Di2 vs eTap – real user feedback

I ended up buying R8070, the

I ended up buying R8070, the new Ultegra Di2.  I *love* the hoods. 

Massive improvment over the previous version and the e-tap hoods I tried briefly in the LBS.

Johnpmc35 wrote:

Johnpmc35 wrote:

I too have just decided to go etap, main reason being that my lbs doesn’t think my frame will be able to internally route the di2 cables. I’ve read that I will be best going for sram brake calipers for etap but reviews for the red aero link seem to be mixed. Would the ultegra r8000 calipers prove unsuitable for the etap shifters? I’m also having trouble deciding between the sram red & ultegra r8000 chainset, I’m upgrading my entire group set from Shimano 105. Any advice would be appreciated.

Red aerolink calipers I have found don’t keep true very well which can be an irritation.  They work fine though in the sense of applying braking to the wheel rim, dura-ace may be better but the Reds are plenty good enough I’d say.  They are the lightest of the mainstream options, depends what’s important to you. 

I have been told that Etap doesn’t like Shimano chainring spacing although I have also read of others using that combination successfully. It definitely works with Rotor, Cannondale and some more exotic options.  Again, the SRAM chainset is considerably lighter (in percentage terms at least).  Some people like to have a matching groupset across the whole bike, you may be one of those or not but if you went with Red throughout you wouldn’t be making a bad choice.  I use eTap with SRAM and Shimano cassettes, a Rotor chainset and KMC chain and it works fine.  I’ve taken a torque wrench to the brakes to address the truing issue but it hasn’t been good enough weather for the best bike to test this yet!

I too have just decided to go
I too have just decided to go etap, main reason being that my lbs doesn’t think my frame will be able to internally route the di2 cables.

I’ve read that I will be best going for sram brake calipers for etap but reviews for the red aero link seem to be mixed. Would the ultegra r8000 calipers prove unsuitable for the etap shifters? I’m also having trouble deciding between the sram red & ultegra r8000 chainset, I’m upgrading my entire group set from Shimano 105. Any advice would be appreciated.

I’m another Di2 advocate.

I’m another Di2 advocate. However I do have a few comments about earlier posts;

Shifting whilst out of the saddle climbing, or sprinting – well I know it can do it but I personally still think it bad practice which will put unnecessary strain on your components and possibly damage them. It’s no different to mechanical in that respect – but, especially in the case of the front derailleur you have a very powerful servo motor driving the chain from ring to ring, so I cannot see how changing whilst honking on the pedals is anything but bad.

Regarding  the comment about length of time to install either system. 20 minutes to fit all your di2 wires – unless you are running a production line how can that possibly be an issue? Would you seriously consider not buying and fitting di2 because it took some 15mins or so longer to install? It surely cannot be a serious consideration when contemplating which groupset. Anyway, from the comments of others it sounds like you could spend considerably longer fitting and adjusting an etap FD so will lose that insignificant time saving anyhow…

Regarding battery life I suspect di2 lasts longer between charges and of course you only have one to think about – simply plug in to Junction A and leave for a few hours. It lasts ages and the previous issue of it running flat whilst out on a ride can easily be avoided by fitting the inline Bluetooth unit which allows you to display di2 battery charge on your Garmin (and I presume other brands of bike computer). I have done this with my latest build and it works really well not only displaying battery life, but gear position and of course allowing you to run eTube software via a tablet using an app wirelessly.

The customisation options with di2 are fantastic, especially being able to configure the system however you want it, from a ‘normal’ setup, to sequential left and right, synchro, semi-synchro etc etc. You can add climbing or sprint shifters, positioning these where you want them. You can now get bikes that secure the battery in the steerer tube of the fork as well as in the seat post. 

Also, back to the wiring, it is like a canbus system so you can just plug anything into anywhere, you don’t have to plug each wire into specific terminals. The bar end junction A is neat, but bars that are set up for internal cable routing are limited at present. I opted for a one piece carbon bar/ stem that was semi-internal – wires from the shifters run into dedicated ports towards the stem, but no access into the main bar to get to the bar end. I fitted a stem mount junction A, but did away with the ghastly rubber band and affixed the box mount direct to the stem underside using Sugru – which makes for a very neat and tidy setup. 

This leaves two wires eminating from the handlebars which plug into the junction A. They are virtually invisible as there is only a few inches of each from the bar to the junction box. The wire from the junction box into the frame via the headtube access point unites with the rear hydraulic brake hose using spiral wrap as it leaves the junction A until it enters the frame at the same port. Thus you only really see a pair of  brake hoses eminating from the bars, which you would see whatever setup you have. It just takes a bit of thought and some experimentation with the wires to see how best to run them to leave the cleanest look. The Bluetooth sender unit can be placed in the frame and does not have to be fitted externally as shown on Shimano docs. Mine works perfectly sat in the downtube.

And finally, the new Dura Ace and Ultegra shifters also have hidden buttons under the rubber hoods, which are again customisable to any function you want. I have set them up to scroll left and right through the pages of my Garmin, which I think is fantastic as you can keep both hands on the hoods whilst changing pages – useful if climbing or descending…

So di2 gets my vote for the many reasons alluded to. I have 9070 on one bike, which is fantastic and have just dived in with 9170 on my recent build, which is even better.

PP

Di2 for me too, I just prefer

Di2 for me too, I just prefer the way the hoods and levers are shaped with Shimano.