No i am not using a SpinBike I use a Saris H3 smart trainer.
I assumed when you said it worked that you tested it against a power meter. Testing it against a power meter is the only way to know if it worked.
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Not totally true - as it did “work”. Before callibration of the spin bike’s magnetic resistance I was able to spin easy and produce 300watts, after callibration the same perceived effort produced a more realistic 180watts. If you had a power meter or experience of your ability, you could easily callibrate the resistance of the bike to be accurate.
Much of the above thread was about users producing totally unrealistic power numbers and being unable to do anything about it - but I wanted to share this link because it IS possible to fix by yourself.
it IS possible to fix by yourself.
I think the question @Gerrie_Delport is asking is How do you know you fixed it? Ok, it isn’t up at 300w now from an easy spin, but how do you know that 180w is accurate? Maybe it’s really 150w. Maybe 195w. It’s possible that you’ve merely moved the inaccuracy to a different part of the sliding scale. You don’t really know, if you haven’t tested it against something known to be accurate (e.g. a reputable power meter).
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The thread is full of users not being able to make any adjustments to their IC8 bike… thus ruining the zwift experience for them. The link gives instructions on how to recalibrate the power scale. This gives a user the tools to fix the problem.
To spell it out, you could use power pedals on the IC8 and recalibrate until both match… or if an experienced rider you could just do something like an FTP and tune the calibration to the level you expect which would probably as accurate as any power meter on the market anyway.
Yeah also if you’ve ever ridden a spin bike compared to a bike on a trainer it’s totally different experience. Spin bikes are meant for long periods off the saddle - well that’s what I’ve experienced at spin classes, where as a road bike will fit you hopefully more consistently to what you are riding outside.
I’m enjoying the ic8, it’s not exactly what I planned for -
I wanted a spin bike because my girlfriend is 5ft And I’m 5ft 10, and she doesn’t have a road bike, And changing them around is to much for my lazy personality - I Basically wanted A bike we could both use for quick burns in the morning, and a slightly longer ride in the evening.
Compatibility with zwift is a massive issue in Terms of power Readings being way out - and Schwinn should address this Pronto!, and they should make it obvious and refund people that want refunds - at first I was massively disappointed when I got it, experiencing all the problems that everyone else has faced, whilst alongside trying to calibrate, getting new consoles and so on with no luck.
Whilst I agree you can do a few things to give more accurate data, it will never be accurate, just consistent with its own readings.
Basically at best the ic8 is a decent spin bike that can connect you to zwift, one you would find in a ok gym- it’s not a road bike, it won’t feel like a road bike, and it won’t give you accurate data to race on zwift.
However, it’s a decent spin bike, quiet (well for now), works on Zwift, and is especially fun with workouts and free rides, and you can use it on peleton, tacx and build up fitness and stamina.
I weighed up buying a nice bike and trainer for the same price, which as a keen cyclist seemed like the thing to do. I had my eye on a lovely steel framed vintage bike, Which was very tempting as I ride a relatively ugly Cervelo, and thought about sticking it to a turbo trainer - a far prettier looking set up, plus You can Ride it outdoors and probably re-sell all at a higher price - which is a clear win for a lot of people. But I couldn’t quantify this indulgence for myself, so I made it look like I was treating my girlfriend to a spin bike, which I get to use and train on. Not perfect but still I’m doing about 1hr more cycling each day which is keeping me sane during these weird times. And enjoying Zwift along the way.
The full stop is that Schwinn should really sort this issue out - making the consoles accurate With power (but they aren’t and probably never will be), so they should at the least be very straightforward and release a massive apology for complete Misadvertising their products compatibility With probably the most used app.
If you want a road experiencing, or as close to one you will get, don’t get Schwinn spin get a road bike.
If you want to race on Zwift don’t get a spin bike, use a road bike with a power meter.
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Hi!
I got a Schwinn IC8 a few weeks ago. I’m in the UK. I had the same problem with a very high power output. The customer service of Fitness Superstore was helpless, but I followed the recalibration process and I think my power output is alright. There is no way to know how accurate it is, but it’s reasonable and the experience in zwift is much better now.
I’m getting (approximately):
- resistance 15, cadence 90 → 160-170W
- resistance 20, cadence 90 → 190W
-resistance 24, cadence 90 → 220W - resistance 28, cadence 90 → 250W
-resistance 32, cadence 93 → 300W
Which are my zones 2-6 and seems reasonable.
Martin
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How did you calibrate your bike?
Hi Martin,
I can reproduce your values. Are you sure the results are reliable?
I do not have a lot of experience in bicycling, I did running years ago, therefore and because there is a lot of talk about the Schwinn IC8 in this forum I assumed the values are too high.
As described in the technical manual. It’s been shared above in this post. Let me know if you don’t find it.
Hi!
They seem reasonable to me. The 6 zones are OK based on heart rate and effort perception. Then if I take into account zone 3 as my tempo power output, I can get my ftp that is power/weight=220/75=2.9, which is a low value between cyclists. Given that I’m only a commuter cyclist (but I’m a fit runner) and that I’ve been cycling more intensely only this last year due to a running injury, it seems quite reasonable. Even more, if I compare with other friends with similar fitness level, I would say that probably the power output is slightly low now. But as I mentioned before, to have an accurate value you would need a pedal power meter.
With the original calibration, I was having an estimated ftp of around 5!
Hi Martin,
thank you for the quick reply.
I agree, only a pedal power meter could give certainty.
However I was in contact with Schwinn and they confirmed I do have the actual firmware on my IC8 (I bought it just in November) and they also provided me some cadence/level/speed scale, which matched with my bike.
On the other side Zwift provides me a ftp above yours (3-4), although I am also not a regular cyclist, therefore I still have my concerns about the results in Zwift.
I will go on with the workouts and will perhaps also join some races. In case Zwift disqualifies me, I can live with that, it is just for fun (I do not expect to win a race, but perhaps races create more fun than workouts).
Happy New Year to you and looking forward to meeting you on Zwift.
Hey!
I recently bought the Schwinn IC8 as well and now I am new to Zwift. I notice that my bike also does not appear to send the right power information to Zwift, unfortunately.
Luckily I am using the bike and zwift just to get betterat cycling. I don’t need to race (yet).
So I was wondering a few things:
- Do you have any tips on training programs to use when the wattage is not right? How do you guys train having the IC8 and Zwift?
- Is it possible to make a firmware updat myself to the console?
- I was wondering so far how your experiences are so far with recalibrating the bike?
Hi there
so my experience
You cannot update the firmware - although you can request for new unit if the firmware isn’t up to date through EMEAService@nautilus.com
It took a wee while but they posted for free.
To be honest trying to change the power is pretty pointless. It will never be exact. I guess it’s useful if you and a friend have the same bike that the firmware is the same.
I’d recommend doing FTP test both short and normal - then once you have this set you can use pretty much any workout.
Once I got the new console I experienced a few issues with hitting some of the high power interval sprints - so it’s not totally aligned to ftp I don’t think but works out ok!
Enjoy the bike and zwift.
Ah thanks for your reply, Terry. Very helpful. Good idea to do a FTP test before training.
How do you use the resistance? Do you switch? Do you let it stay at the same level?
Been Zwifting since pandemic lockdowns started last year. I splurged and got the Wahoo Kickr. My wife just purchased the Bowflex C6. So, naturally curious, I hopped on for a ride. Needless to say, my power readings were way too high. My FTP is 240 and I was holding 300 watts with no problem, heart rate in 120’s for 10 minutes.
I found this thread and re-calibrated. Hopped on and power readings were better but still high, 300 watts but heart rate jumped into 140’s. For reference, on Kickr, 240 watts for a couple mins would get my heart rate up to 160’s. I would never race using Zwift power. I’d be cheating because I know better.
I feel bad for anyone here that was DQ’d for unrealistic power readings. But as someone who has raced and lost to Zwift power racers, I understand both sides of the argument. I don’t consider any Zwift power racers cheaters, it’s just they don’t know any better. I’d kill to get my FTP up another 5-10%. I know how hard it is to raise it.
But as someone who has had the Peloton (2016-2018 sold), cycle ops fluid trainer, Wahoo Kickr, bowflex C6, and avid road cyclist who has borrowed friend’s garmin pedals, Nothing beats the Kickr for realistic road feel and power numbers in Zwift. Climbing feels like climbing and flats feel like flats and drafting, to a certain extent, feels like drafting. I would never race virtually with anything other than a direct drive trainer.
Wish you all the best of luck getting more accurate power numbers, and keep riding.
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You nailed it… with one exception:
There are more trainers, comparable with Kickr.
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Haha, totally agree. I was only referring to my own experiences. There are lots of excellent direct drive options out there.
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I got the IC8 3 days ago, I guess my power/weight is quite low in general because I weigh 98kg but the calibration seems weird to me.
I saw this in the review videos prior to buying, people said it takes 4 turns from 0 to 100… but once I get to 100 i can turn the knob 4 more times beyond that and the resistance gets really sticky.
I only use zwift for the environment and confidence to be honest and I may not race with the IC8 to avoid the unfair advantage but I can definitely see a way forward with all the materials and the service manual provides in this thread.
My current thoughts looking at this are that the console 0 level may be too low when the knob is almost all the way down. So perhaps calibrating 0 at one or two turns may be a more realistic lower end.
For info i get around 160W at 80rpm resistance level 20. I have no frame of reference though because I’ve not used a wattbike or keiser M3 for a couple of years and I don’t have any real measure of power output on bikes.
I’ll leave mine as it is for now and hope this thread develops further over time. Once I start getting into shape and dropping weight I’ll look at recalibration though.
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I have not read all the posts in this thread so someone may have provided similar info already. In any case, I want to report on my experience with recalibration and then testing against power meter pedals (Assioma Duos).
After I realized that my power output was inflated, I recalibrated the the bike. Instead of following the instructions in the manual (which I found too subjective), I decided to set my 100 level to be just shy of the rubbing sound that starts near the max resistance (during calibration, I hopped on the bike and pedalled while increasing tension. Once I increased it enough to hear the rubbing/grinding sound, I turned the knob back just a touch until I couldn’t hear it any longer. That became my new 100).
At that point, I still had no idea if the bike’s output was accurate and I’d fallen way too far down the Zwift rabbit hole of competitive racing to remain in the dark about this, so I ended up spending a small fortune on Assioma Duos.
After installing the pedals, I was able to compare the wattage of the bike vs the pedals in the Zwift device pairing screen. To my surprise, the calibration method I followed actually got the bike fairly close to being accurate (ie: the output from the Assiomas). Still a little bit off at certain resistance levels, but close enough that I probably would have been content to just use the bike’s power output if I had some other way to verify its accuracy!
So, all of this is to say, I invite you to use my own neuroses to save yourself the $$$ on power pedals. If you are content with your bike being within a fairly close range of accuracy, following the calibration method described above should give you the peace of mind that you are close to having accurate output.
Here is a link to the video showing the wattage comparison. Apologies for the shakiness—I made the poor decision of recording this after climbing Alpe du Zwift.
EDIT- The forum removed my Google Drive link. If anyone knows a workaround so I can post the vid- let me know!
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Thanks for the post
That’s really interesting
Quick question When calibrating did you set 0 as far as you could turn the other way?