I have to buy a power meter to train for next years season. My choices are power tap pro and stage one. I would like to get the stage one for its light weight and my ability to change out wheels and still have power, but the release date is January 1 and I think thats a little late for a power training plan. Plus I am a little iffy about the fact that it only measures left power. I like the power tap because I can change it between bikes and its proven technology. Any suggestions?

https://www.stagescycling.com/stageone


https://www.cycleops.com/en/products/...category_id=20

When does your season start? If it's not until the spring, you might be able to get more feedback on the Stage one, but if you want it for next year, I'd go with the power tap. Who knows what issues the new technology in stage one will run into?

im voting powertap, you'll want your power meter over the winter to get a nice quality base in, and the stage one seems like a big risk for a large price tag!

+1 on PT
Stageone is to new. Powertap is proven

I have a Powertap SL+ and it has been flawless. It gets my vote.

A buddy of mine has a Quarq and so far, it has been back for service 3 times. I really want to like the Quarq so that I can choose from different wheels, but the reliability seems to be hit and miss.

I hope that Stage One's offering is reliable and affordable, but like any new electronic gizmo, there are bound to be some problems with the initial release. IMO.

Bob

I got a quarq this season. I love it!! Big plus is I can switch wheels and still have power.

Until you can actually get it shipped to you Stage One doesn't exist. If you're training for next season now is the time to consider getting a PM. Not January or whenever (if) they really ship those things.

vaporware!!!!!!!!!



but you can actually walk in and buy a quarq or power tap now.

Another vote for Powertap...

Like multiple posters have stated, you need the PM now to train for next year, and who knows if StageOne will actually work...Think Metrigear...

Plus training with Power is mission critical. Having power during a race is nice, but not critical. It's useful for after the race and going over the numbers, but while you are racing...You are racing...

The only time I have missed power, when using non-PT race wheels, is for a TT...

I'll add another vote for PowerTap. Get it now and start training with power.There is really no point to waiting.

And I'll second what gstein said: Until Stage One goes on sale, it isn't an option. I've lost track of how many times the release date for the Garmin Vector has been pushed back.

If those are your final choices, PowerTap because it exists. You can buy used to bring the cost down significantly.

If this is for stationary trainer work, you could go with something like Trainer Road and a supported trainer (if you don't already have one) as a stop-gap to give an alternative time to hit the market and get some reviews under its belt.

Even the Quarq, which isn't a huge technological leap from the SRM powermeter, had a (a year or so?) of schedule slide before it was released. Expect the schedule for the Stage One to slide too.

There are other options in your apparent price range. Used, wired, SRM would be one.

If you have multiple bikes the PT is the best initial solution.

If you have one bike with many wheels a crank (at least for now) based thing works better.

You can always look at used power meters. I have two wired SRMs, BB30, one that came with a (Cannondale) bike that I got new from an eBay shop and one that I bought used off an eBay seller. There are a few similar cranks out there for about $800 or so, right now. If I needed another PM I'd get a wired SRM in a heartbeat and I recommend them to my friends/teammates as low buck and ultra reliable PMs.

Wired SRMs have their own issues, mainly maintenance:
1. You have to solder batteries in, both the crank spider and the head. I'm not an expert at soldering but the current spider I'm using has a self-soldered battery in it. The batteries are cheap - $19.99 for the Cannondale SI spider (different spiders have different batteries), I think about $5 for the computer aka Power Control V aka PCV.
2. The wiring harnesses eventually get damaged. I have no idea how but they do. I replace mine about every 18 mos.
3. It is not ANT+ compatible so you can't use a Garmin or whatever. You have to use the SRM head. I have used WKO with mine and currently, because I'm on a Mac, use Golden Cheetah.

On the other hand the stuff works great. It's absolutely rock solid reliable. I got a second SRM for my second bike, not because the first one failed. I have maybe 4-5 wheelsets I use consistently and 15? sets hanging around. I initially bought a PT but sold it after realizing I'd want to buy about 5 hubs to outfit the wheels I had.

A final hope - someone has told me that they are working on an ANT+ transmitter that reads off of a wired SRM crankset. That same person told me they were working on something else and they produced it and started selling it. I think the SRM gender bender has been put on a back shelf but I'm hoping that they'll make it (they first told me about it 2 or 3 years ago). That would be the schnizzle. Right now, to use my Sportsiiiis (ANT+ compatible heads up display) I have two cadence and speed pickups, one for ANT+, one for SRM. I tried stacking two HR belts but that didn't work - I chose to keep the SRM to record data.

Interestingly, I've just been reading a thread in the wattage forums regarding the inaccuracy of SRMs and Quarqs in race conditions. The head units used with ANT+ meters tend to inflate power data by up to 10% in crits or other rides with lots of coasting. So the data you get in races may not be that useful unless you take the time to post-process.

^wouldn't you have to have the zeros turned off (meaning it isn't factoring in the zero power times) for the power to be inflated in those instances? If it is averaging in the zero time, it will lower the power output and would be more "accurate". You can choose which it does.

This seams easy. If you are really interested in the Stage One, then just by a used Powertap wheel off of ebay for now. As long as you don't break it you will most likely get a lot of your $$ back if you sell it. Get going on it now and if/when the Stages comes out and proves itself a reliable tool you can sell the PT and make the switch. And if the Stages ends up sucking (or never coming to market) you can stick with the PT or save for an SRM or Quarq.

greg: ? how does it inflate numbers if its accurately calibrated/ consistant? never had that issue with my quarq. Doesn't even make sense when you think about it

The issue is related to how the SRM communicates with an ANT+ head unit. Normally, the SRM transmits data every crank revolution which is fine. The problem occurs when you stop pedalling before a pedal revolution is complete. The Garmin stops receiving power data and ends up storing the last valid data for about 3 seconds before timing out and reducing the power to zero. You can clearly see this effect in the highlighted areas in the power file shown below. It's not mine but it's SRM data from a crit.

If you use an SRM with the software provided by SRM I believe they clean up this data but WKO or GC don't currently deal with this. It's certainly an issue with SRM and I believe it affects Quarq as well although I'm not 100% sure on the quarq. Have a look at your files and see if you see repeated power numbers before a zero power section.

yeah ive never had that issue, seems wierd.

It only happens when you abruptly stop pedalling. You wouldn't notice it in normal training.

You can read more about it here: https://groups.google.com/forum/?fro...ge/aqF2wJosI8c
although you might need an account in the wattage forum to see it.

wait. what are you saying? the garmin vector pedals are not coming out next quarter?!

It looks like two of those five "ledges" didn't occur when cadence went to zero.

[Edit:] I'm not sure how big of a deal this is in practice because I don't think most riders pay really close attention to mean power in highly variable races like crits.

[Edit 2:] To the OP: *every* PM has had teething problems. The moral of that story is that unless there is something that is so compelling about a new PM that you're willing to put up with those teething problems, you're better off staying away from low serial numbers. If you really must have something like a StageOne, buy a used PT now and sell it later when the StageOne's orthodontia is done.

There are three Quarqs in our garage. All three have been rock solid, except for stupid mechanic screw-ups (one insufficiently tightened crankarm, one insufficiently tightened bottom bracket). So, I vote quarq.