I have an Elite Direto that is next to useless in ERG on short punchy VO2 interval sessions. By the time it actually adjusts my 30 second interval is ending.
Do higher end trainers settle in fast enough to use ERG mode on a workout like “Brasted”? I don’t want to keep looking at my workout and shifting, I want to just watch my movie and pedal.
If so, any specific trainer recommendations for lightning fast ERG adjustments? Neo? Kickr? Hammer? Something cool I don’t even know about?
Keep your Direto and just adjust how you approach the intervals. Spin up ~5” befor the interval starts and then hit it full-speed. Diretos will let you “overpower” an interval, so you just need to pre-empt the interval a bit.
You can send me half the money you would have spent on a new trainer as thanks. 
I have had good luck with my Kickr. Here is a Spanish Needle version (15/15) done in Erg, 34t x 17t with no shifting.
I also have an H2 and Neo 2, and the are essentially solid for pure ERG use in similar cases. The large flywheel on the H2 kinda hurts it and makes it roll a tad longer compared to the other to.
Of the 3 listed, the Neo is probably fastest, Kickr 2nd and then H2.
Right. This is exactly what I do now and what I want to stop doing. I just want erg to do its thing so I can zone out to my kung fu movies and stop seeing how much is ahead
I haven’t got a load of experience with lots of trainers, but I’m happy enough with my kickr v5 with regards to ERG response - I don’t feel as though I have to give intervals too much thought.
There was an interesting post somewhere on here by @GPLama saying that he felt response was slightly quicker with BLE rather than ant+. I’m an ant+ user but i’m going to start using BLE and see if I notice a difference.
EDIT: found it Bluetooth vs ANT+
My only Experience is a Neo 1, and it reacts very fast. As an Example one Set in “Spanish Needle -1” below. You see the lag, but it is fast enough for my purposes. Those are 15 Second Intervals btw. In this screenshot it was connected via ANT+ on a Windows-PC.
Well I can’t do high intensity work watching something (I listen to music those days), but even if I was watching something, I still think you should be monitoring the workout ramping up your effort prior to the onset of an interval, regardless of the trainer. Helps you maximize the effort and prevent the “spiral of death”.
I just made the switch from a Stages crank arm PM and CycleOps Fluid dumb trainer over to an H3, and I just can’t seem to adapt to ERG and Power Matching, especially on VO2 max workouts (tried to do Brasted today). Consistently resulting in under powering the interval (sometimes by 10 watts) and when it turns into the 15s off, I feel like I’m going to fly off the bike with my spin… actually takes some muscular effort to stabilize and slow down leg speed (which sure doesn’t feel like recovery!).
I fully acknowledge that switching equipment/setup on week 11 of 12 in SSB is not a smart thing to do (I’m going to finish out the week with a couple recovery rides, then Ramp Test/restart SSB with the new setup), but does anyone else find the transition from fluid to magnetic (or dumb to smart) really feel weird? The constant resistance change feels more taxing than it should, and is often thrown off by the fact that I move around in the saddle a lot (not best practice, I know, but I have to do it).
As a starting point, is the best practice to just use ERG without power matching (if I don’t care about having comparability/consistency indoors and out) in all instances except for VO2 Max workouts? I’m going to Ramp Test using this setup, but should I then restart SSB, or move into Build??
Power Match is fine to use and most people like it in this instance. That said, here are the Cliff notes of my ERG for Beginners…
IGNORE power data.
Watch only your CADENCE and make sure to apply it as smooth and steady as you can.
Seriously, stop watching power.
I am repeating this on purpose, because it is such a habit for anyone coming from a regular resistance trainer.
That power control is now the responsibility of TR and your trainer. Let them do their jobs. If you watch power, it is inevitable that you will try to “fix” it by changing your cadence. That will only make things worse, not better.
You can return to watching it eventually, once you adapt to the way ERG works, but until you nail a couple of rides at least, focus only on your cadence.
I have a Direto and it works OK. Below is a pic form Lafaytte (15 sec intervals) and as you can see it takes makeby 1-2 secs to reach target power
Maybe check the firmware?
but when I ride my bike outside…, 
What is this outside you speak of? 
I use ERG outside 
My trainer is in the garage - I assume that’s what you mean?
For what it’s worth I ended up going the Neo route and it’s been a HUGE upgrade in terms of shifting speed. Couple seconds for large changes in wattage with no shifting. Also no need for finding the right gear because small ring feels like a small flywheel at high watts and big ring can’t do low recovery watts. Just set it and forget it riding in erg!
Thanks for the input!
