would i miss full power e bike

nathdogg

Member
Feb 2, 2021
26
21
norwich
Loving the Orbea rise and I definately thing the lighter weight more nimble machine would be far more suited to my riding style. The only thing that concerns me is would I miss the power of a full fat ebike?
I currently have Bosch gen 4 and my typical ride is usually between 40-50 KM mixed urban and trails. I do this with my friend who is also on a full fat ebike.
We both have the speedbox so we can cruise at more realistic speeds and I spend 90% in emtb and 10% turbo on the way home.
Do you think the drop in power would be too noticeable?
 

GMLS

Active member
Jun 22, 2020
336
209
Surrey
I'm 56, fairly fit and 2 rides into my Rise having handed down my Cube to the Mrs.I mostly go out alone and over the same favourite trails.I'm still experimenting with assistance levels and range but already established that full boost gets me up even the most challenging inclines so a big tick in the box.Overall interms of heart, lungs and legs, I'm defo working harder than before (which was one of the drivers for change) but not unpleasantly so. I'm down on all my strava segment times but know I'll get quicker with familiarity.I still use my manual and at my fitness levels I'd say it fits nicely between the 2. I doubt I'll be nicking the Cube as enjoying the more natural feel to it.If you find you struggle you can always get a range extender and derestrict.
 

nathdogg

Member
Feb 2, 2021
26
21
norwich
That was my fear. I know it would be a mega thing on the trails but I spend more time riding too the trails unfortunately ......
 

Chicane

Active member
Nov 11, 2020
367
321
SoCal
I have zero interest In a FF and only know 1 ride on the Levo SL and have around 225 miles on my Rise. I found that in tight tech single track you have to be extremely careful riding in boost or you’ll end up off the side of the trail, or if I had any more power the rear wheel will spin out going up rocky tech. I feel that the Rise has way more than enough power and the perfect balance when you need the extra help. The only place I see the full power bike being needed/used is climbing steep fire roads and I don’t see the thrill in trying to go as fast as you can, but everyone is different.
 

UK Orb Riser

Member
Sep 27, 2021
12
8
UK
do you mean derestricting?
Kind of,with the correct software you can basically run the RS motor as a standard EP8 with the full 85Nm or just a little less as I have,I run it at 78 on the Stunlocker App. Speed wise you can leave as is or run at US spec (20mph) as I have or you can alter wheel circumference and go as fast as you can pedal,there are many options available.
 

UK Orb Riser

Member
Sep 27, 2021
12
8
UK
QUOTE="nathdogg, post: 344527, member: 15363"]
sounds interesting... ..must be a right monster running full power
[/QUOTE]

Makes a great bike into a truly awesome bike. I came from two full fats to the rise but got sick of lifting a 24kg bike onto the top of a 4x4.
 

Husky430

E*POWAH Elite
Jul 8, 2019
646
1,053
Glasshouse Mts - Australia
Have read somewhere on here that running them at full power (85nm) could be detrimental to the smaller battery as it pulls the power out of it at a greater wattage which it's not designed to do. Not 100% sure i this is the case just something that I think would be wise to look into if you were to go down that road.
 

Underblu

Member
Aug 22, 2021
49
43
USA
I just bought a Rise to go with my Heckler MX. I find that I do most of my riding in eco mode on the Heckler so I don’t expect there to be any power issues with the Rise.

If I were you, I’d run your Bosch bike in eco and tour mode and see how you get along with it. That should get you a better idea of what to expect.
 
The EP8 RS is not THAT much weaker than the standard EP8. I did a back-to-back test up a slalom hill recently and found that Trail mode on the EP8 = Boost mode on the EP8 RS, if that helps.

Both bikes climbed equally as far on the last techy bit, it wasn't the power that stopped me but lack of skills.

Agree that a FF on fire roads and longer climbs are much faster, difficult to catch up with a weaker motor.
 

Zed

Active member
Feb 26, 2019
369
320
Brisbane, Australia
We both have the speedbox so we can cruise at more realistic speeds and I spend 90% in emtb and 10% turbo on the way home.
Do you think the drop in power would be too noticeable?
When you say 90% emtb and 10% turbo - yes, I think too noticeable. Honestly, you can try it out now. Just ride in a low powered mode for a few rides in a row and don't dial up more assistance. Stick it in ECO or Tour or whatever and stay there. See how you like it. Sounds boring AF right? :) Personally, I'd rather have the FF smile on my face... It just comes down to fun %. I'd rather more minutes per hour fun & excitement - that's why I bought an ebike the moment I tried one. YMMV.

A LOT depends on your trails too. For instance, I spend a lot of time winching up a pretty steep 150m so I can bomb one of four descents back down. I dunno if that'd work out for me on a lower capacity/lower powered bike. It was pretty average on a non-ebike :). I eat up most of a 625W with a Gen4 in 6 runs down. If I lived somewhere flatter though I think the lighter bikes might make sense.

I wouldn't be inclined to go less than 160mm anymore either though, but that's just me.

A lower powered bike would be a second bike for me. And I don't think I'd use it enough to justify the cost.

Hey I get it - the only real issue with my Wild FS is weight. It's a porker, and it would be f(*king outstanding to have this bike weighing <20kg. But it's worth the trade off for me, and I've learnt to deal with the weight better by preloading a lot more often and more vigorously than I used to on analog bikes. Doing some basic upper body strength work helps with chucking it around too.
 
Last edited:

Bigtuna00

Active member
Nov 27, 2019
556
337
CA
I currently have Bosch gen 4 and my typical ride is usually between 40-50 KM mixed urban and trails. I do this with my friend who is also on a full fat ebike.
We both have the speedbox so we can cruise at more realistic speeds and I spend 90% in emtb and 10% turbo on the way home.

You're in the space where you might be able to get the same power, but you *will* miss the range.

The Rise is an absolute ROCKET on the kind of riding you describe. I liked the Rise everywhere *except* really steep climbs (>25% grade). That's where I found myself redlining too much vs my Levo. Problem is I ride a lot of steep climbs, so it was a deal breaker. But it felt GREAT everywhere else. For reference I had an M-LTD customized to hit 36.5 lbs.

I would say Bosch EMTB mode (I have a Mondraker Crafty now, so I've ridden that too) is comparable to the Rise in Profile 2 Boost mode (basically the mode with the most power). But the range won't even be close. Boost mode on the Rise is good for about 18-20 miles (~30Km). I managed to do a 25 mile ride on the Rise but I had to change modes a lot (35% boost, 35%ish Trail, rest Eco limping home).

(I also didn't care for the fit of the Rise, the BB is too far back and the front end is too short but that's obviously a personal thing)
 

nathdogg

Member
Feb 2, 2021
26
21
norwich
Thanks for your imput. I think from your answers I would definately miss the power of the FF too much.I never really use eco modes unless battery is about to go and I find it a bit of a struggle.. I can't afford to run 2 bikes so I think I'm going to stay with what I have until a full power light weight comes out :)
 
  • Agree
Reactions: Zed

Lecollazo

Member
May 7, 2021
18
6
USA
Loving the Orbea rise and I definately thing the lighter weight more nimble machine would be far more suited to my riding style. The only thing that concerns me is would I miss the power of a full fat ebike?
I currently have Bosch gen 4 and my typical ride is usually between 40-50 KM mixed urban and trails. I do this with my friend who is also on a full fat ebike.
We both have the speedbox so we can cruise at more realistic speeds and I spend 90% in emtb and 10% turbo on the way home.
Do you think the drop in power would be too noticeable?

I definitely missed the full power with the Specialized SL Turbo, I used the SL for 4 months (370 miles) and it’s not me or for my rides. I keep my full power Trek Rail 9.7.
 

Underblu

Member
Aug 22, 2021
49
43
USA
Had a few days on my Rise. Awesome bike. The EP8-RS has plenty of pull. The stock profile 1 is very low powered and does not show what the motor is capable of. Once I adjusted the settings in eTube, the power felt very comparable to the full torque EP8 in my Heckler MX-S.
 

ReVolt

Member
Jun 10, 2019
91
63
London
This is a tricky one. It’s hard to compare anything with the Rise as the overall package is quite unique. It’s peak power is more than I expected in Profile 2 but it doesn’t have the drag racer torque of a FF if that’s what you’re used to and you have to put more input into the riding experience. It’s a harder bike to ride generally, but it can be more rewarding on a good run allowing for the fact that it doesn’t compensate for poor riding like a FF can.
It’s great having the lightweight and the quickness of turn, but you may miss the 4x4 style pull to get you out of trouble.
The range is decent but using boost does give you range anxiety until you get the extender.
I’m not a fan of STunlocker but Emax are doing options to change the region to US for 20mph plus you can alter the power setting - Id probably up it 70nm just to give that bit of extra bunce without altering the general nature of the ride - this plus the range extender would make the package a bloody good one especially for typical trails found in SE England.
 

GMLS

Active member
Jun 22, 2020
336
209
Surrey
So still getting used to the new Rise but my overall thoughts as a fairly fit 56 year old coming off a FF Cube;
Definitely having to work harder overall but that was part of the decision making. Full boost adequate when needed as its getting me up everything I need to in the Surrey Hills inc the last techy bit up to Leith Hill tower and the short steep return to the top of BKB.Spending most of my time in Eco and Trail in profile 2 and getting good range.This bike is a no brainer going straight from analogue and just needs a bit more adjustment if you've been "spoilt" by a FF.
 

aarfeldt

E*POWAH Master
Subscriber
May 25, 2019
713
634
Denmark, Danstrup
I’m not a fan of STunlocker but Emax are doing options to change the region to US for 20mph plus you can alter the power setting...

I'm a fan of STUnlocker, and with this tool you can change the region to US.
You can also alter the wheel size, so assistance will be lifted to 42kmh.

Power settings in all 3 modes can be lifted to 500watt.
Torque can be set to 85Nm.

It will become a fantastic rocket....IMO it's actually too much, but it's very funny to try it out :)
On my local trail (17km) it hurt the battery consumption by 2%.
 

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