Author Topic: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD  (Read 240001 times)

Avalius

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #30 on: February 03, 2025, 07:03:15 AM »
How long did it take after ordering before delivery btw?
"You can't be sad while riding a bicycle."

Sebastian

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #31 on: February 03, 2025, 11:59:31 AM »
How long did it take after ordering before delivery btw?

Around 10 days, I think it was.

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #32 on: February 04, 2025, 04:02:40 PM »
Around 10 days, I think it was.

Well, thanks to you, and to me casually researching wheels for my build, I just ordered a frame.  :D

McMadigan

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #33 on: February 19, 2025, 06:55:07 AM »
Communication with Serenabikes is very tedious, slow and exhausting.
It's hard to get binding information.
I've been trying in vain to fix an order for more than 10 days and I'm starting to lose patience.

Avalius

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #34 on: February 19, 2025, 08:46:31 AM »
Communication with Serenabikes is very tedious, slow and exhausting.
It's hard to get binding information.
I've been trying in vain to fix an order for more than 10 days and I'm starting to lose patience.

It's a disaster lol, still have no clue where my wheels are at this moment. After two weeks the answer was "Next monday will leave to China"
Pfff, if it takes time I understand that but they should atleast give serious updates. Like 'Our stock in Spain was empty, these will be shipped from China with(insert shipping company) and will arrive at +- (insert date). But no ..
"You can't be sad while riding a bicycle."

wandulus

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #35 on: February 19, 2025, 09:32:32 AM »
Write yesteday for a set, still no answer on whatsapp.

McMadigan

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #36 on: February 19, 2025, 10:28:21 AM »
It's a disaster lol, still have no clue where my wheels are at this moment. After two weeks the answer was "Next monday will leave to China"
Pfff, if it takes time I understand that but they should atleast give serious updates. Like 'Our stock in Spain was empty, these will be shipped from China with(insert shipping company) and will arrive at +- (insert date). But no ..

Marya from serenadebikes told me, that in Spain is no stock and only wheel repair.


@ wandulus
@ Avalius

Who is your contact person?

Sebastian

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #37 on: February 20, 2025, 12:23:05 AM »
Quick communication isn't exactly their forte, sometimes at least. There's three Whatsapp numbers for three different sales agents on their website. I have dealt with Marya exclusively so far, however. I was told that there's a warehouse in Spain and wheels can be shipped directly from there, if they're in stock. They established it there because they have a big customer base among MTB riders in Spain apparently.

They've been nothing but reliable in my case. My first wheelset from them came from China which took the usual two to three weeks via DPD.


wandulus

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #38 on: February 20, 2025, 01:52:30 AM »
Marya from serenadebikes told me, that in Spain is no stock and only wheel repair.


@ wandulus
@ Avalius

Who is your contact person?
I wrote via Whatsapp to Marya.

Ultramic

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #39 on: February 20, 2025, 03:41:32 AM »
I was about to pull the trigger on the wavy set but a couple of people on the below forum have experienced structural issues with the rim including the wavy design which is enough to put me off this brand. YMMV.

PS it's a Spanish forum so use google translate - the last 3-4 pages is where the issues pop up.

https://www.foromtb.com/threads/censo-ruedas-chinas.1184418/page-973

Sebastian

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #40 on: February 20, 2025, 05:18:20 AM »
My set of 55deep/25internal wheelset has seen a lot of abuse and is holding up fine. That one is 1450g however. The wavy wheels have not seen too much road use and I will report back.

The squeeze test is not really indicative of build quality. Wall thickness will obviously be thin on a lightweight rim just like with frames. Long term durability is an unknown with these. So let’s see. Maybe I give them a run on cobbles to see if they can take it. That’s usually a good indicator for durability.

Avalius

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #41 on: February 20, 2025, 05:50:36 AM »
I wrote via Whatsapp to Marya.

Same here
"You can't be sad while riding a bicycle."

wandulus

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #42 on: February 27, 2025, 04:16:27 AM »
Any thoughts on the performance of these wheels in cross winds?

I'm interested in getting a pair of either these Serenades, or another set of wavy/undulated wheels from xmcarbonspeed, LightCarbon, Farsports, or Yuanan. However, I'm skeptical that there's been any real testing to prove they improve performance in cross winds. The aesthetics do not match my bike very well, so if there is not a performance benefit, I'll probably just purchase a more traditional 50mm rim.

From what I can see, the Light Bicycle Falcon Pro and Elite Wheels Drive Helix seem closest to the Zipp and Princeton designs, but they're out of my price range.
Sorry for late response.
I got pair of wave wheels (Nextie 45-50) from about 8 months and 4K Km. They perform really well. I live in a really step zone, so a lot of climbs and fast descends. Only one freaky moment, on a fast descend (about 80 Kmh) with about 30 Kmh crosswind. Nothing to scare about, but to be aware of it. I'm used to 80mm profiles on TT Bikes, and this wheels are night and day compared to that.
 

Avalius

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #43 on: February 27, 2025, 05:32:08 AM »
Arrived today, they look good. Will test :-)
"You can't be sad while riding a bicycle."

Sebastian

Re: Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD
« Reply #44 on: March 25, 2025, 03:25:00 AM »
I have now accumulated around 1300km on these wheels. But about 50% of that was indoors, however, when there was snow and/or bad weather outside.
But I've done around 500k outdoors in just these past three weeks alone on various terrain and in various conditions: Flat terrain, very hilly terrain, zero wind as well as a very windy ride with particularly strong gusts. Here are my key takeaways so far:

The weight: This is the strong point of these wheels, obviously. Being so light, they feel amazing uphill. Even on slight inclines when powering over small crests I feel it is very noticeable that there is very little resistance to accelerations and the bike just feels extremely light footed in general.

The stiffness: The wheels' strong point is also their weak point. Obviously, if you built a rim like this with carbon spokes, it would make for a much stiffer wheel. Sapim CX Ray-spokes aren't the stiffest to begin with. Pair this with a - probably - less stiff rim and you do feel that there is some give. They don't feel inefficient. They're definitely stiff enough for climbing out of the saddle and the occasional sprint. But if you want something with minimal flex under high power-efforts like sprinting, you might want to look elsewhere. To me, these strike a very good balance between comfort and stiffness.

Durability: I'm not a light rider. My weight varies between 80 and 85kg. My FTP is usually somewhere between 300W and 350W depending on the time of the season and my training. I am not an explosive rider, more of a time trial kind of guy. I was wary of the weight limit with these and found myself nursing them down descents on bad roads at first. But I think it was all in my head. After a while you kind of just forget about it. Some of the roads in my area are really pretty broken, super bumpy, open cracks and giant potholes on descents that you have to negotiate. There's also the occasional stretches of cobbles. I've done it all on these wheels and there is no sign of them running out of true. I'm pretty confident (SO FAR) that they hold up fine.

Riding dynamics and cross wind stability: To me, these are perfect allrounders and I particularly love the way these ride in hilly terrain with short steep ramps. Being a heavier rider, these really help me power over short pinches and keep my average speed high on hillier rides. The lack of inertia makes these just go uphill effortlessly. But it is also what makes it feel slightly less satisfying on the flat. It might just be in my head because the numbers do not really show them to be much slower on the flat than my 55deep wheels. But it's just the way they feel. I definitely agree that they feel more stable in cross winds. I'm a heavier rider so I don't really have much trouble with winds to begin with. But these feel particularly unaffected by cross winds. I did a ride with super strong gusts and apart from one time where the front wheel on a very fast descent got slightly upset by a wind gust, they felt literally completely unaffected. I got 60mm deep wheels on my rim brake bike which feel much worse in those kind of conditions. However, the very light weight and lack of inertia in my experience makes them feel more nervous on descents through corners and over bumps. Less weight just means less gyroscopic force, if that makes sense? So at high speeds through corners, these wheels react more nervously against steering impulses and are easier upset through bumps in the road. You do get used to it but it's noticeable.

Conclusion: These are great allrounders which make for a worry free wheelset to be ridden on all kinds of terrain and in all conditions (on the road, that is). They seem very well made for the money. I'd only really advise against these if all you ever do is riding on flat terrain. That's where these just feel less exciting to ride.
« Last Edit: March 25, 2025, 03:30:11 AM by Sebastian »