Wattbike Atom v Stages SB20

[kingrollo]

Thinking about taking the plunge - wonder if anybody has any thoughts on these 2 ...

My pros and cons are as follows

Wattbike
Pros
Good ones available used
Small footprint
Support
Wider user base

Cons
reported problems on V1 model (but as a light user would this bother me ?)
Noisy (Set up will be in bedroom)

Stages SB20
Pros
More recent model - good reviews
Quieter

cons
Unlikely to be many used
Larger footprint
Smaller user base v Wattbike

Any thoughts ?

 

[Cycleops]

Links?

 

[steverob]

I will say that I am very happy with my V1 Wattbike Atom (had one since Dec 2017) and if you've got any questions I'd be happy to answer them. Don't know what specific reported problems you are mentioning - if it's about the slow gear changes, then those were massively improved by firmware updates within the six months of it being released (maybe still not as good as newer models but I would say they are reasonably quick now).

 

[13 rider]

Was just going to tag you @steverob ,is it @CXRAndy who's just got the stages bike ?

 

[kingrollo]

I will say that I am very happy with my V1 Wattbike Atom (had one since Dec 2017) and if you've got any questions I'd be happy to answer them. Don't know what specific reported problems you are mentioning - if it's about the slow gear changes, then those were massively improved by firmware updates within the six months of it being released (maybe still not as good as newer models but I would say they are reasonably quick now).

Cheers.

I was thinking if I went for a used one - would I still be able to get support ? Obviously prepared to pay - but wondered if that's an option.?

Do you have yours in your house ? What is the noise level like ?

 

[steverob]

Are you looking to buy from someone who is selling up, or is it a re-conditioned model from Wattbike themselves (cause I know they have sold these before)? If it's the former then I believe you don't inherit any guarantee/warranty that originally came with the bike, but you should still be able to pay for support on a case by case basis, whereas the latter would come with some sort of support warranty.

I did have a fault with the cranks on my Wattbike about 14 months after I got it but as it was still under its original 2 year warranty at that point, they swapped it out with a refurbished bike while they worked on it, then I got my original back as good as new about a month later - both times their couriers came and collected it from my house and dropped off the replacement and I didn't pay anything. Then I had a minor issue (mainly cosmetic) not long after my warranty ran out but I was able to buy the replacement part I needed at cost from them and fit it myself.

I have the bike in the spare bedroom with my PC and I don't think it is particularly loud (had no complaints from the other half), but then the latest I am on it is 8-9pm, so it's not like I'm disturbing anyone sleeping. I might see if I can measure decibel levels the next time I'm on it - both in the room itself and then a few rooms away or downstairs.

 

[Daninplymouth]

I bought a stages bike a few months ago. I had a fair few issues with mine and ended up sending it back. I now have a wattbike atom which runs much better but the stages is the better physical bike.
If stages made a bike like wattbike/Kickr etc with the readings taken from the hub I’d say it’d be the perfect indoor bike. The stages bike is absolutely rock solid and adjustments are much quicker and easier vs the wattbike. However I had quite a few issues with the powermeters playing up also I had an issue where I couldn’t really sprint on the stages as once over 500watts the resistance would ramp right up and a few other people have reported this issue.

 

[kingrollo]

Are you looking to buy from someone who is selling up, or is it a re-conditioned model from Wattbike themselves (cause I know they have sold these before)? If it's the former then I believe you don't inherit any guarantee/warranty that originally came with the bike, but you should still be able to pay for support on a case by case basis, whereas the latter would come with some sort of support warranty.

I did have a fault with the cranks on my Wattbike about 14 months after I got it but as it was still under its original 2 year warranty at that point, they swapped it out with a refurbished bike while they worked on it, then I got my original back as good as new about a month later - both times their couriers came and collected it from my house and dropped off the replacement and I didn't pay anything. Then I had a minor issue (mainly cosmetic) not long after my warranty ran out but I was able to buy the replacement part I needed at cost from them and fit it myself.

I have the bike in the spare bedroom with my PC and I don't think it is particularly loud (had no complaints from the other half), but then the latest I am on it is 8-9pm, so it's not like I'm disturbing anyone sleeping. I might see if I can measure decibel levels the next time I'm on it - both in the room itself and then a few rooms away or downstairs.

Well - I don't want to go into too much irrelevant detail - but out of the blue Mrs KR offered to buy me the wattbike !!!!

I'm not the most powerful of riders - so just thought a used might be better vfm. I'm going to leave it until at least late summer - I was just wanting to get some ideas.

 

[Daninplymouth]

They seem to hold a lot of value still 2nd hand as they had about a £500 increase about 2months back however if you search you will find a code to take £200-300 off the new price

 

[Peter Salt]

Are you bothered about the bike controlling your resistance? If not, I would highly recommend the OG Wattbike Pro/Trainer. Even cheaper used and it's commercial grade equipment so will outlive you. The only thing is that you control the resistance manually but it still works with all the virtual platforms just fine - power accuracy +/-2% and great for sprinting.

 

[kingrollo]

They seem to hold a lot of value still 2nd hand as they had about a £500 increase about 2months back however if you search you will find a code to take £200-300 off the new price

The new prices seem to play low ball tag - the neo was the cheapest a few months back - now the stages SB can be had had for £1700 new.
As they are all likely to be enough for my needs I'm guessing price will be a factor.

 

[Buck]

Spookily ive just been watching and reading reviews on smart bikes Atom/Stages/Kickr/Neo

the stages SB20 noise wise is around 50-55 dB whereas the Atom is c.70dB

 

[JtB]

I’ve had a Wattbike Atom (Gen 2) for over 2 years and I don’t find it noisy at all. I think it’s an excellent bit of kit. Virtual riding is not my thing so I stick with the workouts on the Wattbike Hub App. They seem well structured with warm-ups, cool-downs and intervals, and once the machine has been calibrated with your FTP then the workouts seem well adapted to your fitness level. They certainly push you to the limit and produce lots of performance data for you to analysis and track if you’re so inclined. The only quirk I’ve noticed is that in Ergo mode you have to concentrate on your pedalling technique otherwise the resistance has a tendency to fluctuate a bit.

 

[kingrollo]

I will say that I am very happy with my V1 Wattbike Atom (had one since Dec 2017) and if you've got any questions I'd be happy to answer them. Don't know what specific reported problems you are mentioning - if it's about the slow gear changes, then those were massively improved by firmware updates within the six months of it being released (maybe still not as good as newer models but I would say they are reasonably quick now).

How do you find it with zwift ?

 

[steverob]

How do you find it with zwift ?

I really enjoy it and feel it performs perfectly well, although I have nothing to compare it to, as I never owned a wheel-on or bike-on trainer before buying the Wattbike.

In our Zwifting teams here on CC we do have a few riders who swapped from a normal trainer to a Wattbike and while one didn't like it and returned to their previous method, at the same time two others were perfectly happy and still use theirs to this day (though at least one of those is on the v2 Atom admittedly).