New to the forums and the sport itself

I am recently new to the sport of wakeboarding. I am wondering what my first real board should be, as I am currently riding a friends 2007 cwb board (has blue flame?) and 2007 torq bindings. I consider myself a beginner, I can edge, jump wake to wake (due to speed not height) and do a surface 180. I am looking for a board of my own, and wondering what options should i choose. I have a budget of $625 max, bindings included. I have been recommended the code 22, marek bio, ronix one modello and time bomb, and the hyperlite murray. Also, I am 5' 10" 145 pounds but i want something that i can grow into. We ride behind a Malibu 23LSV from '07. Also, any suggestions on things such as rope length, speed, and balance fills would be helpful.

Welcome to the sport. Most of the boards you just mentioned are all expert level boards, but nothing wrong with buying one as a beginner and growing into it. You should be able to find board and bindings for under $625 with no problem. I'm an advanced level rider and have been riding liquid force for the past 4 years. This winter I just bought a Timebomb, so I have yet to use it. You may want to just watch some Youtube videos of the boards in action and watch the ones where the riders/shapers talk about them so you know what the characteristics are. If you are not a picky rider, you'll probably like any of the boards you just mentioned. You'll grow into it and get to know the board well. As far a rope length and speed goes that just depends on what style you like. Behind a 23 ft LSV, I would suggest 65 ft rope to start off with and go about 21 mph. Now depending on ballast situation, that may not be perfect. It's really just something you have to play with. Being a novice rider, I wouldn't suggest sacking out the boat at first. Would be a good idea to get the basics down with an empty boat and learn how to create your own pop off the wake with out having to hit it all out. Once you do get to the point of filling the boat with weight, you will find yourself needing to speed up a little bit more to clean up the wake, and/or change your rope length accordingly.

Hope my input has helped

Enjoy your riding!

Oh and as far as size of board goes, I would just get anything above a 136cm board. I am 6'1 and weight about 145 soaking wet and have been riding a 142cm board since I weighed about 120. That's actually a big board for a person my size, but I got a good deal on it and just really liked it. It's also a Liquid Force Watson Fly, which is the lightest pro model board ever made, so the weight didn't bother me at all.

i agree with brit. also to note when picking boards, usually a board that has a lot of channels and big fins will be a fast grippy board like the marek for instance. boards that have little to no channels will be looser and will require you to use the edge of the board more which is good for learning how to edge properly but it might take longer to get the feel of it, sometimes boards will have a rounded edge which helps by not catching edges. an example of this would be the murray. so it just depends on preference.

so there are different type of rockers out there
3stage rocker? this rocker has two kinks on the board and the middle flat, this leads to more straight up pop but can sometime be a little slower than continuous
continuous rocker? this rocker is continuous throughout the board, this type of rocker usually will give more predictable pop (usually just for beginners), give softer landings, carry farther into the flats.
blended? usually this is just a blend between those two. not necessarily the best but it just depends on preference.

if its possible try demoing some of the boards.

I would suggest at your height you look at the 138 to 142cm range. To me it was easier to be consistent on a continuous rocker or a blended rocker. The 3-stage is a little less forgiving when making technical mistakes.What shops are near you? Do they have a demo program? It's best to try out a board before you drop that much coin on it.

Thanks a lot guys! That definitely will help a lot. But does anyone have suggestions on a specific board for me? And what kind of bindings, open or closed? Also what are the most trustworthy brands?

You may as well just go with closed toe because you will be happier with them in the long run. It's tough to point you in a direction of a certain brand because you don't have a particular riding style. Any of the pro models from: Liquid Force, Ronix, or Hyperlite are going to be very high quality boards that you should have no problems with. Same goes for the bindings, you may as well match brands with board and boots, unless you like a certain board and a certain boot.

Okay guys I think I am going to purchase a hyperlite marek bio 2013 and the 2013 ronix one boots for a total of $540. Any last inputs, or should I pull the trigger?

Or I can get a Murray for even cheaper? Would this be more beginner friendly?

The Murray would be a more beginner friendly board. His boards tend to be more forgiving than other, because he likes a free flowing ride.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cGKT5a5EjI
I think it would be a good idea to watch some videos on youtube about the boards. See which one you would like the most. The link is for Murray's 2014 model.
If I were you I would choose the Murray over the Marek just because you're a beginner.

Any thoughts on the code 22 with code 55 boots? Or the bill board and frank boots? I'm pretty set on buying a 2012 or 2013 board, I just want to see all of your guys specific experiences with any boards out there.

I just got a great deal on a 2013 Code 22 with code 55 boots after a lot of research. I was stressed out trying to find the perfect board and boots for me, but had to finally just pull the trigger. I decided on the Code 55 boots because they are a little stiffer than the Ones. I was also stuck between the TimeBomb and Code 22, but went with the code 22. I am sure I would have been happy with either.