I’m having problems with getting Zwift to pair with both my kickr and tickr when running Zwift from my MacBook Pro. The behaviour is just weird…sometimes it won’t find either, sometimes it finds the Kickr and says ‘connected’ but then also says ‘No Signal’, and very occasionally it finds the Tickr. There doesn’t seem to be any pattern to it…sometimes I’ll kill Zwift and restart and it finds the Kickr, sometimes it doesn’t, sometimes I’ll leave Zwift on the pairing screen for 10 mins and it’ll refuse to find either device, then I wander off to get a cuppa and when I come back 10 mins later its suddenly found them both. I used to use Zwift on the same Macbook about a year ago with no issues at all. I’ve just started using it again in last couple of weeks and its been like this from the start, both on Mojave and then Catalina. Throughout all of this, if I opened up the Wahoo utility app to see if the devices aren’t ‘pairable’, the app pairs with them straight away so its not the devices.
Then today as a last resort I thought I’d see what happens if I tried my ipad. Installed Zwift on the ipad but didn’t start it up immediately. First I tried one more time running Zwift on the Macbook to see if it would connect and again, no sign of connecting to either Kickr or Tickr after leaving it searching for them for 30 secs. Then killed Zwift on the Macbook and fired up Zwift on the ipad and it connected to both the Kickr and Tickr immediately.
There is clearly some issue with Zwift on MacOS. Is there anything else I can do to diagnose the problem?
the kickr and tickr can only pair with one device at a time-- maybe they are pairing with your device running the wahoo app instead of the macbook?
also, for the tickr, you have to see some flashing blue lights on it, otherwise it isn’t broadcasting itself to the computer.
i run zwift with a kickr snap and tickr on a macbook and don’t have any problems pairing them. but i always leave bluetooth off on my phone so that the wahoo app isn’t tempted to connect.
all of that said, though, i have not yet upgraded to catalina, so it could be a catalina issue. when i upgraded to high sierra there was some connections file i had to delete to get bluetooth working again, but i didn’t have any problems going to mojave.
I have the same problem with Zwift app on my iPhone. The way around it for me is to log in to Zwift, then when Tickr not found, logout, turn off bluetooth and then on again and login to Zwift. Works every time for me - I think it is something to do with how bluetooth grabs at a particular device blocking others - I think that’s what the Llama said on a Zwiftcast a while back. May be different on the Pro but worth a go.
If the lights go out on my Tickr, I sometimes unsnap the unit from the strap and snap it back on - lights come on again.
I’ve done all the usual checks to make sure that other devices aren’t hogging the connection. For instnace, I turned my phone off entirely, then tried pairing with Macbook with no luck. Then turn phone on and fire up wahoo utility app and it finds the kickr and tickr straight away. Same with the ipad.
There is clearly some issue with Zwift running no my macbook pro, but I’m only running the standard catalina and don’t have any other applications on the macbook that would be trying to parir with the kickr/tickr.
Its just weird…I think it needs someone from Zwift support to point me at log file or something that might help me to diagnose the issue.
Hi Stephen,
am I right in thinking you are using bluetooth for the main connection with your MacBook and trainer?
If so my first suggestion would be to avoid bluetooth and connect everything via
Ant+.
I have been using an old MacBook for the last 2 years without any problem. I only use Ant+ for trainer, heart rate and cadence.
When Zwift has found all these devices, only then will I enable bluetooth on the MacBook for other items.
You would need to buy an Ant+ usb stick and possibly a usb extension cable but I think it would solve your problems.
Hope this may help.
I’m also having the exact same problems with my MBP, except with a Tikr and a Cycleops Hammer. They worked very well until I updated to Catalina. I’ve also been able to connect to them directly from my phone, with no problem. I was also able to update the firmware on the Hammer via phone, with no problems. I guess I’m going to cancel Zwift, since I can no longer use it with my gear and Catalina. I really don’t want to spend more money on an ant+ stick as a workaround, since BT used to work. I suspect that would fix the problem. Respond back if you’ve found a solution.
I don’t know if you have already read that? Maybe it will be of some help.
Ant+ I find is a good system as it is in some ways more forgiving. Not that expensive in the big scheme of things. (I do understand your frustration though)
One thing to remember with bluetooth is that it is a single connection in that if a unit is connected to your phone it will not connect to your macbook. Ant+ is multi device connection. You may already know this though.
I have (had) the same issue with mu Kickr Core. My dealer replaced Core with Kickr immediately (Thanks Trek Istanbul) but same issue persists. I disconnected all my Garmin devices, phones etc, nothing has changed. Lots of cursing during trainings. All calibrations and firmware updated, both for mac and Kickr. I believe this is a communications protocols compatibility issue between platforms (Kickr, MacOS and Zwift). All will blame each other, I suppose. if anyone from Zwift asks for logs, I am here to share.
I do not want to use all dongles etc to connect an ANT+ usb adapter to use with my Macbook Pro that has onlu USB-C ports. I could not find online, Do you know ANT+ adapters for USB-C?
Hi Faith,
I guess you already know this but, I think you will need a usb-c to usb adaptor, probably a usb extension cable and a Ant+ usb stick. I don’t think there is a way around this at the present time.
Once set up with Ant+ I don’t think you will have any more problems. At least I haven’t in over 2 years.
There have been some issues with MacOS but that I think usually occurs when you have upgraded your MacOS. There are threads on this site about such issues.
Sorry if all that is of no help.
I`m having the exact same problem.
Macbook Pro Retina Early 2015 - Mac OS Catalina (always updated)
Sometimes Zwift app on Macbook sees the sensors, the Kickr, and shows “No signal”, some others times devices are not being reconized at all.
I tried my devices ( and my wifes also)
IPhone 7 & Iphone 11 zwift works great all device are working properly.
Ipad mini 3 & Ipad mini 5 zwift works great all device are working properly.
I`ve done some test… Unistall zwift on iphone & ipad nothing happens on Macbook
Bluetooth Off on both device = nothing working on macbook
All devices (no zwift installed ) turned off = nothing working on macbook
So theres clearly something wrong on the software/macbook/bluetooth managing devices (kickr and sensors). My bluetooth on the macbook works fine with keyboars, mose, earphones, headphones, etc, etc-
I ended up using mi Ipad mini with the Tacx tablet holder.
Also having the same issue - Kickr Snap, Wahoo Cadence and Wahoo Tickr all pair with Zwift on iOS. Seems only by accident will any one pair with MacBook (Catalina 10.15.6) and if so it will only be one and none of the others. Doing same thing as other folks - When attempting to pair with MacBook
Log out of all Zwift/Wahoo applications on iOS
Turn off Bluetooth on iOS
Make sure Wahoo Elemnt is not turned on
This is super frustrating and surprising that Zwift has not created a solution esp with so many new folks joining the platform. Forcing folks to buy additional gear (Ant+) dongle is not a good solution. At the very least, it would be great if Zwift would create the ability for the MacOS app to simply be a mirror of the iOS app - clearly there are no issues with BLE connections on iOS, so just let me connect there, but then mirror on my MacBook so I can have a larger screen.
I’ve never had problems connected until I got a Kickr. Yesterday, ERG mode just stopped, but I was also having issues with it not being found to pair, the light was just off. I used to just turn the crank, and it would wake up, but yesterday, no dice. I had to power cycle it, and it would pair instantly. Weird that it won’t just auto connect anymore.
I get tons of ‘Bluetooth serial failure’ messages with it too, and have never gotten one with the backup trainer, Neo 2, in the year I was riding it. It’s like it’s a problem with the Kickr Bluetooth implementation. I was sure nothing else was trying to connect to it, and with the light being out, it just wasn’t even there to find. The problem with getting it to work seems to be getting worse, not better. It’s just getting so frustrating to ride now. Will it work, will it pair, will it sync, will ERG mode work, will I be buried in error messages. ALL I WANT TO DO IS RIDE…
I’ve had cascading Bluetooth Serial Failure messages since I got the Kickr Bike. Wahoo support seems to ignore my messages regarding what’s causing them. The only thing I can think of is that it’s something with their drivers are doing incorrectly. I’ve updated to all of the latest software I can find, and the errors continue. I’ll try to upload an image of one ‘meltdown’ where I was getting 2 messages about every 2 seconds. They filled the screen rather quickly. I couldn’t acknowledge them quick enough, so I just let them go, seeing if they would stop. They didn’t.
Many times, I get no messages, but sometimes when I get the messages, there are so many of them, I can’t get Zwift to start a ride. Once Zwift ride starts, the message usually never happen again. Getting there is sometimes nearly impossible. It’s very frustrating. Someone told me to get a Windows notebook, but I hear some Windows users have similar issues too.
ADD ME TO THE LIST OF FUCKERY!! I have a fairly new 2019 MacBook pro which I just updated to Big Sur OS. I have connected to kickr core once using bluetooth. Can only pair using companion app but Kickr will drop connection in the middle if a workout. I have a Ant+ dongle on the way so hopefully it works.
I know this is an old thread, but in case anyone else has the problem, the solution seems to be to unpair your Bluetooth devices, reset the Bluetooth module, and then connect. As a new user, I can’t post a link, but if you look at recent posts by Reddit user Deeepshadows (note the extra “e”), you’ll find my source.
Hold down Option-Shift and click on the Bluetooth menu in the menu bar. (If you haven’t turned on the Bluetooth menu, go to the Bluetooth preference pane and do so.) Choose “Remove all devices” and click OK.
Hold down Option-Shift and click on the Bluetooth menu again. Choose “Reset the Bluetooth module” and click OK.
Add your usual Bluetooth devices, then launch Zwift. It should find the Kickr and other devices immediately.
After doing that, my 2015 15-inch MacBook Pro had no problem finding the Kickr and my Scosche Rhythm+ HRM band.