9 Peak Pro Paired with HR Strap

Chris Conway

So I decided to us a Polar H10 with the 9 Peak Pro, it paired without issue, however, there were some strange issues with the way the device recorded the HR data.

I used it during an indoor cycling workout and the entire time it would only show me a HR value of 126BPM, this didn’t vary at all during the session.

Once the workout was complete, I popped open the Suunto app and reviewed the workout there, the HR graph looked 100% normal, it varied from around 90BPM to over 180BPM, however the average and max HR values recorded are both listed as 126BPM and it says I spent 100% of my time in zone 1.

I should note this is the 3rd workout I’ve done with an external sensor paired and this has happened every time.

Has anyone else ran into this?

zhang965

Have you contacted polar support?

isazi

@Chris-Conway first time I hear something like this, there are so many users using the H10 here.

Chris Conway

@zhang965 Not as of yet, as it records the data fine (I’ve used it multiple times with both an AW and a garmin in the past), I’ve also broadcasted my Whoop HR to the 9PP and it has the same results, as above, so it is not the polar strap that is the issue.

Chris Conway

@isazi Yeah it’s kind of a strange issue, maybe I’ll try resetting the 9PP and I’ll see if that changes, it’s odd that it’s happened with 2 separate external straps now.

isazi

@Chris-Conway if any external HR monitor has the same behavior, there is something wrong with your watch definitely. It can be just a strange bug that no other people seem to have reported, so a reset of the watch may help, or something wrong with your watch, and in that case I would contact support for investigation/replacement.

Jugger

I have to say my S9PP with Polar H10 have similar issues. Watch might show really low heartbeat like 36 for many minutes. Then suddenly 173. Sometimes it might even show it right I just changed battery from H10 but no effect. I had same kind of problem already with S9P but then battery change helped.

Here’s my stats from todays run. Mostly watch showed beat between 80-100 which is way too low for real measurement. I’m suprised how different data looks in SA as I didn’t see it so on watch while running. Also max. Bpm differ 141 vs 178 on graph.

Should I try soft reset?

isazi

@Jugger very interesting, if there are multiple cases of this maybe logs after the activity would be good, and I’ll open a ticket with Suunto.

Jugger

@isazi I sent log ten minutes ago.

I can’t rely my belt for now. Good thing is that watch own measuring works really good so I use that for now.

isazi

@Jugger send me an email, I need to know your username and the app version you are using.

MKPotts

@Jugger
Are you certain there isn’t a problem with the belt? The HR graph appearance and the behaviour you (and @Chris-Conway) describe with the values displayed on the watch, are exactly what I was seeing using an H10 with a S9B and S9P. The problem was the belt, after 4-5 months of daily use.
Can you check the r-r interval plot using Runalyze (or any other tool that shows this data) to determine if the belt is ok? Or, if not, use the dual Bluetooth output on the H10 to send the data to your S9PP and another device at the same time?
Cleaning my belt very thoroughly helped for a short while but the problem kept coming back. In the end I switched to a Polar Verity Sense and haven’t had any problems since.

Jugger

@MKPotts Actually I did buy new belt maybe a year ago. Old was already wrinkled. It might be that they last but a year in active use. It has no visible damage but something might be wrong with it.

I shall try record next run with Suunto and Polar beat to see if it’s acting up with both.

I always thought EKG is better than optical measure. Is it safe to switch to Verity sense? Is it really working well?

MKPotts

@Jugger
My Verity Sense has been flawless since I got it in August (used about 140 times since then). It’s as accurate as a chest strap as far as I can tell, has never mis-read or lost connection and doesn’t suffer from the limitations of wrist OHR (so isn’t affected by arm movement, skin temperature / blood flow, cadence lock etc). It’s really quick and easy to put on and comfortable (I wear mine on my upper arm).
The only time I think a chest strap might be preferable is if you’re doing very short, high intensity intervals/efforts a lot, when the faster response of a belt might be beneficial (but the Verity Sense is still more than good enough for me).
Hope this helps if it is your H10 strap that is faulty / worn out. I got tired of failing straps after going through 3 Suunto belts before the H10 (which lasted longer but still became unreliable in the same way).

Bradleyd

@Jugger - two quick questions:

are you using a SuuntoPlus Sports App with the training?
what happens if you restart the watch using the soft-reset ( top right button held for 12 seconds )

I have a similar issue, where the HR value in the training screen is not updating, or is not accurate, but the HR time series shows up correctly in SuuntoApp. There are some other things going on, too, but in my case the incorrect HR data field seems to happen most often when a Sports App is included in the training.

freeheeler

@Jugger said in 9 Peak Pro Paired with HR Strap:

Is it safe to switch to Verity sense? Is it really working well?

same as @MKPotts , I’ve changed to verity sense last april and haven’t had an issue with it since.
very accurate and for my personal taste much more comfortable than the chest belt.

Jugger

@Bradleyd 1. I was using Burner at that time. I usually put it on for my normal run.
2. I haven’t reset my watch after latest firmware update.

I could try to pinpoint problem by not using any S+ apps on my next runs. If it has no effect then soft reset.
Also watches logbook is showing different bpm on watch than SA.

TonyG

I used to get results like this all the time with S9P and H10, I brought it up numerous times in this forum and there was never a solution.
I even went with a coros to try and suss out what was happening, as the H10 could connect to two watches at the same time.

what my tests showed was and not just H10 but also Suunto Smart belt , was the BPM would drop for a second then the Watch was unable to pick it back up in good time, often taking up to 10 minutes before picking back up again.

I confirmed this with both a Coros (which dropped at the same time) but was able to pick up again within a second or two, tested again with a Garmin 945 (still use this) and same again, it dropped the bpm at the same time but Suunto couldnt pick up the bpm rhythm for some time, Garmin like Coros picked it back up again after a couple of seconds.

Now I also looked at what was causing HR Belts to drop a beat or two in the first place (trying to get at the source of the problem) and discovered the best method to avoid dropping BPMs was to adjust how I positioned the sensor, I followed a few hints from folks here, like; Wetting fully the belt, using a conductive gel, but ultimately what solved the problem was to position the main sensor under my left nipple (male) so the pads were extending way around the side of my body, since making this change I have never dropped a bpm with Suunto watch or any other brand avoiding the issue of the watch not being able to recover from a dropped R-R or HRV Pulse or whatever it is monitoring in the first place.

Hope this helps

Bradleyd

@TonyG The strap sensor positioning is great advice, thank you for sharing!

Łukasz Szmigiel · S9PP 2.37.48

I also had plenty of drops with my H10 and S9PP this winter. I’ve fixed it with ECG gel. Also, runalyze plot is a great advice for debugging HR sensor problems as you’ll quickly see any anomalies.

Jugger

@TonyG You were right about position of the belt. I tried it for two past runs and I got steady performance. First one was with variable terrain and second steady paced run. There’s no hiccups on graphs. I was using Polar beat at the same time and they both show same bpm. Thank you for your tip