Is stiff suspension better for street riding or soft?
IMHO, torsion stiff is good and a little give in the vertical direction is good. By torsion stiff, I mean that you don't want the bottom bracket to move around on you. Carbon fiber frames are usually wooden feeling, but light and stiff. If you like that, then go that route. In my experience, titanium frames (yes, I know, expensive) have that nice classic steel feel, but have lateral stiffness that steel doesn't. So that's for frame material and design, but I'm assuming you're really talking about adjustable suspension. Stiff, definitely, unless you're going up and down stairs and stuff like that. On the mountain bike, I even over inflate the tires a little.
For riding on the street I think its best to have no suspension. Suspension on a bike is really meant to keep your wheels on the ground when you are mountain biking. On the road, they just absorb pedaling power. So if you have a suspension, I would suggest making it as stiff as possible if you are riding on the street.
Ur You want no suspension while riding on the streets and roads. The energy of each pedal stroke is eaten up by suspension systems. If you are riding a mtn bike on the street, lock out the suspension. If you are thinking of getting a mtn bike for the street it is the third best choice, but if you go that way. get a hard tail. Soccerref
