The Jamis Xenith Pro Di2 is one of the new crop of bikes using Shimano’s Ultegra Di2 group to bring electronic shifting to the masses (or at least, down to a more affordable price point). At £2400, the Jamis is among the cheapest carbon-framed Ui2 bikes out there, but it’s more than just a groupset, it’s also a pretty decent bike in its own right.
Frame
Geometry wise, the Xenith features fairly standard parallel 73 degree head and seat tubes, giving a trail figure of 58mm. Despite the overall bike’s more laid back handling traits (compared to more aggressive race bike geometry), I found that once you’d committed to a line, the Xenith never wavered from it.
Ultegra Di2
Having spoken at length about the frame, I suspect that the real reason that people are considering this bike is the Ultegra electronic shifting. Functionally, Ultegra Di2 is so close to Dura Ace Di2 as to be virtually indistinguishable with the exception of the front shifts. When paired with the excellent Ultegra chainrings, front shifts under power are still possible although not 100% guaranteed. When paired with other chainrings, the front shifting is merely slightly better than the cable version.
The shift cables enter just behind the headtube and pop out just before their respective derailleurs. Components
The wheels in particular, a set of Shimano’s RS10s, are a notch below the rest of the bike. Instead of going with the full Ultegra groupset to complement the shifting, the Xenith comes kitted with some non-series brakes. Despite the current trend towards compact shaped bars, Jamis have opted to go with a Ritchey ergo-bend bar. Bar width is proportional to frame size so smaller and larger riders should find themselves well accommodated.
Overall, wheels excepted, the Xenith Pro’s spec stands up reasonably well to the immediate competition and certainly doesn’t detract from the frame in any way.
The Xenith Pro Di2 is one of the more accessible electronic shifting bikes currently available. A good, if slightly uninspiring frame and decent finishing kit complement the shifty bits well with only the wheels really letting it down
Source = road.cc
