Trinx M166 29er Upgrade Path - Part 2

I forgot to update this post. Shortly after part one, I upgraded the groupset. We tried the Cobra trail at Filinvest and with my non-existent bike skills, I couldn't even make it up past the first uphill. I needed bigger gears. The stock cogs are 7-speed  14-28s. I wanted to keep costs down, so the best compromise was an 11-50 10-speed.

The downside to buying a cheap bike is that you will have to upgrade everything just to upgrade one thing. My cogs were threaded, so I needed to upgrade my hubs to be able to fit a cassette-type freewheel. I also had to upgrade my rear derailleur, of course, to match the new cassette. My shifters also had to be upgraded, but I had combo shifters (brakes are integrated with the shifters), so I had to get new brakes, too. I went with a 1x10 setup, but I did forego splurging on a bottom bracket just to keep costs down.

Here is the parts list:

Weapon 11-50 cassette

LTWOO A7 Elite RD (Make sure to get the Elite, or long cage version. The regular version will only accommodate up to 46 IIRC)

LTWOO A7 shifter

Ragusa XM-500 hubs

Ragusa crank

Deckas 34T oval chainring (oval cranks = game changer)

Shimano MT-200 hydraulic brakes

I also added a long seat post (400mm) from FMFXTR.

All in all, I've spent around 8k just for the upgrades above. Yikes. Remember that the bike cost 6.3k new, plus I already spent over 1k on the cockpit. That brings me to around 15k spent on the bike. Still waaaay cheaper than an entry level Giant, Trek, or Merida bike. Those bikes cost about 25k new. My bike may not have the prestige of those three, but I can run circles around them.

The last upgrade on my list would be the bottom bracket. My square type bracket is about to give, so I'll be upgrading to some hollowtechs soon.

But…I'm also thinking of getting either an air fork or a rigid fork. I think a butterfly bar and a rigid fork would look cool.

How to connect a MIDI keyboard and headset to an iPhone

I've been using GarageBand on my phone to make music on the go since it came out on iOS. Since Apple did away with the headphone jack, I couldn't connect a headphone and a MIDI keyboard at the same time. Google didn't have a definitive answer for me. Or at least the answer that I wanted (i.e. cheap). Most videos and articles suggested that I buy a USB audio interface, which is around a hundred dollars and quite bulky. I was surprised that my problem was an uncommon one, but I found a solution.

You'll need the following:

1. Lightning to USB adapter

2. USB sound card hub

3. A monitor and/or mic with 3.5mm jacks

4. Your choice of MIDI keyboard

5. And of course, your iPhone 

Plug everything together, and that's it! This is the most compact and most cost effective solution that I can think of. 

Below is my on-the-go setup. I am currently using an iPhone SE 2020 which has a painfully small screen, so the MIDI keyboard is a must. As you can see, the peripherals are tiny enough to carry in one hand. This is perfect to take on vacations, and in case you get inspired to make music in your hotel room or on a long car ride.

Pasig for the win!

I got vaccinated just a week after filling out the online form! Shoutout to Pinagbuhatan Elementary School (PES) and the Barangay Pinagbuhatan people for maintaining an orderly vaccination program. The barangay tanods were very helpful and courteous. There was even a secure bike rack. I was done in 30 minutes after arriving!

#pasig #pinagbuhatan #PES