Elite have now announced firmware updates for all their interactive trainers to support virtual shifting in Zwift.
And Wahoo canāt even support the V5, for shame Wahoo, for shame
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Eliteās announcement is at Elite
Interestingly, thereās now an āElite Cogā version of the Cog with an 18-tooth sprocket instead of 14-tooth - see Zwift Cog & Click | Smart Trainer Upgrade | Accessories
The new Elite Cog is surely designed to overcome the known issue of the Direto XR (donāt know about other Elite trainers) having a slightly higher base resistance than many other trainers which leads to not being able to set low enough gears to do high cadence with low power (on the flat). This seems like big news.
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Thatās the aim of the 18T cog, yes. As for the user experience when using Elite trainers with Virtual Shifting - Itās not the same as other trainers. Thereās some pretty big limitations to overcome (and some canāt be) when retrofitting virtual shifting into systems that were never designed for it. The HUB/Core/etc truly pulled a rabbit out of the hat in presenting a very good ride experience with virtual shifting.
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Thanks for these insights, Shane. Would you be able to expand on the above with some more specifics please? Iām sure it would be of interest to Elite owners and help to set expectations.
Off the top of my head and in my experience to date (across a number of their trainers and virtual shifting):
- Thereās always going to be a wattage floor with their resistance units. With a Zwift Ride (42T chainring), 19t cog, 170mm cranks, 95rpm will require a minimum of 100W. Thereās no āeasy spinningā. (Confirmed on a Direto XR and SUITO with Zwift Virtual Shifting).
- Gear changes can feel absent at 0-1% SIM gradient until gears 15-16+. This has been identified a few times online by people thinking virtual shifting doesnāt work. It does. Just not the same as it does with other trainers that have virtual shifting support.
- On positive SIM gradients (2-3%+) virtual shifting seems to work as expected. I assume thatās because the resistance unit is already engaged and providing a certain level of resistance so we can then feel/notice changes in when switching virtual gears.
- Smaller fixed physical gears (eg 42/18) result in a slower drive wheel & slower flywheel speed. The result is a more laboured ride feel as opposed to using a geared bike where you can select a physical gear that results in a higher drive/flywheel speed and being more āon top of the gearā. To explain this in a real-world example - Riding with Coco at ~200W ~38-40kph should feel like youāre flowing and if you coast there should be a good period of time where the wheel continues to spin. This isnāt the case with a slow drive/flywheel. It feels more like pushing into a headwind or riding a 2-3% gradient outside where if you stop pedalling, things grind to a halt pretty quickly. This isnāt just a feeling thing - It can be quantified by a power meter with Cycling Dynamics and observing the peak power phase. This isnāt helped with the move from a 14t an 18t COG to address the wattage floor, itās at the expense of ride feel.
- Elite virtual shifting appears to implement some kind of āattack decay sustainā (ADSR without the release) resistance profile for shifting. Google Image search āADSRā for the profile example. The result is a small overshifting feeling at each gear change. Iāve had difficulty performing peak power sprints as itās really hard to pick a gear to sprint in as itāll either spin up or apply too much resistance resulting in a sprint spiral of death.
- A good test course for how well a trainer responds to gradients and virtual shifting is the balloon fields in France. Specifically the Douce France route from 4km-8km where the road is extremely undulating. Some trainers handle this well. Some will have you wondering just what the hell is going on with resistance/gears as itās all over the place.
- So where does virtual shifting on Elite trainers work well? ERG mode above 100W. Although this doesnāt involve shifting gears. And on longer/steeper sustained gradients such as The Grade, Epic KOM, Alpe, etc.
- I STRONGLY recommend anyone with an Elite trainer trying virtual shifting with their existing cassette and the Play controllers (or Click) before investing any money into the Cog āupgradeā. The firmware update is free (Use their Upgrado app), and virtual shifting works with a standard cassette.
Having said all this, maybe my observations and testing protocols are now too critical. 
Iāve had the privilege of riding almost every smart trainer and every smart bike thatās been made. I have a strong personal bias towards pedalling realism and good ride feel.
I respect that people might just want resistance (ERG) and simplicity (Cog meaning more bike compatibility without the faff).
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Thanks Shane, for the very detailed and helpful response.
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This is why I only want to try out virtual shifting on my Elite to see how it goes and maybe it offers an additional shifting option to my already-existing manual shifting. However, the shop still doesnāt carry the Click for sale, and Iām not going to fork over the money for the Hub + Click combo when I have no intention of mounting the hub.
The play controllers are only $50 in the US right now. Even if you donāt end up using virtual shifting I find them handy to access the menus while riding. Iāve also ordered a single speed converter kit which seems like a good alternative to the COG.
The Play controllers wont work with my bike, and I think(?) would override my enjoyment of the Elite Rizer I have for steering and incline/decline emulation. Unless someone can tell me whether this can still be connected and work, while the Play controllers are also connected?
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I saw this support response on the Click availability and compatibility. This just seems wrong. @shooj ?
"Please note that while the Zwift Clik doesnāt require the Hub, you do need to have the Cog installed on your trainer for it to work. This is why they are sold together. Below I provide you with more information related to this topic.
Zwift Ready identifies smart trainers that are sold with a pre-installed Zwift Cog and Zwift Click included, and they work with Zwiftās virtual shifting to give you the best experience. Zwift Ready trainers are compatible with additional Zwift products such as Zwift Play and Zwift Ride Smart Frame! Check out our article for more info on Zwift Ride Smart Frame trainer compatibility."
@Wannie
Can you link me to that quote? It is factually incorrect.
The Zwift Cog does not have any electronics in it, and is not needed to use the Zwift Click or Virtual Shifting more broadly.
As @GPLama correctly stated, a Zwift Ready trainer updated with firmware that supports Virtual Shifting can be used with a multi-gear cassette instead of Zwift Cog. The magic of Virtual Shifting happens in the firmware of the trainer and Zwift Play or Ride or Click controller(s) ātalkingā to the game over Bluetooth.
Play controllers will have no effect on your Elite Rizerās gradient simulation feature.
There wasnāt a link, it was from an email from Support from Alberto M.
Thatās good the Play would work with a Rizer.. could either device also be used for steering, or only the Play would work? Even so, the Play doesnāt work with Campy shifters very well. Can you advise if the Click will ever return to the shop as a standalone item for purchase though?
One thing Iāve noticed since upgrading my firmware on an Elite Direto X is that I no longer have the wrench in Zwift to calibrate.
Is calibration moved to the Elite upgrado app, or is auto-calibration a part of this?
Use the Elite MyE-Training app for calibration. I donāt know what happened to your calibration option in Zwift but Elite recommends calibration using their app. Upgrado is only for the firmware update.
That is a question for Eliteās Support. The Rizer can be paired to third party trainers (like Wahooās). Depending on your setup - Elite would be the best resource to tell if you how well steering and elevations controls would work.
- In a Wahoo-only environment (ex - if you have a KICKR Bike Smart + Play controllers) you can steer your avatar with either/or controller.
- Another complication is that the Rizer pairs over ANT+ to a supported third-party trainer. Since Virtual Shifting relies on Bluetooth - the folks at Elite are better equipped to answer your questions than I am.
Agree - the Click would be the simplest shift controller in your use specific case because you can place them anywhere. Zwift does not have plans to sell the Click as a standalone controller at this time.
Thanks. Iād be using the Rizer and virtual shifting, using an Elite trainer. I can ask Elite, but I would have thought these details should be a known thing by both parties when launching this new compatibility/firmware for the majority for the Elite ecosystem. I donāt imagine Iām alone ā there are probably lots of Elite trainer users whoād like to give virtual shifting a try, but already have a working setup that has a cassette already installed and would like the option of choosing virtual vs manual shifting on any given ride. Or, want the easier install/uninstall of the Click for indoor/outdoor bike use.
At lease I hope Zwift considers lowering the price of the Click+Hub combo to at least same low level that the Play+Hub is sold for. Pricing is upside down currently. Thanks for considering.
Hi Steve thank for this thread - I have the Zwift cog already but delayed putting it on as didnt see the need. Do I need anoher elite specific cassette now?Can you just buy the 18 tooth ring on its own?
Welcome to Forums, This is Haziel from Zwift. I noticed your inquiry, and I wanted to provide you with some clarification that might be of help.
I completely understand your concerns about placing the Zwift Cog, even more so after purchasing it some time ago. For those using an Elite trainer, we genuinely recommend switching to the new cog, as it has been specifically designed to work best with it.
The 18-tooth cog provides an easier physical gear ratio. For some riders, the Elite trainers have a high resistance āfloorā in some cases. For that reason, we recommend the Elite-specific Zwift cog.
Also, Paul shared some helpful alternatives, such as using a cassette on the trainer with a sprocket that has more than 14 teeth. It might be worth checking out this thread to follow the conversation.
I truly hope this information assists you in finding the right solution. If you have any more questions or need further support, please donāt hesitate to reach out at Support@zwift.com. We will be happy to assist you further.
Thanks for the great breakdown. for sprinting at max effort i shift to gear 20, then 19, then 21/22, and then 24 if the resistance doesnāt lock up. Beyond that, i am using it with my existing casette 55/40 chainring and 32/11 casette. i find that 40/19 feels better than 55/19 when shifting from gear to gear by gear 24 maxes around 800ish watts for me at 100 rpm. but 55/19 shifts well from gear 15-24 but if you jump to gear 24 too quickly the resistance will lock up. the BIGGG issue i am having is the virtual shifting and possibly the 10hz option combined are causing the resistance to randomly stop working. and when this happens (on my justo) i have to power cycle the whole unit to get the restance working again. iām not 100% sure on the cause but this is the 2nd time my resistance falls flat while racing. it seems to happen after iāve entered the pen. i havenāt experienced this issue cruising through the streets of watopia.