Originally Posted by
base2
You may find it helpful to clock the ring one increment about the spider to better mimic the AbsoluteBlack ring. Shimano got it the theory backwards & as such clocked the lobes 90 degrees out of phase. This mistake bungled the adoption of the technology for many years to come.
Oval chainrings have been around since at least the 1930s. Shimano's widely misunderstood design was the first to be optimized for low-cadence riders---i.e., the majority of casual riders. If you tend to maintain a cadence of more than about 80 or 85 strokes per minute, you might prefer round rings or one of the oval designs better suited for high cadences.