Our wheel and frame performance charts are useful tools, but they don’t clearly answer one crucial question for many Zwift racers: how does X frame paired with Y wheelset perform compared to other top setups, including the Zwift Concept Z1 (Tron) bike?
The chart below compares the relative performance of un-upgraded and fully upgraded versions of the game’s fastest frame and wheelset combinations, allowing you to determine which setup works best for you.
Tip: We charted how many seconds each setup saves across an hour of riding compared to a basic bike/wheel setup (Zwift Carbon frame + Zwift 32mm Carbon Wheels). This means you’ll find the top performers higher on the Y-axis and further right on the X-axis.
Frames used:
- Zwift Concept Z1
- S-Works Venge
- S-Works Tarmac SL8
- Pinarello Dogma F 2024
- Canyon Aeroad 2024
- Cannondale SuperSix EVO LAB71
- S-Works Aethos
Wheels used:
- Zipp 858/Super9
- DT Swiss Disc
- ENVE 8.9
- ENVE 7.8
- Zipp 858
- Zipp 454
- Lightweight Meilenstein
Colored based on frame. Mouse over each point for details.
Zwift Concept Z1, S-Works Venge, S-Works Tarmac SL8, Pinarello Dogma F 2024, Canyon Aeroad 2024, Cannondale SuperSix EVO LAB71, Specialized Aethos
Chart updated March 24, 2025
Observations
While the Tron is clearly a standout performer on the flats, it’s worth noting that moving to an all-arounder setup like the Aeroad 2024 + ENVE 7.8 wheels costs 7.4 seconds on the flats, but gets you 11.6 seconds on the climbs (assuming both bikes are stage 5). Not a bad trade.
Next, you’ll notice that the Aethos regains its position as King of the Mountain when viewing fully-upgraded frame performance. The fully upgraded Aethos really is a climbing weapon, and moving from an all-arounder like the S-Works Tarmac SL8 to the Aethos means you’re basically just trading flat seconds for climb seconds on a one-to-one basis.
Example: the Aethos + Zipp 454 wheels lose 21 seconds to the S-Works Tarmac SL8 on the flats, but gain 22.8 seconds on the climbs. That’s a pretty solid trade if you’re a rider who struggles on the climbs more than the flats.
Of course, when considering performance, one must also consider the work that goes into upgrading the bike. Getting a fully-upgraded Tron is going to take significantly more riding than upgrading a production bike like the Dogma F 2024!
There is certainly more to observe from this chart and our more complete wheel and frame charts, but for now I’ll leave it to the Zwift community to look at the numbers and share thoughts. Ride on!
Your Thoughts
What conclusions do you draw from this updated chart? Share your thoughts below!
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