Hi All,

Considering an upgrade to Di2. I have a 2015 Cannondale Synapse Carbon Ultegra.

I'm not sure what I need to know re: internal or external battery, and wire lengths etc...? Will also want to take advantage of the Bluetooth functionality so I understand I'll need to make sure I have the D-Fly and newer battery to make this happen.

Hoping for some help.

Thanks!

Got a neighbor hood bike shop, that sells/installs that??

I do yes...but I prefer to pay them for installation labour and source the parts myself (they have no issue with that).

More posts in the Archives, here, too, to read others opining.

If you source at Competitive Cyclist, they are great about getting the right wire lengths. They will put together a kit that only includes what you need and nothing more (or less).

I'm just more curious about my frame compatibility and what to expect? Will there be cables dangling or will they be routed internally. What about the battery?

To go to a Di2 bike is a significant upgrade as it'll also have Disc Brakes (which I don't care for) hence my interest in doing the upgrade on my existing bike since it was just purchased last summer.

I don't see that your frame has holes for internal routing of the Di2 wires so either you will have to modify your frame or run them externally.

I have a Synapse but it came with Di2 so it has the internal routing. Have you already upgraded your wheelset? The Synapse is a great frame with good specs besides the Aksium wheelset...

Yup. Just put on the Campy Zonda C17 Wheelset and Conti GP4000S II tires. Sold the Aksium wheels really quickly.

So I take it the bike won't use the internal cable routing for the Di2 wiring?

No, not without modification...

Technical FAQ: Installing electronic shifting on a bike without internal cable routing | VeloNews.com

Here is a good article on the topic...

Thank you.

I know you are not asking about this, but conversion to electronic shifting of a frame without internal routing capability is one of the most obvious situations for choosing SRAM etap. Of course you would probably want the crank and brakes to match which would drive up the cost of the conversion, unless they don't already. I would never choose a wired system when wireless is available.

But then they would have to live with SRAM etap. Yikes!


Di2 is easy to set up. Easier than any mechanical setup. If you can't run it internally, the external mounting is slick and easy to run. (I've done both over the years.) And when you're done, you can shift with one hand (and make fun of the etap people).

I'd love to see Shimano go wireless. Unfortunately the SRAM system would be quite out of my budget.

In the case of external wiring, would we still be removing the bottom bracket to store the wiring or is wiring running along the tubing with zipties?

Depends on the frame. Many you can route from out to in near the BB.

Oh? The mini-group for shifting only is on eBay for around $1,400. More expensive yes, but not too bad.

Oh I had no idea there was a "mini-group" but I still think I'd end up sticking with Shimano for now.

I have ridden both groupos for a while, however when it comes down to it, I ALWAYS prefer the manual. Not sure why, maybe it is the range of motion even in thick gloves that lets me know I shifted, but I have yet to have a ride that completely sold me on DI2 or any electric group for that matter

I've converted a 2016 Synapse Carbon: all internal, including the new handlebar junction box, which I would argue is a must. If you can find the Cannondale page for your year, the key term is "Di2 Ready". If you look amongst your spare parts from the original installation, in case you still have them, rubber plugs for the gear-cable holes should indicate "Di2 ready", too.

Was yours a disc or non-disc version?

I also went to the Cannondale page. The current model year Ultegra does list the frame as "Di2 Ready" but when I looked at the Archive Catalogue (2015), it does not mention "Di2 ready" but the catalogue seems quite limited on specs.

If I visit the shop website where I bought my bike, they still have 2015's listed for sale. The specs do show Di2 ready.

Non-disc.

I updated my post since you responded. There's a chance my frame is indeed Di2 ready.

The Di2 wire runs with the brake cable and doesn't use the gear-cable holes, and I just remembered that my brake-cable hole at the front has a small cut-out for the Di2 wire at the bottom, meaning the Di2 cable doesn't run through the plastic frame-sleeve for the brake.

Nice, I'll take a look in a bit and report back.

This would be great news if the frame is indeed Di2 ready

A proper "OEM-looking" clean install is what I'm after.