So after months of frustration, I’m giving up on wireless communication for my trainers. I don’t know what it is but my apartment just does not play nice with radio waves. First I had a KK with Inride. Then a Powerbeam Pro with Bluetooth. Then a Powerbeam Pro with Ant+. With all of them, invariably, the signal drops at some point during my workout. Tried running a usb cable right up to the trainer with an Ant/bluetooth dongle. Mac, ipad, iphone. No dice. As an aside, my wifi regularly get knocked out throughout the day too as does my cellphone so there must be some sort of strong radio interference near me
So with that said, I need to go wired and it appears that Computrainer is my only option. Opinions? Thoughts? Thanks as always.
You’re articulating why Computrainers are solid training tools in my book. They work. I use a wireless HR monitor, but other than that, we’re wired and worryless. Fire it up and it works.
Having said that, I have a PC that does nothing but CT and Training Peaks, so I’m not messing with drivers, new apps messing with old apps, etc. I took a simply PC, added a monster video card to handle anything, loaded a bunch of ErgVideos and love the winter training option it gives me.
My CT broke after 3 years of very heavy use. Replaced it with a KICKR about 1 month ago. I much prefer the KICKR as I primarily used ergo mode on the CT and the KICKR ergo works very well and easier to adjust than the CT. Also, KICKR is about $500-700 cheaper. Will see about durability with time.
I was borrowing a CT for a year and loved it, but had to give it back last month. I didn’t feel like dropping $1700 on a new one so I got a Kickr and love it! I’m running a Macbook Pro, Trainer road, and Garmin HRM & cadence. I’ve only had it for a month, but I’ve never had a dropped signal yet… I love not having to swap wheels or vacuum up remnants of my trainer tire. CT’s are great, but so far I’m happy with the Kickr!
Have been using a Computrainer since 2002. ( thank you to the most lovely Mrs Avago )
Best piece of kit I’ve ever bought.
for the first few years I used to 3D program, created courses and training sessions and enjoyed training against the Metal Man. Back then I had an old 486 PC that was dedicated to the C’Trainer… that’s all it did, never failed me.
then I moved house and got rid of the old 486 pc and just used the handle bar controller in the Ergo mode or with Spinerval Videos… still perfect, never failed me.
two years ago I got the upgraded ( is that what they call it ) Racemate Software… well, at least I had metal man back, and Sufferfests appeared on the scene and they were a great change from Coach Troy.
then along came PerfPro and that raised the bar once again…
so how lucky am I? Computrainer, dedicated trainer bike, PerfPro and the whole Sufferfest library to say nothing for a whole stack of Coach Troy dvds.
in all of that time, I have had to replace the Stereo cable from the PC to the Handle Bar controller ( because I lost it in the move ) and the heart rate clip died quite early in the piece.
in that time I’ve had 3 TVs, 3 cars, 4 Bikes, but the C’Trainer is with me for life…
is it better than a Kickr? who knows, one day I may have to make a choice between them, but I don’t think that’ll be for ages yet.
Been using a CT for two years now and love it. I dont have a place to keep it set-up all the time (small condo) so the wires are a little bit of a pain to hook up all the time but it always works. I use it pretty much solely with trainer road in ERG mode for either Trainer Road programs (custom and pre-made ones) and Sufferfest Videos.
Another +1 for the Computrainer. Yes, Racermate’s software is not the greatest but as others have pointed out, there are plenty of other options. Perfpro Sudio + Sufferfest videos, VeloReality, and Tour de Giro are my current go-to options.
I’ve had my Computrainer since 2007 and it has been rock solid and reliable. The only part I’ve had to replace was the original stereo-to-serial adapter (I replaced it with the updated USB adapter). To simplify the cabling a bit, I use ANT+ speed/cadence and heart rate but since your place seems to be a wireless black hole, you might have to resort to the wired cadence and HR options.
The Kickr is certainly a nice looking trainer but until my Computrainer dies or PerfPro stops supporting it, I can’t justify replacing my CT. It’s been a rock-solid training partner.
There are plenty of us out here. Been using it for ~4 years and own two of them. Anything can be problematic, but wired communication is marginally more reliable. I haven’t heard of many wireless interference issues with the Kickr, but in your particular situation you may benefit from the change.
We’ve had our two used computrainers for 8 years and 4 years. The 8 year old one has seen training for 7 IM races, and in the Great White North, we ride inside for several months… It’s indestructible, has never needed any repair work. The 4 year old one has needed a new screw fastener thing-y, which racermate replaced under warranty. We’ve had them set up in the basement for years… Kids and animals haven’t messed up any of the wires or connections. Doesn’t look the prettiest, but IMO they’re great units. Even with all of the technology upgrades that are happening, you can still use it old school or with Trainer Road etc… I’d buy again.
14 years of steady use (year around,not just winters) and I have replaced a din cable, other than that it has been trouble free. I wish I could say the same about anything else I have purchased in the meanwhile. The best bike related investment I have ever made.
I’ve had a computrainer for many years now. I purchased it used back in '07 or '08.
I’ve logged a ton of miles as most of my weekday rides are indoors year round and I ride outdoors in the summers on weekends.
The thing has never broken in any way. I did lose the cadence sensor because I caught it with my foot and it started to wrap around my pedal ripping it in half…but that’s my fault.
Essentially the thing is awesome.
Now I have not updated the software and I’m not sure updated software is even available. So that does kinda suck. But you can’t beat the reliability or durability of the CT.
I echo the others. I have used Computrainers pretty much since they came out. My first was an old NES model that worked with a Nintendo game. The only reason it is still not in use is that some parts were thrown out by someone when I had it stored. Racermate was awesome in giving me an upgrade deal, and I have had 3 so far. They are indestructible, and I credit the Computrainer with great improvement over the years. It’s so time efficient, and with some of the other programs, such a trainer road, I just have to keep the pedals moving. I’d get rid of my backup bike before losing the computrainer. The best purchase I’ve ever made in TRI.
Bought mine used off the classifieds here 4 or 5 years ago. I still use it whenever winter weather does not allow me outside.
I use retired PC that I can dedicate to it and a smaller lcd monitor I had sitting around. As with others, no problems ever and still like it. It is the only way I can get an indoor ride over 30 minutes without going nuts. Watching that little guy on the screen chasing the other little guy somehow mesmerizes me.
14 years of steady use (year around,not just winters) and I have replaced a din cable, other than that it has been trouble free. I wish I could say the same about anything else I have purchased in the meanwhile. The best bike related investment I have ever made.
6 CompuTrainers running two sessions per week plus occasional workouts on the weekends, rock solid and trouble free for the most part. Running PerfPRO Studio so no wires on the bikes (wires run from handlebar controller stands under carpet to the computer. Occasionally, someone steps on a cable or pulls a cable out and it needs to be replaced, but basically trouble free month after month.
The only thing wireless is ANT+ heartrate, speed (and that’s selectable between ANT+ and CompuTrainer), and cadence (ANT+ or wired).
I have a dedicated room and bike for my Computrainer and it works great that way. Have had mine for almost 4 years and it has only had a few issues. The Polar wireless heartrate monitor gave out after the first year, and then a year later the cadence sensor started failing. But the Computrainer itself is still going strong. Also, I find the Racermate One software perfectly usable and not really that outdated looking.
