Trek Marlin 8 vs Trek Marlin 7 | A Few MAJOR Differences

[@krandletie1054]

I tested the Marlin 7 and 8 today at a local shop. On the local roads they felt almost identical, so I didn’t get a sense of how they’d feel on trails. I’ve been riding a long time and I’m a decent rider, so I’m confident I can make the 7 do anything I need. But, I’m still considering the 8 because of the upgrades…and I love that blue/black fade!

[@brianrivasoconer5543]

The 8 is worth the extra money the rock shox air is realy good you wont regresa spending the extra Cash 👍🚲✌️

[@sean.the.survivor8730]

I just bought the Marlin 8 yesterday after test riding on the mud trails. Great bike!

[@Azzmelater]

Love your videos bro. You’re the reason why I ended up getting into mountain biking and especially getting the marlin 8 gen 3. I almost went for the Roscoe but didn’t know for sure how much trail riding I’d be doing realistically so I knew the marlin would probably be a better swing. I even got a good deal on converting them tubeless at the time of purchase. I’m a complete newbie to mountain biking and haven’t rode a bike in ages but I know with time I’ll get better. Much appreciated 😊

[@DreadRaybo]

FYI - rims don't necessarily need to be tubeless ready. The tire, yes, they HAVE to be tubeless ready. But the rims don't have to be. They just have to have a good enough bead lock. And you can use Gorilla tape, torn to the correct width, to make them tubeless. Did that on my Scott Scale, and it worked very well. Look up youtube vids on how to set your tires up for tubeless. Most modern rims can go tubeless.

[@TrizerFlame]

6 months too late; was going to get the marlin 6 but they didn’t have it so I tried the marlin 7 and got hooked. Bought it for my Christmas gift. Huge upgrade from my first bike.

[@MattyActive]

Still a great bike!

[@dalahobbies]

Matty, First love your positivity, videos, and channel overall so keep up the great work! Sorry for the long comment but wanted to get out some info., regarding this particular bike as I have that exact bike in that size and have had for about 2 months now. Background Me: 5’08” 165 LBS reformed “average middle age roadie”. I have an Emonda with Ultegra as well as a Crocket Gravel bike with SRAM Apex, more on why I find this important in a few. I ride in Florida so pretty flat terrain. I bought this bike as I have a local park with a pretty cool cross country type trail system as well and a huge, (talking like 80 plus mile) gravel levy trail system near me. I have this bike set up for more of cross country style riding. For me at 5’08” with a 30” inseam, this bike fits me perfect. That is with the seat set at the proper height allowing full leg extension and having the stem flipped with the bars a bit lower. I also ride this bike clipless. This bike rides phenomenal and I absolutely love it! I just did a 30 mile ride mixed between road and dirt the other day and felt great. Is it as fast as my other two bikes, no but actually I found it to be a lot more fun to ride overall due to its capability and over all comfort. Some points your viewers should know: Gear shifting: It has been awesome and crisp. It is almost on par with my Ultegra. I was never really impressed with my SRAM Apex on my Crocket so I was a bit apprehensive between that experience as well as several reviews I had read on line regarding the SRAM SX on this bike. I feel those negative reviews are probably due to the bike store’s set up. Not all bike stores have great mechanics, some have assemblers, and there is a difference. So if you are on the fence about the gear shifting due to reviews, don’t be when set up correctly it shifts just fine. One negative nit-pick is the shifter does feel cheap/plastic. Gearing: It is good as it is but I may at some point opt for a larger front chaining just to get a little more top end out of it for my use scenario. TUBELESS: Yes, these rims are tubeless compatible. But they are not tubeless ready by any means, (at least mine were not). Mine came stock with the regular fabric rim strip, red in color. Again, this is NOT tubeless compatible at all. Upon contact with Trek they recommended a 25mm rim tape and of course some tubeless stems. I went with the Stans 25mm no tubes rim tape as well as their 35MM stems in blue for a little bling. Perfect match by the way. Tubeless set up was very easy though I do have a Bontrager tubeless charger chambered air pump. Not sure a regular pump would work. The stock tires were very easy to get on and of the rim so no issues there. Watch a few KZbin videos on taping a rim. Make sure it is very clean prior to laying down the tape and you should be good to go. If I could do it, you can do it as well. Tires: I usually ditch stock tire right away on a bike. Not this one I think these are pretty darn good. Grips: I did not like the stock grips so I changed them out for ESI Racer Edge complimented by ODI Bar plugs in blue, again perfect match. The stock grips did function great but I did not like the plastic near the thumb area of the grips as it dug in a bit while riding. Water bottle cages: I went with the Bontrager side loaders. On the medium frame you can fit a normal size CamelBak Podium bottle (21 OZ) just fine on the down tube. But on the seat tube due to the bottle mount height I can only fit a smaller size bottle. I did order a Wolf Tooth relocation mount to try to get that bottle holder lower but that was a no go as well. Seat post: Due to bottle cage bolts if you have to lower it it will not go down as far as a few may like due to the bolt sticking out on the inside of the seat tube. Simple fix, cut the post down but adhere to the min. insertion height. Only other tip I have is get a decent shock pump and learn to set up your front shock correctly. Hope this info. Helps out some of your viewers considering this bike. Ride safe and have an awesome day, David

[@MattyActive]

I really appreciate you watching! And thank you for the detailed info!

[@DethcrowGames]

Always a good day when Matty uploads!

[@dm225]

You´re awsome mate! Congrats! Thanks for your advices!

[@AvenidaManolo]

Great video! I bought my marlin 8 last october... it's a great beginner mtb bike! I actually participated in the 40miles nyc tour with it this year!

[@MattyActive]

Nice!!

[@masoodpathan9897]

I have the Trek Marlin 4 (21 Speeds) and it feels more like the 1990's bikes that I liked. Back then Deore was a luxury. I tried both bikes today at my local shop in Buffalo and honestly the 7 feels better when shifting than the Sram components. I like tubes to change in a jiffy in the middle of nowhere. The fork? Well they are both good. I don't have a lockout. I use a collar pin that is metal and stick it in there and it actually works. Locks it out. Marlin 4 is more of a commuter or winter trainer bike. Why I went looking today at 7 & 8. Coincidence you uploaded this today Matty.

[@Ellsaer]

Great tips man, helped me a lot in what to take cheers from Cro !

[@davidleemann7395]

The Judy has been a solid fork for me so that's a solid add for sure. 1x12 for climbs is the way to go. Nice comparison

[@johnw.9363]

Was looking at 7 may move to 8 to purchase...thank you great video

[@bloodymage4410]

I just got the Marlin 8 gen3. It was $300 more but it also came with a dropper seat. No brainer.

[@nathanielprice3297]

Just sub'ed! Great content my man. I'm looking to upgrade from my 7 and this helped a lot.

[@MattyActive]

Thank you Nathaniel, I really appreciate it!

[@joseoliveira8805]

I was waiting for this video of you testing a marlin 8!!!

[@MrAshkeris]

Yes bro 😎

[@Jurica-mtb]

Hey man, great bike. I've ridden Trek XCaliber 8 for some time it's more like Marlin 7. I had so much fun on it. Thanks for rewieving. Good luck, peace ✌️

[@mrvwbug4423]

Also have a trail to recommend. Try out the recently reopened Warren Gulch trail, it's near Idaho Springs and is probably one of the best downhills on the front range. I would also strongly suggest finding someone to shuttle it with, it is shuttleable as the upper trailhead is on Squaw Pass Road. Starts out really fast and techy, but never really gets above a blue to blue/black rating, then the rebuilt section is super super flowy, like more flowy than even Maryland Mountain. I would definitely suggest either the Roscoe 9 or Polygon for that one.

[@getstrongby4038]

Yeah for the 300 it's definitely worth the extra I got this for my first "decent" mountain nike and it's definitely nice for beginners. I find this paintjob looks really nice in person and makes it look like a slightly more expensive model I did outgrow it/figured that I prefer just prefer full suspension but I can't really fault the marlin for what it is

[@Pasos4me]

Went with the 7 and am loving it!!! My first Marlin, I ride mostly paved road with hills but am anxious to get on off road trails soon. Love your videos & content. Keep truckin’ on 🚴

[@juanhuttoe4517]

love that color

[@ruggedtribefitness1617]

Thanks 🤙

[@David2on]

Getting my partner a Marlin 6! wish we had the budget for a 7 or 8

[@RR-bh8vd]

I just got the 8 for $1099 + tax. Can't wait for it to come in!!!

[@sdr_xp]

I bought the exact bike that you were riding in an XL, same color. I love it, and I got it for $1,300 CAD brand new which was a great price!!

[@loui828]

Great info, but depending on the trails you’re heating you might need a tire that’s a bit more aggressive. I’m 5.7 and I had the marlin 7, great bike but I always felt like it was just a little too big for the trails I was going on but on regular street riding, no issues.

[@Dlivrd82]

If you're into trail riding get the Roscoe. Tapered headtube, 86mm bottom bracket, straight through axel

[@freevvvssss]

Gotta admit the trek colorways for their bikes are just awesome!

[@Brookmanrider]

Hi maté awesome video what do you use to record your voice when riding

[@MattyActive]

I use the internal GoPro mic. I use the GoPro 8 black

[@kakusei3672]

Roscoe6 was my choice between all of em. Dropper and tapered head tube was the driving factor

[@MattyActive]

Not a bad choice at all!

[@NJturtlePower]

Kinda a different class bike though don't you think? Roscoe 6 is geared to mainly offroad with fat tires/rims, smaller tires, dropper post but coil fork....Marlin 8 I'm sure handles the on-road commuting or light trails better...more gears, faster, air fork more versatile IMO. That's what I see in the specs at least and between the two is only about $150 in 2022.

[@kakusei3672]

@@NJturtlePower trail riding is why I buy a mountain bike. And the straight tube is a no on a $1300 bike.

[@denislitisha7136]

Don’t get me wrong the concept behind the 8 is good. They just need to do something about the derailleur. I’m currently using my Marlin 6 as a commuter bike(converted), being I have a 160mm travel hardtail for trail riding, but I plan on buying a FX5 for commuting after Xmas. I will convert the Marlin back to a trail bike, but will put a RS SID 120mm on it and replace the wheels to a better set with the front being 15mm thru axle. I will also put a carbon bar, seat post and cranks on it as well and use it as a short travel XC/ trail bike.

[@plamendobrev5416]

Nice. How is your M6 currently set up as a commuter, what did you convert? Do you plan on keeping the 10 speed cassette/derailleur when you making it a trail bike?

[@BEBUSINESSCHANNEL]

I love my Marlin 8

[@flrn6233]

It's a very good bike if you do not want to upgrade your bike in a long time, because you got a decent transmission, fork and you got tubeless. But if you want to upgrade in a long time with your taste, just get the frame LOL I got the Marlin 6 from 2019 (with the hole for the dropper), and I upgraded the transmission to a Shimano XT transmission (1x12, 10-51 XT cassette, 32 sproket), shimano xt brakes, tubeless tires (tubeless rims) with sealed hubs and a Suntour Epixon 120 mm Fork (which work awesome and is light), and I think they can't beat that.

[@jbloggs4161]

I'd just go for something better altogether if that's your plan man Always works out a better deal

[@kwaktak]

Thx for reviewing this. I was curious about how much more high end the Marlin 8 is over the Marlin 6 and 7. FWIW I still think the Marlin 6 is a better value than the Marlin 7 though I did not know that they now came with TR rims.

[@rickysekhon5706]

Sram SX eagle is a starter kit in m8 and shimano deorem5120 is high end kit of shimano so m7 has better kit over sram and allover m7 has better drive train with less maintenance.M8 is more of trail bike if you are not more into trails better buy m7

[@plamendobrev5416]

@@rickysekhon5706 exactly. I bought the 7 over the 8 precisely because I liked the Deore better than the NX from SRAM.

[@HEATWAVEKICKS]

New rider here. I just got the marlin 7 for trail and commuting. My next bike will be purely hardcore for trails.

[@MattyActive]

You can do trails with it for sure but if you’re wanting a hardcore bike I’d go with the Roscoe

[@HEATWAVEKICKS]

@@MattyActive yes sir! Roscoe is next

[@IchDuForeverExplorering]

are the tires on the Marlin 8 actually tubeless or just ready to be tubeless?

[@MattyActive]

Ready to be tubeless

[@matt.t4824]

For trek bikes you would be comfortable on a m/l made for riders 5"8-5"11 the med frame is more for 5"5- 5"7

[@arjunshiralkar4668]

Is the complementary service only for limited locations?

[@exitostropicales101]

Marlin 8 is solid man!

[@masoodpathan9897]

Also the Trek Roscoe 6 in one size larger felt better today. I'm a medium so I tried M/L. It felt great. Conclusion was the Trek Marlin 7 was better imo. As far as the video goes. Yes, the bike mechanic can make the Sram components better possibly. That shifter wasn't great either on the Marlin 8.

[@disaar3679]

The Roscoe 6 has an X-Caliber frame though and not a Roscoe one.

[@masoodpathan9897]

@@disaar3679 I just found that out one week ago. No thru axle QR in the rear. For the price it's great. Maybe stay at a medium in conclusion. Be closer to the ground. Being in sketchy situations.

[@EarthSurferUSA]

Rock Shox 100mm Judy forks have a pretty silly flaw, (new generation engineers). The hydraulic brake line runs around the outside of the fork leg. It is vulnerable out there more than should be, (Tight to the fork leg though, but might rub paint off the slider leg.). They should have run the line around the inside of the fork leg. I think I will buy the bleeder tool for the brakes, (Because I have to take the line off the caliper.), make a 2nd clamp, and do it myself. :)

[@wvjeepguy8178]

I have a 2021 Marlin 7. I was able to get it for the msrp of $799 when it came out. Although I would recommend completely skipping the Marlin line now that I have learned more about bikes since buying mine.

[@wvjeepguy8178]

I should also add that mine came with an air fork. The 6 and lower were coming with coil spring forks at the time.

[@MrAshkeris]

Thanks for the video This is super marlin 8 2022 is best bike bro ❤️😉🤙🏻

[@joshakaoger69]

I put a maxxis aggressor on the rear of my marlin 7 it fits barely but way better tire than the bontrager one it came with....

[@EarthSurferUSA]

I would bet you can get a stiffer or lighter spring for the 2022 spring fork to suit your weight and riding style. You do lose a little weight with the air fork, but there is really no reason why a spring will not have as good or better action than air. For example, if you are a heavier guy, (or using a lot of spring preload), you and can use a stiffer spring, you can reduce the preload so you get good "bottoming resistance", (from the stiffer spring), and "good small bump action", (from the less preload). A more expensive fork will also have a rebound adjuster, witch can be nice to slow down with stronger springs. One last good thing about a spring is reliability also. A spring won't go flat. :) Doug in Michigan

[@ukkilukki3620]

Good video

[@Mike-gv1rz]

Sorry if this is off topic. I have a Marlin 7 with a 1x10 cassette. If I want to upgrade it to a 1x12 cassette what other upgrades, if any, would I need to make? Thanks!

[@MattyActive]

Im honestly not sure. Im guessing a new rear wheel but not 100% positive. Im actually looking into the same thing with my polygon Siskui D6

[@Mike-gv1rz]

@@MattyActive Thanks for the reply. Love your videos!

[@32_n1kos7]

Hii . Im thinking about buying the AM 100 hardtail but I dont know what to exept with external cable routing. Pls help me ..

[@seanassen5174]

What’s better the trek roscoe 6 or trek marlin 8

[@MattyActive]

If tire size doesn’t matter to you then I would say the Roscoe 6

[@Ben-sv9op]

Is the fork tapered on a eight

[@Swisha90s]

Im going to use it mostly for cummuting, is it dumb then to go for the eight over the 7 or 6? Edit: i will ride some stairs, and i wish to become good at wheelies, and also jump/drop whatever i can in the city. What would u recomend?

[@MattyActive]

I would get the eight if you’re ok with the price. Definitely a lot better than the 7 and 6

[@victortorres209]

Thanks for the amazing videos. It would be a good if you can make a video of what's the difference between the new roscoe 8 vs the 9. Thanks

[@The1Music2MyEars]

I bought a Trek Marlin 5 in 2018 for $400. I decided to check out the price on the Marlin 5s now. $720? Wtf? Is that amount of inflation normal?

[@MattyActive]

Yea it’s definitely overpriced right now

[@The1Music2MyEars]

@@MattyActive Thanks for the video by the way!!

[@brianrivasoconer5543]

Matty I bought the Trek marlin 8 2nd gen 2022. Iþs the Best bike ive ever riden. I moved from Boulder to México City in 2000,i didnt speak spanish or havevany money ,i lived on the streets for 10 years until someone gave me a chance .Now I live at the same house and job for olmost 14 years ,thanks to God. I take care of horses 🐎.I saved up olmost all my money for years and went without food many days ,i even ate olmost only rice for one year to buy my marlin 8. I needed a good bike because im 52 years old and I live on the mountain south of México City. Its all up hill where I live . I upgraded the handelbars grips pedals seat post with shock short handle bar stem disc s 200 mm maxis minion dh 2×50 front and rear. Most People think 50 tires wont fit ....but they do ..Just barely , but yes 2×50 maxis minon dhf do workon the marlin 8

[@CaptainShiny5000]

So, I'm wondering overall - is an XC MTB like the Marlin with a QR instead of a through axle actually worth sinking money into if you want to do serious cross country trail riding? Those break pretty often in my experience and are a weakpoint on any MTB imo. I would think that this would be a huge limiting factor within itself and high-end components feel like a bit of waste a on it. I would love to hear some opinions about this, though. Manufacturers do this quite often after all.

[@marcstolk6682]

for the money, the Marlin 8 is NOT worth it imho.. It's still the 135x5 mm QR spacing rear end... I'd look at the Polygon Xtrada 7 - 1 x12 Deore (better range than the SRAM on the M8), "BOOST" spacing frame and a more usable geometry on the trail. (yes, ThroughAxle). Best rule of thumb, bike a bike for its frame as your starting point.

[@CaptainShiny5000]

@@marcstolk6682 That's how I see it. The Polygon you mentioned looks like a very nice frame and also pretty good components on top. If I was in for an XC MTB, something like this would be on the top of my list.

[@brianrivasoconer5543]

Im glad I got the 2nd gen marlin 8 ,becsuse its lighter than 3rd gen 2023 also I dont like the real axel on the 3rd gen marlin 8 because its the only bike ive ever seen with that axel ..I think it could be Hard to get replacment parts

[@ltsmash7527]

in germany its just 100 eur difference so i did not think twice

[@JimG89887]

I bought a marlin 7 and I regret not getting a Roscoe as my Hardtail instead. However, I’m upgrading the Marlin and will eventually swap everything over to a roscoe frame when the time comes.

[@Junior-fd8ux]

Dito. I didn’t even know of the Roscoe line while purchasing the marlin I own presently. Wish I had done more homework.

[@JimG89887]

@@Junior-fd8ux I knew of it, but at the time, didn’t do enough research to see the key differences. The dropped post, for me, would’ve made it worth it. My local stores didn’t have any in stock and I didn’t want to wait. But a couple weeks after I got my Marlin, boom, Roscoe 7, in the color I wanted and my size became available.

[@HEATWAVEKICKS]

Same here, should of got the roscoe 7. I will just keep the marlin for the road and some light trails.

[@rauliuxaa]

The sram is pretty bad, can you change the whole drivetrain on the 8?

[@theinsanekidxx9664]

I had the marlin 7 it was a great bike than gave it to the Mrs and got a marlin 8 it is like chalk and cheese The Marlin 8 is so much better I am glad that I got it 👍🚴

[@krandletie1054]

What do you like about the 8 over the 7? I mean in terms of the ride? I’m torn between the two bikes.

[@hgrrdgz619]

Dude how many bikes you have I see you ride a lot different bike’s

[@mattj6676]

This is a nice bike, but still overpriced if you want a true off-road model. For the same money consider a lower range Roscoe or Giant Fathom 2 which comes set up tubeless with good tires, etc. If you like the Marlin as a bang for the buck line for mostly street and light trail use, the lower priced versions tend to give better value. Actually that tends to be true for all brands…

[@MattyActive]

I definitely agree with that

[@mrvwbug4423]

Personally, I'd save up the extra for the Roscoe 7 over the Marlin 8. The Roscoe just has better geometry for trail riding and is a better platform for upgrades.

[@lexsumiify]

I bought myself a Marlin 8 back in April, not knowing my teen son was going to want to start biking as well. I handed that over to him to use, and bought myself the Roscoe 7 last week. Huge difference. I like them both, but feel much more comfortable on the Roscoe.

[@Chris-de2qc]

The question is marlin 8 or Roscoe 6....

[@MattyActive]

Roscoe in my opinion

[@NJturtlePower]

@@MattyActive Kinda a different class bike though don't you think? Roscoe 6 is geared to mainly offroad with fat tires/rims, smaller tires, dropper post but a coil fork vs. the Marlin 8 which I'm sure handles the on-road commuting or light trails better...more gears, faster, air fork more versatile IMO. That's what I see in the specs at least and between the two is only about $150 in 2022.

[@MattyActive]

@@NJturtlePower I dang I thought it was basically the older Roscoe version. I didn’t know they went with the coil fork on the new Roscoe 6’s

[@christopherbritton2256]

I have the red marlin 8 and the new miamie green marlin 7 ilike i like theam all

[@rossejera1661]

IMO 1x12 is not a good reason. Its more luxury than necessity. 2 more gears isnt that noteworthy in mountain biking when realistically its only half of the gears are being used most of the time and a 1x10 have already more than enough gears. Also think about future costs. When you need to replace a cassette the 1x12 is over 1k while you can buy a 1x10 for half the price. Shox and tubeless ready is where its at.

[@Chris-de2qc]

If you are doing more flat or XC trails, having extra gears is a big plus. Marlin is not meant for rowdy steep trails anyway

[@mrvwbug4423]

On a 27.5 yes, on a 29er the 50t climbing gear is all but essential. 46t is fine on 27.5.

[@denislitisha7136]

SRAM Seagle(sx) is crap. I would prefer Deore 10spd over Seagle all day long. SX can’t handle mountain biking abuse. I’ve replaced many bent SX derailleurs that are less than a year old. SRAM needs to get their s*#” together and do something to strengthen it because bending one isn’t under warranty and it’s really pi*#ing customers off, which makes us at the shops look like the bad guys.

[@notree666]

No boost and no tapered headtube. Plenty of better bikes in that price category.

[@NJturtlePower]

Such as? Been researching XC/trail bikes for weeks and not really finding it... direct to consumer brands I'm guessing, but then there goes your local support and customer service. Canyon Grand Canyon 7 and Giant Talon 1 were some of my favorites besides the Marlin 7/8.

[@noire1991]

@@NJturtlePower cannondale trail se 4 is an excellent option to the marlin with boost spacing, tapered head tube and tubeless rims

[@marcstolk6682]

@@NJturtlePower Polygon Xtrada 7 - shut the gates ;)

[@NJturtlePower]

@@marcstolk6682 Yeah, but the one color option of White/Purple for 2022 is an instant DQ in my book. 😆

[@marcstolk6682]

@@NJturtlePower i agree... but is colour more important than frame? for me, no. Frame wins everytime

[@johnwilkins3995]

I don’t like the numbers on frame. What a strange design idea. It should be more subtle

[@James-hh1lq]

Not a fan of the sram sx

[@ivanmilosavljevic4261]

why men