'08 VTX vs. '09 B52V TWB

ixfe the MB is a good choice it should serve you well and it sounds like you have a good dealer which is almost more important than the boat.


WakeyMikey how can you comment on a wake that you have never seen(in person).

It's official... I just put down my deposit on the MB. I should have it in a few weeks after tower speakers, swivel racks, and a few more hot tubes are installed.

wOOt!!

Thanks to all for helping me through this. Following this thread was A LOT of fun for me.

F- YEAH!!!!!! Congrats, man... I'm excited for you. This thread was a lot of fun for me too...

thats one sweet boat. congrats...

suck on this wakemikey http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/1/659112.html?1232646054

Congrats! Please post the pics of it when you get it.

Well yeah the 24V with 5k of water will make a big wall. But even Dave said that was the only time they have ever weighted it that much. Are Bu's generally known for steep wakes? No. I never said they aren't great boats. I don't want to start any flaming and I wasn't trying to flame, thus the IMHO.

Umm I did say that I hadn't seen it in person. I agree that it makes my opinion count for much less. That's why I said it. "My humble, barely informed opinion would be the MB."

that MB looks like a sea ray

What is a 24V? and does a wake have to be steep to be good?

I know I am late to the party here but let me say WOW. What a great review. Thanks for taking the time to post all of that. THIS is what I like to come to this site for. I always thought that that MB's looked to weird with that huge pickle fork thing they do, but that MB you just bought looks really good. Congrats!. I was unaware they made that type of boat. I have never been to their site to look. After looking at your review, I would have went with the MB as well. I would have been happy with either, but I liked the dash a little better, and I liked the look of the wake. That being said. I hate you because you got to test drive them in February. All the lakes around me are frozen solid for another month or two at least. I guess I should move south.

Ewing its the bigger version of the MB sport,its a 24vhttp://www.waterskimag.com/article/Reviews/MB-Sports-24V-Sport-Deck .

although a lot of boat companies have a 24v

for example Supra 24SSV,Malibu 247 lsv,and MC 245vrs..

Though I don't think that's the 24V wakemikey was referring to... I think he meant VLX and for whatever reason typed the wrong thing.

WakeMikey's comment with an edit makes a lot more sense:
"Well yeah the VLX with 5k of water will make a big wall. But even Dave said that was the only time they have ever weighted it that much."

oh well there is no 24 vlx so it got way off topic

the regualr malibu is just under 22ft i guess but yea ive ridden many of the newer and older vlx slammed and it is a wall,almost scary with 4k of weight in the newer vlx..

i pull off my edge early when riding a boat with that much weight,i learned the hard way a few times

Too bad that you didn't get the BU. Glad to see that you finally made a purchase though.

CONGRADULATIONS!!!(and thanks for helping the economy!)

Congratulations ixfe! Good review with lots of good pics and info. I haven't seen much of the MB TWB. Nice interior, tooling, fit and finish. They make a much nicer boat than I thought. I can see why you went with it!

Sorry to disappoint BadBoyRipper. I bought the MB for the following reasons:

1) Same length on trailer... but LOTS more room inside. You have to see this boat to fully realize how big it really is. At only 21' it is MB's largest interior. USCG capacity is 16 in the MB vs. 10 in the Malibu.... but it's the same length on trailer!!

2) As nice is Malibu interior is... the MB is nicer. The vinyl is thicker (50 oz. vs. 38 oz.). So is the carpet. The use of billet is tasteful, but not overdone. I really like how the speaker grills are made of billet... little touches like this.

3) Bigger wake. It may not be obvious in the pics, but it sure was in person.

4) Best factory ballast system. 1,800 lbs. vs. 1,250 lbs. Also Pure Vert ballast... no pumps.... fill and empty in less than a minute!

5) Lots of little extras in MB come standard... Zero Off, two batteries, two amps, 10" sub, rear facing observer back rest, turn down exhaust, transom step/seat, LED lights all over the place inside, bimini storage under sun deck, place to secure the windscreen under sun deck, tower mounted mirror... none of this comes standard on Malibu

6) MB warranty:
http://mbsports.net/warranty.asp

I can't find Malibu's warranty on their site. Nice.

7) Everybody keeps telling me the dealer is important. AWS has spent A LOT of time with me and they've been SUPER professional. They spent two hours with me on the demo, another two hours on garage demo, and they NEVER put any pressure on me. This is a dealer I am happy to have a relationship with.

8) Meeting Mike Brendel at the boat show was a nice touch. Getting to talk about this particular boat with the guy who designed it was super cool. He walked me through everything and shared his rationale behind each design decision.

Congrats on the new purchase, and like someone else said thanks for doing your part to stimulate the economy.

I would like to see you fit 16 peeps in that boat though, it will look like a clown car.

nu bu... I would like to see somebody put 10 people in at VTX.

You hare missing the point... it's not about fitting 16 people. It's about relative size. The same governing body says you can put 6 more people in the MB than the Malibu.

Just like in tents... an 8 person doesn't really sleep 8. But it's still 2x as big as a 4 person tent.

Trust me. I drove them both back to back... the MB is significantly bigger inside.

Before you go too far down the path of doubting the MB's size, I suggest you go sit in one. If I was to compare to Malibu, it feels like a 23LSV inside.

"You hare missing the point... it's not about fitting 16 people. It's about relative size"

My point exactly. The MB is 2" wider and 12" longer, don't see where that equates into room for 6 more people. I will check one out when I get a chance.

I'm glad you got the boat you want, it is a nice boat.

Good point nu bu, that is exactly how you can fit more people in the boat.

hahahaha look up at the garage pic.... look like a sea ray, haha hope u dont regret it bro

It always cracks me up when people form their opinions of the wake based on pictures. Means nothing. I have been behind some boats where the wake looked tiny, but rode rock solid with a huge kick. Others that looked big, but just as soft as could be, could not get much pop at all. The only way you can form an accurate opinion about a wake is to ACTUALLY RIDE it.

I have ridden behind both Malibus and MBs, but neither of these particular models. Wake size/shape, how well the boat drives, and build in that order (for me). Can be the best built in the world, would not work for me if the wake was sh.t. I would have ridden behind both, but from the Malibus & MBs that I have sampled, have had consistantly better wakes behind the Malibus

what's up with the increasing amount of lame a** retarded posts like the one from bu above on this site.

- pick the boat and dealer that works for you -

isn't that a common theme we can all agree on? Well, IXFE did that... fully testing every boat that he considered and very thoroughly I might add. He used HIS PERSONAL OPINION (the only one that mattered) to make his decision. I'm sorry if he didn't chose the brand or boat you would have, but seriously who the f cares? he got a new boat and he's psyched. Maybe you would have made a different choice, that's cool too. But YOU weren't buying the boat in this case, he was.

I have one question stemming from the garage pics...what type of trailer is that for the MB's? I was wondering if having the winch on the tongue of the trailer that swings away is a pain in the ass? It seems like theoretically it could add a lot of extra stress on the pin that links the tongue to the rest of the trailer? Just curious.

Congrats on your purchase, may it offer your family years of fun! It was also refreshing to see someone on WW walk the "demo boats and pick their favorite" road. So many "which is the sickest" crap threads out there... Well played sir.

"I have ridden behind both Malibus and MBs, but neither of these particular models"
Exactly! not alot of people have rode behind the new B52, but when they do they are going to be STOKED!

I welcome an opportunity to do so, but based on previous experience, I would not say that I would be more stoked than riding behind a new VTX yet...

Which brings me to another point. I have had people tell me all about their macking wakes, only to be disappointed when I got behind their boats. Have had people absoultely crushed behind my boat (neither Malibu nor MB), they were not expecting what they got. Kinda like the guy who has only eaten McDonalds, then compares it to In-n-Out. Do we really know what these people offering their opinions are talking about from the computer desk?

which comes back to the point, not every boat nor every wake is for everyone... which is why people choose for themselves like you did Tank. You don't go off what others say, you test for yourself.

MB wakes definitely aren't soft or mushy, but I think the extra size you are seeing is the steep lip the wake has.

Enjoy your new boat...

Sweet boat! You will enjoy it.

Congratulations on your selection. Welcome to the MB owners community. I think you made a good decision. AWS can't be beat for customer service. Gerry, Greg and everyone there does a great job representing AWS and MB Sports.

I also met Mike Brendel at this years boat show. Great guy who took alot of time to speak with me and answer questions. I hope MB makes it through these tough economic times.

You are obviously from the Portland Metro area so I can recommend pdxwake.com if you're not a member already. Good people and good reading.

Boy a lot to read! But congrats on the purchase. Is the price for the MB in there somewhere?

nu bu... one more comment on the interior size. It's worth mentioning because it was really was a BIG selling point for me.

It's not a simple matter of being 1' longer and 2" wider, although that certainly helps. It's HOW they used the space. Take a look at these pics. Notice how little space is wasted on the sun pad... it's smaller than any v-drive i've seen... this is because MB pushed back the the interior of the boat as far as possible to gain more seating. I'm amazed they could fit a 350 cubic inch engine block in there.

Also, the gunnels are much narrower than Malibu yielding more usable width inside.

The bottom line is this... I had a size-on-trailer limit of 21 feet due to garage. No other boat offered as much interior space in a 21 foot package. Period! This was a BIG factor in my decision... the rest is all gravy: zero off, superior fit & finish, pure vert ballast, transom seat, two batteries, great sounds, awesome dealer, etc.

ixfe,
I'll give you that. I can see where they made the room at now with those extra pics. Looks like MB really stepped it up with this model, there are alot of things they changed up on this one that I like alot.

Have a good summer and enjoy the new toy. Let's hope you guys in the PDX area can still boat in the dirty W this summer.

Don't forget that MB builds the ballast into the stringers, so all of the space in the bow & v-drive compartments is usable space. And in the Team Widebody, you can store a wakeboard w/ bindings attached, under the seats.

Great write up IXFE. I had no idea that the MB would fit in a garage. I am personally a Malibu guy and just bought a new 09 VTX however the picks you took of the wake do not lie. I think you may convert a few people over to MB.

Congrats! You will not regret buying from AWS. Get on PDXwake.com and introduce yourself and post some pics of the new ride.

That thing looks sweet! I really am not sure how this thread has ended up with a guy who went out, did his research, and bought a sweet new boat having to justify his purchase...Congrats on the purchase, I can't wait to more on the water pics.

Congrats. Looks sweet and clean and wow a lot of reading. Like others have stated on here that live locally, AWS is top notch to work with and you will enjoy your purchase. Hope to see you on the "dirty w" this summer as nubu said....

Although I love my bu, I also liked the MBs a lot when I was shopping. It sounds like you made a good buy based off of what you were looking at. If it was a VLX instead of a VTX I would have leaned towards the Malibu. One added bonus you'll like with the MB, which I'm not sure if anyone has mentioned yet, is the height off of the water for the MB. Big waves don't look as big when your side walls (gunnels I think?) are 6 inches higher or more. Congrats.

Nothing to add here. I just wanted to see an MB thread make it to 200 posts...

16 people? No Sweat...

Dude better not fart.

^^^^Or Shart...

best boat review thread yet.

White tower looks great in person.......

No kidding Nosebleed, This was probably one of the best reviews posted on Wakeworld in years. Ixfe did what most of us do, but how many of us actually take the time and share this much with Wakeworld while posting our "unbiased" and "pre-owner goggle" thoughts. If I was Mike Brendel I would send this man a coffee mug or something...

For those still following this thread, you know that I took possession of the MB, right?

See this thread titled: "I brought her home today"

http://www.wakeworld.com/MB/Discus/messages/3183/672223.html?1235275180