I was curious whether I was making the second dumbest purchase of my amateur cycling career. After a while on the bike, I realized I was wrong. I had been riding on Strada Italia and previously on Zipp 303 Firecrest — wheels with similar weight and good aerodynamics. At least that’s what I thought before. Besides them, I also have wheelsets with 35mm rim height on DT Swiss 240 and an old Shamal Mille on other bikes.
I’m rather light, 67kg, FTP around 230W.
The Enves are just incredible — stiff and dynamic, and even I can feel the difference. They’re really fast, exactly as they should be, and very resistant to side wind gusts. The Zipps are noticeably more nervous in similar conditions. Their sound is nice, and the ratchet isn’t as aggressive as DT’s. After a year on the DT 52‑tooth ratchet, it’s a real relief.
They have two downsides. First, the decals: I understand they’re lighter and easier to customize, but they have tiny air bubbles underneath. It’s annoying to see something like that on a wheelset for 4.5k Euro. Second, they aren’t comfortable — which isn’t surprising — but they do give a very sporty, race‑oriented feeling.