Because I need a very quiet trainer in my situation, I am really interested in STAC zero’s approach (http://www.staczero.com). It looks to be a silent system (except for your drive train) that is cheap to get into, and are working on a module to add the ability to control the resistance in the future.
So anybody using it with Zwift? I would be curious to hear your experiences…
I am … set it up yesterday. I got the one with the Power meter and it works great. I had a few questions and they answered within minutes. So far so good after 3 rides w/zwift and the staczero …
Hi can Zwift control resistance? Regards
No, Zwift can not change the resistance on the Stac Zero
So are there any future plans of having the Stac Zero’s resistance changeable by Zwift?
That would require a hardware update from Stac. I believe I have read somewhere that a “smart” adjustable resistance SKU is in the works but no ETA at this time
Anyone with a recent review of Zwift and the Stac Zero Powermeter? My neighbors hate me because of my noisy trainer and am hoping the STAC Zero helps.
I’ve been using the StacZero for a year with Zwift … no issues, works well. Setup is Zwift on a MacBookPro, StacZero w/powermeter, and Garmin cadence and speed sensors. It is quiet, you only hear noises from the bike.
The only thing I can complain at all about with the StacZero is that you have to take off the bike to change the batteries on the powerrmeter, but that’s no big deal really.
Paul, does the STAC transmit speed? Which Garmin device are you using for that? I assume your speed and cadence and power are all displayed on Zwift?
Tony,
Why would you need the STAC to transmit speed, Zwift won’t pick it up or even use it if the trainer broadcast power. Zwift will use the power transmitted by the trainer (and a few other data points) to determine your in-game speed.
I guess I wasn’t sure how Zwift calculates speed. I had assumed my previous trainer was producing the speed calculations.
Tony,
If you were using just a speed sensor Zwift converted the rear wheel speed and the power curve of the selected trainer to watts to determine your in-game speed.
I’m using the Garmin Speed and Cadence sensors with the Stac powermeter. The garmin is this: https://buy.garmin.com/en-US/US/p/146897
Zwift picks up both plus the powermeter and my heart rate.
I’ve been using my Stac Zero for a few weeks now and I’m delighted with it.
It’s silent. The only noise is my transmission so it’s good for spotting anything out of alignment. I haven’t bothered with the wheel weights as I have a disc cover on the bike and that makes the wheel heavy enough to spin pretty nicely.
I believe next year they plan to bring out a smart trainer with automatic resistance - DC Rainmaker has ridden a prototype.