Quarq firmware upgrade causing problems?

Brad Marcus

I am writing this post out of curiosity, confusion and frustration. I am wondering if anyone with a Quarq power meter has done a firmware upgrade that has caused issues with power readings? This seems to be the case with what I am dealing with and I have notified Quarq who is now trying to develop a firmware "rollback" since there have been similar complaints regarding this.

Backround:

Quarq Riken - about 15 months old

I run it with TrainerRoad using my Power Beam Pro trainer and have TR send resistance to my PBP trainer.

A rep at Quarq encouraged me to do the firmware upgrade after I was having interference issues caused by my wifi. That problem has been eliminated and is no longer an issue. I am now running the latest firmware - 2.3

Problem:

It seems that Quarq is giving me lots of highs and lows since I did the firmware upgrade, meaning that if resistance is set to 240 watts and I am riding at steady cadence of 88, power numbers on TrainerRoad and my garmin are bouncing anywhere from 210-265. I've used this setup enough to know that this isn't a function me riding "unsteady".

I realize that this is just a shot in the dark, but figured I'd ask the group if anyone has had similar issues or experience recently. Any advice is appreciated!

 

Mark Lane

  I recently had new chainrings and the firmware update done to my Quark by LBS( who is a Quark dealer). When I got it home my power numbers were crazy. When I took it back they said they reloaded update, reset the slope, and recalibrated it. Since then it has been spot on.

Scott Alexander

I don't even know how to do a firmware upgrade! Can it be done without a LBS or without shipping it in?

John Henault

Scott - firmware update can be done with an iPhone or android phone, and an Ant+ dongle. See here: https://www.quarq.com/store/item/1711/

Brad Marcus

@Mark - they didn't tell me to change slope, etc. I did notice that when I calibrate now, it is calibrating to exactly "0". The fact is that I asked the Quarq rep if they were sure that I could do this without screwing it up and they assured me it would be ok. The warnings that the process gives you are enough to scare you to death! Things aren't totally crazy on my end, but the PM clearly isn't operating right.

@Scott and John - Yes, you can do it at home and I was several versions behind on my firmware. That being said, I wish I hadn't done it since the issues that I was having prior were totally unrelated to the firmware and now I have a whole new set of issues that I cannot fix. However, in case you are interested, you don't need to use a mobile device to do an upgrade. You can do it from a PC or MAC also. Here is the link that you would use. In the event that you want instructions, I will post them...just ask. https://www.quarq.com/store/item/1711/

So...I'm in a waiting mode right now. Either Quarq will allow me to install a previous firmware version, which they are working on, or I will have to ship my PM back to them for repair or replacement....Not helping my training

Mark Lane

   @Brad-I don't know why they reset the slope on mine, maybe because of the chainring replacement. It was just one of the things they did that 'fixed' it.

Scott Alexander

Ain't broken, don't fix it!

Brad Marcus

As a follow up....Apparently Quarq has had several complaints similar to mine regarding negative changes after firmware upgrades. They have built in a firmware "Rollback" for the group of us that have had problems. I havent had the chance to do the rollback yet, but I will since my PM seemed much more stable prior to me doing the upgrade. I will actually rollback several versions to what I was running before if possible. Version 23 to version 19.

If nothing else, I will say that Quarq's customer service has been pretty darn good!

david ware

Just purchased and started using the Kickr. Was riding my bike on a Computrainer. Have a Quarq on the bike. Had Quarq recalibrated at Quarq with Tuneup. Changed the calibration from ~-650 to -125. Previously when I rode the CT would register about 15W less than the Quarq. Last night did the first ride with the new set up and Kickr is reading about 15W higher than the Quarq. Not sure which, if anything, is correct. Short of a new test is there any way to try to recalibrate so things match. Otherwise, all of my old data (years worth) is now useless...

Brad Marcus

David,

I am in a similar situation at home. I first got a Cyclops powerbeam pro trainer, then got a Quarq, then got a Kickr. It turns out that like you, my powerbeam measures lower than the Quarq and the Kickr measures higher than the Quarq. I still ride the Powerbeam and my wife uses the Kickr, but I will tell you that I use TrainerRoad in conjunction with my workouts (as if I needed to complicate things further!). I let TR "talk" to my powerbeam to control tension to my wheel, but I use my Quarq to get ALL of my readings. Why do I do this? Because I want constant readings whether I am on my trainer or outdoors AND for all my testing.

Further, as you can see in this thread, on Quarq's recommendation I upgraded my firmware from Version 18 to 23, which in my estimation caused problems with calibration and stability on my power meter. Ultimately, Quarq allowed my to reverse this and go back to my original version 18 which has since solved all issues. Maybe when they tuned up you PM, they installed a newer firmware version. There is a way to check by installing Qalvin (Quarqs software) on your pc, but at the risk of me making things worse, I'd ask their customer service for assistance before making any changes.

Good luck!

david ware

I use Rr as well. The first problem I have is that it was tied to CT. Now to K. So, if I do a ride and the old CT setting was 200w it is now taking the K 200w, so not sure what that means. Also today did TR Sufferfest half is hard and the readings were all over the place?