TCU to Mastermind TCU Upgrade
- Thread starter mfd14534
- Start date
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Welcome aboard! This might be a start, at least on the hardware side:
The included links may lead to the info you really want.
The included links may lead to the info you really want.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
You'll get MicroTune and a plethora of TCU display information but you'd lose the compatibility with BLEvo App. The later is a no-go for me as I need to know all the details of my Vado SL internals, especially the true state of my batteries (main and range extenders).
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Unfortunately, many Mastermind features are accessed or adjusted via the app, including which info is displayed on the TCU and where. You'd learn a lot just by playing around with the app, but the app has to be paired with a specific physically present bike before it will let you see any of that.
Have a friend with a Mastermind bike who'll let you look at her app?
Have a friend with a Mastermind bike who'll let you look at her app?
Allan47.7339
Well-Known Member
Alternatively you can start at the Specialized Support Site article: Specialized-MasterMind-TCU-Feature-Overview and follow the link to a second page MasterMind Display Metrics & Symbols
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Agree. That was my recommendation in Post #2 above. But you still need to see the app in action to get a full view of the Mastermind operating system. Especially the settings sections under the Bikes tab.
With the full view, Mastermind becomes even more desirable.
Allan47.7339
Well-Known Member
I alternate between a Creo 1 with original TCU and a Creo 2 with Mastermind TCU. The battery percent is nice but I would not upgrade for that. I very rarely use the app except to set battery mode or check charge cycles. The MM display is too far down to be much safe use while riding, other than a quick glance of battery level. It's a good way to crash looking down at the MM display too much. I 100% use a Garmin for navigating and riding statistics. I am almost always following a route other than the ride to/from some ride starts.
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Our experiences differ on several fronts. I'm still tweaking my default (Universal) assist modes and TCU data layout, all of which must be done in the app.
I've also opted to forego a Garmin or Wahoo for now and use the app on a phone on my bars for ride recording, basic mapping, ride analysis, and ride transfer to RideWithGPS for further analysis.
Not ideal, of course, but it works well enough that I'm in no hurry to spend $400+ for a separate computer. Better uses for that money right now.
Agree that you shouldn't keep your eyes on the TCU too long, but the glances I feel safe with are plenty long enough to make the TCU a very useful display.
For starters, the TCU's bright and crisp and easy to read in any light. Vastly easier to read than my phone screen. This is my semi-custom page 1 of 3, the startup page. The 0.0 is ground speed.
Custom page 2 of 3, the one I glance at most by far. The TCU's capable of showing many if not most of the data items you'd want a Wahoo or Garmin to show you, though not all at once.
Current custom page 3 of 3. The info I choose to put here changes from time to time. The app makes it very easy. More pages are available, but I prefer just 3.
NB: My Vado SL 1 is a 5.0. Not sure what features you'll get with your 4.0.
Last edited:
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
Mastermind is same for any SL e-bike version.
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Please let us know what you decide and how it works out.
The upgrade went well. I was surprised on how bright the display is. It's very easy to see in bright sunlight or shade. It seems like all of the typical Mastermind features are there. Microtune is pretty nice and I find myself using it frequently.
The only issue is that my Wahoo Bolt 2 stopped displaying the battery level. It displays the range OK but not the level. According to Wahoo support this is a known issue but didn't get fixed in the latest update a few days ago.
Overall I'm very happy with the upgrade!
The only issue is that my Wahoo Bolt 2 stopped displaying the battery level. It displays the range OK but not the level. According to Wahoo support this is a known issue but didn't get fixed in the latest update a few days ago.
Overall I'm very happy with the upgrade!
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
As I can understand, you at least have the battery level at the TCU 2 screen?
Hopefully, Wahoo would make a fix. Sometimes it takes a month...
Yes battery level is displayed on the TCU2 screen.
Jeremy McCreary
Bought it anyway
- Region
- USA
- City
- Carlsbad, CA
Glad it worked out!
I have experience only with Mastermind. Coming from Mission Control, what would say are the best reasons to upgrade — besides the display and MicroTune?
I use the new Specialized app not Mission Control. I didn’t think Mission Control was still available.
The Mastermind is not an upgrade that I would say is mandatory. If you like to have data available to you during your ride it’s great. I have a few customized screens set up that I use frequently. I always thought that the basic TCU should have some basic data displayed and it seemed a bit like a downgrade.
Stefan Mikes
Gravel e-biker
- Region
- Europe
- City
- Mazovia, PL
I have the e-bike data I really need on my Wahoo (connected to a TCU 1 Vado SL). Not upgrading to Mastermind allows me using BLEvo, which gives me a total insight into the state of my batteries.
