I recently built up a Van Nic Tuareg. I’d not ridden a Ti framed bike before but had steel Team Marin from mid 90’s whcih I just loved to ride. it had a connection to the trial that my new Yeti ASR doesn’t quite give.
The Tuareg rides like a hardtail but isn’t quite as filling rattling over the rough stuff, it has that immediate acceleration you expect from a hartail but I can go so much faster over rough ground that I can’t do on the Marin – some of this is no doubt due to the forks but the whole bike (in XC build) just feels fast and connected.
If you’re unsure you need to test ride one, I’d always wanted one and am thrilled with it, reading other peoples reviews over a 3 year period made the decision for me.