Who is this bike for? Specialized AETHOS First Ride 

“honey my $10K tarmac isn’t light enough and I need an easy to work on climbing bike bc I’m getting dropped on the club runs. So I got this aethos”

I recently saw an Aethos in real life at my local club ride. I have to say I literally sat on the guys wheel the entire ride so I could look at it. What a beautiful frame, the shape, the paint job, the geometry..aaaah envy.

I'm a simple man.. When i see Norcal cyling videos, i watch them even if its a sponsored video.

Yeah, I don’t need my first child. This bike looks dope.

Q: Who is this bike for? A: A rich dentist.

Specialized: Here is the new SL7, one bike to do it all! Alos Specialized: Here is a new lightweight bike.

The new Tarmac is the new Venge. The new Aethos is the new Tarmac. We got played.

I took my 12k, bought a trek emonda and used the difference to fly to italy and ride around the dolomites for two months.

Proper riding review, honest, nice cinematic shot. This channel review bike better than many cycling media. Bravo

Production on these just keeps going up

I took my 12K, bought a supersix evo with dura-ace, and used the difference to fund a startup.

Wife..."Honey, is that another new bike in the corner of the garage?" Me..."What, that old thing? I've had that for at least a couple weeks!"

The bike industry has come full circle. These are the types of bikes we used to ride a few years ago, round tubes, standard size seat clamps, stem and handlebars, rim brakes, threaded BB and exposed cables. Back in the day when everything is simple and easy to work on, but without the price tag of this type of bike.

your drone shots are amazing

It’s a gorgeous bike and I wish more companies would make bikes that look and perform as well.

So funny. I’ve ridden those roads in the opening drone footage so many times; I recognized them immediately. Great area to train!

Your video editing skills are top notch, Jeff. Loved the intro setup as well. As a side note... _damn you, Specialized! Choices!_

That Henry Co Climb is my favorite. Glad to see other people hitting it hard. Its one of the Bay Area gems.

That aethos just looks sublime ... it’s gorgeous. And for us that don’t climb fast enough to take advantage of aero uphills ... We’ll take the weight savings

Jeff - you put out some clean videos my dude. Keep it up!

You know S-works are too expensive when even their own sponsored rider says you won't be able to afford them unless you sell two of the year before models and says its double the price lol

LOL if they really cared about simplicity and lightweight they would have brought back the Tarmac SL5 in rim brake.

Glad they finally updated their SuperSixEvo

I rode both of these bikes, as I was mesmerized by the Specialized “Pine Green” color. It’s simply the most beautiful green I’ve seen. The Tarmac in question was an SL6 I chose the Tarmac and am building it up. I’m 5’10. The Aethos, to me, felt cramped. The riding position it put me in was nowhere near as comfortable (or aggressive) as the Tarmac. The riding position reminded me a lot of the SuperSix. And while the SuperSix is a race bike, for whatever reason, I never felt that I could achieve a comfortable position while down in the bars. With the Tarmac I found that position instantly. Weight-wise, I did not perceive a massive difference between the Tarmac and Aethos. I didn’t weigh them and the Aethos was lighter, but not significantly. Price-wise…man. The Aethos was $8k. The Tarmac, with Tiagra set, was $2700. Once I upgrade the set and get new wheels, I anticipate I will come in just north of $6k on the Tarmac. Still a lot of cash with both bikes. Therein lies my issue. I could have purchased a new Emonda w/carbon frame, wheels and seatpost, with Ultegra set, for right around $4k. I wanted to demo this bike as well, but was so mesmerized by “Pine Green” and the instant fit riding position of the Tarmac that I threw caution to the wind. What justifies Spec’s higher price point? I have no brand loyalty here. I also have a synapse 105 that I purchased for just a bit more than I paid for the Tarmac w/Tiagra. I have a Trek Top Fuel 8 that I’ve put through some abuse and it’s held up find. It seems like a fine bike and I doubt I’d have been able to find its feature set at this price on a different brand. So what’s the deal? Is Trek the best deal in cycling? Are they able to offer better deals by selling direct, only? Am I missing something? Is Specialized…head and shoulders above brands like Trek or Cannondale?

My super six evo from 2014 is the same weight, round tubes, easy to work on and didn’t cost half the federal reserve

Nice review! I'll keep my 2012 bike for now but appreciate the honest review

That intro!! I thought I was watching a movie, great stuff.

Specialized might as well use the intro to this video as their promo clip

I like your channel because of the race content and candid (and spot on) commentary. This video is a commercial, for a truly ridiculously expensive bike.

That intro was pretty sweet.

Funnily enough, it was the complexity of the SL7 that drew me to it away from my TCR advanced pro. So I sold my tcr advanced pro, and swapped to a SL7. The exposed cabling looked so…simple …compared to the SL7 which looked like it has so much crammed into it. It’s probably why I love my full suss bike too, all those moving parts is nothing short of charming.

Hi, thank you very much for your video. What would you recommend between an Aethos and a Tarmac SL8? I don't ride competitions and I really like climbing. I was initially thinking of the Aethos, but the new Tarmac seems to be very good for climbing too. Thank you in advance for your feedback!

Looks like the Cannondale HiMod EVO with disc brakes - Never sold mine and now it’s back in rim brake style

I really LOVE these reviews, especially from legit riders like you guys. Keep 'em up!

I'm just so happy I still ride my sl5 aka Aethos 2015

My LBS had given me a heads up about the Aethos when I was about to order the frame of my SL7. I looked at it and went with the SL7. I already got a Sworks SL4 which is pretty much what the Aethos resembles. Regardless, It's a great looking bike.

Athos - you can actually change the stem and bars, and adjust your fit!

Just got an Aethos Expert. What a joy that bike is…🎉

Is there noticeable lateral flextion or does it feel noodly at all? Have you road the canyon ultimate Evo?

When you are saying about options, for me there is one more your are not saying, the budget aero bike: the allez. i'm not gonna lie, i love my allez, Its so much bike for the money and i don't care about the extra kg or so. If you ask me, the allez sprint is the best bang for the buck if you just want to go very very fast, but is not for everyone, it's so agressive that most people just ain got the flexibilty

I ride an aethos with the rapid wheelset. I find that it is not as agile as the shallow ones and I also noticed that the rear end is bouncy with road imperfections. Your comments on those please

How does it compare to the sl7 when sprinting? Do you feel any more flex in the aethos?

Not sure if specialized would allow this, but you guys should test out the aethos with sl7 wheels, since without those deeper wheels, is already 99.3487% as fast. Pretty sure switching those out would be faster.

Since you had the 2 bikes together. Yes the Aethos was the faster climber, but how did it compare in descending, fast technical descents to the SL7. That is something I have not seen commented on and would like to know. And if the road on the descent is a little rough how did each bike feel descending at speed.

Gents, good light review. Given your background with riding so many bikes, appreciate it if you can chime in and provide some comparison? How does this compare to the Allez Sprint? I understand this is a crit-type bike, however I ride a 54cm and the geometry is almost identical to aethos. I actually prefer the lack of compliance and pure road buzz feel on the Allez, stiffness and arrow like handling, but looking for similar traits in a bike that will climb better. Thanks in advance!

Yo.... Hey Jeff, I got to ask a question... How does the Aethos decend? So, we all have areas we shine more than other on the bike. I need a bike I can really stuff into corners, at speed, and feel stable. The difference between my 2015 Sworks Tarmac with skewers and rim brakes vs. my 2020 with thru axles and disc is substantial. I wonder how stiff the frond end is with the seemingly feather light weight. Everything else I see about the Aethos looks amazing. Appreciate your thoughts.

I would love to see you guys review the Allez Sprint Disc.

Could you say something about the endurance factor? Aethos also for bikepack tripping and endurance?

Hmmm... so glad to arrive late to the party. Get to read all of the comments, and some are almost as interesting and entertaining as the promo video. Still, the Aethos looks to be a sharp bike.

How does ride quality/comfort compare between the two?

every single bike channel and website releasing reviews at the same time :D

Great video!!! Cheers Guy. Does anyone know which bottle cage are those?

The most impressive thing in this video is the trail you guys were on! Where is this trail? I want to ride it!

Which route / hills are these? Looks epic!

Just a video idea, I know in the past you've discussed on the bike training and riding nutrition. But I haven't ever seen you talk about off the bike nutrition, i.e. what you eat from day to day (I and neither should you promote being a weight weenie) but I would be interested in hearing what your diet consists of.

New cyclist here, "ohh the Aethos is cheaper" Google's Specialized Aethos prices.... close app. 😂

When will Aethos frame technology be available on the Roubaix?

For me!! Just picked mine up

The margins in the bike industry are obscene. And when you realise that people who actually make them in SE Asia earn peanuts it makes it even more sickening.

How is a completely round tube bike supposed to be closer in aero dynamics to the sl7 than the sl6 is to the sl7?

can you please do one of your tests of the sl7 vs aethos with the same wheels!

Is it worth upgrading to an Aethos from a SL5 rim Tarmac?

I've got one kidney I could spare for this.

Love the LC200 , the one thin with tires on this video that wont depreciate like a led ball :)

is it suitable for endurance cycling?

Just bought the SL7 for my first roadbike Damn I don't know riding bycicle can be this fun.

Is the Aethos more comfortable than the Tarmac, and what about a comparison to Canyon Endurace?

Great video! Specialized bikes rule!

does it come in rim brake? don't need the extra weight and complexity of discs on a crit race

where in San Jose is this? it's beautiful!

I have no beef about the simplicity..but they charge it even more expensive than the all integrated complex SL7..W The Eff

You can get a Trek Emonda SLR

It is hard for me to believe a 580gr frame has the BB stiffness needed to make it highly responsive and efficient. Or, that it can stand the rigors of serious riding more than a season. That said, I do like a lot of the ideas at work here.

What road is this in the intro? The rest of the vid?

Hey guys.. what out front mount are you using on the SL7?

Reminds me a bit of the 2014 Scott Addict SL. That was 5.92kg in a 56cm with sram red 22. According to the Germans, Aethos weighs 6.17 in a 56cm. Aethos has disc brakes which add at least 300 grams so Aethos is an improvement but not by much. Maybe the stiffness and compliance numbers are better.

Between this Aethos, Specialized specing a 1x build for the Tarmac and living in flat Chicago, I am ever more satisfied with my 17.5 lb cross bike serving as a road bike, gravel bike and cross racer. This really counters everything we've been hearing about aero is everything and weight doesn't matter so much. It's laughable. On the positive side I do think once the lower tier, non S-works, models are released, the value of the Aethos will really shine by being able to offer a lightweight (sub 7kg) disc brake build that isn't priced into the stratosphere.

Where are you guys riding? Looks like south Monterey County.

the bike looks lovely, but Soecialized marketing pitch is just laughable XD 'are you tired of this aero and integrated BS that we were preaching for the last 5 years?'

wow so the 2015 Tarmac just became relevant again! amazing

What roads are those? I'm new to the area, and I'm looking to expand my roadcabulary.

Can’t argue with the wind tunnel but I feel so much faster on my Aethos vs my tarmac which now feels sluggish compared to my Aethos.

Great video, when you say the Aethos is almost all the performance as the SL7, are you talking about aero performance, or chassis stiffness, or something else? I have an older SL4, and was looking at these two bikes. Not concerned about marginal aero gains, but don't want a frame that's flexy in the least and doesn't sprint and accelerate well. So, I do want a bike that performs like a race bike. If you are sprinting at 3000W and ripping off stems, you should know :) Can you quantify where you saw the performance differences?

Where are you guys? Where is this trail???

Which roads was this shot at?

Is the .6513% in performance difference caused by the chimney? :p

What road did you shoot this video on? 😍

the production quality are head and above the mainsteam cycling "journalist "

Thanks guys for another great video, please keep them coming! Sadly this bike is way out of my price range. On another note, would you recommend Turbo Cotton's for everyday use?

So the new tarmac SL7 is now the Venge and the Aethos is now the tarmac!

one day i will have enough money to buy a roadbike:) love from Philippinesss ❤️

It is a beauty for sure

Where is this? Henry Coe? I’d recognize those curves anywhere. So much time spent on a 750cc sportsbike tearing up that road in my backyard. I’m considering these two bikes as my next buy so that makes this vid super attractive.

Waiting on the affordable alloy-option frameset version of the Aethos.

Specialized Head Office in Melbourne Australia tell me that the Aethos is better up & down hill than the SL7 . Guess the weight helps heaps up hill . The issue l have with the Aethos is the exterior cable routing . One guy re routed his cables internally & re carbon fibred the entry & exits of where the cables went . Then repainted it .

How is this different with SuperSix Evo Hi-Mod???

man, I love this route. Alpine road.

The SL7 comes with hardware to use a standard stem.

7:02 "It has the usability and simplicity we haven't seen in the bike industry for almost a decade." *Giant TCR sweeping at the corner* Also gotta mention that Giant Propel and Ridley have fairly simple internal cable routing too.

ok then.. which 1 would you choose should you had the money ?