Serenade 4550 Wavy Wheelset SUB 1200g steel spokes 500USD

[frewster]

Well, patience finally paid off and I received pictures of my finished wheels. I'll post a review of them in the MTB section once they arrive. Just wanted to provide an update here since it's the main Serenade thread. 

[Sebastian]

New wheelset in.
Specs:
- 23internal/34external/60deep
- Sapim CX Ray spokes and nipples
- Hubs: SR248 - the weight is in the name, they're 248grams per set with 36tooth ratchet freehub and TPI bearings from Taiwan (same hubs as on the wavy wheels)
- total weight: 1418g
Price: 539 USD + 30 USD shipping / With the coupon code I actually paid 515 USD delivered to my door

I was looking for a modern aero wheelset for predominantly flat riding including some hills. Most of the routes available for daily training in my area are like that. I got the superlight wavy wheels because climbing and descending is what I like most. But for my everyday training rides, some wide aero wheels fit the use case better.

These are a perfect fit for 32mm wide tires. I got a set of Tufos on there which are 28c but are probably still designed for narrower rims. They come up to almost 32mm. I measured the rims close to 34mm at around the widest point but my vernier calipers are not long enough.

I've done somewhere between 1000-1500km on this set now. I can obviously only report what I felt and what my Wahoo showed me. These are the fastest wheels I ever had for flat courses. I'm recording the highest average speeds ever and they feel super satisfying to ride.
Comfort is supreme because of the wider tires and internal width. They feel absolutely rock solid. I'd do cobbled rides on these with no hesitation. I've also ridden them on light gravel.

I'm a heavier rider so crosswinds do not concern me much. But it does get windy where I live. Very windy in fact. You do feel that these are 60 deep. But they feel much easier to handle than the narrower and more classic V-shaped 60s on my rim brake bike.

I've raved about these hubs before. This is the second wheelset with them and they're so nice. Just to give you an idea: I spun the front wheel in the stand the other day and it kept on spinning for +5 minutes. I know this is not particularly scientific. But the only hub that comes close to this is an old Roval hub that I put SKF bearings in. I got that in my rim brake wheelset which up to now I thought was the best rolling hub I got. But these are just as good.

If you're looking for some deep Enve-esque wheels for a bargain price, you're not going to be disappointed.
They're also still reasonably light for climbing. I probably wouldn't ride these if I was going to a super mountainous area. They'd still be fine but other wheels would be more fun. But for flat and rolling courses or crits, they're awesome!
The decals are removable as always.

[reckonair]

Hi Sebastian,

I've been chatting closely with Serenade about a set of wheels, they look great but I'm nervous about their QC process and the quality of their layups etc.

Essentially I don't want to end up in hospital so it's a bit of a leap of faith.

Did you (or anyone else in this thread for that matter) get much insight into their QC process when you ordered?

Thanks,
Sam

[Sebastian]

Hi Sebastian,

I've been chatting closely with Serenade about a set of wheels, they look great but I'm nervous about their QC process and the quality of their layups etc.

Essentially I don't want to end up in hospital so it's a bit of a leap of faith.

Did you (or anyone else in this thread for that matter) get much insight into their QC process when you ordered?

Thanks,
Sam

Serenade are a seller, not a manufacturer. They claim that they're investing in molds and do QC oversight. But as with many other sellers, it comes down to faith and trust, IMO. You can obviously ask them, but it comes down to whether or not you believe what they're telling you.
I took faith from the fact that their wheels are popular in the Spanish MTB scene and seem to hold up fine. So popular in fact that they opened a warehouse in Spain.
I got three of their wheelsets now. One for gravel, two for road. I've abused all of them pretty extensively over 10k km. But that's anecdotal.
I have never had to deal with warranty issues with their wheels so I can't really tell you how reliable they're handling issues, should they come up.

I think where they excel is value for money. Where they lack is communication. But I've found them to be trustworthy.

[frewster]

Regarding quality I have talked with Serenade about this a bit. They claim the rims I am having built up are tested to pass a 100J impact test and sent these pictures. However, as Sebastian said they don't have any actual evidence of any testing so it is a trust factor.

[reckonair]

I mean they look great, I was looking at Hunts too as a more “western” pick, they’re easily available in the UK but they’re also reported to have poor QC and failures so it’s a lottery I guess.

[Sebastian]

I mean they look great, I was looking at Hunts too as a more “western” pick, they’re easily available in the UK but they’re also reported to have poor QC and failures so it’s a lottery I guess.

I think the risk with wheels is fairly low at this point. I cant really recall any serious wheel issues with anyone here on the forum. There’s hub quality issues here and there. I’ve found quality to be reliable with pretty much every Chinese seller I used. Years ago when complete wheels from China weren’t a thing yet, I would get badly drilled spoke holes every now and then. The cheapest rims I usually avoid. But those are usually also the heaviest.
Build quality and uniform spoke tension is a good indicator for QC I think. That is something you can easily check yourself. And I wouldn’t necessarily use wheels at the absolute edge of the given weight limit.

[makl]

To add one anecdotal experience here: I hit a massive pothole with my wavy wheels in a decent at roughly 60 kph (it was getting dark). The front wheel suffered a light wheel wobble, but nothing cracked or broke or similar... This would have happened to any other wheel I guess. In my experience, these wheels are just as good/solid as any other wheels I'v ridden previously.

[reckonair]

Ordered a set of their wavy rims, paid $574/£430-ish shipped.

Looking forward to them turning up!

[serenadebikes]

Thank you for your valuable suggestions. We have increased our customer service staff so they are always available to answer questions.

We have a large inventory of road wheels with internal widths ranging from 21mm to 25mm, and mountain wheels with 30mm internal width XC level.

The strength of the wheel is our first choice, not weight.

[Rebel_Yell]

New wheelset in.
Specs:
- 23internal/34external/60deep
- Sapim CX Ray spokes and nipples
- Hubs: SR248 - the weight is in the name, they're 248grams per set with 36tooth ratchet freehub and TPI bearings from Taiwan (same hubs as on the wavy wheels)
- total weight: 1418g
Price: 539 USD + 30 USD shipping / With the coupon code I actually paid 515 USD delivered to my door

I was looking for a modern aero wheelset for predominantly flat riding including some hills. Most of the routes available for daily training in my area are like that. I got the superlight wavy wheels because climbing and descending is what I like most. But for my everyday training rides, some wide aero wheels fit the use case better.

These are a perfect fit for 32mm wide tires. I got a set of Tufos on there which are 28c but are probably still designed for narrower rims. They come up to almost 32mm. I measured the rims close to 34mm at around the widest point but my vernier calipers are not long enough.

I've done somewhere between 1000-1500km on this set now. I can obviously only report what I felt and what my Wahoo showed me. These are the fastest wheels I ever had for flat courses. I'm recording the highest average speeds ever and they feel super satisfying to ride.
Comfort is supreme because of the wider tires and internal width. They feel absolutely rock solid. I'd do cobbled rides on these with no hesitation. I've also ridden them on light gravel.

I'm a heavier rider so crosswinds do not concern me much. But it does get windy where I live. Very windy in fact. You do feel that these are 60 deep. But they feel much easier to handle than the narrower and more classic V-shaped 60s on my rim brake bike.

I've raved about these hubs before. This is the second wheelset with them and they're so nice. Just to give you an idea: I spun the front wheel in the stand the other day and it kept on spinning for +5 minutes. I know this is not particularly scientific. But the only hub that comes close to this is an old Roval hub that I put SKF bearings in. I got that in my rim brake wheelset which up to now I thought was the best rolling hub I got. But these are just as good.

If you're looking for some deep Enve-esque wheels for a bargain price, you're not going to be disappointed.
They're also still reasonably light for climbing. I probably wouldn't ride these if I was going to a super mountainous area. They'd still be fine but other wheels would be more fun. But for flat and rolling courses or crits, they're awesome!
The decals are removable as always.

You said you are a heavier rider. What is the rider weight limit on these wheels?  I know their limit is normally lower than most.

Thanks for sharing.

[Sebastian]

You said you are a heavier rider. What is the rider weight limit on these wheels?  I know their limit is normally lower than most.

Thanks for sharing.

110kg rider weight. It’s all there on their site.

[Rebel_Yell]

110kg rider weight. It’s all there on their site.

Thanks. I actually found they have some with even higher limits.

[reckonair]

Received my QC pictures today, being 95kg Marya suggested I use the SR268 hub as they can take a bit more weight. The wheels look great though and I’m happy that they’re slightly heavier.

[frewster]

I received my wheels (MTB but I'm not sure if I should start a new Serenade thread over there) today. They're 54g heavier at 1624g than claimed before shipping but a little extra strength can't hurt. I picked Serenade because I had seen good reviews here and they worked with me to use custom orange Koozer 450 hubs without charging extra. Finish is very clean despite being coating free. Spoke tension is fairly consistent and they are quite true. I will try to get them taped up this week so I can try them out. I'm happy with the hubs so there's a bonus picture of one of them.

These were $575 shipped to the US which feels like a fair price considering the tariff situation and the customization.