Perfect write up of my recent thoughtsYes you are missing something. Let me explain why.
I think that there is a some confusion as to how this motor works. For example. This are my personal settings:
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View attachment 83873
What those numbers are, are percentages of your input. The 400 that is the maximum number is not maximum power in Watts. This is 400% of the input. OK. So what?
That means that the maximum that this motor can give you can be reached even in Eco mode set to 50%. You can reach the maximum on EVERY level. This is by design.
With default settings Sport is set to 250% and Power to 400%. My problem was that there was ABSOLUTELY NO difference between these two for me. Also the difference between Active set to 175% and Sport 250% was also MINIMAL. I could feel the difference at first spin, but after that the difference between Active and Sport was small. Why?
The answer is quite simple. My FTP (for those who don't know this is the max average you can produce in one hour) is right now 305. My usual wattage when just going biking is in the range of 150-200 Watts when going up the hill. So Sport 250% will try to produce power in the range of 375 to 500 Watts depending on my input. I have no idea what is the maximum power of Yamaha PW-X3 but it MUST be less than 500 Watts because switching to anything higher than 250% (higher than theoretical 500 Watts) makes ZERO difference. This is at least what my legs feel.
Now what? If you are a strong rider reduce EVERYTHING like me. If you are AVERAGE. Don't change anything. If you are a beginner max out everything. And PLAY with those numbers.
BUT. Why are you actually missing something without the app? Why to change anything? The answer is that if you will reach the max output of the motor too quickly (in Sport or even Active mode) your brain will be HIGHLY disappointed when switching to higher levels. Because there will be NO difference that will have any meaning. And that is not a nice feeling. Every assist level should produce a difference that you will be able to feel. Hope you will guys find that helpful.
Usually most people don't read manuals and read small text right
I was actually thinking about this, because I was looking for a reason for the recently mentioned motor surge in&out at around 22kph...I am a strong rider or like to push strong, my FTP is a bit over 250 at the moment...winter belly after a last year hamstring injury...
I am probably reaching full motor power output...because I felt the strange effect in the two highest modes but not in the lower ones.
A agree...the Yamaha motor system is a bit different in the software department then the rest of the bunch on the market.
I found these(pics) max power output at an input of 250W and power output at an input of 100W numbers in the video from the German YT testers.
It seems the PW-X3 is modest with power delivery at lower cadences and lower power input. The tester said that's why it has reserves in higher cadences. But the max power output is lower so your theory adds up
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