Dropped Connection During Rides

General Discussion
1

Hi All

I have a rather frustrating problem which I have been unable to resolve thusfar. I am basically losing connection with my ANT+ dongle during a ride. It does not happen all the time but when it does, I am at a loss as to why it is happening. My set up is as follows:

  • Lenovo ideapad 330S laptop
  • CYCPLUS ANT+ Dongle
  • Garmin 520 also running during the ride
  • Garmin 935 also running during the ride
  • Magene smart trainer
  • Magene cadence sensor
  • Garmin HR strap
  • Huawei P30 with Zwift Companion app open

I have done some research on the problem and have made the following changes to my setup:

  • Bluetooth connectivity on laptop is switched off.
  • I ensure that only the ANT+ dongle is connected and not other USB devise is connected to the laptop.

Yesterday I rode for 1hr30mins without any issues and then today I rode and after 55mins, lost the connection. I then did the following:

  1. Went to the device pairing page
  2. On this page there was a message saying that Garmin Express could be interfering with the connection and asked if I wanted to close it. I selected yes.
  3. I still could not regain the connection after doing this.
  4. unplugged the dongle and was then able to reconnect.
  5. I then went back into the ride and as soon as I was back in, the connection was lost
  6. I went back to the pairing page, connection then happened automatically.
  7. Went back into the ride and connection was immediately lost.
  8. turned off the blue tooth connectivity of my phone but this did not help.
  9. Switched off my Garmin 520 & 935 but this did not help either.

I do not know why it shows that I am connected on the Device Pairing page even showing the my power reading if I am pedaling but immediately after going to the virtual world, the connection is lost.

Has anyone else experienced the same problem or maybe know what the issue is?

Thanks
Chad

2

If I was a betting man I’d say the distance between your trainer and the ant+ dongle is on the limit. Consider purchasing a USB extension lead and order will be restored.

Most common problem of dropouts.

3

Hi Stuart

Thanks for the feedback. This was one of the solutions I had tried in the past but it did not solve the problem. The straight line distance between the trainer and dongle would be about 1.5m. It is also not only the signal from the trainer which drops but even my heart rate strap which would be closer and also the cadence sensor which is also closer.

Regards
Chad

4

1.5m is perhaps close to the limit. My dongle is literally underneath the trainer.

My next suggestion would be to ensure there are no power saving options on your USB ports.
After that consider a powered USB hub. I had an issue where if somebody turned the lights on in my garage whilst I was on Zwift it caused my PC to disconnect my dongle. Really really odd I know. I bought a powered USB hub and it’s never done it since.

5

Try different USB ports. Also pair using fe-c for power and controllable.

6

I must be really lucky but I can have my ant+ dongle much further away than that, it even continues to record heart rate and stuff if i walk into a different room.

7

Your heart rate is being recorded from your device to the dongle so the distance it’s read from is dependant on how during your heart rate device emits rather than where your dongle is compared to the trainer.
It’s a one day flow of date.
The trainer is obviously bi directional data flow as the dongle tells the trainer what resistance to offer.

There is a lot of environmental factors that can play a part. Ant+ should work for a greater distance than the turbo to a device in front of the bike but very often it doesn’t.

USB ports are also very susceptible to failure.

8

I know how it works, what i was saying is that i can quite happily wonder off to go to the toilet and come back without any drop outs.
I have also had a pc on the other side of the room to the trainer and the ant+ signal was also fine - i rarely if ever get drop outs and if I do it is only ever for a fraction of a second and it carries on as before. Maybe I’m just lucky.

9

Put in my USB extension cable again. Rode for 1hr tonight without dropping. Will keep checking the rest of the week and will give updated feedback on my findings.

10

Great that it’s working.

Your experience isn’t unique, my setup worked for a long time without an extension before it started dropping.
I installed an extension and it’s never dropped once.

11

Is your laptop running on the PS or on battery? If on battery, check your power settings and your usb ports (per previous comment).
Try a Garmin Ant+ dongle…I am on two original Garmins and are 5+ yrs old…or whenever the Kickr Snap first came out.

12

My laptop runs from the PS. I was looking into changing the dongle but did want to do it until I have confirmed that this is the cause of the problem otherwise I simply replace the component and still have the same issues. By the way, did an hour again tonight it did not drop.