Garmin Speed/Cadence sensor issues

[jesusbuiltmycar]

I have a Garmin Edge 500 with a speed/cadence sensor (GSC10). Everything worked fine until a couple of weeks ago when the device started playing up. It was, "auto pausing" mid ride, showing a speed of 0 then displaying a stupidly high speed.

I read on a forum that this could be caused by the battery in the speed/cadence sensor, so I replaced the battery. All was fine for about 40 miles of riding, then the same thing started again...

I tried resetting both devices, another new battery and thought I had cured it, then a new problem came back mid ride, on a fast descent - the speed sensor started showing double my current speed (50-84MPH!)....

After stopping, and re-synching the sensor with the edge 500, the problem went away again for a couple of rides before coming back. I am getting fed up with having to stop every 10 miles or so, remove & refit the cadence sensor battery, and re-sych the device.

I have spoken to Garmin technical support and they told me to bin the GSC10 as it is out of the 1 year warranty (18months old) and buy their new improved product

Note 1: the wheel size is manually configured, not set to auto detect.
Note 2: if I remove the battery and just use the GPS for speed everything is correct.

Any ideas? Surely it should last longer than 18 months.

Is there an alternative speed/cadence sensor I can use with the Garmin Edge 500 as I am loathe to spend any more money on their shoddy products

[944fan]

I can't help much other than to offer sympathy. I have a few Garmin products and have found them both to be unreliable after a short period of time. Their customer support is usually pants.

I have a Garmin Swim which is used for counting laps in a pool. It worked fine to begin with and after a while it started dropping laps all the time. Their support suggested that it doesn't work very well in 25m pools if you are good swimmer (low number of strokes) and to swim in a bigger pool! Useless fkers

[simonF10]

Never bothered with the garmin sensors.

I use this for speed: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bontrager/ant-...
Used for two years without issue. Very reliable.

I don't use a sensor for cadence but bontrager do a combo unit: http://www.evanscycles.com/products/bontrager/inte...

[SixPotBelly]

jesusbuiltmycar said:

Is there an alternative speed/cadence sensor I can use with the Garmin Edge 500 as I am loathe to spend any more money on their shoddy products

CAn understand your reticence to buy another sensor from Garmin after a premature failure of your current one. I felt the same way about Apple and iPods. But you're in more luck, as any ANT+ sensor will pair with your Garmin. For example, Decathlon do a combined Speed and cadence unit for £17. Bit ugly, but does the job fine.

[TonyHetherington]

I was recommended to short the sensor by putting the battery in the wrong way round for 5 seconds, and that seemed to do the trick for a while, but ultimately it continued to mess around.

Eventually, I'm sorry to say, I got a new sensor (the GSC-10 type). This was a couple of years ago though; I probably would get the new wheel and pedal sensor which doesn't really on close proximity like the GSC-10 does

[TonyHetherington]

Oh, and as said you can get any speed/cadence, or speed and separate cadence sensor you like so long as it's ANT+ compatible.

My Garmin heart rate monitor packed up, and they were useless in helping, so I got a Wahoo one instead; again, it's ANT+ so worked well

[m444ttb]

Are you sure the issues aren't the Garmin Edge 500? I've had mine for 8 months now and thankfully bought it cheap as I think it's st. I'd spent time making sure it was set up to use pick up the specific speed, cadence and heart rate sensors I wanted to use as part of a triathlon. Then it forgot them again and couldn't find them. My 920XT wrist watch has no issues with the same sensors.

[Vans]

Had cadence problems with 3 or 4 GSC10's over the last few years. Changed to the new style sensors about 6 months ago, will have to see how they hold up but them seem good so far.

[jesusbuiltmycar]

Thanks for the responses. I will try the "shorting" technique out today and may buy the new style sensors but it may well be the Edge 500 itself....

I think that the quality of the support software and internal software for their products is st. The support from the Garmin is also very poor but they have a stranglehold on the GPS sports market.

I have heard that their Vector power-meters aren't very good either and that the Garmin-Cannodale team use a competitors product.

[Gren]

SixPotBelly said:

jesusbuiltmycar said:

Is there an alternative speed/cadence sensor I can use with the Garmin Edge 500 as I am loathe to spend any more money on their shoddy products

CAn understand your reticence to buy another sensor from Garmin after a premature failure of your current one. I felt the same way about Apple and iPods. But you're in more luck, as any ANT+ sensor will pair with your Garmin. For example, Decathlon do a combined Speed and cadence unit for £17. Bit ugly, but does the job fine.

The missus uses a Wahoo speed/cadence sensor and hrm. Bought them originally as they are bluetooth as well as ANT+ so they worked with her iPhone before she bought a Garmin Edge. Never had any problems with either product.

[upsidedownmark]

jesusbuiltmycar said:

Thanks for the responses. I will try the "shorting" technique out today and may buy the new style sensors but it may well be the Edge 500 itself....

I think that the quality of the support software and internal software for their products is st. The support from the Garmin is also very poor but they have a stranglehold on the GPS sports market.

I have heard that their Vector power-meters aren't very good either and that the Garmin-Cannodale team use a competitors product.

Also check on magnet placement. If it's a bit marginal you can get weird effects; be sure they're pretty close (almost touching) and it's getting a clean switch - the device relies on a 'reed' switch - i.e. the magnet pulls a physical switch closed as it passes - if the gap is a bit big you can get bounces, double contacts and the like. Equally it may be water ingress, etc.

As to garmin's stranglehold - there's a resaon; nobody makes devices that challenge them at the moment (some are getting close). st they are not, or the market would kill them off.

Usual story with internets, you only hear from those with a complaint! 3 year old 800 - no problem (but I do shut the rubber 'doors' so it doesn't fill with water(!). 910xt - replaced by the shop for a minor glitch. Vectors - perfect apart from, premature bearing failure, whole set replaced by garmin (and no, I wouldn't buy these now, I think there are better options) GSC-10, 4 years old and ticking. Fenix 3 - brilliant so far (the 910 has been sold on)

Oh, and the FWIW the 'new' style ones are accelerometer based - so no contacts/moving parts. In theory they should be more reliable.

[anonymous-user]

I had trouble with the old GSC 10 after a year or so, but to be fair it had done a fair few miles in all weathers so I wasn't too upset.

Then I got the new version about 6 months ago, far more stable and in a much neater package.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00JM6DKUA

[E65Ross]

Is there any benefit to using a wheel speed sensor? I've got a garmin edge 1000 with cadence and wheel speed sensors (and HRM) and have occasionally noticed that when going quickly (eg over 30mph)the garmin will auto-pause (I've got it set to pause under 4.5mph. I'm not sure whether this is the wheel speed sensor playing up or the GPS.

Got the Edge around 3-4 months ago so guessing it's all the latest equipment. Just wondering if there's any point in me having a wheel speed sensor??

[anonymous-user]

I never get to go above 30mph so I can't comment

[jesusbuiltmycar]

Went out for an interval session of adjusting the sensor - it behaved for a while then midway through my 3rd interval I went just above 30MPH - the Garmin then started showing double the actual speed for about a minute before behaving normally for the rest of the ride.

I guess the reed switches are warn out (23 months use/ 7000 miles).

[Steve vRS]

I'm on my 3rd or 4th 510 in 20months. Each time the unit has failed, Garmin have replaced it. So good service, crappy reliability!

[jesusbuiltmycar]

I opted for the new separate speed and cadence sensor. Overall the setup is easier (no magnets) but the devices are less reliable.

The cadence sensor works fine once it pairs with the Edge 500, which can take a few minutes prior to a ride (very frustrating).

The speed sensor rarely pairs with the Edge 500 even when it does it tends to give mid ride (I can tell because when I stop the edge 500 takes a while to realize when using GPS for speed).

I am going to try new batteries with the Speed sensor...

[m444ttb]

The Edge 500 is a piece of st in my opinion. It's the worst Garmin device i've owned. Mine is hopeless at rememering any of the sensors linked to it. The sensors themselves all work well with my 920XT and will hopefully work well with the Edge 1000 i just bought.

[E65Ross]

My heart rate monitor seems to be playing up. Was riding a very gentle ride yesterday and at the end my heart rate went to 139 up a long hill which was about right.... But as I cruised down the hill my heart rate suddenly shot up to 155 which wasn't right. This morning on a gentle ride the readings on my edge 1000 even went blank momentarily..... I've washed the strap and have got new batteries to try but it's not even 6 months old..... Weird!

[anonymous-user]

I've been running the new sensors for a while now with much better reliability to my Garmin 920XT.

My only complaint would be that my rather large feet managed to wear out the rubber band for the cadence sensor in about 30 miles so I cable tied it to the crank instead.

Have you tried wiping and updating the 500 to if it gets any better?

Also keep your phone well away from the sensors and 500, my iPhone used to block the signal between the sensors and the gps unit.