X35 or G23
 

Which boat has the best big/rough water abilities? X35 or G23? Both will provide a good enough wake for out needs. Looking to make the rough waters of Lake Mead a bit more enjoyable. Looking for all owners to chime in.

Thanks

The x35 will have a better rough water ride than the G. I had the opportunity to test deive an x35 before we bought our x45 and the was a noticeable differenence in the rough water ride and it has alot it of freeboard on the side of the boat. The V of the boat extends all the way through the hull to the rear. It's a very heavy boat however it will not have the wakeboard wake of the G. But as for it's rough water ride its one of the better ski boats for that category. If you want some More info on the x35 try the mastercraft teamtalk website there are a bunch of x35s on there.

Here is the rear of a G

And the rear of an x35

The G is does have somewhat of a flatter hull in the back, but that is the purpose of the NCRS (Nautique Controlable Running Surface). The G23 and 25 have the "auto" function on the NCRS which in an aspect feathers the boat on plane and when getting on the throttle and also aides in riding through choppy water by changing the ride attitude of the boat making it ride more with the nose down to blow through chop. David makes great points with the hull design, but David have you been in a G23 in choppy water? I have been in both and can say the both perform equally well. OP, base your decisions on which boat you feel more comfortable in, demo both, and make sure you have a reputable dealer backing you. Both boats have new technologies and you want to make sure you work with somebody reputable enough to know how to fix them and instruct you properly on how to use them.

I have not ridden in a G in rough water so i dont have any experience with that but you can say what you want the more of a V throughtout the boat the better the rough water ride and there is no denying that. Thats why Cigarette boats are so narrow with a well defined V throughout the hull, it aides its ability to cut through water.

again i have never riden in a G in rough water. It is a heavy boat so that will weight in however I doubt the tabs will help that much but dont know first hand. Demo both..

In no way was denying the benefit of a deep V in choppy water, you are completely right and the X35 is a great boat just like the G23. I felt the OP just needed to know that the G is also a very comparable rough water boat and with the NCRS can get the nose down so the V can cut through that choppy water. Wasn't saying it's better or worse or that deep V's arent good for choppy water. Pretty much agreed on everything you said with the exception of "The X35 will have a better rough water ride than a G" when in fact, you've never been in a G in choppy water.

Great info, thanks for the replys. So now I'm leaning toward the x35, is there any additional info I need to arm myself with before I make the leap? I've read some horror stories about the electronics on the MC, is it really that bad? I live in SoCal and there is one dealer that I know of, can anyone weigh in on the reputation of that dealer? They have the boat I want and I would like to get the process rolling.

Does Mastercraft still make a maristar version of the 35? If you are worried about electronics could you order a maristar 235/35 with standard analog gauges?

MC did have some trouble with their medallion electronics systems. Malibu has had trouble with the medallion stuff too. MC switched to Murphy controls for 2013 (same manufacturer that Nautique uses), and I am thinking that they should be a lot better. I had heard that a couple people had an occasional screen freeze, but that is the only problem I have heard of. I've heard of that happening on G23s on rare occasion as well. Power off, power on, and back to normal. I wish they would ditch the complicated electronic systems in all boats. Every one of them has a gremlin or two. MCs 2012 system was exceptionally bad until medallion finally came out with updates that worked correctly about 6 months ago. As far as experience with the 2013 system, after about 45 hours worth of use, I have had no issues whatsoever.


I have never been in an X35 in rough water, but I can say that the G23 is pretty darn good in rough water. It would make sense that the X35 would be a little bit better though. I would guess that its not a huge difference.

So would you buy a 2012 x35 and deal with the electronic gremlins, or pay the premium for the 2013?

2012- As far as I know, they fixed the issues with it, and it is working ok now. However, after my experience with the 2012 system, I would still be hesitant to buy a boat with it, until those updated boats have more time on the newest updates. My 2012 got updated late last year, and it worked good, but I only put about 20 hrs on after the update.

2013- Murphy system is much more thought out. User interface is much easier, screens change faster, it has more flexibility and It also uses floats and timers, for much more accurate ballast level readings. (instead of just timers like the 2012 system). Also, it seems much more reliable.

To answer your question- get a 2013.

Didn't demo a 35 (I demoed the X-star vs the G).. but I can say that one of the things we liked most about the G was how it handled rough water. If the 35 is better or not, can't say - but the G will handle rough water with ease.

i was just in a 2013 x25 and we had the touchscreen system freeze on us 10 times in one weekend. the only solution was switch off the batteries and then turn them back on.

I loved the new boat and the ilmor motor is an absolute beast. but the electronics gremlin even on this brand new boat was very disappointing. MC can do better

I have a 2012 X45 and after the update I have no problem with the touchscreen. They pretty much solved the issues with the software. So if you can find a 2012 for a good deal I would jump all over it.

The G will have a way better wakeboard wake. The x35 has a pretty good surf wake and can take alot of weight. I really liked the X35 but the x45 was way better for our needs go demo both

Please demo both and make the decision based on how the boat performed and how the dealer treated you....

I have 30 hours on my 2013 X-30 without a single freeze.

X-Star alllll day!

Hahaha!!!!

Ok, since this is my first thread, and everyone made me feel so welcomed, Im just going to ask why there is a 2012 x35 in SoCal in the middle of the 2013 summer. Am I missing somthing. Can someone fill me in?

somme dealers still have 12's for sale. could be a demo, idk... i can say i have 101 hrs on a 12 x30 and screen has never froze up, not once..... had one screen issue that was directly related to a bad transom remote, not medallion related..

I have 20hrs on my 2013 x30 and have had no screen problems, plus the surf wake is outstanding once dialed and the 6.2 ilmor is a beast.

2 hours on my X2 and no issues with screens. LMAO!