2x2x2 Methods

[Z I P P O]

I'm getting by 2x2x2 soon and I was wondering what methods are out there? What are used by top cubers?

 

[Carson]

I would say that most of the really good cubers are using the Ortega and Guimond methods.

Here are a few different methods to choose from.
2x2 Methods

Personally, I am putting most of my time towards improving my 3x3 time... so I didn't bother learning any real kind of method for the 2x2. I solve the first layer pretty much intuitively... theyn use Fridrich 3x3 Last Layer algorithms to finish off the last layer. It's is pretty slow and extremely inneficient, but it's the easiest way to do it without learning anything new. I intend to go back and learn Ortega, but not for awhile.


I was just going to post a link to the Beginning speedcuber sticky, then I realized it only has a link for one 2x2 method and the link is broken. Maybe someone could update that post with more current 2x2 info?

 

[Z I P P O]

Thanks, really appreciate it man.

 

[MistArts]

If you really want to go FAST, then use SS, OFOTA, EG, or G-FASSST.

 

[Z I P P O]

Any links to websites you use?

 

[MistArts]

OFOTA and EG
SS
And Phil is working on G-FASSST

 

[Z I P P O]

Same link.. I need to pay attention. Kinda worried I'll get distracted from the 3x3x3, maybe I'll just learn how to do the 2x2x2 but not move into getting fast until I am content with my 3x3x3 times.

 

[DavidWoner]

start with either Ortega or Guimond. they can both easily get you sub-6 avgs with only a week of practice. ill tell you a bit about the other 3 as well.

OFOTA: Mistarts is the only person that I know of that has even started learning it. i dont know of anyone who uses it in competition(edit: just found out phil thomas knows/uses it). i think it has the same potential as SS. there are 87 cases for this, avg 5.7 moves. then a PBL like Ortega.

SS: you make a 3/4 first layer, then orient as you insert the last corner. there are about 160-180 cases i think. then you PBL like ortega. this method is quite fast, the top 3 at nationals all used it. also Phil Thomas used it for both of his NARs.

EG: Ortega-style first layer, then solve the cube. there are 143 cases for this, and only 95 are on erik's site. it is extremely fast. not only does it have a 12.35 avg move count for the whole solve, there is only one recognition phase. however the recognition is extremely difficult to master. Lukasz Cialon (WR holder) has been using this for a long time, and i believe Phil Thomas is in the process of learning it.

 

[Z I P P O]

I think I'll work with Guimond first then ask some of my favorite cubers what method they use and learn that.

 

[4Chan]

Wow, i had no idea there were so many 2x2 methods!

 

[Kian]

if you want something that requires very little to learn but can be reasonably fast i would suggest ortega, though guimond is not terribly difficult to learn, either.

 

[waffle=ijm]

i just do a LBL for 2x2. FL and then COLL i get about sub-7. I'm moving into guimond soon.

 

[MistArts]

start with either Ortega or Guimond. they can both easily get you sub-6 avgs with only a week of practice. ill tell you a bit about the other 3 as well.

OFOTA: Mistarts is the only person that I know of that has even started learning it. i dont know of anyone who uses it in competition. i think it has the same potential as SS. there are 87 cases for this, avg 5.7 moves. then a PBL like Ortega.

I'm actually farther in the 20's now. I don't bother updating the sig.

 

[Z I P P O]

start with either Ortega or Guimond. they can both easily get you sub-6 avgs with only a week of practice. ill tell you a bit about the other 3 as well.

OFOTA: Mistarts is the only person that I know of that has even started learning it. i dont know of anyone who uses it in competition. i think it has the same potential as SS. there are 87 cases for this, avg 5.7 moves. then a PBL like Ortega.

I'm actually farther in the 20's now. I don't bother updating the sig.

Any reason why you want to learn this method? Just because not many use it?

 

[MistArts]

start with either Ortega or Guimond. they can both easily get you sub-6 avgs with only a week of practice. ill tell you a bit about the other 3 as well.

OFOTA: Mistarts is the only person that I know of that has even started learning it. i dont know of anyone who uses it in competition. i think it has the same potential as SS. there are 87 cases for this, avg 5.7 moves. then a PBL like Ortega.

I'm actually farther in the 20's now. I don't bother updating the sig.

Any reason why you want to learn this method? Just because not many use it?

I'm bored

 

[xspamx]

also Phil Thomas used it for both of his NARs.

Phil used Guimond for his NAR

 

[DavidWoner]

also Phil Thomas used it for both of his NARs.

Phil used Guimond for his NAR

ah its seems am i wrong(yet again). but i know he used SS at Nationals.

and according to some youtube comments(made by phil) he used guimond and OFOTA back then. so it seems someone actually does use OFOTA in competition.

 

[Swordsman Kirby]

EG: Ortega-style first layer, then solve the cube. there are 143 cases for this, and only 95 are on erik's site. it is extremely fast. not only does it have a 12.35 avg move count for the whole solve, there is only one recognition phase. however the recognition is extremely difficult to master. Lukasz Cialon (WR holder) has been using this for a long time, and i believe Phil Thomas is in the process of learning it.

EG recognition sucks.

 

[philkt731]

SS: this method is quite fast, the top 3 at nationals all used it. also Phil Thomas used it for both of his NARs.

Yeah like Alex said, not exactly true. The top 3 did *know* SS, but I didn't use it most of the time. I say that I use the best method for the scramble, but most of the time I use Guimond with lookahead. In my NARs and at nats, I think I used this at least 80% of the time, and other methods only when its really nicely set up for them.

G-FASSST is really optimized for what I use now, but its so big that I'm going to learn EG first before I finish/start learning the 600+ cases of G-FASSST. The good thing about it is that the orientation step avgs less than 6 moves.

And yeah, so far I've learned almost all the CLL cases of EG, and my recognition time is so terrible. It takes me a second to recognize the permutation, and then another couple seconds to remember the alg, but I think with a few months of practice I can get the recognition time down significantly. Then this will completely get rid of Ortega for me. And for the solves that have 1 or 2 or 3 move first faces, I can lookahead to the EG case in inspection and solve the cube in pretty much one look. I think it has a lot of potential.

 

[Swordsman Kirby]

Phil knows 2/3 OFOTA, and I know 1/3, but that's a different story.

Edit: cool, I'm ahead of Phil on EG!