Not even a debate, Trance hands down. After reading all the great reviews I purchased a 2008 giant trance x and then a yr later started working at Specialized. I sold the trance out of loyalty to the brand and got a 2009 S-works Epic, 2010 Stumpy pro Carbon, and a 2011 Stumpy pro carbon. I also rode the camber (waste of time, feels like a heavy 4 inch) and I can tell you that the 7 yr old Specialized FSR suspension is no where close to the Giants Maestro suspension and its the reason why they need the brain to make it more effective. The trance handles and climbs way better than the Stumpy and is a much more comfortable bike to ride. The only thing that I liked about the stumpy better is the front wheel really stayed planted when climbing. The Trance front end likes to lift and drift from time to time but its not that big of a deal and the light front end actually helps with step ups and lifting up your front end over obstacles while climbing.
Also understand that Specialized, like most of the bikes out there were once made by Giant, Merida purchased a portion of Specialized so now they are made by Merida. So, if Giant makes all these bikes for everyone else you would have to understand the competitions technology which would give you a lot of insight and the ability to out design the competition. Which is exactly what they did with the Maestro suspension, its the most efficient hassle free suspension i’ve ever used.
After doing the specialized thing I’m back on my Trance, got a 2011 Trance advanced SL1 and I’m one happy SOB!!!