pg255

Hello, my Kickr1 is having problems connecting to either ANT+ device, or via bluetooth to my wahoo app on the phone. Wahoo offered standard troubleshooting, forgetting existing linked devices, ensuring there was only one potential thing to connect to, avoiding interference. The connection problem was intermittent, but is now permanent. Has anyone else had this before ? Is there a potential repair ? Wahoo have said I need to buy a new machine !

sfrider 

I'd check the board on the pictures above. Soldering castellated modules to PCB pads is IMO a pretty sketchy practice. Fine for a one-off on the bench to experiment, but not exactly production stuff. I'd check the solder joints for cracks or other problems. Maybe just resolder (reflow with leaded paste and hot air if possible). The next is to inspect the antenna trace. And check the supply voltages (on the test points).

pg255

thank you!

unterhausen

I always wanted to put an external antenna on my kickr. But I just got a usb extension cable and now the dongle lives a foot away from the kickr on the floor.

Road Fan

Yr doing well!

Road Fan

Going from intermittent to permanent sure sounds like an open circuit. I do not recommend flexing the PWB any more than is necessary.

StuartC

hi Kevin - were you able to resolve this? I have the exact same issue

etrader99

Somehow my KICKR Snap 2017 speed/power sensor rubbed against the internal wheel and partially disconnected from the PCB. So I still get connection via BT but no speed or power. IF anyone has a bad board hanging around I'd be glad to buy it from you so I can have the sensor. It's the little board that is connected to the left of the big board.

Thanks for any help. I contacted KICKR and they want me to replace the entire read mechanism for $250. Such a waste and I can't solder this tiny sensor back to the board. Without the sensor there is no resistance so it renders the trainer almost useless.

Barry2 

why can the sensor not be soldered to the board?

Barry

unterhausen

I would have to see pictures before I fully believed that board couldn't be fixed somehow

rogers2000

For those interested, I managed to repair the GEM module in my Kickr Core. For some reason it just had terrible bluetooth connection and it was almost unusable, as well as a fried capacitor so it probably had a power surge at some point. However I still managed to extract the firmware from the nrf52832 GEM2 module, replace this with a nrf52832 dev board from aliexpress, and connect the VCC, GND, Temp, Cadence, LED1, LED2 and brake lines to the corresponding GPIO. dont forget to copy the UCIR area of flash memory as well, the factory settings in this 4kb area of extra storage must match the original chip exactly. Once it was put back together everything is now working great, including all ANT functions and firmware updates. You can extract the firmware with any common SWD programmer eg jlink, stm32, esp32 etc..

I can't post a picture or link as I haven't made 10 posts (??), I just wanted to share that it possible in case someone else was in the same boat

unterhausen

Thanks for telling us it's possible to extract the firmware. You can post pictures in an album in your gallery and we can rescue them for you. Don't forget to hit the upload button before you close the dialog

Barry2 

rogers2000 ,
Well done nice fix & nice first post!
Having access to the required tooling is a bit of an issue for most.
Thanks for the post.

Welcome to Bike Forums

Barry

rogers2000

Thanks Barry, yea the repair does require some experience. And unfortunately the firmware has the serial number hidden within it so I can't upload mine. I will look to do a write up on GitHub so people who are interested can follow it. I'm also open to doing repairs as long as people have the original chip and are willing to ship the PCB to New Zealand, cheers!

DGhostRider

I have a Wahoo Kickr Core that is toast! Powers on but no Speed or any readings. I’ve tried all versions of firmware updates/rollbacks and completely disassembled and have pics of circuit board of anyone can take a look. I’ve definitely be up for shipping to NZ for repair!!

rogers2000

I have a spare gem2 substitute module that I can put in, provided I can extract the firmware from the old one. If you can upload some pics of the PCB I can have a look and see if there's anything obvious first. I gather it is completely out of warranty / no chance of a return or manufacturer repair?

DGhostRider

Just tried to upload but says I have to make 10 post because I’m new… so will be busy posting over the next couple days so I can get off probation lol!

Yeah no warranty or return policy available

DGhostRider

Thanks again for offering the repair. That’s amazing!

rogers2000

sweet yea I need to get my quota up as well otherwise I can't even private message

DGhostRider

Yep!!

unterhausen

this offer is still good for anyone, just let us know you uploaded your pictures.

Where did you get the module? Wahoo has been telling people no repair for some time, but it's probably worth asking them since it's such a poor example of support.

I didn't notice North Pole had a shop. They sell a dev board with multiple modules for $25 https://store.npe-inc.com/gem2-development-kit/
Or the module alone for $10 https://store.npe-inc.com/gem2-oem-module/

DGhostRider

I definitely want to take you up on this offer I’m just not sure how to upload the pictures. I can email them to you as well if that works. I think I’m close to getting all my messages so should be able to up load by tomorrow!!

DGhostRider

We are all just newbs trying to get to 10 😆

unterhausen

We don't allow junk posts to get to 10 posts.

Go to your profile (click on your username). On the right there should be something about your albums. Click on "show all albums" and there will be a create album button.

rogers2000

I have put some pics in my album, although I'm nearly at 10 posts now. When I said spare GEM2 module, I was meaning an aliexpress clone that I can put the code onto. I had a look but wasn't able to find the original GEM2 until you posted that link, very interesting to see you can actually buy one. The problem with the Aliexpress module is the pins don't line up, so you need to add wires and make the right connections and provide a way of mounting the module. Either way you will always need an original module to extract the firmware to get the serial number.