Shimano R9100-P Powermeter

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Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

I'm not sure how many real life objective reviews there are out there, but here's mine.
After using the the Powermeter for over 5000km i have started to notice a weird behavior which i can't really find the reason for it.
Sometimes i get a reading of "0" for both Power and Cadence, i was thinking perhaps it's a Garmin issue so i went and used some other Computer, same thing!, i couldn't figure out how to reproduce it but i did figure out how to get the reading again, for some odd reason, either pedaling with one leg for a minute or just unclipping for a few seconds will get the Power&Cadence reading back (this rules out any Garmin/ANT+ issues), during the time that i see 0" for both Power&Cadence i can see that the ANT+ signal is strong and i can see that the sensor is connected (I can get details about it for example).
If i don't unclip and clip again sometimes it can take over an hour to get reading again and sometimes just a few minutes, it's started to really bother me when i was climbing Teide (long climb) and especially when doing some Tempo rides.
When i came back home the weather got bad so i used the trainer a little bit, i did use my Garmin to see if this behavior happens again, immediately when it happened i opened my smartphone and used Shimano's E-TUBE app connected via Bluetooth (to use their "Cycling Computer"), and well, it happens there as well!, it's connected but show "0".
I am using the latest Firmware as well as tried any method on their manuals (doing an hard reset, zero offset using etube/button/cycling computer).
Nothing helped, sometimes i can have a ride without any issues and sometimes i can have a ride with this issue popping up every couple of minutes.
I will now send my files and a complete explanation to the dealer which i bought the unit from because apparently you can't contact Shimano directly, i was quite shocked hearing it, so if you think on buying it because it's "Shimano" so just remember that if you have any issues it first needs to go directly through the dealer, i can only assume it will take a while until i will get a direct and good answer from Shimano, my guess they will first tell me to do things i have already done like: disassemble and assemble, check magnet, switch a cycling computer, calibrate, hard reset even though i will tell them i have done it.
I will wait and see :)

Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

BdaGhisallo wrote:
Tue Jan 23, 2018 6:24 pm
After reading the BikeRadar review, I am very interested to hear what DCRainmaker has to say about the unit. I know that he has a unit he is currently testing. Let's hope it's not too long before he posts his thoughts.
From my experience, DCRainmaker reviews are only to get the accuracy of a product, not how reliable it is.
I can give two examples now.
1) I have a Pioneer Powermeter, when you read DCRainmaker review, he never mentions the problem that Pioneer had with their left leg sensor (2 years ago), they silently fixed it a year ago or so (you can see that the battery cap and the sensor is different), but for some odd reason DCRainmaker never mentioned it, probably because he never had this issue as he didn't use the Powermeter for over hunders of KMs (you can see this issue in the comments section under the review though!)
2) I am having issues with my Shimano Powermeter, the first month or so was good until i started to ramp up the KMs and doing some long long climbs, then i started to observe those weird issues (see my previous post here).

While you can rely on his reviews in terms of accuracy, i'm not sure that you can rely on his reviews in terms of reliability and durability.

by Weenie


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ms6073
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Location: Houston, Texas

by ms6073

Given the quantity of devices Ray tests on a weekly basis, long term reviews are usually not in his wheelhouse, which to me seems to be a by-product of the continuing popularity of his reviews.
- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

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pdlpsher1
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Location: CO

by pdlpsher1

Sorry to hear about your troubles Infin1ty. Here in the US we have a Shimano technical and warranty support for consumers. To get my parts warrantied I go through them directly. They can also answer questions. Of all the times I’ve called them they never asked me if I’m in the US. Look them up in Google. They are located in Irvine California. Good luck.


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Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

pdlpsher1 wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 2:52 pm
Sorry to hear about your troubles Infin1ty. Here in the US we have a Shimano technical and warranty support for consumers. To get my parts warrantied I go through them directly. They can also answer questions. Of all the times I’ve called them they never asked me if I’m in the US. Look them up in Google. They are located in Irvine California. Good luck.


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Thanks, i will first contact the dealer, if that won't get me anywhere i will search for them.

I find it funny, but if you look at the bikeradar review here: https://www.bikeradar.com/au/road/gear/ ... iew-51582/ and look at the comments:
"Maybe this power meter just detects your imbalance better than others. I have been riding with this power meter for four months and usually get 51/49 or 50/50 left/right balance. Apart from one ride in which the cadence dropped out it hasn't missed a beat."
This is how it started, i had a ride where the Cadence dropped (also the Power, there's no Power without Cadence).
While i'm not sure how much time this guy rides on a weekly basis, but having done 20hours a week for those 3 weeks in Tenerife, i have seen it happen a lot so i guess i'm not the only one.

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pdlpsher1
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Location: CO

by pdlpsher1

Here's Shimano USA contact info.

Address: 1 Holland, Irvine, CA 92618
Hours: Open ⋅ Closes 5PM
Phone: (949) 951-5003

mds
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Dec 13, 2008 6:28 pm
Location: California

by mds

Infin1ty, sorry to hear of your problem. If you have not done so, double check the magnet location with the template, double check the electrical connector inside the crank, and also double check battery charge. Intermittent problems can be hard to diagnose.

I've had my R9100-P 3 months, 2700 km. I am happy, it works well, no problems.
2009 Look 595

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TonyM
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by TonyM

Infin1ty wrote: „Maybe this power meter just detects your imbalance better than others.“

Thanks for sharing this!

I hope DC Rainmaker will test it compared to Pioneer, Stages L/R, SRM etc....

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charmette1261
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Location: France

by charmette1261

mds wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 7:00 pm

I've had my R9100-P 3 months, 2700 km. I am happy, it works well, no problems.
Same ... 9100P founction perfectly.

Can follow me on strava to check this :) https://www.strava.com/activities/1387618237

Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

mds wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 7:00 pm
Infin1ty, sorry to hear of your problem. If you have not done so, double check the magnet location with the template, double check the electrical connector inside the crank, and also double check battery charge. Intermittent problems can be hard to diagnose.

I've had my R9100-P 3 months, 2700 km. I am happy, it works well, no problems.
Like i said, i tried everything possible (Engineer and Architect), double checked the magnet and like mentioned before, i disassembled the whole thing and assembled it again, and if i think about it now, i started to see this after the first time i had charged the unit.
And just to rule out again this is not a magnet issue, if this was a magnet issue, i would not see the ANT signal at all, the unit turns on by a magnet and not by torque being applied to it (at least from my checks).
The unit is on, but it sends "0" cadence and power (also torque/balance, etc..), it does send the data, just "0", you can see the ANT sensor is connected, all is good, the only way to trigger the reading again (without waiting random amount of time) is to unclip and then clip again.

btw, did you already charged the unit? like having about 250 hours on it?
Last edited by Infin1ty on Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:18 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

pdlpsher1 wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 6:56 pm
Here's Shimano USA contact info.

Address: 1 Holland, Irvine, CA 92618
Hours: Open ⋅ Closes 5PM
Phone: (949) 951-5003
Thanks!

mds
Posts: 199
Joined: Sat Dec 13, 2008 6:28 pm
Location: California

by mds

Infin1ty wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:16 pm
btw, did you already charged the unit? like having about 250 hours on it?
Yes, I charged it about 1 month ago, after about 100 hours.
2009 Look 595

Infin1ty
Posts: 183
Joined: Sun Mar 12, 2006 8:25 pm
Location: Israel

by Infin1ty

mds wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:31 pm
Infin1ty wrote:
Fri Feb 02, 2018 8:16 pm
btw, did you already charged the unit? like having about 250 hours on it?
Yes, I charged it about 1 month ago, after about 100 hours.
So i will have to wait and see what Shimano are saying about it.

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ms6073
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Location: Houston, Texas

by ms6073

Anyone tried using a 3rd party magnet like the K-Edge Pro chain catcher which has a magnet for SRM's? Since I am planning to swap the 9100-P for my SRM DA 9000, was hoping I could simply use the K-Edge that is already installed.
- Michael
"People should stop expecting normal from me... seriously, we all know it's never going to happen"

by Weenie


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topflightpro
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by topflightpro

I use generic rare earth magnets with my SRM. I order them online then hot-glue them to the frame. I've got a bunch of different sizes - widths and thicknesses - and I tape them to the frame first to verify the placement and magnet size works. Then glue it on. The glue doesn't permanently mar the frame at all.

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