The most common question we get from people buying Evolve is the same one it has always been — GTR or Diablo? The answer depends on how you ride, where you ride and what you are willing to spend. Here is the honest comparison from a team that rides, services and sells both.
The Short Answer
The GTR Series II is Evolve's most versatile, most proven board. It suits the majority of riders — commuters, weekend riders, all-terrain explorers — at a price point that makes sense for what you get. It is the board we recommend most often because it genuinely fits most situations.
The Diablo is Evolve's flagship. More power, more range, more battery, more speed, more weight, more money. It suits riders who have already been on an Evolve board, know what they want, and need the performance ceiling that the GTR cannot deliver. Or riders who simply want the best available and are willing to pay for it.
If you are buying your first Evolve: GTR Series II. If you are upgrading from a GTR or you need the Diablo's performance for a specific reason: Diablo.
GTR Series II — The Details
The GTR Series II is available in Bamboo and Carbon deck variants, each available in Street or All-Terrain configuration — giving you four board combinations from the one model range.
Bamboo GTR Series II: layered bamboo and fibreglass construction with natural flex. The flex absorbs road vibration, gives a more surf-like feel through turns and is noticeably more comfortable over rough Melbourne pavement and shared paths. The board has a W concave and feet-locking dropdowns that keep your feet locked in through aggressive carves. Slightly heavier than the Carbon but the ride quality difference on rough surfaces is real.
Carbon GTR Series II: stiffer, lighter, more precise. The carbon deck does not flex — everything is direct and immediate. Better at speed, better for technical riding, better if you want maximum responsiveness. The trade-off is that it transmits more road vibration to your feet on rough surfaces. Better for smooth paths and roads, less forgiving on cracked footpaths.
Power: dual 3,000W brushless sensored motors (6,000W total). More than enough for Melbourne terrain, hills, mixed surfaces and anything the GTR is designed for.
Range: up to 50km in street configuration, approximately 25 to 30km in all-terrain configuration under real-world conditions. Real-world range varies with rider weight, terrain, speed and riding style. Heavier riders, steeper terrain and higher speeds reduce range meaningfully.
Top speed: up to 47km/h in street mode. More than fast enough for any public riding context.
Battery: reliable, well-proven battery system. Charges fully overnight. The GTR battery is the most serviced and most understood battery in the Evolve range — Frosty's workshop has handled dozens of them.
The 2-in-1 system: both GTR variants are 2-in-1 — you can swap between street wheels (97mm urethane) and all-terrain pneumatic wheels (175mm) at home with basic tools. This gives you one board that genuinely covers both surfaces without compromise. The wheel swap takes about fifteen minutes once you have done it a few times.
Diablo — The Details
The Diablo is available in Bamboo and Carbon variants, plus the Renegade — a more aggressive all-terrain mountainboard build on a reinforced carbon deck with wider Renegade Forged CNC trucks.
Power: dual 3,500W brushless motors (7,000W total). The step up from the GTR is meaningful — the Diablo has noticeably more torque off the line, more power through steep gradients and better stability at high speed. Hill climbing that challenges a GTR is effortless on a Diablo.
Range: up to 80km in street configuration, approximately 50km in all-terrain under real-world conditions. The Samsung 50S cell battery with 180A max discharge is genuinely larger and more capable than the GTR battery. For riders doing long commutes or extended sessions, the range difference is real and significant.
Top speed: up to 55km/h. The Diablo is faster than the GTR at the top end and feels more stable at those speeds due to the deck geometry and trucks.
The EFOC 2.0 controller: both GTR and Diablo now run the EFOC 2.0 motor controller — the same electronics platform across the range. Bluetooth connectivity, adjustable acceleration and braking curves via the Evolve app, regenerative braking. The controller is shared; what differs is what the motor and battery can deliver through it.
Diablo Bamboo: same flex-and-comfort logic as the GTR Bamboo, applied to the flagship platform. Better for Melbourne paths and rough terrain, more comfortable for longer sessions.
Diablo Carbon: the performance flagship. Forged carbon fibre chassis deck — stiffer, lighter, more precise than any other Evolve deck available. The board that serious riders, high-speed commuters and experienced electric skaters gravitate toward.
Renegade Diablo: mountainboard territory. Wider Renegade Forged CNC 39cm trucks, the same Diablo electronics, reinforced carbon deck with optional strap inserts for technical descents. The board for riders who want to go genuinely off-road — trails, gravel, slopes, loose terrain. Not a commuter. Not a beginner board. The most capable Evolve ever built for serious all-terrain riding.
Head to Head
Price: GTR Series II is significantly more accessible. Diablo represents a meaningful step up. Both are long-term investments — Evolve boards are serviced for years and the parts ecosystem is well established at our Richmond workshop.
Weight: the Diablo is heavier than the GTR, particularly in All-Terrain configuration. Carrying the board on public transport, up stairs or into an office matters if your commute involves those moments. The GTR is the more practical daily carry.
Performance ceiling: the Diablo wins on every performance metric. More torque, more range, more top speed, more hill-climbing ability. If you are pushing the limits of what an electric skateboard can do, the GTR has a ceiling and the Diablo raises it significantly.
First board vs upgrade: GTR for a first Evolve. The learning curve on an electric skateboard — particularly getting comfortable with the brake feel and the power delivery — is better managed on a board with slightly less torque. The Diablo's power is rewarding once you know what you are doing with it. It is less forgiving for riders who are still developing their feel.
Which to Buy
Buy the GTR Series II if: you are buying your first Evolve, you ride mixed terrain and want the 2-in-1 flexibility, your commute involves carrying the board, you want the most proven Evolve platform at a considered price point.
Buy the Diablo if: you have ridden electric skateboards before and want the performance ceiling, you are doing longer distance riding and need the range, you ride steep terrain regularly, or you simply want Evolve's best.
Buy the Renegade Diablo if: you want to go genuinely off-road — trails, fire roads, technical descents — and the city is secondary.
Come into our Richmond store and ride both on demo before committing. We are Melbourne's authorised Evolve dealer and service centre — Frosty's workshop handles every Evolve warranty, repair and service in-house. The board you buy from us is the board you bring back to us when it needs attention.
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