Wahoo Kickr Core noob, need advice re. sensor connectivity

porlyworly
porlyworly Posts: 441
in Indoor training and turbo forum
I have a Wahoo Kickr Core and have managed to successfully connect it to both my iphone and my Windows Surface Pro tablet via bluetooth.

I have both a Garmin chest strap HR monitor as well as a Garmin Vivoactive HR watch that can broadcast HR, my understanding is both of these devices transmit using Ant +

I also have a Garmin 800 which seems to be the only device that can read both the power meter from the Wahoo Kickr Core as well as the heart rate from either the Garmin HR chest strap or the watch.

I have a years free subscription to the sufferfest but also wouldn't be adverse to paying for Zwift. In the ideal world, I would connect both the Wahoo Kickr Core & either of the Garmin HR devices up to my Desktop PC (Windows 10) as it's in the perfect location for training and has a large monitor attached.

Am I right in thinking the best thing to do is buy an ANT+ USB stick for the PC which will be able to read both the Garmin HR and the Wahoo Kickr Core? If so, can anyone recommend one or are they all much of a muchness?

Or would I be better getting a HR monitor that broadcasts in Bluetooth?
First love - Genesis Equilibrium 20
Dirty - Forme Calver CX Sport
Quickie - Scott CR1 SL HMX
Notable ex's - Kinesis Crosslight, Specialized Tricross

Comments

  • whyamihere
    whyamihere Posts: 7,715
    I would buy an ANT+ dongle. Anecdotally, Bluetooth has been less reliable for me using Zwift. I only use it to connect my HR monitor to a tablet for Zwift running, and have suffered from quite a few dropouts. The same HR monitor connecting to the PC I use for the turbo trainer over ANT+ has been rock solid.
  • wongataa
    wongataa Posts: 1,001
    edited March 2021
    porlyworly said:


    Am I right in thinking the best thing to do is buy an ANT+ USB stick for the PC which will be able to read both the Garmin HR and the Wahoo Kickr Core? If so, can anyone recommend one or are they all much of a muchness?

    You are correct. Just pick one and buy it. They are pretty cheap so if it is a dud it isn't a big deal.
  • carl845
    carl845 Posts: 14
    Is your Garmin HR chest monitor the Dual HRM ? If so then nothing else required. I connect my Garmin HR dual and smart bike to my Windows Surface Pro.
  • navrig2
    navrig2 Posts: 1,851
    Newer chest HRM tend to be both BT and ANT+.

    Forget the Vivoactive. The Hr function is not accurate. I would registering 150+ on the chest HRM and 90 on the Vivoactive3. It was worse when in transmit mode.
  • vincesummerskRoxcBTr
    vincesummerskRoxcBTr Posts: 1,090
    I got the cheap ANT+ dongle from Wiggle , worked fine.
  • porlyworly
    porlyworly Posts: 441
    It's a really old Garmin HR strap that was bundled with the Garmin 800 (plus a cadence sensor).

    I've bought a cheap used Garmin ant+ usb stick from the bay of dreams, see how that does!

    Thanks for the responses.
    First love - Genesis Equilibrium 20
    Dirty - Forme Calver CX Sport
    Quickie - Scott CR1 SL HMX
    Notable ex's - Kinesis Crosslight, Specialized Tricross
  • bobmcstuff
    bobmcstuff Posts: 11,435
    edited March 2021
    What I do is connect everything to my PC by ANT+ for Zwift and then run workouts on my phone on TrainerRoad via Bluetooth :smile:
  • itboffin
    itboffin Posts: 20,064
    I find garmin hrm under read and any device worn on the wrist is not going to be accurate
    Rule #5 // Harden The Feck Up.
    Rule #9 // If you are out riding in bad weather, it means you are a badass. Period.
    Rule #12 // The correct number of bikes to own is n+1.
    Rule #42 // A bike race shall never be preceded with a swim and/or followed by a run.
  • bad_ash
    bad_ash Posts: 47
    edited April 2021
    I was having dropouts on Zwift with my Kickr using ANT+, so I ended up buying an extension cable so the dongle sits right by the flywheel now, and been fine since.

    I did look at getting an expensive ANT+ dongle, but in the end the cable seemed the cheapest option and most likely to work.

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