How good is DA 7900 and planet x?

Hi all,

I've been toying with the idea of getting the next DA7900 planet x roadbike under the cycle to work scheme. This will work out costing me around £1250 after all repayments, which seems like a he'll of a lot of bike for the money.

I haven't actually ridden DA7900 and as most I've seen various reviews and it seems to be a big step
up over the old da7800 which I have riden before.

Has anyone actually ridden the new DA7900 and if so is it really that much better (for racing) then say the previous shimano 105/ultegra SL?

all i would say is if you crash / damage the DA components you'll be paying crazy money to get them replaced. ask dancing james ;)

depends how seriously you need top end kit.

There have been reports that 7900 is fussy about set-up and not as slick as 7800, due to routing the shifter cables along the bars, which doesn't seem to have worked out as well for Shimano as Campag and SRAM. Some pro teams have switched back to 7800. For racing (and crashing), I'd go Ultegra if I were a Shimano type of person. The performance difference is tiny compared with the huge price difference.

Hmm interesting, ive got some club cycles comming up so theres the potential that someone will have this kit and i can find out more.

I have seen a very nice bike here;
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=110415214845
(please dont BIY i am negotiating with the seller)

Obviously i will get rid of the spinnergy rev-x wheels and replace with something more durable

our riders had 7900 on the RAAM.

We had a plethora of problems, not that I think that the group set is to blame for them, but we did end up having to replace the shifters because the ratchet had worn out in the shifter for the rear mech, and the lady riding it swears she had done less than a 1000 miles on the bike. The removeable end cap is a nice touch, though.

i've got it and i like it.

performs well compared to ultregra i had (brakes are awesome, and the cranks feel super stiff) and also looks great.

not sure what 'fussy' about the set-up means but the routing of the cables along the bars looks far better than the lower level version that have cables all over the joint.

just buy my focus if you want ultregra style bike + carbon = you save cash.

i've also wanted to say i have dura-ace. now i have. boy that felt great.
all that cash was worth it just for that moment

I can't say I had anyproblem with routing the cables. BTW, you can't buy second hand bikes on the cycle to work scheme.

Id only be buying a new bike on cycle to work and this would be capped at £1k, id have to pay for the extra over this amount.

2nd hand would save a lot of money, however i would need to have a good ride first as id like to have a bike to train on now until im more competative next summer.

That ain't a bad bike at all. I've got one of those frames, and they're very nice and comfy, not a lightweight by any means. You may wish to consider budgeting for a 1" carbon fork to replace the stock aluminium one.

it's a shame you can't mix the groupset. 7900 cranks and 7800 everything else. i wouldn't pay extra for the 7900 unless you are racing. it does work well and the front shifting is meant to be the slickest out there but is it worth the extra?
i use 7800 shifters with ultegra everything else and the shifting is very slick.
personally i would rather have a better frame and ultegra.

Unless you're a complete must-have-the-very-best obsessive or a pretty damn high level racer I can't for the life of me see the point of the top-end groupsets - you're saving minute amounts of weight for vast, vast increases in price and you'll get more performance by putting the money into posh wheels (or towards a nice holiday in the mountains) anyway.

Isn't there issues with buy bikes over £1000 on the cycle to work scheme?

most shops will let you pay in two separate transactions if you are nice, but sometimes not

Have spoken to our HR manager and bikes over £1000 can be purchased in 2 seperate transactions. Planet X also charge £100 for using vouchers, so id only get the discount on £900 and would have to pay the extra £700 myself

Isn't there issues with buy bikes over £1000 on the cycle to work scheme?

I believe your employer has to a be (or become) a licensed credit broker to do this.

7800 looks better.

There you go.. A proper forum answer.

what's more interesting is when you start to compare 7900 against SRAM and Campy equivalents.

I had a good hard look at 7900 recently, and ended up with Force (previously SRAM's top end groupset), which IMO is better, and half the price.

oooooh interesting, can you bring it to wests fred when you're done. interested in sram stuff...

Would have loved SRAM on my roadbike, but took what was available.

Ultegra shifters, front mech and brakes, DA rear mech.

It all seems to work pretty well, nothing in there screams "upgrade me".

Can't say I'm a fan of SRAM, rear shifts under pressure make an alarming clank like a cricket ball hitting a aluminium bat. The graphics are horrible too.

10spd Campag was more than good enough, it's covered far more articulately on the washingmachinepost but I resent the lack of compatibility between 10 and 11spd. Groupsets as systems, bollocks...