Stages Cycling continues to add more options for their single-sided power meter attachment, the latest being models for current FSA road cranksets and the all-new Shimano M9000 XTR group. The latter will be available in January and retail for $899. Since it’s on the non-drive side, it can go on any of the 1x, 2x or 3x setups.
For road, a lot of bikes come spec’d with FSA cranksets, and now you can match them up with either MegaExo (24mm) or BB30 crank arms. Stages offers their power meter mounted to the FSA Energy Alloy non-drive crankarm and the BB30 model will fit any modern BB30 FSA spindle. The MegaExo one will fit current MegaExo carbon cranksets, but only 2014-and-newer alloy models. Their website has full details on the product page. Retail on these is $699.
Their app is also being updated to add a lot more support options and FAQ’s to help get your system set up properly with whatever cycling computer you’re running. More on that, plus a history of their prototypes, below…
Like all the others, these new ones are ANT+/Bluetooth 4.0 compatible and run on coin cell batteries.
The support section on their iOS / Android apps will see a huge addition of info early next spring. A larger library of help documents is just the start, including the device-specific setup tips (example shown below). One of the best features is the addition of live, two way support!
Like so many others, Stages’ power meters went through many iterations before reaching the small, streamlined form factor they’re selling today. The image above is large, click to see it full size and read the timeline, then check the closeups below.
The original had hand-applied strain gauges and was hard wired to a computer.
Things got a bit smaller…
…but the move to a coin cell battery and accelerometer based cadence allowed it to be marketable.