Its time to renew the mtb after a few fallow years where ive been a bit roadie obsessed..a new bike always helps rekindle the enthusiasm. I have a budget of around £4k, so reckon thatll get me something fairly swish. My current list is as follows, in no particular order:

Santa Cruz Hightower C S+ (£4300)
Trek Fuel Ex 9.8 Plus (£4100)
Giant Trance Advanced 1 (£4000)
Scott Spark 710 Plus (£3900)
Whyte T130 CRS (£3700)

Based purely on looks alone, the Trek is the forerunner at the moment(and its the only one ive managed to throw a leg over so far), but that doesnt (cough….shouldnt) count for diddly.

Any other ‘trail’ bikes i should be considering? Must be carbon framed, and 27.5+ preferred, 130-150mm travel. Thoughts please…

Vitus Sommet
Radon Slide
Transition Patrol Carbon
Canyon Spectral Carbon
YT Jeffsy

I like the trek and the Santa Cruz from your selection, the others are bland. With your budget, Transition makes a lot of sense, but you’ll need a demo.

Devinci Troy Carbon. 140mm