(introductory music)
- Hey, what's up guys?
This is Tariq from smartbiketrainers.com.
And, this is the Neo 2...T.
So, yeah, Tacx released a miner update
to the Neo this year
to address one issue.
And, that's basically the torque.
And, that's what the T in the name,
in the Neo 2T stands for.
In this video,
I'm going to go over what is new with the Neo 2T.
I'll go over the specs and talk about power accuracy,
and later in this video,
I will let you listen to the Neo 2T.
Is it really quieter than the Neo 2 as Tacx claims?
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So, if you're familiar with a Neo
and been on a Neo 1 or 2
you might have experienced a little slippage
in that virtual apply wheel at low speeds,
most likely when climbing very steep climbs
where it feels like that wheel is skipping.
Personally, I have experienced it
on steep climbs like around nine to ten percent.
Tacx replaced the magnets with a lot more powerful magnets
to add more torque and eliminate this issue.
And, we'll get into that in a minute.
But, as far as everything else,
it's still the same Neo that you know,
and Tacx also claims they made other internal changes
to improve stillness and noise coming
from the air displacement and vibration and made it quieter.
Things that I really did not notice before, or bothered me,
but when I first got on it,
it did feel a little bit smoother.
They also made changes to the rear axil of the Neo 2T,
and it is now directly compatible with all bikes
including the 142 x 12, 148 x 12 millimeter two axils,
and you only need an adapter for the 135 x 10 and 135 x 12.
And, it's compatible with the Shimano and SRAM
eight to twelve speed cassettes,
a separate body for Compagnolo and SRAM XD and XDR
can be purchased separately.
It does not come with a cassette,
so you need to get your own and install it yourself.
And, you need to have the proper tools to install,
like a set.
So, a chain whip or a cassette plier and lockring tool.
But, it does come with a front wheel riser out of the box.
And, oh yeah,
to be able to tell the difference between Neo 2 and the 2T,
they did add stripes to the right leg.
But, as far as everything else, it's still the same Neo.
It still supports up to 2,200 watts
within one percent accuracy
and up to 25% maximum incline.
It broadcasts speed, cadence, and power
20+ FE-C and Bluetooth,
so it can be used with almost every app out there.
The new Neo is a self-powered trainer,
so no need to plug it into power to use.
Everything will work just fine when not plugged in.
So, you can use it in workout mode, in ERG mode.
It will broadcast power, cadence, and speed,
even road feel simulation will work.
The only thing that does not work when not plugged in
is the descend simulation.
And, that's another feature of the Neo.
It does simulate descend, so when plugged into power,
you'll get more freewheeling,
and the motor will power that fly wheel to simulate descent.
Another cool feature of the Neo
is that road feel simulation.
It can simulate different road sensations
like brick road, gravel, and wooden boards,
which is pretty cool.
I personally love this feature.
It works when enabled in Zwift in SIM mode,
and the trainer will vibrate
to simulate the different road sensation you're riding on.
So, if you ride on brick road,
it will vibrate to simulate that brick road sensation.
(bike vibrates simulating brick road)
And, you feel it right in your pedals.
If you don't like this feature,
you can always disable it in Zwift
or any other app that supports this feature.
The Neo does not require calibration.
It is calibrated at the factory,
and does not need you to do a spindown calibration
like other trainers.
So, the Neo 2T retails for $1,400; and supposedly,
the most accurate and most advanced trainer out there.
But, before we get into the power accuracy,
let's talk about cadence real quick.
This one is pretty quick and easy.
The Neo has a capacitive cadence sensor built into it
to measure cadence.
So, unlike other trainers that try to calculate it
and estimate cadence for you,
the Neo does have a cadence sensor built in,
and it works perfectly as you see in this chart.
No dropouts or spikes anywhere, just super clean data.
Onto the power:
The Neo has a reputation
for having the best power measurement out there.
And, during my test,
and my experience with the Neo 1 and Neo 2,
it worked just perfectly.
So, I generally test
using my crank base and pedal base power meters,
but my Assioma been having--
or been acting up a little bit the past couple weeks,
so until I sort through these issues,
I'll only be looking at the crank base power meter
from two different bikes, my road bike and my tri bike.
They both have crank base from Power2Max.
And, here's a three by ten-minute workout
that I usually do with test trainers
for accuracy at different flywheel speed and gearing.
And, as you see,
the Neo is spot on with my heart to max power meter
throughout the whole ride.
And, as you see here,
regardless of gear, regardless of flywheel speed,
the Neo 2T measured power perfectly,
and the flywheel speed or gear selection
had absolutely no effect, whatsoever, on power measurement.
The first interval was done in a small gear,
which is what's usually recommended.
The second interval was done in a bigger gear,
and the bigger--and then,
a bigger gear in that last interval.
And, that makes me really happy.
And, here's another four by twenty minute workout
with a little VO2 max efforts
after every twenty minutes.
Throughout that full two hours, no drifting in power,
both power meters tracked beautifully,
couple of sprints towards the end;
and as you see, it was quick to respond
during those sprints, and no issues whatsoever.
The Neo 2T is pretty quick to respond in ERG mode,
and some people might not like that,
and you'll see these little spikes
at the beginning of each interval.
Personally, it did not bother me at all,
and thought it was perfectly fine.
If you like to do short-type intervals in ERG mode,
then this is your trainer.
During those twenty second intervals,
I was up at my target within one to two seconds.
Okay, as for the wheel slipping issue, did they fix it?
Well, I went onto it looking for that steepest climb,
so I went up to the tower.
That climb is very steep,
and that's where I usually experienced that wheel slippage
with previous Neo's.
If you've never been there, go up there.
Give it a try.
It gets up to 17% gradient, and it is brutal.
The difficulty settings ends with--was set at 100%,
and I did not experience flywheel slippage whatsoever.
So, yes!
That T is working,
or that extra torque they added is working fine,
at least for me.
And, you can also see lift/ride power data
on your Garmin Edge devices right now.
You just need to pair it as a power meter,
so you can pair it as a trainer in Garmin
and then add it as a power meter,
and you'll see that data in the cycling they navigate.
Tacx is planning on
adding additional cycling dynamics info late.
Hopefully, we'll see it soon, though.
The Neo is super quiet, but here, just listen to it.
(bike quietly hums)
(speed increases)
(bike quietly hums)
(bike stops)
So, per my measurement,
it came a little bit louder than the Neo 2.
I do think the humming is a little bit louder in the Neo 2T.
But, it still--it's a super quiet trainer.
It's not going to wake anyone up,
and it's not going to bother the neighbors.
Or, if you live on an apartment, I think it's very smooth,
and there's no vibration.
If you're worried about vibration,
if you have that road simulation on,
then it might vibrate a little bit.
But, during regular riding, most likely,
your drivetrain will be much more,
or much louder than the trainer itself.
Okay, if you are looking for the best trainer in the market
that is quiet, accurate, good for racing,
training, ERG mode, climbing;
basically all type of indoor riding,
the Neo 2T is a really solid trainer.
Is worth the upgrade?
Or is worth to upgrade from a Neo 1?
Well, if you really care about cadence
and want to see lift/ride power data, then sure.
Why not?
If you have a Neo 2,
I don't see really any reason to upgrade
unless you do a lot of climbing
and that wheel slippage issue
is something that is bothering you.
Other than that,
I think the Neo 2T is the best trainer out there.
Okay, if you are interested in the Neo 2T,
make sure to checkout the price right here
and the deal they have on smartbiketrainers.com.
Prices are updated throughout the year.
And, plenty of good deals out there right now
during the holidays,
so make sure to check those out.
That's all I have.
Thanks for watching.
And, see you in the next video.
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