Writing this here mainly to share my experience and to help others out who are going to partake on the same route (as it was very hard for me to find relevant information about that).
# Context
Canyon Speedmax CF 7, MY 2023. Comes with standard 105 + DA mechanical. Had it for one season as a mechanical, but as the winter was long and some deals appeared, I decided to pull the trigger on DI2 upgrade. I also planned to have it on the cheap side.
For the upgrade I decided to go with Ultegra and to go 1by. Why Ultegra and not 105? No reason other than the fact that I got a very good deal on Ultegra RD. I also had a 12 speed ultegra crankset laying around that I used to use on my gravel.
Speedmax CF 7 comes with hydraulic SRAM brakes. I did not exchange those, but I hacked around and added climbing shifters to support shifting from horns still. Why not change them? The decision was purely monetary; DI2 Disc control levers (ST-R9180) were and still are incredibly expensive.
# Components used
Most of the components are available off the shelf and are easy to acquire. Battery holder and bb plug needs to be ordered from canyon. It was actually very smooth and simple operation and they did provide a lot of information about the items as well.
Main items
* Rear derailleur: Ultegra DI RD-R8150
* Bar end shifters: Dura-ace SW-R9160
* Climbing shifters (for levers): Dura-ace SW-R9150
* Battery BT-DN300
Di2 wiring:
* 1x Internal junction B SM-JC41 – used for front-end connections
* 1x Y splitter EW-JC130 – user for climbing switch connection
* 3x EW-SD50 wires (2x 1m, 1x 150cm) – connecting front end together
* 2x EW-SD300 wires (1x 1m, 1x too small, dont remember the exact size) – connecting from adapter to battery, battery to RD
* 1x EW-AD305 adapter to connect SD50 and SD300 wires together
Additional things:
* Canyon GP7216-01 DI2 grommets
* Canyon EP1544-01 Front Derailleur Plate – As I went to 1by, then I wanted to seal off the place where FD was.
* CAYN GP0246-01 Battery Holder – internal battery holder – **Need to order through canyon support**
* Canyon E403-16 Plug – bb plug – **Need to order through canyon support** – bb cover is different for mechanical. It wont hold without wires running through it. However you can probably easily figure out a solution to it (or be without?).
# Process
If starting from zero, then understanding how Di2 works is a must. Bettershifting has a very good article about building a 12s TT bike. It gives a lot of good information. [https://bettershifting.com/build-a-12-speed-di2-time-trial-triathlon-bike/](https://bettershifting.com/build-a-12-speed-di2-time-trial-triathlon-bike/)
Most everything is straightforward:
* Update firmware
* When installing 12 speed, then **THIS IS A MUST.** This is what sucks about shimano. You need to have a RD + battery + logical shifter (not a proxy) connected in order for the system to recognise it fully.
* Bar end shifters (SW-R9160) and climbing shifters (SW-R9150) are by default with 11 speed firmware and thus wont connect before you upgrade the firmware through a computer. Just take it to your LBS and get it done. Without it the system wont work.
* Connect front-end
* I used Y splitter to connect TT shifters
* I spliced together climbing switch with SD50 wire (to make it longer)
* This leaves you with 3 SD50 wires with gear (left + right TT shifters, climbing switches)
* Connected the 3 to junction B (SM-JC41)
* Connected 1 extra small SD50 to the same junction filling all the slots
* Connected the small SD50 to battery using AD305 adapter and SD 300 wire
* This is jus one of many ways to do this, but as long as you can connect SD50s together and link them to SD300 wire with AD305, you are good. The system is very flexible in that way.
* Connect to battery
* From previously mentioned SD50 + AD305 + SD300 wire you connect the SD300 to the battery
* Connect RD to the battery using another SD300
**Climbing shifters as controls from brake levers**
I feel that this needs an extra section, as this is probably something that people will be the most confused about.
If you are like me and want to not pay 600eur or so for ST-R9180 control levers, but still want to change gears on brakes, then you are in luck. Climbing shifters are for you.
Even though climbing shifters were not made for this, they are smart shifters. The latter is important because there are also dumb shifters, such as [SW-610 sprint shifters](https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/product/component/duraace-9070-di2/SW-R610.html). The difference between dumb and smart ones is that dumb ones act as a proxy to a main shifter (have to be connected to one), whereas the smart one has a brain on its own and just needs to be hooked up to a battery. This makes it perfect for this conversion.
Unfortunately things are not plug-and-play, as climbing shifters (SW-9150) come with 261mm wire length that has female SD50 port. This means that the length of the wire is not sufficient enough to connect to the junction box.
The solution to this was to splice the wire longer. SD50 wires are not sophisticated. Underneath the casing there are two wires, red and black. What I did was take my 1m SD50 wire, cut it a bit shorter, cut the climbing shifter wires and spliced them together, making climbing shifter with a longer wire. This process was easy enough, but if doing, make sure that you use proper splicing methods and make things waterproof.
The only things left to do was:
* To wire the longer cable through the basebar and connect it to the junction box
* To re-install the bar-tape
* To install the shifter to the lever using a proper double sided tape
**Hiding the wires**
It was actually surprisingly easy. Canyon has done a great job designing the connections. Where its wired just before the bento box has very nice access to the frame. It also has enough space to hide the junction box and excess wires. I was quite pleased with the end result.
# Key learnings
The main learning is that Di2 is a pain in the ass. If I knew then what I know now, then I would have done SRAM etap conversion. Back in a day I checked this and I saw that the price was a bit too high for my taste. Though I factored in changing the crank to SRAM, which could be avoided.
* Battery holder system should be quite universal for all newer canyons. Battery is mounted in the down tube. For mechanical bike the mounting ports are generally sealed off. Battery holder is required going that route.
* Theoretically you could mount the battery elsewhere, but as I had to rewire the bike, I decided to do it as it was initially planned.
* Get longer wires. Shimano has a guide to measure for wire lengths, but going longer is better than being short. I had this problem and had to replace one SD300 wire for a bigger one.
* Really think how you would mount the front-end of the bike. What is good about DI2 is that it can be connected N different ways. Find the way that is more suitable for your need. Really plan this through as well.
* Canyon support is very good, they can walk you through things if required.
* I was positively surprised how easy it was to work on the front-end of the bike.
* Shimano DI2 system is simple enough to understand and robust enough to abuse. Wires etc are simple in its nature and you should not be afraid of them.
* Wiring cables through TT basebar is incredibly annoying.
**Total cost**
This is dependent on the market, but this is the ballpark:
* Ultegra DI RD-R8150 – 190EUR
* Dura-ace SW-R9160 – 120EUR
* Dura-ace SW-R9150 – 90EUR
* Battery BT-DN300 – 125EUR
* Wires and junction boxes – \~200eur
* Total around 725 eur
Doing the 1By conversion without climbing shifters would be significantly cheaper.
**Would I do it again?**
Personally would not convert to Di2 again. Would go with SRAM route, it could be a bit more expensive.
Would it made more sense to buy CF8? No. Not for me.
# End results
Added a few pictures of the end result below.
https://preview.redd.it/2eipnpk36gsc1.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=10454d2f5d4c6d29c2d7cb0ba709f3b98fa334c3
[Climbing shifter to lever](https://preview.redd.it/x5lfwok36gsc1.jpg?width=769&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=52c8214eb23e997d7e544f5fb901718470e3b163)
[End result of the cockpit](https://preview.redd.it/dey3ook36gsc1.jpg?width=4032&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=5a1938e1a83981c3fa9e51620a9d6a376e42ff46)
by Gullible_Path_746