# Powermeters



## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

Trying to decide what powermeter to get for the Madone team bike that should be here in the next week or two. Anyone have a recommendation as to what I should get that comes in compact BCD and will fit the BB90 of the Trek frame? 
So far, I've come up with either the SRM Kforce light or a Quarq CinQo on a Rotor Crank. I'll be using a Garmin 705 as a head unit, and I'm not considering a powertap because I'd have to buy 2 so I could have one built into a race wheel as well as a training wheel.


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## cxwrench (Nov 9, 2004)

well, i guess if no one else is gonna play, i will. SRM. nobody gets them for free, and it's still the tool of choice for more elite racers than any other device. yeah, they're spendy...but i'm betting you can probably get a pretty good deal on one, you sound like you're pretty hooked up. 

i bought a garmin 500 w/ the same idea as you...no all i have to do is sell a couple of bikes, my cat, and who knows what else so i can afford one!


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## jjmstang (May 8, 2009)

If you do buy a SRM ( used or new) make sure it's the wireless model. The wired model will not fit the new generation Madones.
The Quarq has favorable reviews but the 705 head unit has had it share of problems with data drops, not zeroing and other things I can't recall. I don't know if they have been resolved or not.
Join the Wattage group and do some searching 

http://groups.google.com/group/wattage

Hope this helps a bit,
John


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

cxwrench said:


> ... you sound like you're pretty hooked up...


Eh... I couldn't even get a good deal on them when I was more "hooked up" than I am now. They seem a little on the stingy side  I agree, though- they are the industry standard when it comes to a good PM. 

jjmstang- I have a wired one now, which is why I'm needing to get something else soon! My hubby has been using the 705 for over a year now and it's been pretty reliable with his SRM. Hopefully if I go the Quarq route (downfall being that I'd have to wait longer for the one I want to be available, and it's not the same "gold standard" as the SRM), the 705 will work just as well.

Edit- anyone know where you can purchase just the SRM crank w/out a powercontrol? That would essentially equalize the cost between the two cranks. I guess the other option is to get the whole system & ebay the head unit, but that'd suck.


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## jjmstang (May 8, 2009)

Andrea, check with SRM in Colorado. I think they will sell just the Crankset w/o the PCVI


-John


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## Coolhand (Jul 28, 2002)

Andrea138 said:


> Eh... I couldn't even get a good deal on them when I was more "hooked up" than I am now. They seem a little on the stingy side  I agree, though- they are the industry standard when it comes to a good PM.
> 
> jjmstang- I have a wired one now, which is why I'm needing to get something else soon! My hubby has been using the 705 for over a year now and it's been pretty reliable with his SRM. Hopefully if I go the Quarq route (downfall being that I'd have to wait longer for the one I want to be available, and it's not the same "gold standard" as the SRM), the 705 will work just as well.
> 
> Edit- anyone know where you can purchase just the SRM crank w/out a powercontrol? That would essentially equalize the cost between the two cranks. I guess the other option is to get the whole system & ebay the head unit, but that'd suck.


Ebay- just set it to search for you. Seems to be a decent amount of wireless units being sold now, although the sweet spot is still the D/A Wired SRM's with regard to value.


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## thirstyman (May 6, 2007)

the response on the wattage forum indicates that the 705 unit is not good due to its methods of calculating and smoothing.


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## King Arthur (Nov 13, 2009)

*quark with a joule*

Andrea,
On my new bike I decided on the quark cinquo b/c of ease of changing the battery, being waterproof in the rain (found out about how un-waterproof the power tap is) and am going to use a joule to be the main power servo. The only problem is whenever cycelops gets off their collective a$$'s and will ship the freakin thing. I will give a full review on the joule once it arrives and I get it up and running. I am probably going to go with either the rotor q rings or fsa for cranks.


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

Thanks... I ended up shopping around some more and settling on a Quarq Cinqo in a SRAM S975 crank. Looks like it's going to weigh in at <800g, which is actually lighter and a heck of a lot cheaper than the other options. I already have a 705, so I'm going to use it as a head unit for now, though if it gives me issues, I'll look in to other options.


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## Exciton (Aug 8, 2008)

Why not wait a few months more and then get the Vector solution from Metrigear? (http://www.metrigear.com/products/)


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## Andrea138 (Mar 10, 2008)

I'm impatient, and I don't like to get the first run of a new product. Definitely looking forward to seeing how those work out, though.


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## jjmstang (May 8, 2009)

I bet the metrigear won't be available to the public until Q1 of 2011.

Andrea...... please post a review after you have had some time using the Quarq.

Thanks,
John


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## hillslug67 (Mar 12, 2006)

Haha you have the same problem as me Andrea no patience...I'm also waiting on a Quarq with the S975 Crankset had a deposit down for the last few weeks....last I heard I was still way down on the list another 4 weeks maybe hehe. Gonna pair it up with the Garmin 500. If you are looking for the SRM without the control unit you can order one direct via srm.de just look under accessories > powermeters or call up the folks at Competitive Cyclist they told me they would knock off 850 from the price of the full kit if you only needed the SRM/Crankset. I dunno how long I can wait haha may just pickup the SRM.


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