- Intended Use
- Trail, All Mountain
- Motor
- Shimano EP8-RS (EP801)
- Battery
- 540 Wh (360 Wh as standard)
- Fork Travel
- 140 mm
- Rear Travel
- 140 mm
- Weight
- 19.5 kg, size M (measured, no pedals)
- Price
- €7.148 (€6.999 with the 360 Wh battery)
At first glance, the new carbon Orbea Rise doesn't look new. The frame looks the same and it still comes with a 360 Wh battery. I take a closer look at the bike, a very close look at the motor and a quick glimpse at the app in this video. Check it out or keep reading below.
The Power button is no longer on the bottom of the seattube. The chargeport is though, it's new and easier to operate!
The downtube is actually marginally bigger. This means the 540 Wh battery found on the aluminium frame Orbea Rise now will fit the carbon Rise. Orbea gives you a few options to choose specs on all their bikes, and you can indeed spec the 2023 carbon Rise with the 540Wh battery. This demo bikes has the big 540 Wh battery. It comes with a weight penalty of some 800 grams though.
The EN600-L is a new remote that includes the power button. It has better indication of remaining battery compared to the old EW-EN100.
Up until now, the Orbe Rise never had a good way of holding the cables inside the frame. This caused a bit of rattle when riding trails. On the new frame, the cables seem nicely fixed inside the frame. The cables on the demo bike I rode weren't cut to the proper length because they need to be able to adjust the seat post height. Still, it was a very silent ride.
The Basic settings is the same as on the old Shimano EP8 (EP800)
As before, there are two profiles that stores motor settings. Now I could choose either Basic or Fine Tune independently for each profile. In Fine Tune, I can set up to 15 assistance levels, which is a lot. I can set maximum and minimum motor torque only one place. The assistance levels are distributed evenly between max and min power. It seems the idea is you select the modes you want and disable the rest, I don't think many people will intentionally use 15 levels. I didn't have the time to test the changes though, I'll save that for later.
The Fine Tune Mode is new and seems more complex at first glance.
The new EP8-RS motor
I found a small drop and some stairs that weren't too icy. Which was good, this bike had the standard summer tyres. The bike was very silent. Or was it? Did I suddenly hear a bit of rattle? It's difficult determining the source of the noise on a bike. Some was coming from the Shimano brake pads. Some could be caused by the cables not being cut to the optimal length. But there was some motor rattle too.
I talked to the owner of the EP801 bike I just tested. He had done 3 rides since I rode the bike and he told me his bike was still silent. The Orbea Rise seemed to develop some noise during my ride. It's still a silent bike though, much more so than the 2022 Rise. I'm not sure what to make of this. Could the noise increase with time? I guess I need to test more bikes over a longer period of time.
My current impression is the new EP8 motor is a nice improvement over the old EP8. Few other "full power" emtb motors are as silent as the gen2 EP8 and EP8-RS. Does it matter though? I know some don't care much, others do, it's upto you to decide. Regardless, the new carbon Rise is a nice upgrade, ensuring it's still a compelling option for 2023.
A good amount of changes
Looks can be deceiving though. Even though geometry is the same, the frame is indeed new. The bottom part of the frame is altered to follow the lines of the new Shimano EP8-RS motor, also known as the EP801-RS, the 2nd generation EP8. The power-button on the bottom of the seat tube is gone, it's now found integrated in the new handlebar remote switch.The Power button is no longer on the bottom of the seattube. The chargeport is though, it's new and easier to operate!
The downtube is actually marginally bigger. This means the 540 Wh battery found on the aluminium frame Orbea Rise now will fit the carbon Rise. Orbea gives you a few options to choose specs on all their bikes, and you can indeed spec the 2023 carbon Rise with the 540Wh battery. This demo bikes has the big 540 Wh battery. It comes with a weight penalty of some 800 grams though.
The EN600-L is a new remote that includes the power button. It has better indication of remaining battery compared to the old EW-EN100.
Up until now, the Orbe Rise never had a good way of holding the cables inside the frame. This caused a bit of rattle when riding trails. On the new frame, the cables seem nicely fixed inside the frame. The cables on the demo bike I rode weren't cut to the proper length because they need to be able to adjust the seat post height. Still, it was a very silent ride.
About the M20
The Orbea Rise M20 is the entry-level carbon Rise with a price tag of €6.999 / £6.499 (€7.148 with 540Wh battery). The 360 Wh battery has been updated for 2023 and it's a few hundred grams lighter, at just under 1.9 kg. Also, the rocker for the rear suspension is new and lighter. I weighed the 2023 Orbea Rise M20 size M with the big 540 Wh battery to 19.5 kg without pedals and with tubes.E-Tube app
The new Shimano motors offers more options to tweak motor power and power delivery. I connected the app to have a look at the new "Fine Tune Mode". When Shimano introduced the function, I thought it looked a bit complicated. But it seems it is quite simple. I connected the app and selected tune the motor settings.The Basic settings is the same as on the old Shimano EP8 (EP800)
As before, there are two profiles that stores motor settings. Now I could choose either Basic or Fine Tune independently for each profile. In Fine Tune, I can set up to 15 assistance levels, which is a lot. I can set maximum and minimum motor torque only one place. The assistance levels are distributed evenly between max and min power. It seems the idea is you select the modes you want and disable the rest, I don't think many people will intentionally use 15 levels. I didn't have the time to test the changes though, I'll save that for later.
The Fine Tune Mode is new and seems more complex at first glance.
2nd generation Shimano EP8-RS
I've already tested the new EP8 motor, code name EP801. It was a very silent motor without the rattle you might know from the old EP8 (EP800). The new EP8-RS is the same motor as the one I just tested, only the software differs. Before I started riding, I lifted the bike by it's saddle and dropped it. This is promising, the bike seems very silent.The new EP8-RS motor
I found a small drop and some stairs that weren't too icy. Which was good, this bike had the standard summer tyres. The bike was very silent. Or was it? Did I suddenly hear a bit of rattle? It's difficult determining the source of the noise on a bike. Some was coming from the Shimano brake pads. Some could be caused by the cables not being cut to the optimal length. But there was some motor rattle too.
I talked to the owner of the EP801 bike I just tested. He had done 3 rides since I rode the bike and he told me his bike was still silent. The Orbea Rise seemed to develop some noise during my ride. It's still a silent bike though, much more so than the 2022 Rise. I'm not sure what to make of this. Could the noise increase with time? I guess I need to test more bikes over a longer period of time.
My current impression is the new EP8 motor is a nice improvement over the old EP8. Few other "full power" emtb motors are as silent as the gen2 EP8 and EP8-RS. Does it matter though? I know some don't care much, others do, it's upto you to decide. Regardless, the new carbon Rise is a nice upgrade, ensuring it's still a compelling option for 2023.
