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Not up to date with recent hardware, how has it changed?

Hazel

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It's been a while since I've been actively involved within the speedsolving community. What notable WCA puzzles have released in the past year or so? I'm not looking to buy, just curious how the meta has changed. What are the best 3x3s? Is 6x6 hardware satisfactory now? Is there a square-1 better than the Volt M, is the QiYi Clock still dominant, is the Valk still the best 2x2, etc.
 

cuberswoop

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What notable WCA puzzles have released in the past year or so?
It would have to be the X-man tornado V2.
What are the best 3x3s?
X-man Tornado V2, WRM 2021, Gan 11 M Pro, MoYu RS3 M 2021 (Maglev), Valk 3. These seem to be the most mained around these here forums.
Is 6x6 hardware satisfactory now?
If you mean popping less than 2 times a solve, then yes. The MGC is the best for 6x6.
Is there a square-1 better than the Volt M?
The MGC is currently regarded as the best on the market by almost everyone.
Is the QiYi Clock still dominant?
Yup.
Is the Valk still the best 2x2?
Yes but it has sadly died, leaving us with GAN and MGC cubes dominating 2x2.
The Gan skewb enhanced is still the best skewb, for 4-7 the MGC line is probably the best, the best pyraminx is the YLM or the QiYi MS, and then the best Hungarian Supernova (Megaminx) is still the YJ YuHu V2 M.

And then like I said earlier, the Valk line has been discontinued.
 

Hazel

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It would have to be the X-man tornado V2.

X-man Tornado V2, WRM 2021, Gan 11 M Pro, MoYu RS3 M 2021 (Maglev), Valk 3. These seem to be the most mained around these here forums.

If you mean popping less than 2 times a solve, then yes. The MGC is the best for 6x6.

The MGC is currently regarded as the best on the market by almost everyone.

Yup.

Yes but it has sadly died, leaving us with GAN and MGC cubes dominating 2x2.

The Gan skewb enhanced is still the best skewb, for 4-7 the MGC line is probably the best, the best pyraminx is the YLM or the QiYi MS, and then the best Hungarian Supernova (Megaminx) is still the YJ YuHu V2 M.

And then like I said earlier, the Valk line has been discontinued.
The Valk line being discontinued really surprises me, I wonder if there was some sort of end-of-contract between them and Matts Valk that wasn't renewed. I still use a Valk for 2x2, 4x4, and 5x5, and I love them, though for 3x3 I'm still married to the original GTS3.
 

qwr

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The Valk line being discontinued really surprises me, I wonder if there was some sort of end-of-contract between them and Matts Valk that wasn't renewed. I still use a Valk for 2x2, 4x4, and 5x5, and I love them, though for 3x3 I'm still married to the original GTS3.
that is exactly it as described in a speedcubeshop post or video (i forget which). I was gonna make a video in the 2x2 being discontinued but I always get too lazy to make it.
 

gsingh

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The Valk line being discontinued really surprises me, I wonder if there was some sort of end-of-contract between them and Matts Valk that wasn't renewed. I still use a Valk for 2x2, 4x4, and 5x5, and I love them, though for 3x3 I'm still married to the original GTS3.
the valk lineup hasn't been discounted, only the 2x2. you can still buy the rest of them
 

GenTheSnail

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for 4-7 the MGC line is probably the best
I don't know for sure about 4x4, but what I've been told by fast big cubers is that for 5x5, the best is still the Valk5 and the best 7x7 is still the Spark. The MGC5 and MGC7 are very close behind but also wildly less expensive so they're certainly more worthwhile for any non-serious big cubers.
The Shadow v2m is an option behind the MGC6, but it's not actually better (but it is slightly smaller) and it's more expensive so there's not much point in that one.
 

Imsoosm

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told by fast big cubers is that for 5x5, the best is still the Valk5
I was making a list of all the WCA events cubes I wanted to buy, and I've seen some reviews that say the Valk5 is better than the MGC, but also some people who like the MGC more, so I would say it's a mixed thing, and it's best to choose which cube you like more.
 

Thom S.

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I'd say the Volt v2 is a step up from the Volt but still not better than the original QiYi.
I tried the MGC extensively for 500 solves. I think it's not worth it to own. Immensely slow and if you losen it up from factory setting, it starts popping.
 

Eli Apperson

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I'd say the Volt v2 is a step up from the Volt but still not better than the original QiYi.
I tried the MGC extensively for 500 solves. I think it's not worth it to own. Immensely slow and if you losen it up from factory setting, it starts popping.
I know this is probably a normal question you get, but are you sure yours isn't defective? My MGC is way faster then any volt I've ever tried, and I've never really had any popping problems at all. I think it might just be you, as pretty much every fast solver seems to use the MGC.
 

Eli Apperson

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The Shadow v2m is an option behind the MGC6, but it's not actually better (but it is slightly smaller) and it's more expensive so there's not much point in that one.
Certain cubes work better for certain people. With the 5 and 7, people that use the valk and spark are a lot more common then people that use the 6. But it is still a valid puzzle, and some could perform better on.
 

Tecknet

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It's been a while since I've been actively involved within the speedsolving community. What notable WCA puzzles have released in the past year or so? I'm not looking to buy, just curious how the meta has changed. What are the best 3x3s? Is 6x6 hardware satisfactory now? Is there a square-1 better than the Volt M, is the QiYi Clock still dominant, is the Valk still the best 2x2, etc.
Best 3x3 would be between Gan Flagships (11 or 12 depending on your taste), WRM 2020/2022, and X-MAN Tornado, and for budget the RS3M and MS still own that category. 2x2, some people would say Valk is best but imo its YJ MGC Elite. Those are the only two events I know anything about, so ye lol.
 
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I don't know for sure about 4x4
WRM, GTS2M, MGC, or YJ mini
but what I've been told by fast big cubers is that for 5x5, the best is still the Valk5
The Valk and MGC are tied, but I like the MGC way more (and so do a lot more people)
the best 7x7 is still the Spark.
The Spark and MGC are almost tied, but I think the MGC
1) performs better
2) is ~$20 cheaper
3) corner cuts better
4) catches less often if you tighten it
The Shadow v2m is an option behind the MGC6, but it's not actually better (but it is slightly smaller) and it's more expensive so there's not much point in that one.
The Shadow V2M is miles behind the MGC, in terms of value and performance.




It's been a while since I've been actively involved within the speedsolving community. What notable WCA puzzles have released in the past year or so?
Gan 12 (MagLev and Leap), WRM 2021, WRM 2021 Maglev, RS3M 2021 (MagLev), Dayan Nezha 5x5, Tornado V2, Qiyi Clock, etc. Look in the "Best Puzzles" (or something like that) thread to find the best puzzles today!
What are the best 3x3s?
Gan 12 (MagLev and Leap), WRM 2021, WRM 2021 Maglev, RS3M 2021 (MagLev), Tornado V2, etc
Is 6x6 hardware satisfactory now?
The MGC is still the best 6x6.
Is there a square-1 better than the Volt M,
the MGC.
is the QiYi Clock still dominant,
Yes.
is the Valk still the best 2x2
MGC elite is the best non-discontinued one, (Valk is discontinued), but I prefer the MGC Elite or any of the Gan 251's (Pro, Leap, Air), not the V2 or the normal one.
 
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Do you have both of the puzzles? The 7x7 on my list was the MGC, but I've heard quite a lot of people say the Spark is just as good, if not better.
The MGC is definitely better, because the Spark has these weird catches out of nowhere that are much harder to fix than the MGC ones. Also, pops on the Spark are harder to fix. The spark is relatively slow compared to the MGC, and on bigger cubes you need faster cubes, so your hands don't tire out.

The MGC is better and has a better value in MY OPINION
 
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Eli Apperson

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The MGC is definitely better, because the Spark has these weird catches out of nowhere that are much harder to fix than the MGC ones. Also, pops on the Spark are harder to fix. The spark is relatively slow compared to the MGC, and on bigger cubes you need faster cubes, so your hands don't tire out.

The MGC is better and has a better value.
Certainly it's a better value cube, but it isn't definitely better. With the right setup, the spark can come decently close to the speed of the MGC, and for me personally it pops less, and because of the smaller size I can control it better.
 
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