My wife has a Kickr Core and I have a tacx neo 2T, and after a long hiatus, I have been easing back into training. I feel like I’m going crazy, but the Kickr Core feels VERY different than my Neo 2T. I have been swapping back and forth between the two and I have noticed that I tend to have to use much lower gearing with the Tacx than I do with the Kickr at the same wattages. The Tacx also seems to yield higher Zwift speeds at the same wattage than the Kickr. In general, the Tacx just feels more difficult and I typically have slighter lower avg wattage on a Zwift ride than I do with the Kickr. The biggest thing though is that on the Kickr, I’m very rarely having to shift into the small ring on an undulating course, whereas on the Tacx I’m spending a fairly large amount of time in the small right. Anybody have any insight into this?!? Wondering if I need to change some settings in the Tacx app. My next plan is to pair my crank power meter to Zwift to control the Tacx and see if there is any change. I really don’t enjoy the Tacx feel and I’m considering selling it and just purchasing a Kickr Core.
Are you using the same trainer difficulty setting with each trainer? Pretty sure when I disconnect a trainer and repair it reverts to the default 50% setting.
Even if you are, 50% trainer difficulty would presumably be harder on a Neo than a Kickr Core, because the Neo has a higher resistance ceiling. I assume you could just turn down the trainer difficulty on the Neo to get a similar feel.
I just got the Neo 2t after using the Core for 2 years. I also have Assioma pedals as reference and the Core is reading consistently 7-11W higher. It also depends on the temperature so beginning of the ride the error is different than at the end. Neo is nearly bang on, reads 3-5W higher than Assiomas when the chain line is straight interestingly. When not they match.
When it comes to the feel I also prefer the real heavy flywheel of the Core, feels more “flowing” somehow especially on the big ring. Neo still wins with the sideway sway and faster reaction on intervals.
I run both a 2t and a 2014 kickr (so the same flywheel as a core). I also have a p2m meter which I use for power. With the difficulty settings at the same level, for the same power on the flat on zwift, I’d either be a gear up or 5+ rpm up on the kickr than the neo.
The neo can be hard work but it’s worth it. That sideways movement helps on long rides and particularly on steep hills for me the neo feels better.
Kickr and Neo will feel different due to the flywheel. If you quit switching back and forth, you’ll get used to the Neo. It took me a couple weeks to completely forget about the Kickr.
Not sure how this is possible. Zwift takes your power input and calculates your speed. Yes, there are other variables (e.g., weight, height, gradient, etc… ), but if everything including power is the same, then the speed will be the same. Speed for a given wattage is only going to vary if the gradient is different and/or you are drafting.
Are you sure you are pairing the trainer properly as both power and controllable trainer in both instances (kickr and neo)?
As for cadence, are you using a cadence sensor or getting cadence from the trainer? If the latter, the cadence of the kickr vs the neo may not be exactly the same, but should be close unless one of them is borked. Regardless, cadence is not used in the speed calculation. You do not even need to pair cadence.
