(rumbling)
- Just over three years ago STRAM shook up
the cycling world when it launched
it's Red eTap Wireless Groupset.
Now, they're looking to make a similar impact
with this next generation Red eTap Access.
If looks are anything to go by
they will definitely do it but there is
a lot more going on here than just the aesthetics.
We're going to start by running through
some of the highlights.
(upbeat music)
Firstly it builds on the established
wireless eTap technology.
You can now connect it up to the new
Access smart phone app via Bluetooth
to customize the functionality.
It promises wider gear ratios
and smaller jumps between the gears,
something they have called X range.
To do that, SRAM have added an extra
12th sprocket at the back and also changed
the chain ring sizes up front.
They've redesigned the chain by adding
a flat top which SRAM say makes it quieter
and stronger, despite being slightly narrower.
The rear derailleur has a hydraulic damper
on the arm to reduce chain slap
and allow you to run it two by
or for the first time at eTap, one by.
There is an integrated power meter option.
There is a rim brake version as well as
this disk version and it's launched
on the same day as a mountain bike
Eagle Access version, including dropper post,
which all uses the same wireless protocol.
Wireless RockShox reverb Access dropper
post on your gravel bike, if you like.
(upbeat music)
Clearly there is a lot going on,
so let's go back to the beginning.
When eTap was first launched, people raved
about the performance, the simplicity,
the intuitive shifting.
Wanted to be more inevitable a little bit
cautious about the wireless elements,
both from a hacking perspective and also reliability
but now three years down the line we know that
both of those worries are completely unfounded.
It seems super reliable.
My own set has worked faultlessly for three years.
Now, the way it functions is that the rear
derailleur acts as the master in this system,
you then pair it up to the shifters
and the front derailleur using SRAM's own wireless protocol.
So it's not AMP Plus and it's not Bluetooth.
Now that much has remained the same
in that it is still wireless and it still
uses the same protocol, but why is it so different?
Well, I mean you look at it for a start, don't you?
And it screams I am different but why does it
look the way it looks?
Ultimately, gear ratios, that's what it comes down to.
It doesn't sound sexy, it's probably not
but they are super important.
You get your gear ratios right and it allows
you to peddle comfortably both up super steep
climbs and when tearing down the other side.
So what SRAM have done is broaden the range
of the cassette at the back and then reduced
the chain ring sizes up front and reduced
the gap between them.
They've kept it consistent to 13 teeth
across all the options, so now instead of
53, 39; 52, 36 or 50, 34, you have
50, 37; 48, 35 or 46, 33.
Now, for a die hard cyclist like myself
that sounds kind of weird.
It is certainly smaller but because the range
at the cassette is bigger, you still have
a higher top gear than you would have
on a traditional cassette because you now have
a smaller sprocket with just 10 teeth
as opposed to 11.
Look, I told you it wasn't sexy
but it is still kind of cool.
Ultimately, what you need to remember
is that you have an easier bottom gear
because the chain ring is smaller up front.
You have a higher top gear, because you have
a 10 tooth sprocket at the back
and because you have a 12th sprocket in there
you actually have smaller jumps
between the gears at the back than
a traditional cassette.
Now there are three options available to you
in terms of sizes, you've got a 10 to 26,
a 10 to 28 and a 10 to 33 which is the
largest cassette that this road derailleur
will accommodation.
The cassette still fits in the same space
as an 11 speed cassette, so in order
to get that extra 12th sprocket in there
then the gaps between them have been made narrower.
What that means is that there is no new hub
spacing but in order to get that 10 tooth
sprocket on there, an old school free hub
body will not work.
So you need to use an XDR Driver.
That in itself is not new, so there are
plenty of options available out there
when it comes to hub choices.
Now because those gaps between the sprockets
have been made narrower, you therefore
of course need that redesigned chain,
but SRAM have said that rather than
thinking of it as an after thought,
they've actually designed it at the heart
of the system then gone out from there.
The idea being that a holistic approach
means that you can improve the shifting
quality, you can improve the durability
and also you can make the drivetrain even quieter.
And one of the ways they've done that
is by actually making the plates
on the chain narrower and so despite
the smaller gaps on the cassette
there is still more space, they say,
either side of the chain and that's one
of the most significant factors
in reducing the noise.
And they've also added a hard chrome finish
to the inside plates of the chain
which they say boosts the durability.
Because it's narrower, SRAM have then added
that extra material on the top of the chain.
So as well as looking cool, and I think
it really does look cool, it also, they say,
makes the chain stronger.
Now, having started with that chain
they then move out to look at the teeth
and they have been sculpted and shaped
to improve durability and also efficiency, they say.
It's most obvious on the one by chain rings
which are now a road version of the ones
on the Eagle mountain bike group sets.
Having read up about those, it seems like
improved durability has been one of the
big advantages there and apparently
the design helps to spread the load
from the chain more evenly around the chain ring.
Now as well as the one by chain rings
getting a total redesign, the two by
chain rings have as well.
The first point is that there is a complete
absence of chain ring bolts and that's because
the big ring and the little ring are both
machined out of the same piece of material.
Now before we think, well crikey,
that might be quite tough to replace
do bare in mind that SRAM are boasting
50% improvement in it's durability.
And when it is time to replace,
if you get in touch with them, they will
give you one at half price as well as
recycling your old one.
The idea behind the design is that,
firstly it sheds weight and also
boosts stiffness which is another factor
you think in the improved shifting
quality at the front derailleur.
Chain with stiffness has a massive baring on that.
Now in total, that new design sheds about
80 grams over the previous chain set.
This one, as you can see, has that integrated
power meter and I really do mean integrated
because it too is machined from the same piece of material.
The strain gauges are based here in the spider
which doesn't really look like a spider anymore
but in total that adds just 36 grams.
Now there are two options available,
one with a power meter and one without
but SRAM have designed it so that the one
without is easily upgradable to that Quarq
power meter should you wish.
Because it's on the spider it means that
you have an accurate measurement of your total
power output as well as it being able to
extrapolate your left and right legs as well.
Let's move on to the rear derailleur now
which, surprise, surprise, has had an almost
total redesign as well.
That faster shifting, remember, and also
the Orbit's chain management system.
But if you don't mind, when we are
talking about it, can we go for a spin?
(upbeat music)
Lovely roads but a little bit colder
up in the mountains than it was by the coast.
Anyway, clutches are not new on rear derailleurs.
SRAM launched their first on a mountain bike
group set back in 2012 when they also debuted one by.
Now, the idea is that they keep your chain
under control and give you a near silent
ride on bumpy ground and they do that
by resisting forward motion of the derailleur arm
when it's responding to bumps, but without
loading the drive train with loads of
extra resistance, so it's not actually pulling back.
So SRAM only ever intended it for use
with one by grip sets because you can feel
a little bit extra resistance when you're
shifting chain rings with a clutch derailleur.
But this one, the Orbit, is different
because it doesn't have a roller baring clutch.
It's got a fluid damp system which allows
the derailleur arm to move unimpeded
in slower velocity, so like when you're
changing gears, but when it's moving
faster, I.E responding to bumps,
then it loads it up with extra resistance
thereby keeping your chain under control.
Now, a lot of you, I'm sure, probably never
thought you needed a clutch on a road bike
but I suspect it's probably a little bit
like disk brakes in that if you try it
you won't really want to go back.
And let's face it, with many, many road bikes
these days having gravel tendencies,
not to mention the gazillion gravel bikes
out there anyway, for which this group set
was designed for both, it of course makes sense
to therefore end up with
some kind of chain management system.
It will allow you to ride away from tarmac
in near silence, not to mention
saving your paint work.
Very cool too.
Now, as I mentioned earlier, with a one by
specific chain ring on you can use
the same rear derailleur and run a single
chain ring set up without any fear
of your chain coming off.
Now long time viewers will know, I'm a big
fan of a one by set up so I'm quite excited about that.
Now in use you do get a sense that
the Orbit is contributing to the feeling
of silence you get from this drive train,
not on smooth tarmac like this of course
but any time you hit a pot hole
or a section of bumps, there is a
definite absence of a quite familiar noise.
Now, as I mentioned earlier, the Orbit
isn't the only thing that SRAM have done
to the rear derailleur, they say
they've spead up the shifting.
Now that's not something I ever felt
was particularly lacking from the first
generation but also not something
that I'd say no to either.
Apparently they've done it by changing
the chips in the shifters
as well as in the rear derailleur
and also changing the motor too.
And actually, it's not just the rear
derailleur, the front derailleur gets the same treatment.
So one of just several ways in which
they've sped that shifting up.
Of course remember, we've got the stiffer
chain rings and we've also got
that smaller gap between the chain
ring sizes, so down from 16 teeth to just 13 teeth.
And one last tweak to that front derailleur
is to the actual shape of it.
So because you've got this Orbit
chain management system, SRAM have designed
a front derailleur to be able to be used
on a gravel bike, so with fatter tires.
You can actually squeeze a 42 millimeter
wide tire in there so you can run
a two by gravel bike with a silent drive chain.
(upbeat music)
I'm conscious that we spent a lot of time
talking about the hard wear but we've yet
to touch on one of the other big stories,
the Access app that lives on a smart phone.
Basically, you connect up all the different
components on your bike to your phone,
really easily by pressing the Access button
and it connects via Bluetooth.
You then authorize communication with the master
in the system, the rear derailleur remember,
and hey presto, it's then on your phone.
Now what do you do with it?
Well a bunch of things actually.
Firstly you can change how it shifts,
so there is a sequential button
meaning you can hand over control
of your front derailleur to Access,
so all you need to think about is shifting
into easier or harder gears and it handles
what it shifts and when.
Or if you still want control of your front
derailleur but you want to delegate
those little compensation shifts
you need to make every time you change
chain rings then you can tell this
to do exactly that and you can choose
whether you want one or two compensation shifts.
And it's really quite clever because you need
to tell it exactly what cassette you're using
and it will then tailor exactly how it operates
with it's sequential shifting.
You can also configure the controls,
so changing what each button actually does.
So on your road bike, for example,
you might want to shift using your
right lever into easier gears instead of harder gears.
Now, you might not use that function
terribly much but remember that the new
mountain bike Access platform has also
launched and that shares the same protocol
opening up a whole world of quite
intriguing opportunities, perfect for the new
breed of road, drop handle bar bikes.
So you can pair an Access Eagle rear mech cassette
ring and chain on and you've got super low gears.
And bear in mind as well there is also
a Rockshox reverb Access dropper post
and you can choose which button on your
handle bars operates that one.
It is a brave new world, I'm not going to lie.
SRAM are calling these new breed of mongrel bikes
mullet bikes because it's business at the front
and party at the back, something that
I personally am down with.
Well, what else is there to tell you then?
Yeah, more, would you believe.
The SRAM DUB bottom bracket standard
that they launched for mountain bikes
has now transferred onto the road as well.
The idea behind that, firstly, so SRAM
have got control over barings
and so forth to improve durability, they say,
but also to simplify things.
So one axle standard should fit threaded,
BB30, PF30, PF86, BB Right, BB386, probably more
although would you believe it, there are
that many standards that they're still
producing the old GXP diameter in order
to fit treks BB90 and also Italian threaded bottom brackets.
One other point to mention is that
your old eTap is not compatible
with the new eTap, so you can't use
your old shifters with the new rear
derailleur or vice versa.
I haven't talked about the brakes yet,
and that's for good reason because they haven't
really changed at all with the exception
of these new disk rotors that look pretty rude.
The shifters have also remained essentially
unchanged internally, there's a little bit
of extra texture added to the shifter panel
and also onto the rubber lever hood.
Then the only things left to mention
are the weights and the prices.
So SRAM are quoting 2553 grams for the
disk brake version with a power meter
and 2139 grams for the rim brake version
with a power meter.
Remember, the power meter option only adds 36 grams
which is frankly quite astonishing.
Now, the price.
This is definitely a premium product,
it retails for $4158 for the disk
brake version with a power meter,
without the power meter it's $510 cheaper
and the rim brake version, it's $3488.
Now, that is clearly a big investment
in a group set but I've got to say
I really like that no expenses spared
approach to product development.
Really pushing the boundaries irrespective of the price.
And I really like it because in the cycling
industry it's been proven time and again
that we benefit from trickle down technology.
So technology that's been launched
at the very top price point then reaches
more affordable price points too.
And SRAM have said that they are developing
a Force eTap Access group set.
Now they haven't said when but I believe
we're going to get more information in April.
So stay tuned for that one.
In the mean time, please, if you've got
any questions about this, get involved
in the comment section down below.
I will do my best to answer them.
And of course, please make sure you give
this video a big thumbs up.
If you like what you see with this new group set
I will certainly be giving it a big thumbs up.
If you want a bit more information about
the brakes which, I say, we haven't really
touched on yet then they are the same
as when they were launched in 2016
and we've got a video about that group set
so why not click straight through to it now.