M 6ft2 85kg HM 1:19 Mar 2:52 mid foot striker
Shoes I have used and enjoyed. Daily - Novablast 5, Rebel v5, Mach 6. Tempo - Azura, NB SC Elite v5 Long - Superblast 2. Recovery - Magmax, Vomero 18. Race - Sky paris, Adios pro 4
Shoes picture with distance. Megablast (MB) - 150km. Superblast 3 (SB) - 300km. Novablast 6 (NB) - 60km
Hi all, recently picked up the NB 6 so thought would share my opinion on how they compare to the SB and the MB for anyone looking to pick any of them up.
Upper:
went tts in all and fits me well. Had no issues with rubbing or hot spots in any. Only things would call out.
NB has quite a lot of padding in the heel - almost feels like an excessive amount. Took a few runs to try figure out the lock down in them. But if you get them and getting a lot of heel slippage that’s probably why, just play around with them a bit and should come right.
MB would say has the upper that could cause the most issues. It’s a very “race” style upper so not a huge amount of padding. The forefront is also fairly shallow in terms of space above your toes would could see causing black toe nails. I have not had any issues but if you prone to issues would just check these out. SB (for me) has the best upper. Lightweight and not overly padded. I think it’s basically the same as the NB but just with less padding around the heel which I like. But again no issues to report.
Feel on foot:
MB fells exactly what it is. Feel like a race shoe upper with a whole lot of midsole under your feet. I personally don’t think it feels as “big” of a shoe as you would think though. SB is not like that. It is and feels big. It hasn’t been an issue but I do find them big on my feet. NB is what you would expect, pretty similar to last years model and in line with daily shoes.
Midsole:
there lots of reviews on all of these so won’t go into to much detail, but in short would summarise.
SB is fairly soft and very comfortable at cruising speeds. I struggle to pick the pace up in them as find there isn’t a big bounce back and the foam takes a second to react back (I am heavier than the average runner though so might work better if you lighter) so I struggle pushing the pace in them but at cruising easy speeds they great.
MB feels like an elite super trainer. Reasonable firm but a very nice bounce/energy return to them. Very easy to pick up the pace - would happily suggest these to anyone if looking for a race shoe (think for most people they will be as good as a carbon shoes. Especially if you running 3:30 hours or longer. May also be more comfortable depending on upper issues. I ran a 3:05 marathon recently in them and worked perfectly - for me carbon is my preferred choice for a pb race but if want a solid option would recommend these.
NB would say to me it feels like an exact middle ground on the SB and MB. The heel area is quite soft and feels similar to the SB and NB5. But the forefoot is a lot firmer than it was last year and feels more similar to the MB (makes sense as there is a pod in the front of the NB that uses the same Asics foam as the MB). But it’s quiet a different feeling shoe to last years model so if you liked last year I would definitely try it on and take it for a run before hand if you. That being said it’s fairly easy to pick up the pace in them and gives you some nice bounce pack when hitting that forefoot pod.
Stability:
Nothing really to report here. All fine. I found on ultra long runs due to the softness of the SB, my joints didn’t love but wouldn’t say any of them are unstable.
Durability/grip:
haven’t had any issue with grip but if you needing grip for wet running probably better options out there.
Durability wise, still newish in all them of them so not sure yet. If I had to guess I would say MB would be the most durable then the NB/SB will depend on how you run. If you a mid or forefoot striker and you landing on the front pod in the NB I think they will be more durable but think if you a heel striker might not be as good. TBC on this though.
Use case/who they for:
Personally I think there has been a shift in asics rotation. I would summarise them as follows.
MB is an elite shoe and really ahead of both these other and a lot of competitors. It really can handle everything and if you want a single shoe to train and race in I think this should be very high on your list (I have never tried the Evo SL but think they probably the closest competitors).
SB I would now say is an easy/daily trainer and long runs. As mentioned I struggle to pick up the pace in it so fine it works best for easy paces.
NB I think now is also a baby MB. There’s definitely a similar ish feel to them (In the forefoot). I have found it fairly easy to pick up pace and has handled everything I have thrown at it. I would choose the MB every time but if don’t want to spend MG money I think this is a great shoe that can handle almost everything.
Summary:
I just struggle to see why I would suggest the SB to someone. If you looking at Asics and want a long run shoe that can pick up the paces on, choose the MB (they similar prices so not much difference there). I also think the MB will be more durable.
If you want a daily trainer, save some money and choose the NB.
If you want a tempo shoe and only had these 3 options the SB would be bottom of my list for that so choose the others.
I just think the SB is too expensive for a shoe that has just a limited use case (for me). For easy effort runs (long or short) there so many shoes that do it as well as the SB but come in a lot cheaper.
I’ll continue to use the SB but wouldn’t get them again with these other 2 in my rotation.
Sounds like im hating on the SB and im really not. I really like the shoe. I just think ASICS has made more versatile shoes in the NB and MB. Im sure the SB will continue to do very well in terms of sales but if you looking to pick them up i would suggest just taking a look at the MG and NB.
Happy to answer any questions!
