Originally Posted by
msu2001la
I have no experience with this bike, but everything you wrote makes sense to me. "Worth it" becomes a highly subjective conversation, especially when comparing two high end bikes that are already at the extreme end of the spectrum.
The cost difference on framesets is $2200 at the moment. ($3300 for the Aethos, $5500 for the S-Works). As far as I can tell, the regular Aethos frameset is 699g, and the Aethos is 585g.
Beyond the 114g weight savings, is there any meaningful difference in terms of ride quality or handling? I can't imagine any of us can really tell a difference in 114g out on the road, but lightweight bikes are a sum of parts, so it all adds up.
Specialized seems to have tailored the specs for both in a way that further differentiates the S-works model (they don't seem to sell the regular Aethos with DA, or the S-Works with Ultegra, for example). I'd be really interested to see a direct A-B comparison of identically built bikes, same groupsets, same wheels, etc.
i think of all the differences, the frame is the least likely for a mere mortal to be able to discern the difference. that small weight difference is pretty evenly distributed. the aethos fb group has one or two reports of people who switched from the SW to the regular and none claimed to notice a difference in ride quality. here’s one such report
…I had a S Works Aethos but sold it off to get this. Though this Casablanca model is of a " lower grade " 10R carbon, I honestly cant tell the difference from the previous S Work Aethos I was riding.
Yes, it is noticeably heavier than the S Works but the ride feels the same. incredibly responsive, comfortable, fast and stable. I was really worried that I would regret getting the 10R carbon frame but it ended up an amazingly joyful ride.
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