Ultegra 6800 or Dura Ace 9000

steve_kay

I'm currently in a predicament over upgrading my groupset. I bought a bike from a guy in December just gone which had a 105 groupset. The frame was a brand new and un-ridden 2014 cube agree gtc sl which cube had given him for a warranty replacement. Because the original bike was the gtc pro, the groupset was only 105. Anyway, I've now upgraded the wheels, seat, seat post and handlebars and I'm now at the position of wanting to change the gruppo. I'm looking at either the Ultegra 6800 or Dura Ace 9000. I have the money for DA but I'm wondering whether or not I'd see a noticeable difference from the 6800. Also, I don't think the aesthetics of the 6800 even come close to the DA. I suppose it's to be expected when Shinano want an extra £400 for the DA. The best prices I've seen for the full groupsets are £504 for the 6800 and £949 for the DA 9000. I don't compete at the moment but I genuinely enjoy cycling and I would like to start getting into it a little more seriously over the coming year. The only compromise I could see is mixing the gruppo's. For example, using the full ultegra set up apart from the crankset and rear mech which would be DA 9000. Any thoughts or opinions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance

Steve

DiscoBoy

Is your wheelset 11 speed compatible?

I think that most would agree that Dura Ace doesn't function £400 better or weigh £400 less than Ultegra, so it is more of a heart or head purchase.

markhewitt1978

No idea only to say that if you buy and fit the 6800 you'll be forever thinking that the 9000 would have been better.

Mccaria

Functionally they are both very good - unlike the comparison 7900 and 6700 where the 6700 was not so hot.

Looks wise the 9000 wins hands down and obviously is a tad lighter. If you cannot think of anything better to spend the £500 on, then the 9000 is worth it. Mixing the 2 sets also works. Personally I would go 9000 chainset and mechs and go 6800 for the brakes and the shifters.

If you go 9000 couple of observations. Make sure you get the 9001 shifters, not the original 9000 - they have changed the angle of the gear cable exit from the shifter and the shape of the hood slightly. You may want to get a 6800 cassette rather than a 9000 - there have been some problems with the carbon used to fix cogs on the 9000.

northpole

Sounds to me that you really would prefer the DA - it looks better; it's top of the range; it's had fab reviews compared with the 7900; it's lighter; it may last longer; it may provide better braking and gear changing. It's all quite subjective when you stand back and look at your actual cycling ability - you may be a very strong cyclist, but I'm not and I still love the idea of products that have been engineered to the highest standard. Won't really make me go any faster but I tend to buy into the concept (shop with large windows syndrome!).

If you were to take a more objective look at the choices available, you may well come to the conclusion that Shimano 105 is an absolutely cracking good groupset which whilst a bit heavier, is likely to provide many years of excellent service; and the components cost a fraction of the DA equivalents. As you already have it, why spend a bean on an upgrade? The answer to this question will probably lead you back to the subjective side in which case why even bother to consider Ultegra (another excellent groupo, but it aint't DA). Get the DA and have done with it!

Peter

FransJacques

It's only £300 difference. Might seem like a lot up front but in the grand scheme of things it's nothing. Esp if you amortize it over the life of the bike, enjoyment, feel etc.

The consumables (chain, cassette) can be Ultegra or SRAM and you'll not notice any difference.

FransJacques

Ah, I should add the best price I saw 6800 for was £699.

At ~£500 it gets interesting, but what's £200 in biking terms? It's the price of one Rapha jacket...

steve_kay

Yeah I've just had custom wheels made (2 weeks ago) and they have 11 speed compatible hubs on. I'm just currently using 2 spacers in order to run 10 speed. Yeah I agree that I'd wonder how good DA was if I went with Ultegra. The point that northpole made about not actually needing it is very true. I am, unfortunately, the type of person that enjoys having top of the line equipment, regardless of whether it'll make me a better cyclist or any fitter. It's just sometimes nice to know that you have a top notch system that no expense has been spared by the manufacturer to make as good as physically possible. Thanks mccarla, I didn't realise they had upgraded the shifters. As mentioned, I think I kind of have my heart set on dura ace, I just wanted a few views from others as to whether I was being a bit irrational as to my actual usage and employment of the gruppo. Cheers guys

steve_kay

Merlin cycles are doing the 6800 for £550 and Shiny Bikes are doing it for £515. Very reasonable by anyone's standard

limoneboy

I have 9000 chainset /cassette and chain with 6800 di2 rear mech and the frt mech and shifters being old di2 it all works great, but the rear cassette creaks and bangs under pressure , this seems to be down to the carbon carrier as it is only on the cogs attached to this , works well as all dura ace on moving parts but watch out for the cassette .

ai_1

From everything I've seen they appear to be functionally pretty indistinguishable. The minor weight difference isn't going to make a practical performance difference. So I think Ultegra is the sensible option. It comes down to whether or not you're bothered about aesthetics and/or "prestige". I'd get Ultegra.

steve_kay

To be honest, i honestly don't think that ultegra is done justice by the colour scheme shimano have released it in. I saw it in my LBS the other day and with that colour scheme and paint finish, it doesn't look great. I know £400 extra is a lot just for the sake of how something looks but if you're not totally happy with something on your bike, it'll annoy you over time. Just my view on things

DiscoBoy

Steve_kay wrote:

Merlin cycles are doing the 6800 for £550 and Shiny Bikes are doing it for £515. Very reasonable by anyone's standard

£512.99 at Ribble.

steve_kay

DiscoBoy wrote:

Steve_kay wrote:

Merlin cycles are doing the 6800 for £550 and Shiny Bikes are doing it for £515. Very reasonable by anyone's standard

£512.99 at Ribble.

It's funny you should say that as I'm actually sat looking at that now. They seem to be very well priced on ribble. For everything

string78

£504.99 at Probikekit - Last week you could also use a 15% code on orders over £400, its expired now but I'm sure you can find similar codes out there (10% ones definitely available) - plus using Topcashback you can get 4% cashback. Would have worked out about £412.

steve_kay

Thanks string. I get emails from PBK all the time but I wasn't aware of the 15% off.

string78

Steve_kay wrote:

Thanks string. I get emails from PBK all the time but I wasn't aware of the 15% off.

Just checked, 15% code is active again on orders over £400 until 31st March.

5.25% cashback for new customers using topcashback, 4.2% for existing.

steve_kay

So just to confirm, is that 15% off then 5.2% cash back as well? Jesus, it'd be rude not to at that price

string78

Steve_kay wrote:

So just to confirm, is that 15% off then 5.2% cash back as well? Jesus, it'd be rude not to at that price

Yes. Register with wwwTopcashback.co.uk if you haven't already.

Search for Probikekit on their website - click on the link for discount codes (should be 14 different ones list). Click the one you want to use and will open up a separate page for the probikekit website and on the topcashback website will give you the 15% code (SAVE15PBK). The cashback will be paid as long as you have clicked through the topcashback website, takes a little time to receive but its an added bonus.

steve_kay

Thanks very much for that. You've probably just saved me around £100

steve_kay

That 15% off doesn't apply to the groupsets I don't think. Shame

string78

Steve_kay wrote:

That 15% off doesn't apply to the groupsets I don't think. Shame

Very annoying, was working the other day but looks like they are chucking in a free pair of socks on the groupsets and that blocks the code from working.

steve_kay

Yeah I think you may be right on the whole socks thing. I tried it with a few different items and still no joy

harrijames

Big shame, I just got very excited!

Bozman

I went through this before Christmas, after reading plenty of reviews I went for 6800 because I felt that the 9000 wouldn't be worth the £400+ extra, plus for the first time in my life I felt that I couldn't justify that price.

Get the 9000, Ultegra is great and it shifts better than 7900 Dura-ace but it's not Dura-ace and this will play on your mind, plus I have no doubt that your performance will drop.

string78

They are doing a similar thing with Mavic wheels by offering a wheel bag for free. If you open up the webpage on two different tabs you can get the 15% code to work on one of them.

Haven't found a work around for the groupsets yet though.

steve_kay

Thanks bozman. Yeah I kind of knew that it would play on my mind if I didn't go for Dura Ace. Plus, when I come to replace the bike, I can move the groupset over to the new frame. I'm planning on building a bike up from scratch next so spending the money now will probably mean this'll be the last groupset I ever buy if I go with DA

steve_kay

I still can't figure out a way to do it. I think I may have to go with the DA

gwillis

that code doesn't work on group sets

galatzo

Re the cable problem with DA 9000 shifters and them being replaced by 9001, is there any problem with the 6800 shifters as I thought they were same internal design as DA but with different materials ?

Mccaria

The 6800 design is the same as the 9001. They changed the design after the launch of the 9000.

Apparently Shimano maintain the design change was not related to cable problems with 9000. However it was a pretty rapid modification for a new groupset.