Bike Gremlin

Didn's mean to skip. I meant in both potholes and road buzz, fatter tyres made more difference for me, on roads I ride on. I'd still place tyre width and quality first in terms of eliminating road buzz, frame geometry and fit 2nd, tubing design and thickness that influences frame flex 3rd, and frame material last.

PaulRivers

Ok, I disagree on the first stuff but people sometimes have different opinions / experience.

But on the last one - there's no way that an aluminum or steel bike can be as removing road buzz as the very best full carbon bikes. Have you ridden a Trek Domane or Emonda, the more expensive middle tier versions? I guess if you put a huge 2.0" tire on another bike it might be similar, but I've test ridden a ton of bikes, and if both speed and comfort are important to you (more important than cost) I don't think you can reach a full carbon bike for comfort with aluminum or steel.

I could see where someone is coming from in feeling that bike design is more important for comfort compared to steel vs aluminum vs cheaper carbon. But the best comfort (in the same tire size) has definitely been from full carbon bikes (which...admittedly are not cheap to get a serious improvement).

Bike Gremlin

Indeed, a very good point. Carbon is the material that allows more freedom in terms of making a frame good at soaking up bumps, but still not feel too squishy when riding hard.

But even with good quality carbon - it's not the material itself, but the frame tubing design and frame geometry that make it stand out. If it were just the material, then cheap carbon frame would be good as well, but it is not.