By The Takeaway: A flat-out awesome road bike.
- 699-gram frame is one of the lightest around
- SRAM’s awesome new Rival eTap AXS wireless drivetrain
- No janky standards
- 32mm tire clearance
- Gorgeous ride and beautiful handling
Price: $4,800
Weight: 17.2 lb. (54cm)
By now, you’ve probably heard of the Specialized S-Works Aethos road bike. Its stunning 585-gram frame weight, 14-pound complete-bike weight, and $13,000 price tag made more than a bit of noise when it launched.
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But did you know that Specialized makes lower-priced Aethos models? While the Aethos will never be a cheap bike, Specialized has four models based around a lower-grade and heavier frame that start at $4,800. Even my math-challenged, dyslexic brain can calculate that $4,800 is a lot cheaper than $13,000.
And while the frame may be heavier than the S-Works frame, it’s still very light at just 699 grams. It rides the same, too. I recently got my hands on the lowest-priced Aethos, which happens to have SRAM’s new Rival eTap AXS group.
Specialized Aethos Comp Rival eTap AXS—How It Rides
When the Aethos launched, I was laid up with seven rib fractures, so my then-colleague, Bobby Lea (who has since moved on to the Dark Side: AKA PR/marketing), got to review the S-Works Aethos. I read his glowing review—and many of the others—and wondered, “Could the Aethos really be that good?”
It must be because this $4,800, 17.2-pound Aethos—the base model—is one of the finest road bikes, of any price, I’ve ridden in my long testing career. I can only imagine that the S-Works Aethos that’s three-plus pounds lighter with higher-end wheels and drivetrain must be something well beyond remarkable.
This Aethos Comp rides beautifully, gorgeously, sensuously. It felt energized from the moment I started rolling, and it surged with each pedal stroke.
It’s alive, with tightly wound energy, yet smooth on the road—and, yes, comfortable. It sucks up bumps and ridges, and hits and damps the unpleasant vibrations without killing off the good sensations or numbing feedback. The overall stiffness-to-compliance, comfort-to-feel balance reminds me a lot of the Cervélo RCa I rode back in 2013.
Like that bike, this Aethos scrambles my brain a bit. How did Specialized make a bike this quick and this stiff, yet this glassy smooth? How can it feel so light and crisp on a climb, yet so damn planted and predictable on a fast descent?
The big difference is the RCa was a $10,000 (about $11,400 in 2021 dollars) frame produced in hyper-limited numbers. This Aethos is a $4,800 mass(ish)-produced complete bike
This bike takes a lot of my preconceived notions about compromise and chucks them in the dustbin. And I couldn’t be happier about it.
The handling is quite terrific, as well. No surprise the Aethos handles a lot like the Tarmac SL7—they share geometry, fit, and Specialized’s Rider First Engineering philosophy—which is one of the best-handling race bikes I’ve ridden.
But I think the Aethos handles a bit better than the Tarmac. It’s a little smoother, which helps in rough corners, and it seems to throw side-to-side more easily, as though there’s less weight up high.
I deal with a lot of crazy winds here in Durango, Colorado, because it’s where the high mountains meet the desert plains. The Aethos has small and round tube shapes, which catch less wind than the SL7’s. That makes the Aethos slightly more predictable and planted when the wind is blowing hard.
This Aethos is a great bike and such a damn good bike for the money. It’s beautiful, with clean lines and minimal graphics. Its ride is splendid, and the new SRAM Rival eTap AXS is superb. There are no janky standards, it fits tires up to 32mm, and it’s a terrific platform for years of upgrades. Considering the price, I’d have to say it is the best road bike I’ve ever ridden.
Specialized Aethos Comp Versus S-Works Aethos
As Specialized—and many bike brands—usually does, it introduced the Aethos frame platform by pushing the top-of-the-line 12r version used to build S-Works models. And with a shocking 585-gram frame weight (285g fork), a minimalist profile, and understated graphics, it grabbed attention.
Somewhat lost in the hullabaloo was the Aethos 10r frame used to build lower-priced Aethos models. While it isn’t a 585-gram frame, its claimed weight of 699 grams, with a 315-gram fork, still makes it one of the lightest disc road framesets available.
While the Aethos 10r frame is heavier, it has the same features, the same stiffness, handling, and compliance properties, and the same minimalist profile and understated graphics of the S-Works version.
It’s also much cheaper—the 10r frameset sells for $3,300, $2,200 less than a 12r frameset. Complete bikes with the 10r frame start at $4,800, while the top-of-the-line S-Works models go for $13,000 or more. Plus, the 10r has one feature the 12r frame does not: compatibility with mechanical drivetrains.
So which is the better frame, really? The 12r frameset is 15 percent (144g) lighter, and if you’re after the lightest bike, that’s a big deal. But for $2,200 less, the 10r is still one of the lightest and best-riding disc road frames on the planet, and one that’s compatible with more drivetrains.
The Specialized Aethos Comp Rival eTap AXS
That excellent Aethos 10r frame now comes built with SRAM’s new—and very good—Rival AXS group. The result is the lowest-priced Aethos yet: a $4,800 bike with a wireless electronic 12-speed drivetrain, hydraulic disc brakes, and one of the lightest and best-riding road frames on the planet.
I think we have an early favorite in the race for 2021’s road bike of the year.
This frame, by the way, is devoid of janky standards. It has a threaded BB, 27.2mm round seatpost, 1⅛-inch steerer diameter where the stem clamps, and none of the internal routing through the bar/stem/headset that can be such a nightmare. And it fits up to 32mm tires.
This model gets the same Roval Alpinist carbon seatpost found on the S-Works model, but, as you’d expect, the rest of the parts on the lowest-priced Aethos are quite different than those found on the $13,000 model. There’s the third-tier SRAM AXS group, a Specialized Power saddle with Chromoly rails, and a Specialized aluminum handlebar and stem.
The wheels consist of 24-hole Specialized hubs, DT-Swiss tubeless-ready R470 rims laced with DT-Swiss 14-gauge spokes, and brass nipples. I am a little surprised to see round spokes, given the “Aero is everything” mantra at Specialized. The tires are 26mm Specialized Turbo Pro. Sadly, the tires are not tubeless-ready, nor are tubeless valves included, so if you want to convert to tubeless, it’ll cost ya.
On my scale, my 54cm review bike came in at a respectable 17.2 pounds (as always, I weigh the bikes without pedals or bottle cages). Remember, though, this is a very light frame, with a value-oriented build kit—that means weight will come off in a hurry with upgrades. For instance, swap in Roval’s brilliant 1,250-gram Alpinist CLX ($2,500) wheelset, and this bike’s weight quickly drops to the low 16s. I know because I tried.
Specialized Aethos Comp Rival eTap AXS—Geometry
This model has the same geometry as the other Aethos models, which is likewise similar to Specialized’s Tarmac SL7 race bike. It’s long and low, and has quick steering and a shorter wheelbase, so it’s a sharp bike. It comes in six sizes; check out the numbers breakdown below.
A gear editor for his entire career, Matt’s journey to becoming a leading cycling tech journalist started in 1995, and he’s been at it ever since; likely riding more cycling equipment than anyone on the planet along the way. Previous to his time with Bicycling, Matt worked in bike shops as a service manager, mechanic, and sales person. Based in Durango, Colorado, he enjoys riding and testing any and all kinds of bikes, so you’re just as likely to see him on a road bike dressed in Lycra at a Tuesday night worlds ride as you are to find him dressed in a full face helmet and pads riding a bike park on an enduro bike. He doesn’t race often, but he’s game for anything; having entered road races, criteriums, trials competitions, dual slalom, downhill races, enduros, stage races, short track, time trials, and gran fondos. Next up on his to-do list: a multi day bikepacking trip, and an e-bike race.
