Vector 3 or Favero

gforrow

Done some searching but no recent posts. So Vector 3 or the Favero pedals?

Using my BC 10% discount at Evans I can get the Vector 3 for a similar price to the Favero, shame Evans don't do the Favero, as that would then be a bargain.

Erring towards the Vectors, with all of the data they produce, but understand Favero may updating firmware to achieve teh same.

Don't currently have a power meter, not 100% convinced I need one, but other than heartrate and speed, I have nothing to gauge fitness levels on. Am I getting better, faster, able to climb better etc. Thinking a power meter and monitoring output may assist a better training program. Additionally on longer rides, 75 to 100 miles, having a meter may well stop me going balls out too early, and then struggling later on.

Any advice??

pamplemoose

I've got the Vectors and they've been fantastic. I've not had any of the spike/drop issues and I've changed the battery a few times now. Like you, I was torn between the two and decided on the Vectors mostly as they have a cleaner looking design. I doubt there's much in them performance wise

As for 'needing' a power meter, a lot of people would say I don't need one as I don't race, but training with power has most definitely made me faster. Could I have got the same results training using HR? Yeah probably, but power numbers are way more reliable. Also the benefits you talk about with pacing are definitely real. If you have the spare cash then by all means get a power meter, just remember it won't make you faster without also putting the work in!

kingstongraham

gforrow wrote:

Additionally on longer rides, 75 to 100 miles, having a meter may well stop me going balls out too early, and then struggling later on.

This also goes for long climbs.

timothyw

I've not really looked into pedal power meters much, but is there a compelling reason not to get the Powertap p1's on Chainreaction for £485 then?

Given you're not certain you even need a powermeter I'd suggest that might be a better option than spending more to get Garmin pedal dynamics or whatever else added value.

I got myself a power2max ng ego crankset back in June and have been very happy with it, but I'm assuming you have a good reason for going pedals rather than cranks (which appear to me a better place to put power metering - no moving parts to need servicing for a start)

whyamihere

I went for the Assiomas. The Garmins have had a lot of issues, though they do seem to be mostly resolved now. Favero introduce new features via firmware updates every so often, such as the IAV functionality, and seem to have good support (not that I've needed it yet). I also prefer the rechargeable batteries over having to find a particular size of coin cell every so often.

Your head unit will also come into the equation. If you have a recent Garmin head unit, you can use their Cycling Dynamics functionality to give you some pretty numbers to look at. I use Wahoo head units, so it made less sense for me to go for the Garmin pedals.

thegreatdivide

Vector 3 any day. I've never had an issue with them (or the V1 pedals) even when they supposedly had a dicky battery cover. Got sent the replacement cover but still have the original. Once you get them, load the free What's My FTP? app for pretty accurate on the day FTP tests.

super_davo

gforrow wrote:

Using my BC 10% discount at Evans I can get the Vector 3 for a similar price to the Favero, shame Evans don't do the Favero, as that would then be a bargain.

Sadly Evans BC discount specifically excludes all PMs, else I would have snapped up a set of Vector 3s - they are currently £738, so less 10% would have made it a very compelling price. You can still get 5% topcashback which brings the effective price just over £700 which is very good.

But if you wanted a "bargain dual sided pedal power meter" then I think the P1s are the way to go. PBK have them for a cheap price as well as the previously mentioned CRC. I'm resisting because I think they look ugly and my friend has had problems with the bearings in his, but DC Rainmaker rates them very highly and so do lots of others. And I'll probably crack when it's TT season and I'm fed up with the woeful accuracy of my 4iii!

cougie

Unless you are a really serious cyclist or racing then I don't see the point of power meters.

They're great inside where you can train to power with no distractions but out on the road it's a lot harder to keep to your levels.

Also I prefer my Sunday rides to be social and I chat to pals rather than just watch my watts.

Brilliant with Traineroad or Zwift though.

bigmitch41

I ended up getting a refund on my Vector 3's. I had the reported drop outs, missing r/h side sensor issue with both the original and exchanged set I had very recently from CRC. Very disappointed, on paper the Garmins are brilliant but unfortunately they are not up to job.
Id go Favero's as they are a sealed unit, no battery changes required.

gforrow

Thanks for the responses.

Didn’t know the discount didn’t work, so that makes a difference to the decision, although it seems the 10% off at cycle republic works for everything in store only.

Do I need a power meter, possibly not. I don’t race, but when I ride my bike is for fitness. If I want a chat, I’ll go to the pub

My main reason is to understand pacing, pedals meters preferred as I need them on two bikes, one outside, one on trainer, for consistent results. P1’s are good on price, but replaced now, and old tech. If I’m going to spend out, I’d like to get something current.

Seems more homework is required, more thinking.

Ta

kingstongraham

What is the calibration process for each of them when you move them from one bike to another?

cougie

Get a decent turbo with virtual power. Test your FTP and train to that. From there you'll know the kind of HR you can maintain.

Use that as a guide outside. Save your £500 for a trip to Mallorca or something. Sorted.

gforrow

cougie wrote:

Get a decent turbo with virtual power. Test your FTP and train to that. From there you'll know the kind of HR you can maintain.

Use that as a guide outside. Save your £500 for a trip to Mallorca or something. Sorted.

I’ve got the already, 250W more or less, and a heart rate of about 160. But that’s not sustainable, as even training at 80% ftp gets my heart rate into the 150’s. I blame my asthma for that, wrong sort of breathing.

I’ll test ftp on trainer again and see if I can work with that on the bike. Always tend to go too quick early on in a ride or climb because I fell good, heart rate is low, hence thinking power may help, but I get your point. Not Mallorca, but Italian lakes for me in June

cougie

Italian lakes are nice. Enjoy !

velokev

I went for the Favero and am really happy with them. Sure I would have been happy with the vectors too though.

Most of the battery door, power spike problems with the vectors do seem to be fixed now (but I mate on my cycling club still has the the odd "30000w" max power thing).

My assiomas have been rock solid but I'm the only person I know that has them.

Vectors look better, assiomas are slightly lighter, vectors usually more expensive....

for me it came down to if I wanted rechargeable batteries of not? The rechargeable batteries made sense because it has let favero fully enclose all the electronics in resin so they should be pretty robust and I had already had enough of struggling with coin batteries in my previous stages PM.

bigmitch41

Nice! I ended up refunding my Vector 3's having going through two sets with the updated battery doors etc, both failing after the first battery replacement with the right pedal sensor missing error, power drops and massive power spikes. Such a shame as the Vector 3s did appear to offer everything I wanted, great when they worked!
Looks like I will go the Favero route next...

velokev

BigMitch41 wrote:

Looks like I will go the Favero route next...

SigmaSport let me use a cycle to work scheme voucher too if that's of interest.

ryan_w-2

I'd go for the Powertap P1's over any pedal based PM. But then I would never by a pedal based PM...

#Quarq4Lyfe

bigmitch41

Just pulled the pin on a pair of dual power P1's, ill report back once setup...

asprilla

Worth pointing out that the Favero's support Rotor Q-rings, whereas I don't think the Vectors do. Not a massive issue as any inaccuracy is only supposed to be around 4% and consistency is the main thing.

I use Q-rings so I got the Assiomas. They have been rock solid for the few months I've had them, not problems at all.

MiddleRinger

Ryan_W wrote:

I'd go for the Powertap P1's over any pedal based PM.

I wouldn't. In fact in order of preference (dual sided) I'd go ...

Favero Assioma Duo
Garmin Vector 3
Powertap P1
Garmin Vector 2
Whatever else is out there
SRM EXAKT

asprilla

MiddleRinger wrote:

Ryan_W wrote:

I'd go for the Powertap P1's over any pedal based PM.

I wouldn't. In fact in order of preference (dual sided) I'd go ...

Favero Assioma Duo
Garmin Vector 3
Powertap P1
Garmin Vector 2
Whatever else is out there
SRM EXAKT

That's pretty much the order I came to when I was investigating. Except that I didn't even bother with anything with a complicated install as I swap the pedals between my road and TT bikes all the time. I didn't want to faff on with sensitive calibration.

ryan_w-2

I'm only cautious of the Favero's due to a few friends having issues with them. However, they were early production models and it appears the new firmware has sorted this.

One thing I have found with pedal based PMs are over-reading / spikes when putting in top end efforts. If they were consistent, you can work with them, but they weren't, so not ideal for me.

velokev

MiddleRinger wrote:

Ryan_W wrote:

I'd go for the Powertap P1's over any pedal based PM.

I wouldn't. In fact in order of preference (dual sided) I'd go ...

Favero Assioma Duo
Garmin Vector 3
Powertap P1

Same order for me, but the price on the P1s dropping to sub £500 made things interesting.

I did see some reports of the early fw for the faveros having a bug where the pedals didnt alway do to sleep so you had situations where one pedal would drain faster than the other but I've had no such issues.

The power spikes from the Vectors would drive me mad to be honest....but it does seem that that issue is fixed also?

But knowing that I'm never going to have to open my favero up to the elements to change a battery is a huge plus for me.

bigmitch41

Having gone through two sets of Vectors 3's with the updated battery door, both failing after the first battery change with the same errors, I wouldn't touch them again...


The Powertap P1's dual power for £500 got my vote.

zeee

BigMitch41 wrote:

The Powertap P1's dual power for £500 got my vote.

+1

gforrow

Interesting discussion. I hadn't thought about the P1's, even less now that they are replaced with the repainted P2's. Cycling dynamics and numbers are what I was looking for in a PM. The ability to measure my effort on a long climb, to ensure I didn't fail. Also to try and improve my pedalling technique. Having cycled for 30+ years on flat pedals, I know I only push down, well maybe some marginal pulling up, who knows what I do over the top, and along the bottom.

I'm happy with the power reading I get from the trainer in Zwift, but could I achieve more if I knew where to concentrate the efforts, smoother pedal rotation for instance.

I haven't done anything with regard to buying a PM yet, not 100% sure I need to get one. At almost 50 years old, I'm not looking to be 70kg and pushing out 4 or 5W/kg, I'm just looking to get better, fitter and struggle less on the hills. The numbers would support this, but so would training more, getting out there pedalling, losing weight, pushing my body some more. Maybe I'll just continue to listen to my body, my in-built power meter.

zeee

The p1 give you pedal smoothness, torque effectiveness and lr balance same as the assiomas. Granted they don't give you the pretty graphic you get with the vectors (only with garmin head unit) but there is only so much info you can take in whilst climbing/riding. You can get advanced dynamics using the p1 with an ios device, ie at home on turbo to hone cycling efficiency.

MiddleRinger

Ryan_W wrote:

One thing I have found with pedal based PMs are over-reading / spikes when putting in top end efforts. If they were consistent, you can work with them, but they weren't, so not ideal for me.

I haven't experienced this, but then again I don't have any top end power.

BigMitch41 wrote:

The Powertap P1's dual power for £500 got my vote.

That is a good price point.

sloppyschleckonds

cougie wrote:

Get a decent turbo with virtual power. Test your FTP and train to that. From there you'll know the kind of HR you can maintain.

Use that as a guide outside. Save your £500 for a trip to Mallorca or something. Sorted.

How much would a decent turbo be with subscriptions to Trainerroad, Zwift and Strava?

alex222

I have got a pair of Vector 3 on order. Probably would have gone for the Favero option but shop I am getting them through on bike 2 work don't stock the Favero pedals. So for me the Vectors work out cheaper.
They're for a new bike so ultimately net net it costs me an extra £400 on top of what I would have spent on normal pedals.
There has been a long delay getting them in, which I understand is related to Garmin moving onto the third version of the battery doors. Just hoping I avoid all the well known issues with them.