Supercharger Rohloff HS vs Delite Nuvinci HS

[Alaskan]

My Homage Rohloff HS with Fox suspension arrived yesterday in time for me to assemble and ride and again today. My initial impressions and comparison to our Nevo Nuvinci GH and Cube Hybrid 500 Exc ( with Bosch CX) are as follows.

The Cube is the zippiest of the three. It seems to be the most responsive, quickest off the line and bounds up hill. I did modify it with a two tooth larger chain ring in front and the 11-46 tooth, 11 speed in the back.

The Nevo takes the most work getting up hill, is like riding a Benz or an old Checker Cab. Impressively solid, stable, great feeling of durability, smooth, dialed in controls, I love the functionality (if not the efficiency or gear range) of the Nuvinci.

I decided to go for the Homage now rather than wait till the e14 shifter became available for several reasons:

• It might not
• US currency is headed the wrong direction (from where I sit)
• When the battery is dead, you cannot change gears
• There may be import duties imposed on ebikes from Europe (a bike like this with e14 might end up costing thousands more)
• I may be able to retrofit an e14 some day (I did that with the Nyon that is on the Nevo and the Homage.)
• And not the least, my wife really likes the Nevo

The Homage is all I expected/hoped and more.

• The full suspension on the road is indeed control technology.
• Near constant, reliable contact with the road, I can hear bumps more than feel them through the saddle.
• Climbs hills like a billy goat - I came up a 14% grade hill at 7mph in second gear, sport mode. I don't think there are any hills around here that would require 1st gear or turbo mode.
• Easy to sustain 24 mph on flat road, no wind in Tour mode with a cadence of 85 in 13th gear (there is one more)
• Going down hill in 14th gear at 32 mph my cadence was 90, I suspect I won't spin out till 35

Nancy and I took a great ride earlier this week, cycling 50 miles to a luxurious lodge for some pampering and great food in honor of her birthday and then 50 miles back the next day. We hope to be doing lots more of this.

 

[CharlieMK]

I’ve ordered the Supercharger Nuvinci HS! This seems the most sensible option for my requirements. The Homage Rohloff had a much higher gear (did a test drive), however they told me they could put a different cog so I would not notice the difference. I’ve read different opinions here and I’m not sure if that’s a good idea, but I’m relying on their experience.


6 weeks waiting time has started.

 

[Hompie]

I’ve ordered the Supercharger Nuvinci HS! This seems the most sensible option for my requirements.
6 weeks waiting time has started.

Same here, 6 weeks is fast. Especially in the holidays. I should get mine aug 15, ie 9 weeks after ordering, and I live in Belgium.

 

[rudym]

All of this talk is cross talk and info is creating quite a dilemma for me. Trying to decide between a Nuvinci and a Rohloff etc...
I pedal at a constant 78 rpm... done so all my life with squirts faster down hill and squirts slower for uphill. I have ALWAYS used my GEARING to maintain my RPM at a near constant load. That said I got hit by a car 10 years ago and I no longer sweat. This creates an overheating problem in Mobile, Alabama. I have found on my TREK SuperCommuter 8S that the main advantage of my ebike is using faster speeds to cool me off. I do use one water bottle for faux sweat, but when the heart rate exceeds a certain safe rate I hit the sport or turbo mode and cool right off and the heart rate comes right down. Safe between 136 - 150 bpm. I know this may sound like an odd twist but since I am trying to add a Riese Muller to the stable for suspension reasons and let my wife use the SC 8S for our longer weekend rides I am feeling flummoxed over this whole Nuvinci / Rohloff thing. Money in pocket and now my brain is somewhere in inner space or at least I have mis-shifted and can't find the right gear up or down.

 

[Wanabxtrm]

My $0.02.

I’ve put about 160 odd miles on my Delite this first week. Top gear I’d estimate I’m in the high 70-low 80 rpm (?) but don’t know exactly. Either way it’s slow cadence for me, and that’s hitting the limiter at 27.5 mph. I find I’m more comfortable at 12-13 gear with a higher ‘normal’ cadence for me, and end up ~23-27 mph on the average small rolling flats. According to stationary bikes my normal cadence is mid 90’s.

 

[CharlieMK]

Supercharger Nuvinci ready for delivery next week. It has actually already arrived, but the sprocket will be changed for a more comfortable cadence. Looking forward to it!

Purchased an extra charger & a fluorescent side cycle bag. Still doubting about the helmet I will wear.

 

[Alaskan]

Supercharger Nuvinci ready for delivery next week. It has actually already arrived, but the sprocket will be changed for a more comfortable cadence. Looking forward to it!

Purchased an extra charger & a fluorescent side cycle bag. Still doubting about the helmet I will wear.

Looking forward to your initial impressions

 

[CharlieMK]

Very, very nice .
I need to wait for my license plate, so can't make too long trips yet. I made a small tour though, and the modified cog is awesome. I basically cannot hit the max gear anymore on a flat surface, which I easily could on the test bike without the modification. 40km/h is a breeze and I still have some range left. Bought the neon yellow ortlieb with it, and while it might look like an IKEA bike now, I love it.

One small remark: the brochure mentions that the headlight is IQ-X E, however mine is an IQ-X. I assume the brochure is wrong?

 

[Alaskan]

All of this talk is cross talk and info is creating quite a dilemma for me. Trying to decide between a Nuvinci and a Rohloff etc...
I pedal at a constant 78 rpm... done so all my life with squirts faster down hill and squirts slower for uphill. I have ALWAYS used my GEARING to maintain my RPM at a near constant load. That said I got hit by a car 10 years ago and I no longer sweat. This creates an overheating problem in Mobile, Alabama. I have found on my TREK SuperCommuter 8S that the main advantage of my ebike is using faster speeds to cool me off. I do use one water bottle for faux sweat, but when the heart rate exceeds a certain safe rate I hit the sport or turbo mode and cool right off and the heart rate comes right down. Safe between 136 - 150 bpm. I know this may sound like an odd twist but since I am trying to add a Riese Muller to the stable for suspension reasons and let my wife use the SC 8S for our longer weekend rides I am feeling flummoxed over this whole Nuvinci / Rohloff thing. Money in pocket and now my brain is somewhere in inner space or at least I have mis-shifted and can't find the right gear up or down.

@rudym I was doing some work on my Homage Rohloff HS yesterday. After 2 hours in the my workspace, with the sun shining outside, I felt the urge to ride. As my bike was disassembled, I jumped on my wife's Nevo Nuvinci GH and did a 34 mile loop on country roads. I too find that a cadence between 75 and 80 is most natural. In addition I have a Nyon attached and wear a heart rate monitor that displays on the Nyon. On my custom ride screen, the top row is Speed - Heart Rate - Cadence. My sweet spot is a cadence of 75-80 with a heart rate of 105. I can do that for an hour non stop, till my tush needs a break and 2-3 hours on a ride.

With the Nuvinci I can dial in the resistance just right to sustain the heart rate and cadence that I want. The speed varies with the ratio on the nuvinci , wind and grade of the road. On flat ground with light winds that means 19.4 mph, just before the Bosch CX cuts out.

Given your objective about finding the right ratio to sustain your preferred cadence, I would say that the Nuvinci would be a natural fit and produce most satisfying results.

As an aside, yes there is a small cost in efficiency with the Nuvinci versus the Rohloff. However the elegance, simplicity and functionality of the Nuvinci with Gates Belt Drive, definitely makes it a great bike to ride and a very good choice for the right rider.

 

[Ricardo Sanmarco]

I heard R&M is coming off with a E-14 Rohloff with a Gates Belt. I am thinking of the R&M over Stromer, as I have an ST1 here in Brazil and the roads are so bad, so bad, so bad, that I really look forward to a full suspension. I have an ST1 Stromer and the steep hills of Sao Paulo and the harsh roads make a very uncomfortable e-bike. Does any of you guys have experience on bumpy bad roads? Sometimes the roads are so bumpy that the chains jump off the crank. Any ideas which one is more reliable for super bad roads? Nuvinci or Rohloff?

 

[Mr. Coffee]

You can already get an E-14 Rohloff (although no belt drive) on some models. Citrus Cycles posted a review on youtube:

What I'd say about NuVinci vs Rohloff is that the Rohloff has quite a bit wider shift range, comparable to a road double or mountain double crankset while the NuVinci is more like a 1x10 or 1x11. What that means is that, on the average, you'd be able to climb steeper hills with the Rohloff.

Both Rohloff and NuVinci hubs are very reliable if properly installed and maintained.

 

[Visserkevis]

Hello CharlieMK

In October i got my supercharger GT vario HS(nuvinci) and have exactly the same issue as you do: I want a higher gear to reach higher speed at lower cadence.
Can you tell us more about the modifications you made?
-Which cogs did you use?
-On the motor-side or on the wheel or both?
-Did you input the modifications into the motor software?

Would you mind telling me where you bought your bike. I'm a Belgian to, so maybe we should continue this discussion in Flemish ?

Since i'm planning on buying a second supercharger for my wife, I'm considering the GX Rohloff E14.
Although theoretically it has a lower max. gear, nobody here seems to complain about it...? Could this have to do with the higher efficiency
of the Rohloff?
I think i go for the Rohloff, and if the problem persists, I'll go for the cogs-modification you made.


Anyway: At the end of the road, I will be able to compare both systems on the same type of bike. I 'l keep you all informed.

 

[dadanka]

For those considering a Bosch Performance with a Rohlhoff versus Nuvinci or another IGH, I had made the video below with a Bosch Performance Speed + Nuvinci. It's not an R&M but might give you a feel for the Nuvinci system as it's filmed in rolling hills and you can hear the gear variations due to the CVT quite well. It's a 400Wh battery and my range was roughly 40 kilometers (25 miles). That's the maximum I could achieve with the bike (220 pound rider/1200 foot elevation). Most of the flat part of the ride is in ECO, whereas the hilly part is in TOUR mode. I would have seriously considered buying the system if it had been an N480 instead of an N380. To my sense, the reduced range of gears is the system's biggest weakness.

Wow! which camera gives you all these datas and good quality image?

 

[CharlieMK]

Hello CharlieMK

In October i got my supercharger GT vario HS(nuvinci) and have exactly the same issue as you do: I want a higher gear to reach higher speed at lower cadence.
Can you tell us more about the modifications you made?
-Which cogs did you use?
-On the motor-side or on the wheel or both?
-Did you input the modifications into the motor software?

I've sent you a PM .
I am not such a handyman, so I counted on the shop to make the modifications. I'm not sure which modifications they made, but I'm happy to send you pictures should you wish. I can only say that I'm happy about the result .

 

[Hompie]

Hey, also would like to know this. I’m from Leuven. Higher speed at lower cadence. With some luck we have the same bike shop.

 

[Visserkevis]

Hello Hompie,

Wich bike do you ride. Is it a supercharger? With Nuvinci380? Model 2018?
My bike came from bikeemotion in Brussels. Supershop!

Are there people outside Belgium with this problem?

 

[Hompie]

Hey, 2018 Supercharger nuvinci. Was at my store yesterday to attack the license plate and they confirmed they can also do it, and no need to replace the belt provided they adjust 1 Tooth.

Nog sure it’s a problem outsider of belgium, more a wish. Bike works perfectly as is.