I always like your posts and I love your bike, and I know them - I also had an Emonda and we both have an Aethos - so don't take this personally, but I think on this forum we should try and always add a bit more context. I think in another thread I've read somebody saying that, after one single ride on their SL7, they saw it was "noticeably faster" than their old S3, and I'm likeFlatlandClimber wrote: ↑Wed May 18, 2022 10:25 pmI have not heard of anyone calling the Aethos a noodle, so I don't think it will be problematic in this regard.
I however highly doubt you will perceive this as an upgrade (at least in terms of speed).
If you were to save 1kg compared to your system six (of course there is potential for more than that), that's like 0.9% of the system weight saved.
On a 10% climb, this saves you around 3/4 of a percent. So 3 watts for 400 Watts of power.
Everywhere else, the Aethos is certainly slower than the System Six.
If you are saying fast group rides, that's definitely aero bike territory.
If it's comport you're after, there is likely still a better (more aero) alternative.
I feel like we are feeding the industry of "this frame is now 13.79 seconds faster over 40km at 50km/h" which is fine, but reading this board as of late, it seems as though every amateur must pick their bike based on wind tunnel results.
Is the Aethos 'certainly slower' than the SystemSix? Yep. Is it 'noticeably slower'? That's.. debatable.
I don't want to dismiss the idea that there are indeed gains from the frame alone. And I agree, the Aethos is absolutely not an upgrade over the SystemSix, not at all. But if you (yourself) were to show up to a fast training ride with the Aethos in full 'race mode' as opposed as your 'fondo mode', would you really struggle? I'm not sure. All of this to say, that maybe our friend wanted a 'comfort' upgrade, who knows.
Maybe I'm getting old. Maybe I just want to feel good about owning an Aethos.