes with a more basic XT derailleur, which is very noticeably noisy and did drop the chain a few times- this seems a really silly area to penny pinch, and something I almost immediately upgraded- the clutch on the new shadowplus XT derailleur just works so well to keep the chain tight, eliminating all noise and chain-drops, and really making a chain retainer redundant.

 Scott genius and spark- compare wheel sizes!

The other main upgrade I did was to set up the tyres tubelessly- and this brought me to the first problem with 650b wheels! The tubeless set-up was pretty simple, using tubeless rim strips, however I did manage to over-inflate the wheels using a neighbours dodgy compressor- causing one tyre to blow off and break the bead. Now, normally that would just be a slight inconvenience, requiring a quick visit to a local bike shop to grab a new tyre, but of course no store in Adelaide had any 650b tyres available in stock on the day- although I hear a few stores have them now. So, it did mean a few days wait to get some sent- I now have a few spares! Prior to setting it up tubelessly I did also test running a standard 26er tube in the wheels eith no problems, so probably wouldn’t bother getting 27.5 tubes.

The only other upgrade I am currently waiting on is a dropper post- the bike already has all the frame tabs for the cables, even including a hole in the frame for a Rockshox Stealth Reverb post, if you have one of those.

So, to the ride- well, it really feels super-plush, but also very lively. The suspension on this model is a DT swiss M3 rear shock, and the new Fox Float CTD 34 fork up front. Both shocks can be controlled via the handlebar switch, and this makes prefect sense- there is the fully open setting (or descend on the Forks), then a middle setting with platform on both shocks, then a nearly complete lockout setting. It seems a very simple way to incorporate the new CTD system with the original Genius concept.

What is interesting is that in many ways the less complicated rear shock on the 740 works better than the more expensive Nude 2 shock. With that shock the travel is varied from full (150mm travel) to 120mm travel via closing one of the 2 chambers. However from previous experience using the same nude2 shock on a Spark, I know this shock tends to feel quite harsh sometimes, especially in the middle setting. However on the Genius 740 the shock works really nicely- in fully open it is really nice and plush, and then when you switch into the middle setting you can really feel the platform working, giving you a fast, bounce-free ride, even when pedalling hard- but still allowing full travel ‘if’ you need it. The 3 settings also work faultlessly with the CTD forks. At the end of the day I actually feel this works better, the bike never feels like it has too much travel, and the platform setting really does allow you to still climb or sprint well. This does make me wonder if the whole ‘genius’ concept of the adjustable travel is maybe one invention too far, and in fact the cheapest model, with a more basic shock, is actually the better ride!

Can you notice a big difference with the 650b wheels? Well, when you jump on, the difference is really very subtle, and in a lot of cases you really don’t notice you are not riding a 26er. It jumps well, and doesn’t feel overly large- something that is important to me, and as a short-arse one of the reasons I have steered clear of 29ers. However you occasionally do notice a difference- the bike does occasionally feel a fraction harder to get going, but then on slight uphills I would suddenly find myself catching riders who would normally power away from me, once I got going. I certainly like the feel, and I guess the best way to describe it is that the wheels just feel 10% faster, and a little smoother on rock gardens than a comparable 26er! The Goldilocks of wheels, for sure!

Spot the 27.5er! (Clue, it’s nearly the last one on the trailer!)

So, am I sold now on the Genius? Yes, I really do love it. Having ridden it for a month now, including a varied week of riding in New Zealand (some shuttles at Rotorua, some longer XC days), I just love the way it really does climb well, but then offer superb plush but solid descending- the Fox Float 34s help too, and the whole package really is well balanced. Interestingly I am finding I am faster on this bike across all my riding (or so Strava says!) and not just on the downs. Sprinting on the roads is no drama too in fully locked out mode.

Having come from a more simple ‘set and forget’ bike that was the Avanti Torrent (which I never really bothered to lock out forks or toggle with the shock whist riding) this feels totally different, and you do come addicted to switching the suspension settings on the fly, even over very short sections. I used to just deal with the fact I was riding a longer travel bike, whereas now I switch the settings and feel like I’m on a hardtail (that just happens to be a little heavier and have slightly bigger wheels!).

So all up, this really is an excellent bike, and potentially a way better investment than the more expensive Geniuses, especially if you upgrade a few things. The weight difference to the carbon frame is negligible anyway. If it came with a shadowplus derailleur and a dropper post already, it would be near perfect for the money! I am certainly looking forward to hitting the Alps this July on this one! We’d recommend it, but then again you may find it hard to get your hands on one!

Avantiplus are importers of Scott bikes. Our favourite Avanti stores in Adelaide are Lifecycles at Norwood, Avantiplus at Unley and Cycleworx at Woodville.

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