I am biased because I bought a Troy. That being said, I got to ride my brother's new Altitude 750 MSL the other day. It was sweet. The Ride 9 thing was impressive. The STA was high to optimize climbing yet the HTA was slack to optimize descending. The bike was nicely customized with carbon wheels, 1x10 drivetrain and a couple more that escape me. The Troy's STA is 2 degrees more slack and the HTA was the same( with the Ride 9 setting it was in).Because of this there is a tendency to want to get out to the saddle on climbs on the Troy and sit and spin on the Altitude. I still do mostly sit and spin, and that's fine. Comparing the two, you can feel the difference in STA. The Altitude has more of an XC posture and the Troy has a more upright stance. Both have low slung top tubes which let you throw both around pretty effortlessly. However, the Altitude is a little lower.
They were about equally firm with the rear shock wide open under hard out of the saddle pedaling. I feel like there was a more immediate transfer of power with the Troy, but not a tremendous amount. The biggest thing that would make me lean towards the Troy was the suspension spec. The Alitude came with a Fox 34 and CTD evolution in the rear. I have a Carbon XP, so it has a Pike in the front and a Factory CTD in the rear. The smoothness of the suspension and all around performance was significantly better. The Troy had a more linear travel feel, which it should given that it's essentially a well executed single pivot. It's very similar to the Trek Remedy in design I believe. The Altitude has a more progressive travel. That's personal preference for sure, but I prefer the linear feel.
Aesthetics wise, I prefer the Troy. The bare carbon weave is freaking gorgeous. That being said, the Altitude fit and finish are really really nice as well.
Bang for your buck-wise, I give the nod to the Troy. Both are a good deal, but for $3500 MSRP with a carbon frame, Pike, and Factory RP23; its a tough package to beat.
Depending on where you live, they have boutique appeal. I get lots of comments and compliments on the Troy, which feels good from a vanity perspective.
One issue on the Rockys is creaking. I've heard from some others that there's an issue with it, and my bro is currently trying to diagnose his. The Troy so far is silent, but I've heard some people complain about it hear and there as well.
You could make a case for either being the better.
The Pros and cons about the Altitude are: Adjustability, slightly lower top tube, progressive suspension, firm under hard saddle efforts, sweet graphics, matte finish. Really the only cons are the suspension spec( still good but not as good as the Troy), and the creaking.
For the Troy the pros are the suspension smoothness, firm under pedaling, linear suspension( a plus for me), drop dead gorgeous, and the XP/carbon frame spec. The negatives are glossy finish(which I anticipate with show scratches more), more slack seat tube angle(which doesn't bother me).
My Troy doesn't have a dropper and the Altitude did, but I just need to shell out for it once finances line up.
As the inevitable questions about sizing come up after Bike Mag trashed the Troy because of sizing, I am on a medium with a 30-31 inch inseam and am 5'9.5.
I hope this was helpful for any one interested. Both are great bikes, so either way you won't make a bad decision. The Troy is getting more love on the forums, but the Altitude is a freaking sweet bike, and I'm surprised there isn't more buzz about it. Feel free to PM with any other questions. Have a great day everyone.