Power meter

[Kracker59]

Is it possible to add power meter to ergbike?

[Cyclist2]

Why bother? The monitor shows power directly.

[Carl Watts]

Why bother? The monitor shows power directly.

Concept 2 doesn't put into print any power accuracy for the BikeErg. I just read the specs and there is nothing. I probably wouldn't be using one of these on Zwift.

https://www.concept2.com/ergs/bikeerg

[drluvguru]

If the monitor already shows power, no need for a power meter. Plus, Concept2 doesn't really give any power accuracy details for the BikeErg, so it might not be the best for things like Zwift.

[agross29]

You can add a power meter to the bike erg, but it wont connect to the PM5, you’d need to connect it directly to Zwift. The bike erg measures power at the fly wheel which depending which article you read means it underestimates power by 15-20% when compared to pedal power meters. Some on the forum say 15-20 watts. Here is a cycling week article discussing it


https://www.cyclingweekly.com/reviews/b ... erg-review

[Carl Watts]

^^^^

Probably the best solution but you then have to spend quite a bit for decent pedals to use it with Zwift.

Still doesn't make it a smart trainer but I guess its better than your road bike on a cheap trainer. Zwift needs a decent source for actual power measurement to make it realistic

[agross29]

For a cheaper alternative you can run the painsled app, but that adds about 30% so ur over estimating at that point and you cant do events or have RPM. I actually stopped using Zwift since the PM5 can only connect to 1 device at a time and I prefer it connected to the erg data app than Zwift. Plus Zwift just wasnt worth the $20 a month after a while. It took a lot to set it up each time and the lag time of 1-2 seconds was annoying made it a pain to stay with groups, pacers etc. especially if you just want to ride with a group and stay at a steady power output. I’ll jump off my soapbox now.