One of my most worthwhile pursuits was looking for the ULTIMATE bike seat.
Lord knows I found all of them.
Here's my
OLD review, but some things have changed in terms of distributors, prices, etc.... so here is an updated mini review....
Seats I would highly recommend for a hard tail (i.e. -- no shock absorbing seat posts), and in NO SPECIFIC ORDER:
+ Unified Sport Evolve saddle @ Amazon for $ 160 (this is the same as the Relax I.Q.)
+ Gyes GS-12 @ eBay for $100 (the only seat that seemed to increase in price, but this is actually my #1 seat now)
+ Schwinn gel seat w/ cut-out @ Walmart for $17 (this appears to be identical to the Planet Bike A.R.S.)
Seats I would highly recommend for a rear suspension bike:
+ DD Wings italian saddle @ bikemania.biz for $115 (this is the same as the Relax 2)
Seats I would maybe recommend if I used it more often:
+ Hobson Easy Seat II / Deluxe for $60 (good concept, but not sure if the quality is something that will stand some serious abuse)
Seats that I still want to try:
+ Spongy Wonder for $130 (I'm sure this is better than the SpiderFlex, and would definitely love to compare it to both the DDWings && the Easy Seat Deluxe)
+ Hobson Pro Hub X2 for $70 (hopefully more structurally sound than the Easy Seat Deluxe??)
Seats that I wouldn't mind trying, but won't go out of my way to find:
+ Real Seat for $105 (There is no way that this thing could be used as comfortable for pedaling as the DDWings or Gyes GS-12. Just no way.)
+ Adamo seats for ~$150 (Remember a "study" was done and the Adama didn't fare too well, and upon second looks... the seat looks like it would create some seriously unneeded pressure from those two "daggers" on the tip of their seats!!)
The UPDATED review...
I'm now using the Gyes GS-12 every day on my hard tail, single speed 29'er. It squeaks a bit, but for the quick trips I'm making around town, this seat just "deletes" bumps in pavements (tho, the 29'er helps with that a bit, too... this seat really puts an end to the every day bumps). The wide leather also acts as a sort of "hammock" for your tushy. This seat would be very, very comfortable even WITHOUT the springs, likely.... but the springs are important. This seat is great. Again, it squeaks... but for what I'm doing... it's definitely the most comfotable
The Unified Sport Evolve saddle was taken off, because I'm not using it for riding SEVERAL hours a day like I was last year. I paid $500 to get two seats last year that I now know I can get for $260. I really needed them for some "touring" I was doing and definitely don't regret the purchases, even at $500. Those two seats will definitely last as long as I do. The Evolve saddle was definitely silent, but I didn't get the newer slip-on rubber cushion thingys for each "rib" of the saddle. It's comfortable enough without it, but I might try contacting the company to see if I could get this newer cushion as opposed to the larger cushions for each side that were very prone to falling off. I think the main reason I pulled this seat off had to do with me swinging my leg over the saddle. I had it fairly low as it was, IMHO, yet it still kept snagging my shorts when tossing a single leg over (I don't wear biker shorts!). It's a very minor gripe, really... considering that one initial swing of the leg is very trivial in comparison to, say, 5 thousand swings in an hour.
The DDWings seat is, without a doubt, the best seat for a bike with rear suspension. A Spongy Wonder might be ok, but I haven't tried it to know for sure how stable your bum will be when cornering. But for $115, this seat should be used A WHOLE FRIGGIN' LOT MORE on this site!!! I'm letting you folks know. I am willing to bet big money that a more PRACTICAL *and* COMFORTABLE seat cannot be found.
I haven't tried this
specific Schwinn gel seat w/ cut-out in Walmart, but it looks great (exactly like the Planet Bike A.R.S. saddle), and the price is right. If you want the cheapest solution to a happy bum, then this is definitely it at $17 or so.
I still want NO PRESSURE whatsoever, however... and I personally find that in the Gyes GS-12 seat. I don't actually remember the The EasySeat providing much of any pressure, and it might actually be my new #2 seat.
I will have to pull it out tomorrow and give it a spin.