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Absolutely Brilliant – note to Racermate… we have been asking for years for this and now someone else is going to make coin out it. Fantastic!!
I am guessing I missed it but would this be a separate product that only integrates ant+ technology or is it a Computrainer type product for much cheaper?
Racermate should look into hiring this fellow or buying his application. It would be a great addition to the standard issue software.
Racermate really don’t have a clue. They’re so convinced that their SpinScan technology is required to use their software and load generator, that they continually overlook the obvious.
You shouldn’t buy a CompuTrainer to ride 3d, or do their distance-based videos. You buy a CompuTrainer to improve your p/w ratio over different and varying or specific periods of time. Their inaction on updating both their software and hardware is inexcusable, and it takes people like this to show them that they are almost useless.
There are over 30,000 CT owners out there, and I bet you a dollar that over 25,000 of them don’t know how to properly use the system, and have experienced levels of frustration with equipment, software, and customer service that led them to mothball the thing. Those who DO know how to use it, get something good out of it, but right now, the company is dealing with a 20-year old product that they continue to duct-tape together.
I make no secret about this: If anyone with $6m laying around wants to either buy this company and turn it in to a real paradigm shifter, or instead go solo and build something better, faster, more modern, and cheaper, well, I have the business model and would love to talk with you about it. There’s no reason why we couldn’t take the device to 12 or 15,000 units per year.
Kevin has done a great service, and I hope to work with him on further development in multirider settings. Chapeau!
Whareagle said “You shouldn’t buy a CompuTrainer to ride 3d, or do their distance-based videos. You buy a CompuTrainer to improve your p/w ratio over different and varying or specific periods of time”
I’ll agree with this totally for the hardcore rider always in training mode.
For me, I enjoy the ability to do specific training too, but also like to ride 3D courses either to test myself against a previous performance or to “get some time in” without getting very bored.
The remainder of your comments about Racermate are accurate. It’s somewhat surprising they’ve lasted other than there is no great alternative.
PS – while I understand the premise of the software discussed in the blog, I’m surprised most people don’t have a dedicated bike to mount permanently on the Computrainer. Once the wires are in place, what’s the problem?
I wonder how RacerMate is going to take this? A lot of companies would just send a cease and desist. If I remember right ErgVideo is the only one licensed to write software for the computrainer.
It may not be a bad idea to buy the software now rather than later…
This is awesome. I love my Computrainer but agree that the setup is my least favorite part of the whole deal. I also wish that Computrainer had spent more R&D in keeping inovation in both their hardware and software.
Still a good product, just not as great/revolutionary as it once was.
I wonder why CT don´t license their software for those who don´t feel the need to buy the whole CT unit (my case). Instead, using a Garmin or any other ANT+ device, use ANY trainer, plug this ctANT+ in, you get a very good training system without having to spend tons of money with CT.
Something like IBM and Microsoft idea, you don´t need the hardware, only the software with 3rd party hardware.
They have also the real time videos, which would compensate for the loss of the eventual CT units not sold.
My bet is that they would sell a lot more with SW than CT units. But I think they know what they are doing, right?
Just a couple comments from the thread, and the comments, if I may,
1) DC commented on the lateness of RacerMate One. Yes, we are almost a year from its announcement. We had no choice but to announce it because we knew it was a huge undertaking (larger than even we thought) and we would have to devote 100% of our resources to it – and then some. We announced it to off-set any idea in peoples minds that we were not doing anything (that they could see), when in fact we were.
2) As for this ctANT+ product… it appears to work with RacerMate One as far as we can tell and I will push for it to stay around – as is – as long as the support for it stays with him.
3) I have no power to make #2 happen, but I will try (like I always do).
4) For all our faults… as seen by some… true or not… people are still kicking some a$$ by using a product that was developed 25 years ago and is still, at that-level-of-development, better than any attempt by many others (some spending far more than 6MIL) to better it.
5) I am just about to contact DC to test and review the RC of RacerMate One software. Stay tuned.
Hmmm sounds realy good .
I was just thinking to buy the computrainer but did i understand right there is as well a harware change ongoing or is it just software
Great innovation DC Rainmaker. Folks just take a look at GoldenCheetah an open source software that runs the computrainer on Mac (natively) or PC or Linux.
Yes that is right also the alpha release of 3.0 does have ANT support. Oh yea open source=free . Amazing what can happen when you get outside or Redmond Washington. Yes Computrainer Hardware is GREAT but it takes hours of studying and planning to design the best workout because the company didn’t try to innovate all along
Whareagle, where did the 6m number come from? Just curious.
@Roger, shouldn’t you be working? Maybe on some software and hardware issues that have been known know for, oh, A DECADE? These are no longer suggestions, they’re demands.
You’re still pushing a product that loves 800×600, requires that you UNPLUG THE COMPUTER CONNECTION to calibrate in multirider mode, continues to push slope and distance workouts and pretty pictures and uses really obsolete interfaces? Are Wilifiried or Chuck actually listening, or are you blocking them from the thousands of irate customers who have all but given up and gone back to Ptap or on to TACX? Hubris.
@KML5, email me directly and we’ll talk. Roger is feeling threatened.
Ray – keep being HONEST about your reviews. Expose ALL of it. Good, Bad, and Ugly. It’s the only objective way to get the market to wake up some times.
Thanks all for the comments – glad to see everyone is excited about the innovation, and glad to see that RacerMate doesn’t plan to try and block it. I think that’s good for everyone.
Anon (RE: GC):
Yeah, I’ve been following the Golden Cheetah developments for some time (on that DistroList). And have featured it in the past in various stages (including ANT+ sensor realtime back it was shown nearly 18 months ago as a side add-on project). I think it has some amazing potential.
Thanks all!
Ray, I appreciate you letting me anti-rant. That is truly fair of you.
To be clear… I am not feeling threatened at all. But if it makes [some of] you feel better to think so, go for it. I am just making sure there is a balance made to comments posted out in the universe – some of them true, part truth, and some wholly untrue.
For instance, a wholly untruth is that we have “thousands of irate customers [who] have all but given up and gone back to Ptap or on to TACX?”. All I can say to that is if they exist, they must only be communicating with whareagle. Where is this in evidence that you can make this statement?
Sure, truth is we have requests for improvements. I am not sitting here trying to say we don’t need them. Some are really needed, but to be clear with the reader – 95% of requests on any given day has been for new software – not new hardware. I have tried to get every known request for improvements into the new software.
On that note, the latest software has not one restriction mentioned in whareagle’s rant. The new software includes no duct tape, but will probably see lots of patches as we [can now] add a lot of cool new features now that the foundation for it has been rebuilt.
@DC – I did not say RacerMate will or won’t do anything about ctANT+ — I only said I will not push for anything. I set no policies for RacerMate.
I will say that it does circumnavigate key software “we” would have to include if “we” were to do it, which runs in our controller. So don’t think it is doing what we would do – because it isn’t. You can’t say, “Oh, I can use my ANT device now and that is all that matters.” Well, maybe “you” can say that, but “we” can’t. You have to find that distinction. This is why I’ve held my ground on why we have not done it yet. We can’t do it just in software. Simple as that.
@Marc – the only hardware change we are doing is an easy key-pad swap to allow more control in the new software.
Thanks for your time.
I’m scared for your computer monitor.
Hmm… CT Ant’s website has been down for about 24 hours now… wonder what’s going on?
DD – It works fine for me (and has been for the past 24 hours). May be something with your Internet, try using a proxy site, like link to proxify.com.
Any chance you are going to test the Cycle-Ops PowerBeam Pro trainer? I believe it has built in ANT+ and am curious as to the pros/cons of the ProBeam vs Computrainer.
This is worth it just to be able to use a HRM that actually works for once!
Hello i was woundering why the spinnscan does not work..
Ray o ou hav any explication and might it be possile to integrte it later with ant+ or is this something special?
I’ve been told it’s due to the additional sensitivities that the CT-provided cadence sensor has that the ANT+ cadence sensor doesn’t have, specifically around sub-second recording intervals.
I know its late but – Ray and Roger, if either of you are still monitoring this thread – why not hook up Garmin and RacerMate and build a GSC-10CT that’s exactly the same as the current model, but with a little plug covering a jack for the CompuTrainer unit (or anything else) to plug into and receive actual-time pulses?
No annoying duplicate sensors, no velcro, and leave it unplugged if you don’t want SpinScan but attach it if you do. Price it at $70 and sell it to every one of those 30,000 users – and it’d only cost an extra nickel or two to build!
Hi Richard-
That would be pretty cool, especially given there are plenty of OEM’able variants on the GSC-10 that could be used as a baseline.
I’d have to defer to Roger if they’ve looked at such an option though.
Awesome. Thanks for your review
Ray, you just made my day AGAIN! We have a new Computrainer that won’t pick up HR from coded or non-coded straps and despite the horrendously clunky old-school software and awful UI, it’s an amazing tool (the CT) that I forsee not being able to live without. Being able to use Ant+? Total win. Thanks for your reviews!
FYI/Random Note: The latest version now allows you to transmit ANT+ as well, thus you can transmit out the CompuTrainer power meter/speed/cadence/HR as ANT+ signals that any ANT+ device (like a Garmin) can pickup. That way you can easily just record it on your existing devices.
Good, a recent comment. have you found ctAnt to work with Racermate One?
I haven’t tried it yet (RM1).
I’d guess it might work, only because ctANT+ is just emulating the serial port and sitting in between. Meaning that RM1 in theory never knows about it.
I’ll see if I can get a test copy from the RM1 guys in two weeks at Interbike. I’m just really not terribly excited about spending $200 of my own cash to buy something I’m not a big fan of.
I’ve decided on getting a dedicated PC for my cycling.
Any recommendations? This is to run the Computrainer software.
Revisiting an older discussion… CT Ant+ does work with MR1.
Note: Turn off the Garmin Ant+ Agent before launching CT Ant_
Also… unplug the HR receiver from the handlebar controller. Otherwise CT Ant+ data won’t reach the CT. Seem obvious in retrospect.
The good news, CT finally has a way to monitor heart rate consistently. (The new cable is useless…)
Ray – Thanks for making this solution known.
Anyone knows if the company behind Ct-Ant+ is still in business? I’ve tried contacting them but there’s no reply
If they are still in business can’t understand their lack of support. They had no problem accepting my money.
I’ve gotten responses from ctANT+ recently. We may be just talking about a very small company (ala one guy who wrote some cool code)
just stumbled acros this in a search for ANT+ integration with CompuTrainer data. Great article. I’ve never used ANT+ devices before so I’m not familiar with the stick. Does the stick communicate with only one ANT+ device. For example, my wife has a PowerTap and would prefer to use the cadence from it since it’s wireless and reliable just as you mentioned. If she also had an ANT+ heart rate strap, like a Garmin, would she need 2 sticks or only one? If the answer is only 1, then would it also work for me with another HR monitor (we have 2 CT’s and often ride at the same time) or would that require a 2nd stick. Again, thanks for the great article.
Hey DC,
Just figured I’d let you know when using hte Suunto Movestick Mini with ctANT+ (HR and Cadence) my cadence keeps fluctuating from accurate to 50% accurate. I swapped out the suunto for a garmin unit and the problem went away. I’m still testing to see if I can figure out exactly what the issue is.
It doesn’t appear that this software is being supported any longer. I had problems getting it to work and wrote three times to the developer (over a period of a couple of weeks) and never received a reply.
I don’t know if I’d even recommend trying it because if it doesn’t work then you’ve wasted all that time installing and testing. If it does work and you buy it but then later encounter a problem, then you’re out of luck and you’ve lost your money as the developer does not respond to support requests.
That sucks. My recommendation at this point is using Trainer Road’s Power Relay option, it’s what I’ve been using the last few months for getting the CompuTrainer to ANT+. Works great.
I have not been able to integrate ctAnt+ HR/RPM into RacerMateOne. The ctAnt+ displays HR and RPM correctly, but the RacerMateOne window does not show it. Any suggestions how I can get these two to talk to each other?
thank you.
I have, with interest, read DCRainmaker on HRM straps and on this ctANT+ post. What a guy!
I have just set up RM1 on a computrainer. It took three days! That is because, I suppose, I am not the best techie in town being a 68 year old traf who has just recently taken up Ironman and not the brightest but determined. I noted the following:
The instructions on line could be improved so that they can be printed off on A4 as well as being interactive on line. I prefer when working with a computer not to have to flick from screen to screen or to have to have another computer alongside.
The instructions could be improved with better pictures of the options.
The faults I found were
1) the USB was not automatically recognised on first power up and even when I pressed the middle button “search for all hardware” it would sometimes for no apparent reason miss out the option menu to Calibrate Yes/No.
2) there was no instruction to go into the options screen and then Hardware to set up the comm port for Rider 1
I had to do this manually every time I set it up after which it would work flawlessly.
It look £60 and a bottle of red wine to my MS computer administrator (I am an Apple mac man), a complete uninstall and install two times (once with the need to enter the encripted code a second time), several reboots, numerous hours on the internet, two failed attempts (still not on!) to get accredited on the ctAnt+ forum, downloading several times the updates to make sure they worked, downloading the Prin programme for Prio priority changing which does not work in Windows 8!, changing the comm port from 5 and 6 through every double combination up to 20 before I reverted back again, God knows how much angst before I managed to resolve what the problem was which was to manually go into Options Hardware and click on rider one and put in the comm port bike listed.
It then worked! Phew.
My problem now in Racermate 1 is to plough through the software but that is another post to come….
Has anyone gotten the “simulate power meter” preference to work with a Garmin Forerunner 920XT? I’ve tried two different ANT+ sticks, one Garmin and one generic, and my 920XT doesn’t find the simulated device no matter what device id I give it.
Trying this out tonight. Have had computrainer for 7 years and never new this. With my new bike the chainstays are so much wider that the velcro from the strap always rubs against the magnet on the pedal. Would love to use just the cadence from the Pioneer power meter. Thanks for posting and keeping old posts out there for people lke me to stumble on.
Decided to change the old desktop PC I was using to run computrainer. I have the RM1 disc so I got everything up and running except my HR strap. I had downloaded the ant+ patch from racermate and it worked great connecting my garmin strap. However that patch is not on the RM1 disc and of course racermate is no longer. Does anybody have access or know where to get that patch from? thanks
henric
I did something similar. But I didn’t even know there *had* been a patch. But at this site:
link to velotron.com I found the latest version (RacerMate One v4.1.0.6 Setup)
but with this caveat:
ANT+ SUPPORT NOTICE: (This applies ONLY to RacerMate One, versions 4.1.0.x) There is NO ANT+ patch available for recent versions of RM1. DO NOT install a ANT+ Patch with 4.1.0.x versions or your RacerMate One install will become unusable and you will have to re-install to restore to normal.
Has anyone tried using this ctANT+ software with link to roadgrandtours.com ? If not, and you still have a Computrainer and working copy of ctANT+, would you please consider trying out RGT and reply back? I know ctANT+ has a trial version and that might be my answer.
It should work just fine. Keep in mind that though ctANT+ didn’t allow for control, but rather just broadcast. So it wouldn’t control the resistance, but instead just feed power data to RGT.
Ray,
Does this application have the ability to connect ctANT+ to the NPE CABLE (ant+ to Bluetooth adapter?) so that the computrainer can be connected to iOS and Apple TV? Or is the conversion all on the RacerMate software for the Computrainer program?
It would be great if it could broadcast via the ant+ stick as well! I’ll try it later and update this!
Normally the computrainer application reads its data from the serial port connected to the computrainer controller. ctANT+ is a simple program which takes over the function of reading from the controller, but also from the BT adapter and provides a “replacement” serial stream for use by the computrainer application. So the application is configured to read from the replacement serial stream. It appears to have a function that should allow it to broadcast the Power data from the CT back over the stick, but I’ve never gotten it to work
I acquired a new (to me) Computrainer, and would like to use it for multiple bikes, thus making it far more desirable to connect with ANT than using the Computrainer supplied cadence sensor. Plus the Computrainer uses a Polar HR Monitor, which doesn’t work nearly as well as a Garmin HR Monitor (not as strong a signal with the pickup). So, I have a strong desire to use ctANT+. Using this article I was able to download it, and install it, and get it working fine for one bike, with the RacerMate Software. But the bike it’s working on has a Garmin combination cadence/speed sensor, and all the rest of my bikes have separate speed and cadence sensors. On one of these bikes (my main road bike) the sensor IDs (as read off my Garmin edge computer) the Sensor IDs are 6 digits, and apparently the ctANT+ software cannot read those IDs – entering those flags an error that the device ID must be between 1 and 65535. Any ideas, other than change around some of the sensors on my bikes?
Dear Ray,
Just reverted to CT to see if I can get a comparison between a CP20 done 10 years ago with my current form after having been on Trainer Road using a Wahoo Kickr since. Took me quite some time to get it (the ctANT+) up and running and works fine on RM1 BUT loading up CS 1.6 with it results in an error message and it does not work. Loading up CS 1.6 on its own works but it does not pick up the HRM or Cadence/speed
any ideas?
Chris George
My ancient laptop connected to my CT was dying, so I decided to setup something newer on Win11. That’s when I discovered that http://www.ct-ant.com is gone. And that was a problem because the ctANT+ installer required a connection to validate the license code you got when you bought it. But I found I could copy the Program Files (x86)\ctANT+ (install location) folder from my old laptop to my new one. I suspect the license file in that folder was generated during my original install. Regardless, first I had to run the com0com_setup.exe to setup the virtual com ports it uses. But after than and then manually downloading the ANT USB Stick 2 drivers, ctANT+ worked fine. And then so did my CT.
The ctant is no longer available for sale. Could someone make the complete software available? Or tell me how to get it?
You can download the package here:
link to ct-ant.com
So in this link only the trial version. It turns off every 5 minutes. I wanted the full version so I could continue using CT.
Hey, guys. I’m new to cycling. I recently purchased a used CompuTrainer, but in pretty good condition. It took me a week to figure out what works and how it works, lots of documentation. Unfortunately I found out that 80% of the resources are no longer supported, so I searched for software. In the end collected working software RacerMate One v. 4.106 and ctANT+, but ctANT+ is only trial version, it is impossible to buy more. I wrote to the support e-mail, but no answer. Robert, please post the full version of ctANT+ on google drive or any other place.
The software is complete. It’s the license key that unlocked / turned off demo mode. The problem is that even with a license key, the software attempts to “phone home” to authenticate, and the home is no longer there. So it’s not unlockable.