30mm of spacers and a 15% rise stem here. Desparately unfashionable (at the moment), or ahead of it’s time? Dunno, but it works.

Lower bars : more control

Define “control”

lower bars will tend to put more weight on the front wheel which in turn means more grip. For some that may equate to more control, for others it won’t.

It’s a 21 XL. And I can be stopped chatting to other riders and it does take a while before they spot it’s a 29er.

azonic risers in 2.5 in rise

i’m with trail rat,

high arse, and low at the front.

Why not take a look at the Kona range of 29ers. You said you liked the ride of your current Kona frame.
They do hardtails, single speed as well as race XC fs bikes.Kona range

Can’t really afford to be buying a whole new bike at the mo but those Kona Kahunas look interesting.

Is there any super cheap ways of trying a 29er?

Look out for a Kona test day or get down to dealer and ask them. I’ve always found the Kona dealers very good at getting bikes in. When I wanted to test a Dawg once they just gave me a brand new bike for 3 days – no charge !
My LBS has a 29er for test but that’s in Sussex so not much use to you !