Newbie with questions around Tacx Neo set up

simkin911
simkin911 Posts: 11
Hi All

I’ve been looking in here frequently in the last few months and finally - Xmas Day - took in the plunge and bought a Neo Smart in a ‘flash sale’.

I’ll be putting it together this weekend.

Initially will get myself used to it and will find my way around the Tacx cycling app etc before giving Zwift a go.

It’s the connectivity that continues to confuse me slightly.

Plan to use (initially) either my iPhone 6 / iPad and assume there is no issue connecting the Neo to either of these. (I do have an old laptop too but have assumed I’d need a ANT+ dongle if I use that).

However, I also have a Garmin HRM (ANT +) which I believe won’t talk to the iPad / phone.

So, either I get another HRM or use the laptop but buy a ANT+ dongle?

Can anyone please help me understand if I’m thinking appropriately here?

Many thanks - I’m sure such questions have been used 000s of times so I appreciate your attention :-)

Comments

  • Not knocking the folk on here but it might get a faster response using the FB Tacx Neo owners group. I’m waiting on my LBS getting some elite direto trainers in and found the FB groups very helpful.

    Cheers Stuart.
  • n1ckster
    n1ckster Posts: 158
    Hi, it is slightly more complicated when using an iPhone/ipad as these devices are not natively ANT+ compatible, hence the need to use BT.
    Your HRM is ANT+ only so you'd need some sort of dongle to fit the pad/phone. If you've got a decent laptop you could use an usb ANT+ dongle and connect all devices this way.
    Take a look at this link for a pretty good breakdown of what you need to connect a smart trainer..
    https://zwiftinsider.com/how-to-broadca ... screen-tv/

    Nick
  • Which iPad do you have?
    My blog: http://www.roubaixcycling.cc (kit reviews and other musings)
    https://twitter.com/roubaixcc
    Facebook? No. Just say no.
  • Thank you to all for the replies.

    Sadly I’m not on FB but I could ask a friend to do some research for me.

    One thing I have picked up on is that reviewing older postings (various sites) may not entirely reflect the current situation.

    Ultimately - I’m looking for a quick hit here. To get the Neo up and running with my HRM and using Tacx apps.

    Great point re the iPad - since my original posting it seems that my iPad mini 2 won’t work with some apps.

    So, I’m now thinking about simply using my iPhone 6s with the Neo. Re the HRM, I understand my Garmin won’t work with the iPhone. Should I simply buy a Bluetooth HRM ?

    However, another posting online I read seems to suggest that using a 2nd device - such as a HRM - needs to connect using a different method from the first device. That would suggest that the Neo connecting via BT means I couldn’t connect a BT HRM too - back to square one... is this still accurate?

    Thanks all.
  • n1ckster
    n1ckster Posts: 158
    A Wahoo Tickr HRM is both Ant+ and BT enabled, and a pretty fine bit of kit to boot.

    For info, I use a Neo and Tickr HRM both BT paired to a 4th gen Apple TV running Zwift and it works sweetly; coupled with this is my iPhone 6 or newest gen iPad running the Zwift mobile Link app to control Zwift (rather than trying to use a tiny Apple TV remote with sweaty hands at HR max, lol).
    Any questions, feel free to ask.
    Nick
  • Mikey23
    Mikey23 Posts: 5,306
    I have my tacx flux working with an ipad mini 2 on a handlebar mount thingy. My HRM is a mio link wrist device which dual broadcasts. Works well with zwift and fulgaz. Not tried anything else...
  • I'm using the following ANT+ dongle and cable extension with my new Direto...
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00LIIMHP4
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00NH12O5I

    The Elite Android app seems to work OK in Bluetooth mode, allowing me to get data from the Direto and my Polar H7 HRM (despite thinking I read that Bluetooth mode wouldn't allow the Direto to work alongside other hardware in this mode).

    However, the Elite Windows app currently only works with ANT+ devices (Bluetooth "coming soon"), making my Polar H7 useless. Instead of paying out ~£50 for a well known brand, I've added the following Bluetooth/ANT+ HRM to my wishlist, to maybe buy...
    https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01M8QD9Z4

    Something curious I discovered this last week is that my Nexus 7 2013 (plus some other mobiles/tablets) have a "dormant" ANT+ mode that can be activated, by installing a few small apps from Google Play, then using an OTG cable (which I would need to buy) between the ANT+ dongle and the tablet...
    https://www.selfloops.com/resources/tech-guides.html
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