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Peloton Setup

eMadman edited this page Aug 13, 2023 · 27 revisions
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Using this guide

Owners of SmartSpin2k V1 and V2 require a power meter. Additionally, the higher end Peloton Bike+ requires a dedicated power meter as well. Please see the Bluetooth Pairing guide for pairing instructions.

V3 hardware works natively with Peloton Bike. The instructions below describe the usage scenarios with Peloton Bike hardware.

Peloton operating modes

There are two modes of operation with Peloton, controlled by a switch on the side of the SmartSpin2K. The mode of operation you choose depends entirely on your use case. Setup and start procedures differ slightly for each mode.

Use Tablet mode if you you want the simplest integration without any additional effort for non-SmartSpin2K users. You may prefer this if you go back and forth between Peloton and other apps regularly.

Use TX mode if you want to fully unlock the potential of what SmartSpin2k and the Peloton tablet can offer. This requires sideloading your own apps (this may void your warranty) onto the bike or simply not using the bike's tablet at all. Note that sideloading apps is not supported by the SmartSpin2K development team.

Tablet Mode

Tablet mode is the most for most users to work with. This requires no modifications to the tablet and works nicely within the Peloton ecosystem.

To enable Tablet mode, flip the switch on the side of your device to face towards the ceiling.

Ensure the male end of the 3.5mm y-splitter is connected to your tablet. Connect the male 3.5mm connectors from the breakout cable and from the bike's sensor to the other two ends of the y splitter

Start a free ride in Peloton.

Connect to Zwift or other apps

TX Mode

TX mode can be thought of as a headless mode - it does not require a free ride to be enabled in the Peloton tablet. This enables many possibilities for users: You can run your own apps directly on the tablet (this may void your warranty), or you can simply leave the tablet off. This mode is also useful if your tablet is damaged or inoperable since SS2K can present your ride data to any app of your choice.

Note: It has been reported that not all bikes work in this mode. At the time of this writing, the issue may be on the bike's tablet itself. A loopback cable can be used to try and force operation. One of these can be created by using a 2x male to 1x female 3.5mm stereo headphone splitter and connecting one of the male ends into the female end. By looping one of the male ends of this cable into the female end and connecting the remaining male end to the bike's tablet, you can trick the bike into thinking the sensor cable is connected.

To enable TX mode, flip the switch on the side of your device to face towards the ground.

Disconnect the male end of the 3.5mm y-splitter from the tablet. Connect the male 3.5mm connectors from the breakout cable and from the bike's sensor to the other two ends of the y splitter.

Connect to Zwift or other apps

Note: You must reconnect the y-splitter to the peloton tablet if using the Peloton service for your rides.

Peloton Automatic Resistance

Through the use of Qdomyos-Zwift, it will soon be possible to have automatic resistance for your instructor-guided rides in Peloton. For this to work, you will need to use Tablet Mode and a secondary Android/IOS device running Qdomyos-Zwift. In the near future, it may be possible to run QZ directly off the Peloton tablet.

Learn more here