How to test ant+ dongle is working?

Blader1611
Blader1611 Posts: 29
edited February 2016 in Road general
I bought a new ant+ dongle and a second hand garmin gsc 10 speed cadence sensor. Sensor has new battery but how do i test that they are talking to each other without having to buy trainerroad or similar? I just cant find a way and zwift doesnt want to work on my laptop. I checked my pc and it says the dongle is working but using golden cheetah in train view and trying to add devices doesnt find any ant+ pairing but it doesnt really look like its trying. Its so frustrating, i really need help.

Comments

  • frisbee
    frisbee Posts: 691
    A lot of android phones have ANT+ built in if you want to confirm the speed sensor is working. I've never played around with ANT+ but have you done the usual checks like checking device manager to make sure the driver has installed properly?
  • Blader1611
    Blader1611 Posts: 29
    Yeah i checked device manager and its there and says device is working properly, drivers are up to date for it as well. I dont have an android phone but pretty sure my dad does so might check with him if i get chance. I cant pair the sensor to my garmin edge 25 either but some sites say they arent compatible but lots of users seem to have connected.
  • jgsi
    jgsi Posts: 5,062
    Usually in cases like this, I would suggest ensuring that if you have Garmin software running also on the laptop, ensure that is not running as a service in the background unbeknown to you .
    Another app will 100% NOT be able to connect to your sensor if this is the case.
    Apart from that Ant+ usb sticks are pretty robust when working in windows.
  • IanRCarter
    IanRCarter Posts: 217
    Download Golden Cheetah, it's a free program which can be used similar to Trainerroad software (admittedly far less polished). Go to Tools->Options->Train Devices and then click the + icon at the button then choose ANT+ and FE-C. You'll then have a window where it will be searching for your sensors.

    As JGSI said, make sure Garmin software isn't running when doing this.
  • Dorset_Boy
    Dorset_Boy Posts: 7,579
    Is the dongle Ant+ version 1 or version 2? That might make a difference, and V1 doesn't work with Zwift for example.
  • Blader1611
    Blader1611 Posts: 29
    How do i tell if the dongle is v1 or v2? I have tried the golden cheetah method and it finds nothing but this doesnt help me identify if the sensor or the dongle is at fault. My pc says the dongle is working and the sensor appears to be working yet together they dont work, itd driving me crazy. I dont know anyone locally who has a working set up to test my stuff.
  • jgsi
    jgsi Posts: 5,062
    fyi: https://www.geeksinphoenix.com/blog/pos ... color.aspx

    More likely though is that the GSC10 needed to have the battery 'out' for 20 minutes... even overnight.. they are notoriously flaky when swapping the 2032 coin battery.
  • Blader1611
    Blader1611 Posts: 29
    JGSI - thanks for the info. Mine is v2 so i have to assume the gsc 10 may be at fault. It indicates when a magnet passes but may be its not sending any data out. Are the new magnetless garmin sensors easier/stable? A cheaper option would be preferred but not seen any about.

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