Rough ride on my new 2019 Specialized Roubaix Comp
 

I don't know if it's just me but my new bike seems to ride rougher than my old 2013 Specialized Tarmac. So I'm looking for feedback from you bike mechanics to see if you have any experience on ride comfort experience. I do notice that the angle of the back frame is smaller than my old bike and my new one is FACT 10r carbon compared to 9r carbon on the Tarmac. It does also have the weird Body Geometry Phenom Comp, Adaptive Edge design, Hollow Cr-Mo rails seat.

I'm guessing it's the tires. You might have had much more supple rubber on your old bike. That can make a huge difference in-terms of ride quality.

My Tarmac runs 700 x 25 while my Roubaix has 700 x 28.

What model tires? And what pressure are they inflated to?
​​​​​​

I agree with Ross520, it's the tires. First, I would check the pressure. A lot of new research and work has come out about tire pressure and higher is not always better. Go to some new online calculators and figure out what would be ball park for you and your bike.

Second, what kind of tires? A soft supple side wall tire is going to be a lot more comfortable in the long run but it comes at a sacrifice of flat protection and side walls cuts. A tire like the Specialized Armadillo will be great for flat protection but ride like bricks. (Yes, I have owned them). On the opposite end of the extreme Rene Herse Chinook Pass are going to ride like dreams but won't have the protection (Currently own these). Kind of like pick your poison.

People on this board seem to like Continental 5000's but I don't have any personal experience with these tires. If you want to stay in the Specialized family I am sure they have a somewhat supple tire somewhere in their line up.

In the end I don't believe it is the bike.

These are the tires that come with the bike per Specialized website: Turbo Pro, 60 TPI, folding bead, BlackBelt protection, 700x28mm

Turbo Pro, 60 TPI, folding bead, BlackBelt protection, 700x28mm


Turbo Pro, 60 TPI, folding bead, BlackBelt protection, 700x28mm

Deflate your tires to 60psi. Problem solved.

Having ridden a few Tarmacs and owning an '18 Roubaix, I'd say it's either the tires/pressure as mentioned or something off in the fit, as the Roubaix has a considerable amount of additional compliance which makes it less rough. What in particular are you finding less comfortable? I wouldn't say the Phenom Comp is a particularly weird saddle at all. What saddle is on your Tarmac, and what widths are each? Have you tried swapping saddles? There are a bunch of variables depending on the setup of each bike that would be putting more weight forward or backward or putting you in a less than ideal position on the bike. Did you have a bike fit done and was it matched or very close to your Tarmac? I found the Roubaix to feel much smoother over all varieties of road surface.

I have the same bike as you and cannot imagine anyone saying it is a rough ride unless it doesn't fit you properly or you're running way too high on the tire pressure. I chose the new Roubaix cause I ride a lot of rural backroads with extremely bad pavement; like where the entire road surface is old pothole repairs. It handles these roads as well or better than my old MTB with 1.75 tires.

I'm 158 pounds and run 70/75 front and rear pressure. If you're running the same pressure you run on the Tarmac with smaller tires, try lowering the pressure.

But are those the tires that are on the bike? Specs can be different than what is listed on websites.