I am stuck between 2 bikes. A Demo Optibike R8 and a New Haibike xduro AMT RX w/ a rohloof speed hub. Price is close between the 2. I like that the peddle assist will feel more like a regular bike but wish there was a throttle. The Optibike from what I understand is the top of the line but will it just be a e-MTB with peddles. I want to get some exercise riding and not just if the battery runs out. Being that the Haibike is new to the USA I can't really find many reviews that are in English. I just want to make sure I am not missing out if I go with the Haibike
Optibike Vs Haibike Xduro AMT RX W/Rohloff speed hub
- Thread starter accce
- Start date
Hi Accce! Great questions here... Both the R8 and AMT are expensive bikes and indeed, they each seem to offer one extreme end of the spectrem, even though they both use a middrive system. With the Optibike you get a twist throttle but no pedal assist and with the Haibike you only get torque sensing pedal assist. What gives right?
This is just my opinion but I lean more towards pedal assist than twist throttle. I prefer having both but especially for mountain bike riding I want the bike to work with me and be responsive. More-so then road cycling I tend to grab on to my grips and really use the bars for steering, jumping and maneuvering and that can conflict with the gentle twisting of a throttle... especially when going over rocks. In my opinion, this kind of control calls for the large stable muscles in your legs that can interact with higher end torque sensors and very responsive motors that can switch on and off quickly so you don't accidentally accelerate off a ledge or slide out going around a corner (this actually happened to me when testing out the Stealth Bomber in Arizona). Note that the Stealth bikes also only have twist throttles, they are setup like motocross bikes and fun fact... the founder of Optibike was a pro motocross rider! It's just a different approach, and it makes sense, but I prefer to pedal and enjoy the finesse of slower trials style riding vs. bombing.
So, I prefer the Haibike design over the Optibike. There are other ebikes out there that use a torque sensing mid-drive (Easy Motion and Felt are working on several models that should be out this year). They all use the Bosch drive system which is quite good and that includes the motor, battery, LCD computer and control setup. It's solid and not hard to imagine a day when all the major brands might offer an "electric" model that happens to use the Bosch system.
Now I do have a wild card suggestion for you here and that's the IZIP Peak which uses a proprietary mid-drive similar to Bosch (but not quite as responsive in my opinion) and also offers a twist throttle mode. It's kind of like the best of both worlds. It definitely impressed me in terms of performance and price but I'd still rate it a bit lower than the Haibikes in terms of quality. Hope this helps you out, let me know your thoughts and I'll chime back in. These are all high quality rides, it just depends on what you're looking for and if you have a brand or style preference.
This is just my opinion but I lean more towards pedal assist than twist throttle. I prefer having both but especially for mountain bike riding I want the bike to work with me and be responsive. More-so then road cycling I tend to grab on to my grips and really use the bars for steering, jumping and maneuvering and that can conflict with the gentle twisting of a throttle... especially when going over rocks. In my opinion, this kind of control calls for the large stable muscles in your legs that can interact with higher end torque sensors and very responsive motors that can switch on and off quickly so you don't accidentally accelerate off a ledge or slide out going around a corner (this actually happened to me when testing out the Stealth Bomber in Arizona). Note that the Stealth bikes also only have twist throttles, they are setup like motocross bikes and fun fact... the founder of Optibike was a pro motocross rider! It's just a different approach, and it makes sense, but I prefer to pedal and enjoy the finesse of slower trials style riding vs. bombing.
So, I prefer the Haibike design over the Optibike. There are other ebikes out there that use a torque sensing mid-drive (Easy Motion and Felt are working on several models that should be out this year). They all use the Bosch drive system which is quite good and that includes the motor, battery, LCD computer and control setup. It's solid and not hard to imagine a day when all the major brands might offer an "electric" model that happens to use the Bosch system.
Now I do have a wild card suggestion for you here and that's the IZIP Peak which uses a proprietary mid-drive similar to Bosch (but not quite as responsive in my opinion) and also offers a twist throttle mode. It's kind of like the best of both worlds. It definitely impressed me in terms of performance and price but I'd still rate it a bit lower than the Haibikes in terms of quality. Hope this helps you out, let me know your thoughts and I'll chime back in. These are all high quality rides, it just depends on what you're looking for and if you have a brand or style preference.
Cool! I'm excited to hear how it works for you. Optibike has been doing their thing for a long time and produced one of the original purpose-built frames that was rugged enough to withstand trail riding. I enjoyed test riding them and am actually planning another visit next week. Keep your eye out for a new review soon 
Bike_On
Well-Known Member
Court,
I have ridden the E3 dash at my local bike shop, road only, but they do no have the E3 peak. I read your Peak review.
Cost aside, how does the E3 compare to the Optibike 48V 1100R or 850? The E3 advertises 350W, but the Optibikes has 2-3x more power rating. These baseline numbers are typical and not peak, which gives the torque feel. Almost all decent ebikes will surge 25-30A for starting current to get going.
In your opinion, how do those two compare overall in ride quality, components, handlig, suspension, braking, acceleration?
I have ridden the E3 dash at my local bike shop, road only, but they do no have the E3 peak. I read your Peak review.
Cost aside, how does the E3 compare to the Optibike 48V 1100R or 850? The E3 advertises 350W, but the Optibikes has 2-3x more power rating. These baseline numbers are typical and not peak, which gives the torque feel. Almost all decent ebikes will surge 25-30A for starting current to get going.
In your opinion, how do those two compare overall in ride quality, components, handlig, suspension, braking, acceleration?
Great question Bike_On, I prefer the E3 Peak because it's quieter, doesn't weigh nearly as much and offers pedal assist (in fact that's its primary mode, throttle cuts out at ~7mph).
In terms of overall ride quality, the full suspension of the R8 is nice and the optional rear fender is cool. The components of the R8 are higher end and especially the internally geared Rohloff Speedhub. I prefer the handling of the E3 Peak because it's lighter (and I'm a light weight guy). Braking on both felt fine to me but again, easier to stop less weight on the Peak. I also thought they both accelerated fine and even though the Optibike is more powerful it didn't feel that way to me because many of the tests were on flat ground. As you know, the gear you're in also matters and I tested these bikes far apart from each other so the finer points were hard to compare.
I hope this helps, just one guys opinion... would be cool to hear your thoughts when you get to try out the IZIP E3 Peak eventually
In terms of overall ride quality, the full suspension of the R8 is nice and the optional rear fender is cool. The components of the R8 are higher end and especially the internally geared Rohloff Speedhub. I prefer the handling of the E3 Peak because it's lighter (and I'm a light weight guy). Braking on both felt fine to me but again, easier to stop less weight on the Peak. I also thought they both accelerated fine and even though the Optibike is more powerful it didn't feel that way to me because many of the tests were on flat ground. As you know, the gear you're in also matters and I tested these bikes far apart from each other so the finer points were hard to compare.
I hope this helps, just one guys opinion... would be cool to hear your thoughts when you get to try out the IZIP E3 Peak eventually
Similar threads
