Customising settings in e-Tube app (and what Orbea have done with the RS)

[b33k34]

Intrigued by this. The weather has been filthy this week so I've still only given my Rise a quick test ride in the park but immediately apparent that it's a completely different animal to Bosch powered bikes I've ridden, and even to the EP8 equipped Santa Cruz Bullitt (though that was a very short ride).

So wondering exactly what Orbea have changed in the firmware - The way the assist comes in is much more subtle, and definitely at a much higher cadence - the Bosch motor seems to give most power at a much slower cadence than I ride at and I found climbing steep stuff really un-natural. So theres definitely something different there. And they've limited the max torque.

Then you get to the settings in the e-tube app. nothing I've found so far really gives any explanation of what these change. the middle 'max torque' setting is pretty obvious. But Assist Start and Assist Character? I notice Assist Start seems to be set at 'Quick' in every one of the presets, which seems odd. If anyone is wondering I've also worked out some of the display - the white dot on a bar indicates the default 'factory' position for setting. The coloured dots the settings in the other modes. (My bike had been in the showroom for a little while and all my settings had been changed....)

 

[BobR]

I went almost immediately to profile 2 but have not messed with it much and have gone on at least 10 rides... I do plan on changing to the larger spacer on the rear shock as I have too much pressure in it right now in order to not bottom out making it almost not there from a feeling perspective. I also purchased the ST Ride app for 2.99 us to give me battery percentage used plus a ton of other features I am playing with. Way cheaper than going to a Garmin as I use my phone.

 

[Steve G H]

Here's a pretty good explanation of the characters in the etube app and how they alter the bike , they do make a significant difference .

Which characteristics of the EP8 can be tuned?
The Shimano EP8 gives you the option of using the display to select between two independently customisable motor profiles. For each profile, you can use the E-TUBE PROJECT app to tune three parameters for each of the three support levels, Eco, Trail and Boost: assist characteristic, maximum torque and assist characteristic at the start. How do these parameters actually affect the motor on the trail?

Assist characteristic
This is the level of support i.e. by how much the motor multiplies the input of the rider. With a high setting, the motor assists very powerfully with little effort from the rider, while a low setting means you have to put a lot of pressure on the pedals to get the maximum torque and power out of the motor. Of all parameters, the assist characteristic has the greatest influence on the feel of the motor on the trail

Maximum torque
This limits the amount of torque the motor puts out, but not necessarily the maximum power since it can also achieve this at a higher cadence with less torque. Instead, changes in maximum torque make the most difference at lower cadences. On the trail, you’ll feel it when accelerating or riding up steep chutes (especially if you’re in the wrong gear), as well as when pulling heavy loads.

Assist characteristic at the start
This is the sensitivity of the motor when pulling away and only refers to the moment when you put your foot on the pedal and exert that initial bit of pressure to get going. In the fast setting, the motor reacts quickly, with relatively little effort and minimal rotation of the cranks, making it ideal for experienced riders. The lower the setting, the slower the EP8 responds to input on the pedals, both in relation to the force exerted and to the rotation of the cranks. The assist characteristic at the start has a marginal influence on battery consumption as this parameter affects the motor’s output for less than a full revolution of the cranks.

 

[Bigtuna00]

If you're Specialized rider:

Assist characteristic = Support
Maximum torque = Peak Power
Assist characteristic at the start = Acceleration response

 

[paske]

I do plan on changing to the larger spacer on the rear shock as I have too much pressure in it right now in order to not bottom out making it almost not there from a feeling perspective

Same here! 140mm is a little bit too short...

 

[b33k34]

Same here! 140mm is a little bit too short...

Shouldn't be if it's set up properly. My regular bike (a Nicolai Helius AC) is the same 150/140 as the Rise. Running a Fox DPX2 on the rear of that it was fine to ride big mountains and do uplifted riding. First ride out on the Rise yesterday and first impression was that the rear needed another spacer as I was blowing through the travel (and running surprisingly high pressure to get 30% sag). I'm only 80ish kg (195cm) so hardly a heavyweight.

The free app I was running on my Garmin 130 showed 92% battery as the start of the ride (I'd charged it 10 days ago?) and I got 41km and 1060m climbing out of it.