Login required to started new threads

Login required to post replies

Prev Next
Help me choose a power meter!
Quote | Reply
O.K, so I have a 2014 Cervelo P5 and want to buy a power meter. Initially was thinking pedal based such as P1 or Assiomas but didn't want to move away from Shimano pedals/cleats.

So then started considering crank based and was all set on Quarq Duo but with all the mucking around with new BB and things it all seems to be in the too hard basket. So any suggestions on what I should get?

I don't want single sided power-so must be dual and/or give a combined reading.
Wont be swapping between bikes
Price is not really an issue

Cheers
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I think I'm buying powertap chai rings but that has a,lot to do with cost.

https://www.strava.com/athletes/23685202
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I'd say powertap c1 or a power2max ng eco. No point in spending more than you have to, and those should work just fine
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
If you want total power, your only options are new Stages, pedals, hub, or spider. C1 are unlikely to be compatible. Given you ruled out other cleats, a BBRight-compatible Crank or hub are your only options.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [exxxviii] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
exxxviii wrote:
If you want total power, your only options are new Stages, pedals, hub, or spider. C1 are unlikely to be compatible. Given you ruled out other cleats, a BBRight-compatible Crank or hub are your only options.

Thanks, so what is the best BBRight compatible crank based power meter?
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I'd still recommend going pedal-based if you ever plan to travel anywhere and rent a bike. I was in Hawaii last winter and just brought shoes and pedals with me and had the shop throw them on a rental bike and was good to go.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [el gato] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Bought my first PM from kickstarter (Team Zwatt) been using it for ~5 months or so already. Left only. (currently sold out. Don't believe they want to make any new ones, they (seem to me) pushing the Crank Based Dual PM. It's relatively cheap. You can take a look.

PRO - Easy to use. Easy to charge. Low initial outlay ($)
CONs - Subscription Based. 2 years at ~4+ USD/month. Need to share data 30mins per month. (OK tradeoff for me)

The other one which you may consider are pedal based. I'm (was) looking at Favero Assioma, Garmin Vector 3 and Powertap P1.

My thots - tho you can just look up DCRainmaker for shootout of this 3 pedals.

Garmin Vector 3 -
PRO - Sexy. Light. Integrates w/ the garmin ecosystem. Cycling dymanics etc.
CONs - Expensive. (Very expensive in my area. Close to USD1200). Seems like has lots of issues. As long as your initial battery lasts - it's OK, once you change it / unscrew your battery cap, all hell breaks loose.

Powetap P1
PRO - not entirely sure. It's a draw between Assioma and P1
CONs - AAA Battery (need specifically lithium based on what I understand tho it's stated normal AAA would do). Heaviest of the 3 pedal based PM. A big Fugly (Fat-Ugly). Had some battery cap issues. BUt may have ironed them out since it's been close to 2 years on market. AFAIK from DCRainmaker, they don't sell as much anymore due to Vectors on the market. Hence Price is down to USD799 (before discount). Clevertrainig now has a 20% Sale, which brings it down to USD620 or so. (So this is a PRO in a way). Has read that service and repair is pain. (search slowtwitch for PSA. One guy detailed his experience)

Assioma
PRO - not entirely sure. It's a draw between Assioma and P1. Also touts a +/-1% Accuracy w/ latest firmware. Pedal Body and Electronics can be purchased separately as spare parts. Supposedly user servicable (to an extent)
CONS - Only 10% off currently. not included in the 20% off sale unfortunately.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [myjunk] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
oopss.. should have seen you wrote you don't want Pedal based before I wrote a bunch. Oh well..
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I have a few Power2max with Rotor crank arms that I would recommend. Rotor make from I believe 180mm to 150mm crank arms in 5mm lengths. I bought a few and worked out best crank length. Personally I don't like the feeling of riding with carbon cranks I'm guessing due to flex so only buy aluminium cranks too.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Check out the Watteam Power beats, Super light. Simple install. Best price of any PM, & incredibly accurate.

CC
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
2013 Cervelo P5 owner here.

My first Power Meter was Vectors V1. I went from Shimano Cleats to these (Look Keo cleat design). To be honest, I couldn't tell a difference - clip in the same, clip out the same, the bit in between seems the same. There were a few annoying things about the Vectors.
- To get maximum accuracy, you need to backpedal spin 5 times or something every time you clip in. This is annoying if you're in traffic.
- Calibration also suggested at the start of every ride. Small annoyance - takes 5-10 seconds.
- Where I live/race, sometimes you check your bike into Transition at 5am, which is when you do the calibration. Sometimes, you don't get out of the water until 8am, and it may have warmed up 5-10degC by then. I was never confident that that temperature variation was ever accounted for by the Vectors.
I don't know if any of these issues are better now with Vector 2 / 3.

I've got a Verve InfoCrank on my P5 now (also my S2). I'm confident that it doesn't have any of the issues above. Very set and forget. I'm really happy with it. There are plenty of ways to make it fit the P5 BBright Bottom Bracket.

Samuel Arthur Medway
Perth, Western Australia
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
You say you have Shimano Pedals/Cleats. How about Shimano cranks? If you don't mind being wedded to Shimano cranks, consider Pioneer Powermeters

I have more than one and they have been rock solid and as accurate as the Powertap wheels that I switched from. I love them. In particular, I liked the fact that I could buy the kit and have them installed on existing Shimano cranks; I didn't need to buy new cranks just to get them.

However I loved Shimano cranks before so it was not a hard decision.
Last edited by: JoeO: May 17, 18 3:06
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [myjunk] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
myjunk wrote:
oopss.. should have seen you wrote you don't want Pedal based before I wrote a bunch. Oh well..

All good, I really wanted to go pedals but every review says the Look Keo cleeats are a pain to click into and don’t feel as good as the shimano cleats. That being said me thoughts on each-P1 to old and bulky, Garmin very bad reviews for reliability and glitchy, Assiamo seem great, are the lightest and cheapest so would pick them.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [Shambolic] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Shambolic wrote:
I have a few Power2max with Rotor crank arms that I would recommend. Rotor make from I believe 180mm to 150mm crank arms in 5mm lengths. I bought a few and worked out best crank length. Personally I don't like the feeling of riding with carbon cranks I'm guessing due to flex so only buy aluminium cranks too.

Thanks I’ll check them out
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
These are all very good:
  • Stages Gen 3 dual-sided (Ultegra & DA complete cranksets)
  • Quarq SRAM GXP (many options)
  • Rotor 2inPower
  • SRM (SRAM GXP)

I would probably lean toward the Stages, because it gives true L/R power readings, for what that's worth. #2 would probably be the Quarq for me.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
On my P5 I have Rotor 2NPower cranks. They have been flawless and super easy to use.

David
* Ironman for Life! (Blog) * IM Everyday Hero Video * Daggett Shuler Law *
Disclaimer: I have personal and professional relationships with many athletes, vendors, and organizations in the triathlon world.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I went from SPD-SL's to Garmin Vectors (1's and now 3's) and honestly pedal/cleat function and feel was a non-issue. I'm sure if you did an A/B you could spot differences in feel between the two, but it's just not that big a deal a to be a factor in my decision-making. As far as the reliability issues with the Vectors, a lot of those are old gripes. Take, for example, SamuelMedway's complaint about having to backpedal 5 times and calibrate before each ride... that issue was corrected a few months after the original Vector 1's were introduced several years ago. Hasn't been an issue in ages, but old now-meritless complaints like that continue to crop up. My Vector 1's worked flawlessly for years before a pod died and Garmin CS took care of me. My Vector 3's have also been flawless so far. Not necessarily trying to talk you into going with pedals if you have your heart set against them, but if you base your decision-making on complaints you read online, you'll get a very skewed perspective on products.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I have a Power2Max on both my road and tri bikes. The tri bike pm is a little over two years old and thr one on the road bike is almost a year old. Other than changing the battery once a year, there has not been a single thing I've needed to do.

Before the P2Max I had two powertap wheels. I kept one of the wheels for a little while to ride with and compare with the P2Max. I found that the difference was only 1-2 watts on rides over several weeks.

Blog: http://262toboylstonstreet.blogspot.com/
https://twitter.com/NateThomasTri
Coaching: https://bybtricoaching.com/ - accepting athletes for 2023
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I currently have a Quarq on one bike, and Vector 3s on another. I've previously owned a few other quarqs, Stages (single sided), and a few powertap hubs.

I plan on selling my Vectors and getting another quarq. The vectors seem to read low, they drop out somewhat frequently (like drop to 0 watts as I'm pedaling steady and then come back a few seconds later) and I don't like the cleat system as much as I liked my Shimano's (i had 105 pedals on all my bikes). I haven't had the battery door problem on my Vectors like other people mentioned.

Nearly every ride I end up getting annoyed with my Vectors. I'm done with it. I love riding, and at this point I'd rather not have power at all than deal with the frustration of these pedals. I think i can estimate my TSS with Golden Cheetah about as accurate as these pedals, and TSS was the main reason i wanted power on this bike.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I have used Stages for years with excellent results on my road bikes . . . but the left side Stages arm will NOT clear the rear brake on my BMC TM02.

I, too, prefer Shimano pedals. I hate the dreaded and seemingly inevitable Keo creak. I'm using Garmin Vector 2's with the Shimano 6800 pedal conversion on my Tri bike. Works great! But the pods . . . .

If I were looking today and money were no object . . . I would have to give the Shimano Dura Ace crank-based power meter a look.
Last edited by: FlashBazbo: May 17, 18 9:38
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I've been using the Vector 1 and 2 for years now. No issues at all. I was able to bring my Vector 2 to Europe last year and put them on a new bike and rode for weeks with no issues.

Was looking to get some Vector 3's, but I never pay full price and while waiting for some sale, I saw the PowerTap P1's drop to $800 and then got a 20% sale. Man those P1's are easy and matches the power perfectly to my Vectors (using my Kickr trainer as the basis). I swapped them around 3 bikes within 5 minutes and worked like a charm. So that would be my choice now even though money isn't an issue with you. Might as well save a few bucks. BTW I use rechargeable AA batteries. No issues yet.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [sxevegan] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Any thoughts or opinions on the Pioneer Power Meter? Pros vs Cons? Any user experience?
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [dunno] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I went from Shimano DA pedals to some Garmin Vector 3's and did not notice a difference in the fit or function between the two. I am a pretty big advocate of the Garmin V3's and have not had any real issues with them.

Thats what I recommend - I trade them off between 5 bikes (even a fat tire road bike!)
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [Greyhound] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
Greyhound wrote:
Any thoughts or opinions on the Pioneer Power Meter? Pros vs Cons? Any user experience?

Not sure if you saw my post above. I have had nothing but good experiences with them.

Well, OK, there was one race when I neglected to calibrate my Pioneer before the race and the weather was unseasonably cool, like 30 degrees cooler even than the day before. Once I started the ride, my power numbers were way below what it felt I was doing. Like 75-watts lower. Took me a few miles to or burying myself to realize, they really were too low.

That's the only time I've ever seen that. So don't forget to calibrate. But aside from that one experience they've been aces.

In one case, I already owned the Crank (Shimano DA 9000) and so I just bought their kit, shipped it off to Pioneer with my crank, and got it back less than a week later installed. In the second case, I bought the crank with it already installed.
Quote Reply
Re: Help me choose a power meter! [Greyhound] [ In reply to ]
Quote | Reply
I have not used them but if I were in the market for a new PM they would be the ones I would buy.

the world's still turning? >>>>>>> the world's still turning
Quote Reply

Prev Next