Review: Wheeltop EDS GeX Wireless Drivetrain

[@TheDustyDutchman]

Great video, super informative. Just the fact that this product exists is a huge win for the cycling community. The more options we have as consumers the better. I also have the TX and GeX system (haven't installed the GeX yet) and with the bit of research I have done it looks like batteries will be replaceable soon with spare batteries being available directly from wheeltop. They will not be quick swaps like SRAM but still it is nice to know we will have that ability in the future.

[@PuddyIzzy]

I love tech and it's good to know, but as of the moment I pref my wired system. Great review!

[@TimR123]

Excellent video to lay out the features and how to run it. When you do try the MTB controller, see if you can pair it in addition to the drop bar levers as an aux shifter (say on aero bars) as well. I'm in the middle of installing myself so the step by step is reassuring

[@RideYearRound]

I have the mountain bike drivetrain on it's way out now. Unfortunately they've said they two aren't cross-compatible yet, but it sounds like it's in the works for some point in the future.

[@DAMN55117]

I am not worried about the battery removability tbh. I want to do more tinkering (similar to what you do) go flat bar/drop bar and tire changes with the same frame. It seems that this could give me the freedom of simple swaps as you say. The FAQ says the MTB shifter is not compatible, but they are working on it.

[@RideYearRound]

Interesting, they told me the MTB shifter would work but they didn’t have any available! I wonder which one is right…

[@BernardH-vd6fh]

@@RideYearRound That's because there will be a new version MTB controller, which is OX2.0 to work with GeX for flat bar.

[@gustavoordonez8895]

Thanks for the video. I would not have known about this option without it. I might now get it. I can do with some of the drawbacks for the affordability of the group set. Unrelated, I really liked the bars you were running on the gravel bike you used. Can you share what bars were those? Thanks.

[@RideYearRound]

It’s the Redshift Kitchen Sink…they’re a great bar.

[@trackar134]

Just picked up the MTB groupset for my flat bar 4130 build. Very impressed for $325. I have GX axs on my mtb and it’s hard to justify after using wheeltops group

[@jameseastwood402]

The battery is replaceable, they are slowly updating their documentation.

[@TimR123]

I saw that too. To be clear, 'replaceable' not 'swappable' like in SRAM. But when it gets weak, in theory you can replace it. Have you seen it orderable yet?

[@Soonjai]

I get the benefit of it being compatible with all brands of drivetrains, but the non-removable battery and it apparently requiring a app are both dealbreakers for me. I´ve been running a Sram Wireless setup since March and so far I never needed their app for anything, all micro-adjustments can be done on the Shifter itself, even while riding the bike.

[@TimR123]

The micro adjustments can be done with the levers (according to the manual, I'm using the app because it's less fiddly) But I don't see a way to change the 'speeds' config other than the app. The battery is apparently removable as a service item just not swappable like on SRAM. But as a user of AXS also, I have to say I've never had to swap it in the field. The possibility is nice insurance, and I like that. But it's not that big of a deal in reality.

[@endebtedone]

the not being able to remove the battery to charge or replace is a red flag for me. but 20k shifts before needing to be charged seems to be a plus. it is nice to see that another company has joined the wireless shifting game after Archer has disbanded operations.

[@bonkCsM]

thats because sram owns the patent -- the original wheeltop EDS had removable batteries but they had to stop selling it and remake them without removable batteries

[@RideYearRound]

Yeah I don't know if I mind it that much. I've done 4-5 shorter rides now (

[@TheSpaceBrosShow]

​@@bonkCsMthis was such a stupid patent to grant

[@Millicente]

I heard wheeltop does/will offer battery replacements and instructions for removing them are readily available

[@carlogalopo2605]

Battery not being swappable is not a big deal. Most people nowadays carry with them a power bank to charge multiple electronic devices.

[@Robinators]

Can you charge the battery from a powerbank??

[@RideYearRound]

Probably. The charger just uses a regular USB port.

[@ariffau]

What if I want to run gravel gearing at the rear but 2x on the front. Can I do that?

[@RideYearRound]

This is only 1x compatible. You could run a mid sized chainring up front with one of e*thirteens 9-50ish tooth cassettes if you were concerned about having more top end (or just throw a bigger chainring on).

[@ariffau]

@ I still want 2x. Can the EDS GeX RD pair with EDS TX shifters?

[@Millicente]

@@ariffau Last I heard they were adding that feature or already added it. I think I saw them advertising cross compatibility on their website.

[@ariffau]

@ sounds great but it would mean more if KZbinrs can show us how it’s done 😄 iust like how we see people doing mullet stuff with SRAM AXS

[@SawyerPangborn]

Those brakes are flat mount, not post mount... just an FYI

[@RideYearRound]

Oops, if I said that it was a total misspeak. Definitely flat mount.

[@qwertyazerty2137]

At 00:58 you say wheeltop reached out to you and that you got the groupset for testing. Why then haven't you marked this content as sponsored? It's also questionable to call it brand-agnostic because obviously you can't mix tge derailleur with e. G. Axs brifters or its brifters with axs derailleur. All the more you can't even buy their parts separately should they need to be replaced as they offer entire groupsets only. This quite anti-consumer. As for the race mode, it's not just that the faster shifting drains the battery faster, but also the most important fact that in this mode the derailleur does not turn off at all, even when idle, so you will find it dead even if not ridden for some time. Also, calling it low cost, even if compared to axs or di2 is still an exaggeration. 630-730$ is still way too much for some bike parts.

[@RideYearRound]

Thanks for the comment and pointing out the "sponsored" point. 99% of the time I'm sent something, I don't get to keep it and return it after the review period. In this case they did tell me I could keep it (with no expectation of a positive review), but out of habit I didn't check the box for product placement. I've fixed that now. The reason I say it's brand agnostic is because most of the other wireless electronic groupsets out there require you to use their own brands chain and/or cassette and only work with a single number of speeds (i.e. 12). On the cost, yes it's still hundreds of dollars, but if the going rate for wireless drop bar drivetrains is closer to the thousand dollar mark...I'd still consider it low cost or budget (for a wireless electronic drivetrain).

[@ivarbrinkman2195]

Sponsored

[@RideYearRound]

Yep you should’ve seen a notification of that when the video started. I wasn’t paid to review this, but I was given the product free of charge. There was no expectation of a positive review, just an honest one, and I wouldn’t have accepted it if they required it to only be positive.