Video: Cube's New Stereo 140 TM 27.5

Aug 1, 2018
by Mike Levy  

Cube Stereo 140
CUBE STEREO
140 TM 27.5








If you're not from Europe, there's a good chance that you've never seen a Cube in person. So while it's probably a stretch to call the Stereo 140 TM 27.5 exotic, it's certainly a somewhat uncommon sight outside of The Continent. It sure is a looker, though, with a simple but futuristic kinda thing going for it that makes a lot of other bikes appear overdone and over-complicated.

The 140mm-travel, 27.5'' wheeled (that's where the not-so-catchy name comes from) Stereo is assembled around an all-new frame with equally new geometry, and it's intended to be used as an all-mountain rig or for some enduro-ing. Or even just as a mountain bike if you're really crazy.

Stereo 140 TM 27.5

Intended use: all-mountain
Travel: 140mm
Fork travel: 150mm
Wheel size: 27.5''
Frame construction: carbon fiber, aluminum
Head angle: 66.5-degrees
Reach: 458mm (large)
Sizes: 16'', 18'', 20'', 22''
Weight: 29lb 1oz
More info: www.cube.eu


Cube Stereo 140
Cube Stereo 140

Cube Stereo 140
Cube Stereo 140


Cube's Stereo range consists of about a zillion different bikes (not actually, but it is a lot) that start at 120mm of travel, go to 140, 150, and 160mm, and include 27.5'' wheels, plus-sized wheels and tires, and 29'' hoops as well. So you can have it pretty much any which way that you want it, but the Stereo 140 sits in the middle of that lineup.

The Stereo 140 frame is all-new, and Cube's industrial designers have done a bang-up job of making this thing look good. Cube's older bikes were, um, let's call them less than good-looking, but they've turned that around, and the fresh Stereo is pretty agreeable, especially in this flat grey color with a few neon orange touches.


Cube Stereo 140


More importantly, Cube has also updated the bike's geometry to include a longer, but still conservative reach (458mm on the large), a shorter rear end, internal routing, and a revised rear suspension layout. And there's a 150mm-travel fork up front to boot.

So, what do you make of the new Stereo 140 TM 27.5? Do the Germans have a winner on their hands or has Cube missed something?

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106 Comments
  • 34 0
 These things are £3600!! That is very good value for fox factory suspension, plus dropper, gx Eagle and carbon front end.
  • 4 0
 £3499 actually!
  • 19 32
flag Euskafreez FL (Aug 1, 2018 at 11:08) (Below Threshold)
 good luck with the GX Eagle, I hope you like doing warranty Big Grin
  • 1 3
 @b45her: $3463 USD really. Not cheap enough, as two Large are still available on CRC as they were two hours ago. C'mon Mike, sell a bike. It's only 1:58s of huge European downtubeness.
  • 3 11
flag nlibot33 (Aug 1, 2018 at 13:11) (Below Threshold)
 If they keep pricing bikes out there with all these Fox products then I have a feeling Fox my lose value
  • 4 2
 @Euskafreez: I've had virtually no issues with my GX Eagle in 2800 km of use....aside from bending up when I got too rad.
  • 4 0
 @cdmbmw:
You just have to watch your rad to the right a little with the eagle.
  • 1 0
 @nlibot33: As long as the product continues to be premium and there's a consistent sense of quality control across all products I couldn't see that happening
  • 2 3
 @cdmbmw: Difference is that you're a single customer, I'm a LBS so my perspective is different than yours about the GX Eagle. Glad yours does the job, some do, but some are next level :/.
  • 2 0
 @Euskafreez: works awesome!!?
  • 5 0
 @RedBurn: i've already had the chance to test it, and was surprised by the short geometry, i could manual and wheelie on this thing like forever (even over bumps and on the pumptrack), im usually just alright at these skills

so i hopped on the bike and fell in love, it was super fun and playful and even in technical terrain it was very capable

also the downsides were for me: the 'neat' cable routing popped out of the frame more than once, the super low bb caused some crank slaps onto some rocks, also i think the Fat Alberts were good descending tires, but their rolling resistance was horrible

non the less i was finding myself hopping around on that bike and just broadly smiling, ah and its super light, i forgot to mention that!

excited to hear how you guys review it!
  • 23 2
 Love the bike. Hate the whole concept of calling people who use the site "pinkers"....... Sounds like the first name anyone thought of. Actually, why do we have to have a name.....
  • 82 2
 I just call everyone and myself that sits on this site “Whiney bitches.”
  • 29 0
 You're in luck: my boss says I can't say "Pinkers" anymore.
  • 2 2
 @mikelevy: #pinkedtoo
  • 8 1
 @mikelevy: “Whiney Bitches” on the board at all?
  • 8 0
 Looks like Devinci.

Older Cube bikes were cheap in a bad way. Short and tall geometry, bad leverage curve, laughable pivots... Looks like they made quite a leap. Would be interesting to compare it with Ghost bikes from the same class - another "cheap" German brand.
  • 10 3
 From the looks of it they have done away with the tapped aluminium pivot & shock mounts and opted for real frame hardware. Like a real bike. Good work.

Still tapping those rear seat stays though. Sort it out cube. Its cheap, nasty and a huge let down when the bolts seize in the frame. It's the only thing letting you down! Geo and riding feel is great.
  • 2 5
 Good call on the seat stays. I'd never buy a frame built like that.
  • 21 4
 @NCByron: I bet you would and probably never even notice.
  • 11 1
 @warmerdamj: OK. So what am I having for lunch?
  • 12 1
 @NCByron: Hopefully some sort of BBQ, you guys in NC do it up right.
  • 5 1
 If your hardware is seized in your frame, you didn’t prep/torque the hardware correctly....
  • 8 0
 they have never been tapped ally, there are helicoils in there which are easily replaceable if damaged.
  • 1 0
 @warmerdamj:
  • 9 0
 @warmerdamj: well damn. BBQ Chicken breast. Maybe I should take another look at that Cube Smile
  • 6 0
 I have long legs and short arms. It's awkward for bike sizing, but I've landed a few bit parts in Cronenberg films so it's not all bad.

Want to thank Cube for their conservative take on "longer-lower-slacker". Have a lower spec Stereo 140 (and love it), nice to feel stable without having my spine played like an accordion when I'm descending.
  • 5 0
 looks real good in person. top spec for that price. bike was sold out in 20 minutes. the only cube i like ... all previous versions looked hideous.
  • 5 0
 The seattube and lower shock mount reminds me a lot of the new Devinci Troy, just way better execution on the Cube.
  • 3 1
 Largest size is labeled as 22" which I assumed was st length. Looked at geometry charts, st listed as 20.5". Why does cube do this? If they just followed the normal l/XL designations I wouldn't immediately write off the bike as having way too long of a seat tube...
  • 3 0
 Lol, says they "updated geometry" but they're still using road bike methods for sizing..?
  • 4 1
 probably because many beginner mtbers who are looking for their first "nice" mtb go to cube. They have an extensive dealer network and nearly every shop I know of sells them. The more "pro" people tend to go to the trendier brands with more extreme geometry and more coolness factor and spend a bit more, or just buy direct to consumer and save a few bucks.

And many of the transitioning noob mtbers come from hardtails, where st length still is a way of telling sizes.

In the end its not necessary, but I still find it better than trek with their "virtual / actual" st length for size naming.
  • 5 0
 Wow, pull up a picture of a Devinci Django 27.5 side by side with this. Ignore the lower pivot :-)
  • 3 2
 I've looked at Cube's offerings for ages now, wondering if it'd be worth ordering one from CRC, or stick to something else, and this has me looking again.
Love the matte colorway, love the good, solid component spec...

Crazy, it may just be a good mountain bike to ride in the *gasp* mountains for FUN.
  • 2 0
 I bought a Cube Agree disc road bike from CRC a year ago and it has been a great buy. Frame is extremely well made.
  • 5 0
 Cube is available in Canada, Cross the border and buy one on the cheap with your Yankee super bucks! gotta love the exchange rate these days! Better yet ride some CDN loam.. assuming you would come further west then NC area...
  • 4 0
 "...Or even just as a mountain bike if you're really crazy. " We're probably a huge bunch of crazies out there
  • 1 0
 I've been eyeing this bike on CRC for a while now. The price is a damn steal for the components. I'm also looking at a YT Jeffsy 27, which is another bargain as well. I really, really like the look and setup of the Cube but after a quick search about their customer service, I've very hesitant on spending $3500 with them. At least I know YT is located in California and I can call them quite easily...and they'll pickup, like they already have.
  • 1 1
 Canyon?
  • 2 1
 CRC had the Nukeproof Mega Factory 29 for $4600 CAD ($1300 USD approx) and sold those out in a week. The prices on all the Megas is crazy good.
  • 3 1
 @powderturns: cehck your exchange rate there bud. 4600 CAD is about 3539 USD.
  • 5 1
 @Maestroman87: K. I must have used yesterday’s exchange rate. Sorry.
  • 1 0
 @adamgranath: What about them? Yes, another good bike for the money....if you can even buy one. I called them about the Spectral 6.0 AL and they said "we're getting a small shipment in August and another one in September." So I asked what a "small shipment" means? 10? 100? 500? And they couldn't tell me. Couldn't even pay them now to reserve one. Frown
  • 1 0
 Have this one in balance with a jeffsy 27 too. Then there was 10% sales on YT, choice done Smile . Great bike at home in 2 weeks!
  • 4 0
 Demo’d the 140 HPC Race and it was awesome in the trials, now have one at the shop waiting to be built.... great bikes..
  • 1 0
 Anyone else from Oz thinking of getting one of these? I can't find a better spec for any other bike for the price on CRC. Will a full review be accompanying this at some point in time?
  • 4 0
 Did you just call us "pinkers"?
  • 3 0
 "Even just as a mountain bike if you're really crazy"
  • 2 0
 I just bought this exact bike. On it’s way to Texas right now. Super pumped to #sendit
  • 1 0
 New bike!!!
  • 5 2
 That is a seriously stealthy pivot at the rear axle. Cool.
  • 2 0
 Looks super stealth like - I like it! Love the over built but shorter travel build....
  • 2 2
 They've barely been reviewed. Get on it. Sure, they're not going to pay to get your dick sucked at Crankworx, the bike is special enough to take priority over all the janky boat anchors.
  • 1 0
 "Good enough"? I thought these PinkBike videos were supposed to end with "bye bye poops". You nailed the opening line, though.
  • 3 0
 Who agreed to being called Pinkers?
  • 3 0
 Did Mike just call us "Pinkers".
  • 6 5
 Uhmm, "new geometry"? Looks like 4 year old geo to me...do something daring, come on!

But sure, it looks nice.
  • 2 2
 pretty much the same geo as my 2016 Trance, so i guess i'll keep riding that. this thing looks pretty sick though
  • 4 0
 @arrowheadrush: Trance has shorter Reach and londger seat tube for the same size
  • 4 6
 Do something daring like 400 reach for a Large.
  • 8 1
 By daring you me longer, lower, slacker like 99% of every other bike company out there?
  • 1 0
 @bman33: I gotta admit, I'm a bit of a fanboy of the geo on the Pole bikes...so yes lower longer slacker, but not this incremental BS of 0.5 degree HTA per year that 99% of the other bikes companies are doing. These guys went backwards though...
  • 4 2
 Looks like a...... Ghost
  • 2 0
 Is that a big paint drip along the non-drive chainstay?
  • 2 0
 That looks awesome. Interested.
  • 5 4
 66.5 HA with 458 reach? That's unrideably steep and short. Where's Aston when they're designing these things?
  • 8 0
 That seems perfectly appropriate for a 140mm bike..
  • 6 0
 @cdmbmw: Ya, I agree - I probably should have indicated sarcasm in my original post ;-)
  • 5 0
 @pinhead907: Ah! I should have known that was sarcasm *palmface*
  • 2 0
 What is the definition of "very german" bike?
  • 6 0
 It has a beer tap on it?
  • 2 5
 @IluvRIDING Ugly colors, weird "angular" shapes of the frame instead of "roundish" design, weird decals, and sometimes dated geo.

YT and canyon don't follow completely these rules, but cube, ghost, sometimes radon, haibike, bergamont, KTM (austrian but eh)
  • 2 0
 @zede: bud, that is a good lookin frame... questionable colour but the frame is very nice
  • 1 1
 @Zagee: well I never said the frame was ugly but then again it's Pinkbike so I can't expect people to be able to read
  • 3 1
 Finally. A non-clown bike.
  • 1 0
 Does the dropper post push the whole way in on the large frame?
  • 2 0
 Ive just picked up my Large 20 Inch and ive got the dropper all the way in.
  • 1 0
 @ThePM: That's what she said.
  • 1 0
 Yep goes all the way in.
  • 1 0
 Hey hey! I'm from the states and I own a cube 29 carbon 140! Great bike!
  • 1 0
 Still a little bit "stelzig"
  • 6 5
 i see it comes with the 8million tooth gear ring in the back.
  • 3 5
 Cassettes have bigger circumferences than rotors now Frown
  • 14 1
 You can still buy road bike cassettes and use them on your trailbike if you prefer.
  • 2 2
 looks very similar to some of Canyons offerings (Strive, and preivous years Spectral)
  • 2 1
 Got a 2014 cube fritzz. It's awesome.
  • 3 2
 Hail the Bundeswehr edition.
  • 1 0
 Cube masters of rolling in glitter
  • 1 0
 27,5"!!!!!! Yeaaaaah!!!!!
  • 2 2
 I cube see myself riding this bike
  • 1 0
 Nomen est omen.
  • 1 0
 It's a 29er so calm down
  • 1 0
 Cube squared equals trek
  • 2 3
 Looks like a YF-22 Raptor.
  • 2 3
 Looks ugly like an ebike.
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