Cable machines / BUYING GUIDE

Cable machines: plate loading, stacks and rack attachments

Check how much resistance reaches the handle and how you change the weight between sets.

Rack & RoomUpdated 17 Oct 20263 min read

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Plate-loaded cables make sense when you already own compatible weights and can change them between sets. Selector stacks are more convenient for frequent load changes or a shared gym. For an existing rack, price a compatible attachment before adding another full machine to the room.

In this guide

The shortlist

Rack and cables using your plates

Force USA G1 V2

G1 V2 provides 21 cable-height positions and a 2:1 system in a 145 cm-wide frame. The trade-off is moving plates for each load change.

A$1,599Listed 17 Oct 2026

Details & retailers

Arcadia — standard stacks product photograph

Two independently loaded cable sides

REP Arcadia — standard stacks

Arcadia’s standard pair of stacks gives a nominal 38.6 kg at each 2:1 handle. It suits flyes and paired cable movements without occupying the rack.

Details & retailers

Ares 2.0 — 6-post attachment product photograph

Add cables to a compatible REP rack

REP Ares 2.0 — 6-post attachment

This six-post Ares 2.0 is an attachment purchase. Match the rack series and height; the Australian listing covers the PR-5000 six-post version.

Details & retailers

PRODIGY HLP Single Stack 2:1 product photograph

A dedicated high pulley and cable column

PRIME PRODIGY HLP Single Stack 2:1

PRIME suits a room built around pulldowns, rows and single-cable work. Include the seat and footplate your exercises need; they are optional parts.

Details & retailers

How much weight reaches the handle?

At 2:1, a conventional cable arrangement gives roughly half the selected stack load at the handle. A separate pulldown outlet can use a different arrangement, so a single ratio cannot describe every station on a combined machine.

Example	Published arrangement	What you get
REP Arcadia, standard stacks	Two 170 lb stacks, 2:1	Nominal 85 lb / 38.6 kg at each handle
REP Ares 2.0, standard stacks	Two 260 lb stacks, 2:1	Nominal 130 lb / 59 kg at an adjustable handle
Rogue FM-6 Twin	2:1 adjustable handles; combined lat/row connection	Dedicated lat/row output of 250 or 300 lb, according to stack selection

Choose the station around two or three exercises

For flyes, draw both cable paths and your standing position. For pulldowns, place the seat and knee restraint under the high outlet. For rows, include the foot support and the room your legs occupy. A bench can use more space than the machine’s published depth suggests.

When a separate Smith makes more sense

If you already have cables and a bench, ATX’s Compact Smith Machine 500 adds a guided vertical bar in a 198 cm-high frame. Sam’s Fitness supplies the Olympic sleeves in its Australian package. Allow loading space beyond the 189 cm bar width, plus bench space in front of the 86 cm-deep frame.

The ATX base has no cable station. Free-barbell work needs optional J-hooks and spotter arms, and Sam’s recommends floor fixing for that arrangement. For a first machine that needs Smith and cable work together, G3 V2 combines both with a rack in a 192 cm-wide, 220 cm-high frame.

How long does it take to change exercises?

Plate loading is manageable in a one-person session with straight sets. A selector pin becomes more useful when two people alternate loads, or when a superset moves repeatedly between a heavy row and a light raise. That is a concrete reason to spend more on the cable mechanism.

For a rack attachment, the complete order may include rear posts, crossmembers, supports and handles. For a standalone trainer, it includes a second footprint. Put the bench in both layouts before choosing.