How much does hardware and set-up impact speed?

[lunarstags]

I've been thinking a lot lately about how much lube, tensioning, and quality of cube impacts a person's speed. For example, if you took your main and cleaned the lube out and tried to solve it dry how much of an impact would it have on your speed? What about a different cube of the same affects (magnets, springs/maglev), quality of make, lube, and tension. What about a cheap speed cube with good lube? A cheap cube dry? Is a change of hardware and set up really capable of showing drastic decreases of time? If anyone has any specific experience one way or the other that would be nice. I only have a super cheap unbranded speed cube (with corner magnents) without lube and it's okay but I'm curious how much I could excpect to improve if I were to lube it or to even get a quality cube?

 

[That0newe1rdo]

Im gonna use my 2x2 for example :

With my rubiks 2x2, I avg about 9-11 seconds. This is because it is too small for my liking, really scratchy and I cant set it up (i could lube it but thats a waste).

With my qidi s 2x2, I avg about 6-7 seconds.
I can adjust tensions, lube it but thats it.
My preferred tensions personally make the cube too slow (even with a fast lube). I also find it too loud, not smooth and locks up ALOT.

And my M Pro BC 2x2, I avg 4-5 seconds.
I can adjust tensions, spring compression and it handles lube amazingly. I recently re set it up and boy its amazing - suits me perfectly. Buttery smooth, an amazing sound and the perfect speed:controllability ratio.

I think that being able to set up a cube plays a huge part in whether it is good or not, and I personally think that its good to have a cube you can set up alot, as if you ever grow out of the way it feels or if your main feels bad you might be able to set it up in a way that you like, possibly saving you a few bucks.

 

[Michael Wimberly]

On my main 3x3, the tornado v3, I usually average 26-28 seconds with my preferred set-up. But with a bad set-up, I will get closer to 30-32 seconds. So I do believe that set-up can really change how you perform.

 

[abunickabhi]

It impacts a lot, especially for big cubes where hardware can make improvement by minutes for beginner and intermediate levels.

 

[finger go brr]

I've been thinking a lot lately about how much lube, tensioning, and quality of cube impacts a person's speed. For example, if you took your main and cleaned the lube out and tried to solve it dry how much of an impact would it have on your speed? What about a different cube of the same affects (magnets, springs/maglev), quality of make, lube, and tension. What about a cheap speed cube with good lube? A cheap cube dry? Is a change of hardware and set up really capable of showing drastic decreases of time? If anyone has any specific experience one way or the other that would be nice. I only have a super cheap unbranded speed cube (with corner magnents) without lube and it's okay but I'm curious how much I could excpect to improve if I were to lube it or to even get a quality cube?

havent cubed in months but if it
1. corner cuts well enough
2. has magnets
3. has an adjustable core tension thing (probably the most important tbh)
im pretty sure the speed benefits would be negligible till like sub 20.

of course this doesnt mean a nicer cube wont feel better to solve so if you have the money and have a local cube shop (overseas shipping can be brutal please dont buy from scs or the cubicle if theres local options) id grab a cheap-ish speedcube with favourable reviews just for the sake of comfortability

uhh id like to repeat that i havent cubed in months (9 i think) so take this with a grain of salt

 

[qwr]

Like everything it's diminishing returns. There is a huge difference between a Rubik's brand and a $10 speedcube, but only a small difference between $10 and $60 cube. To set up you don't need much fancy lube. Silicone lube like traxxas and maybe watery lube like DNM to speed things up. Most cubes come with factory lube that is good enough to get started. Especially the guhong pro which is already excellent out of the box.

 

[finger go brr]

Like everything it's diminishing returns. There is a huge difference between a Rubik's brand and a $10 speedcube, but only a small difference between $10 and $60 cube. To set up you don't need much fancy lube. Silicone lube like traxxas and maybe watery lube like DNM to speed things up. Most cubes come with factory lube that is good enough to get started. Especially the guhong pro which is already excellent out of the box.

my point if i knew english well enough to say understandable things that properly communicate my thoughts exactly

 

[viviannguyen380]

I'm gonna take a slgithly different stance and say a good cube can help with turn feel and solving confidence, helping your times. However, how fast you can solve a cube (generally) depends on your method and how you approach it. I average about 18 and tried my friend's nonmagnetic old cube once, and got about 22 seconds despite having good solve flow (in my opinion) and decent cases.

On the flip side, I have a lot of old magnetic cubes from 2019-2020 (like Moyu GTS3M, which was pretty popular at the time) and they are fine, just not preferred. I still average about the same on them (18), but I tend to lock up more and not like the feel as much.

TLDR a good cube doesn't always make a cuber better.

 

[Caleb Valenzuela]

I found that the set-up of a cube can influence your turning style too. When i switched to the GAN V100 from the GAN 12, i found the V100 to be significantly faster than the 12. I kept the “fast” settings of the V100, and eventually i got used to it. Now, it feels like those same settings are neutral/kinda slow for me. As a result, i feel like i’ve gotten faster by around 0.4-0.3 seconds.