Hello, i’m setting up my trainer for the first time and cant seem to connect.
I have a Tacx vortex and im running zwift on a macbook. Im using the Tacx Ant+ USB Antenna to try and connect but my device doesnt show up when searching, even if i place the dongle right next to it. Ive tried using the Tacx Utility app to connect as well but it also cant find the device there.
Any ideas what i can try? Thanks!.
Hi @Miles_Manfield, welcome to the forums. Can any of your devices see the trainer via bluetooth? Is there any indication that the trainer is powered on? I don’t think the vortex has any LED lights on it based on the website description, but if it can’t be found on your smart phone or the macbook via bluetooth, maybe something is wrong with the trainer.
Thanks @Mike_Rowe_PBR, the trainer is powered on, there is an LED indication light, which flashes green which is how it’s supposed to i believe. In the zwift pairing screen, i have the pulses saying that ant+ and bluetooth is available in the top left however i havent been able to pair with bluetooth either 
Make sure the system bluetooth isn’t connected to it, if you can “forget” the connection on the macbook bluetooth menu. ANT+ should work regardless however, does the macbook need updated drivers maybe to get the ant+ to work?
Did you try connecting the trainer to the Tacx app on your phone via bluetooth?
it doesnt come up as device in bluetooth menu anyway? i just tried updating mac to latest, still nothing, looks like something might be wrong with trainer then right?
Sounds like the trainer is bad if no devices can find it. Have you contacted Tacx support yet?
Just found out what it is, it’s a tacx i vortex smart trainer, which even thought is a smart trainer with ant+ capabilities, it’s still actually a dumb trainer since it cant connect to zwift, think i could get a speed sensor to make it technically work but dont know how good that would be
I used an old fluid trainer with a speed and cadence sensor for a year before upgrading to a smart trainer, the experience isn’t as good and the power isn’t as accurate, but it works and is a lot better than watching netflix or youtube while you suffer on the trainer.
Right, ill have a think what to do, Thanks for all your help Mike!