Update : Head Unit mounting and Power meter sensing

[Andrew Wilson]

I installed a Left arm Stages PM today and get a lot of drop outs via Ant+ while Bluetooth seems better.
If I also run the Stages app on my phone it doesn’t drop readings ( However I’m holding the phone off to the side for a clear line of sight)
If you look at the attached picture you will see that I have the Lezyne Mega XL dead center on the handlebars.
That’s a lot of Aluminum between the Stages and the Mega XL.

How are you guys mounting your head units for reliable communication
Thanks

 

[RojoRacing]

Most of us mount our head units just as you are but I use pedal based power meters and neither are stages. I've read stages are notoriously poor with many aspects of their design and function with a ton of warranty returns for failed or inaccurate readings. At this point in the power meter and zwift communities people posting about stages power meters are basically a meme. One of the commonly documented issues are the dropout of data as you describe, with the solution being to replace the unit with another unit or something else.

 

[Andrew Wilson]

Thanks,
I tend to agree with you. I ran across a good deal on ebay and thought I would give it a shot. I also think my head unit, a lezyne Mega XL is also part of the issue.
It's real flaky on pairing with the Stages, Ant+ or Bluetooth while the Stages App will pair right up.
Oh well, live and learn.

 

[Andrew Wilson]

After testing and talking with Stages and Lezyne it seems both are a little touchy on location. The Stages has low output which makes head unit placement critical. The Lezyne GPS is touchy on receiving Bluetooth and ANT+. ANT+ seems better but mounted on the bars it will loose connection and drop data. Lezyne makes an out front mount which allowed me to put the head unit above the bars and it worked much better. If I coasted with the crank pointed down it might loose connection, but would connect right back up once pedaling again. The mount put the head unit up a little higher than I wanted so I CNC'd an aluminum plate that sandwiched between the handlebar clamps and fitted with press in sheet metal Self clinching nuts. Then 3D printed an ASA Lezyne mount to screw into the plate.
It seems to work very well, easy access to the buttons and is low enough to see over. I get an occasional drop out but its probably as good as it will get using Stages with the Lezyne.