Jetblack Victory

Started “clunking” now, which is the last thing I need when fighting for my life on high intensity intervals. FFS.

As another person with a unit on the way, I’d also appreciate any happy comments and success stories to balance out the tech issues :smiley: I’m guessing the faulty units can only be a small percentage?

JB said they were on track to deliver late Feb but not heard anything for a few weeks.

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Yeah, trainer is a wreck, even worse every time I use it. I’ll try and post a video later.

I’m really glad I cancelled my pre-order that was supposed to arrive before Xmas.

This vid has the clunking, will do another tomorrow for the general noise.

(For clarity, that’s definitely the trainer rather than drivetrain… I put the cassette back on my original “wheel on” trainer and it only had the usual chain noise / tyre friction.)

While it’s possible that’s coming from the trainer, that honestly seems super unlikely. The sound exactly matches your cadence (including when you increase cadence), not anything at the flywheel/cassette layer.

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Not at the end when he slows down. It seems to be every rev of the flywheel, I’d think maybe a bearing in there. You might be able to confirm by just turning the flywheel, but last turbo I saw that did similar didn’t do it under that little load.

If I’m reading right you’ve already eliminated the bike from suspicion by running it on another trainer, so it’s either the trainer or the interface with it (thru axle loose or similar) IMO.

:point_up: This is where I would start

Not sure I follow. If you watch the timing, even at the end of the video when slowed down, it’s matching his pedal stroke (bottom right to be precise)

As for flywheel wobble, that’s actually more normal than you might think on trainers. As one that has taken a stupid amount of footage of trainers from that vantage point, you’d be surprised at how imperfect they are (across the board). Obviously, there’s a point where the flywheel is too imperfect that it touches something, but the frequency (timing) of the noise would be faster here.

(I spent some of yesterday troubleshooting a similiar issue in my wife’s bike when she put it on a different trainer. Definitely my wife’s bike, not the trainer, since I’ve been using it with other bikes just fine. Just haven’t figured out exactly what yet, but seemingly in bottom bracket or perhaps pedals, based on pedal stroke matching akin to yours). That said, you’ll likely notice that changing gears will change (or get rid entirely) of the sound.

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Yeah, I put it on my KK Rock N Roll right afterwards, it ran perfectly.

Edit - KK Vid… basically only the noises you’d expect: https://youtu.be/aaTO4Iwdh7I

Axle definitely wasn’t loose on the Victory, and cassette had been torqued to 40nm. Had been careful to properly line it up when mounting the bike too.

@dcrainmaker - It made this noise right across the gears. I have another video of a different noise it makes when there’s not a lot of power going through it too.

Edit - Rattling noise video: https://youtu.be/XuU5O1ENiIE (starts being noticeable a couple of seconds in, then very noticeable around 20 seconds)

I received my Victory a couple of days ago, and have done one quick test ride, and a Zwift event (big spin) - I’m coming from a dumb wheel-on trainer with power meter combo I’ve been using for years. Here were some of my observations both for the Victory and smart trainers in general:

  • I now have more items to think about, power on and connect, but they do work well together (trainer, click, laptop, phone app, headphones etc). I thought switching between indoor and outdoor mode now spring is here was going to be faster, but yeah same or a bit more hassle tbh
  • Feels very stable and solid
  • Virtual shifting super weird and accidentally did manually shift a couple of times, I’ll get there though. Must play around with the different gearing options Zwift seems to have too- what do most ppl use?
  • It takes quite a push to get the flywheel moving until I can virtually change down in Zwift - I was used to moving up the cassette gradually on my dumb trainer to warm up - should I just htfu or not pedal until the software compensates?
  • Once I get going after a few mins, especially with high cadence, the erg feels really good and I think allows me to get good extended power out - the Elite dumb trainer always felt a bit like wading through treacle as the fluid system gets a lot harder as power increases.
  • Im using PM currently to record watts, as others have mentioned it feels 20w lower than the 4iii crank, but I didn’t give it much time to warm up. 20mins is like a 3rd of a workout some days!
  • I thought the new trainer would be quieter than the dumb one, I don’t think it is, and I have the Cog and drivetrain pretty well dialled - not worrying noise, but its there.

All in all I’m pretty happy, nothing life-changing but good piece of kit at a good price, a bit more motivation to stay indoors Mon-Fri for a few more months! 4/5 :slight_smile:

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I received the JetBlack Victory with Zwift Cog/Click a couple of weeks ago and have had the chance to put it through its paces on TrainerRoad and Zwift. I hope you find my takeaways helpful.

GOOD:

  • Updated to 4.15 firmware, and using BT connection during workouts - no dropouts, everyting connects just fine.
  • Power modulation is very flexible - I’m not encountering low power floors or high power ceilings.
  • TR ramps up power nicely, flywheel response is light and quick. 30x30 intervals start and finish on the spot. Longer intervals are stable without power oscillations.
  • Zwift race mode is great - trainer responds very quickly to power input @ 50% setting. Zwift Click and virtual gears work well after getting used to click the button rather than to shift. Really happy here.
  • Construction feels simple but sturdy. Legs keep the trainer planted even druing out-of-the-saddle sprints.

INCONLUSIVE:

  • The power readings on the Victory seem to be temperature-dependent. It performs best when it’s warmed up. During the first 10 minutes of a workout I’m seeing power readings about 10% lower compared to Favero Assiomas. Later it evens out nicely so I’m prone to think that could be solved with future firmware upgrades. Not a big issue to me.

BAD:

  • The Zwift Cog doesn’t work well with my setup—it causes cobble-like vibrations through the frame and pedals. I’m using a gravel bike on the trainer (1x11 Shimano GRX Di2) with a chain that’s only a couple of months old. I also tried my road bike with a 2x12 Ultegra drivetrain, but had the same issue. After taking a closer look, it seems the tooth profile on the Cog is quite different from Shimano’s. I’ve since switched to a regular cassette with the Zwift Click, and everything is working smoothly now.

Overall, I’m very happy with the JetBlack Victory. The main issues I’ve encountered are with the Zwift Cog, not the trainer itself. I’ll report back later in the year after I’ve logged some substantial time on it.

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Thought I’d chip in. I just unboxed, assembled and setup my JetBlack victory ready for a TR workout in the morning. This is my first smart trainer and I have been using an analogue Kinetic Rock and Roll.

For non-pedants:
TLDR: Setup went OK, no issues so far. The JB Victory seems to be priced reasonably well for component quality.

No one on this forum seems to have covered initial experience at a nitpicking pedant level, so here are my thoughts are so far:

Shipping & instructions

  • No protective outer shipping box, the box arrived in OK condition, with some dings and a corner a little worse-for-wear.
  • You could hear some things moving around inside the box.
  • Opening the box, you need to scan a QR code for the instructions - my phone, a PIxel 8a, couldn’t pick up the QR code, likely due to the orange QR code against the brown box background.
  • The accessories paper bag had opened itself within the box, but hadn’t emptied itself yet.
  • The kit list on the instructions and the received kit do not fully match.

Assembly and setup

  • Assembly was straight-forward, attach the legs with four 4mm allen screws and set up for your axle type.
  • Screw threads on the feet weren’t that smooth and the resistance gave me that “Am I cross threading?” feeling.
  • Welds on the feet for the screw threads have pinholes - if that was on my bike, I’d make a warranty claim.
  • Anodisation of the non-drive side QR adapter is a little pitted with some minor surface defects.
  • Power cable might be a little short for some.
  • Trainer handle shifts by a couple of mm when you pick up the trainer - screws are tight.
  • Trainer handle end bar tape area is a bit loose and has 5mm rotational play.
  • App is nothing to get excited about, basic, but has what you need and works well enough.
  • Firmware update went perfectly.
  • WiFi connection took a couple of tries and I had to restart the JB app.
  • TR desktop app connection via Bluetooth saw the trainer and connected immediately.
  • The Zwift cog adjustment and rear derailleur placement took a bit of fiddling to get smooth.
  • Quick 5min spin produced no significant noises or vibrations.

Overall I think it seems reasonable quality for the price. Unlike my outgoing KK R&R, I don’t expect that I’ll be handing this trainer down to my future children. Some things about the initial experience feel like teething problems. The double digit percentage power swing some you have reported as the trainer warms, I do not like the sound of, I’ll be experimenting to understand if my single side 4iiii for power metre needs to be used for primary power readings in ERG mode.

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I received my unit as well in the meantime, and I’m quite happy with it.

  • Assembly is no issue.
  • Sturdy built, the handle is surprisingly useful. (moving my Tacx Neo with those roller-feet around is a nightmare)
  • I like the Zwift Cog, and for my uses (TR ERG Mode and Z itself with virtual shifting) it works perfectly, with Shimano 2x Bikes.
  • Quiet operation.
  • Power Data in line with my exception
  • WiFi Connection is handy (with Z)

I think it is a great trainer. (I’m coming from a Tacx Neo first gen).

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Did you get to the bottom of this issue as mine has just started doing exactly the same

I’ve not used it since. I meant to arrange a replacement, but life’s been fairly complex for me lately.

I’m hoping that they’ve finally worked out what is causing it, as I really don’t want another faulty unit when I get around to replacing this one.

Replying to myself here:
I noticed some connection failures in the last workouts. The trainer is completely “dead” then. I use it with Wifi and Zwift most of the time. A powercycle helps. Has anyone else noticed that? Will try with bluetooth again for the next rides…

I’d like some input on jetblack customer service from those who have experienced it.

I have the option to get a refurbished kickr core for £100 less than a jet black victory.

Whilst the Victory specs look amazing, Wahoo is a company I am familiar with. Jetblack less so. So I wonder what a warranty claim would be like.

UK based.

I posted in your thread. I’ll give you a bit more correspondence timeline. I couldn’t perform a spindown (topped at 21 mph no matter what).

2/20/25 Contacted Jetblack through their contact page. Told me it was a bad sensor, told me to ship it to the retailer ($$$).

2/25/25. Told them I wasn’t interested in doing that, they offered me a Victory at $50 off ($349). I declined

Told me they’ll have Speed sensors in the US in “Late May”

6/23/25 I contact them to see if it’s arrived.

7/7/25 " I am checking with the US team to see if the parts have arrived. Ill get back to you soon."

Just garbage tier customer service. They didn’t seem super interested in helping or resolving this issue. $50 off is a joke of an offer for a 2 year old unit that went bad due to a faulty part.

2 weeks to respond to an email is worse than what I’d expect from AliExpress. I wouldn’t buy anything from this company if it was half the price it is now. Garbage garbage garbage.

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I have the victory, it’s awesome. Use it multiple times a week with TR.

Maybe I’ll eat those words if it breaks and I get ghosted by CS. But even if I just get a couple of years out of it…seems that’s a break even point on out of pocket cost compared to its competition (assuming the 1500 trainers last 4 or 5 years.)

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