DVO

Discussion in 'Rear Shocks' started by herzalot, Feb 22, 2017.


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  1. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    I am a suspension snob. I expect a shock (and a fork) to do everything. I value precision. I want to think about where I want the bike to go, and have it go there and stay there until I think differently. I want it to absorb repeated hits - be they 2" chatter, foot-deep holes at speed or 4' drops to flat.

    My new DVO Topaz does exactly that. I never notice it. And that is high praise.

    DVO themselves are interesting people. I had a problem adjusting the OTT adjuster on my Diamond fork, so I called them. I spoke with Ronnie Dilan. He told me to let the air out, then do the adjustment, then pump it back up. That worked perfectly. I called him back to tell him it worked, and we spoke for over 20 minutes - after they closed - about injuries, trails we love, gnarly moments in riding and more. It was like we had been riding buddies for years. I wasn't initiating the discussion, Ronnie was.

    That said, I still like my Marzocchi 350 better at speed than my Diamond. Hopefully, I can get the Diamond dialed in. I do like that it does not dive.

    The Topaz however, is probably the best shock I've ridden. Yes, I rode the PUSH 11-6, and it was cool, but not a good match for most riding applications. Cane Creeks are awesome, but I think the Topaz is at least equal, if not better. I do like the climb setting on the Topaz better. I have not ridden the Fox X2.

    I like what DVO is about, and I hope they can keep bringing great products for discerning riders with the accessibility and approachability that they presently exhibit.

    Learn a little about Bryson Martin here. You don't have to listen to 45 minutes to get the gist. 4-5 minutes will suffice.
     
    PATKOUG, Poofighter, Mikie and 11 others like this.
  2. Makoto

    Makoto Member

    Location:
    Costa Mesa
    Name:
    Mike
    @herzalot Since you've spent a good amount of time on both the Topaz and DB Inline, I'd love to hear what you feel are the main differences you have felt between the two shocks on your Tracer. I realize that suspension design and setup may heavily weigh on your thoughts, but I still would like to hear/read them.
     
    Danmtchl and Mikie like this.
  3. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    The CCDB Air - Inline worked great on the Tracer with one large volume reducer band installed. The DVO Topaz feels very similar (I am running one volume reducer on the negative side in the DVO).

    Three improvements with the Topaz over the CC: 1.) The three position switch provides better options than the climb switch on the CC. 2.) The full climb mode on the Topaz is better suited to the Tracer kinematics than the CC climb switch and 3.) the external reservoir minimizes overheating.

    As far as plushness, big hit composure and handling repetitive holes at speed, they are about equal (very good). Neither shock gets high marks from heavy riders (like over 220 lbs). That's probably true of all air suspension, but the standard Cane Creek DB Air CS may be better suited to heavier riders.

    More commentary here.
     
    Danmtchl, PATKOUG and Mikie like this.
  4. UPSed

    UPSed iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Simi Valley
    Name:
    Ed
    Current Bike:
    Niner Jet 9 RDO
    The whole crew at DVO are a bunch of great people. They have a great product and stand behind it 100%. They are always willing to help out if you have any problems. Bryson is very active on social media and always makes his "followers" feel like a part of the family.
     
  5. BeckTrex

    BeckTrex Member

    Location:
    Yorba Linda, Ca
    Name:
    Mark
    Current Bike:
    2009 Giant Trance X3
  6. da big hills

    da big hills iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    pearl harbor
    Name:
    cagey
    Current Bike:
    enduro 29
    I have seen their van parked in Correganville, the crew was riding the G spot and getting lifts to the bottom of Rocky Peak. I do not believe in gravity assist and ride up stage coach and then drop the bird
     
    Danmtchl and UPSed like this.
  7. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    If you are doing laps testing product and doing data acquisition, uplifts are allowed. (See "The MtB Rules" Rule 14). Uplifts may never be a motorized bicycle, however.
     
    Danmtchl and UPSed like this.
  8. scottay

    scottay Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Gods Country
    Name:
    Scottay
    .
    Does Strava count?
    .
    .
     
    Danmtchl likes this.
  9. DVO = badass
    I am fully onboard

    2005-2013
    I was a RockShox fork fan. Pike, Boxxer, Lyrik back to. I did not believe there was anything better. I became accustomed to the way the High Speed/Low Speed dampers worked and enjoyed them.
    The FOX forks I test road and demo'd were always smooth and fine, maybe a little "muddy" feeling for lack of a better word. I never owned any FOX forks.

    On the rear for air shocks the old FOX RP23's tuned by PUSH worked awesome for me on two separate bikes. For DH I had a Mazzochi ROCO coil that worked to my needs just fine, simple and reliable and not having some of the old FOX DX4.0 AND 5.0 Tuning issues that sparked the entire custom tuning marketplace.

    Some Manitou stuff I had was terrible... tough era.

    2016-now
    I demo'd or rented 6 different bikes. All the FOX stuff felt good, the RS stuff fine also. Overall, did not feel like much changed since 2008 besides getting more expensive.

    2017
    This time around I took a huge risk with DVO, bought a Diamond and a Topaz having never ridden one.
    So far, it's kind of amazing. it's just works. they are quite, very fine adjustments, and I just can't find much to talk about. Which is strange for me because I am notoriously picky about suspension set up. I echo that the small DVO team of Ronnie, and both Bryson's have been helpful to me which is gold.
     
  10. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    Funny, that's exactly how I have described my Topaz here and on MTBR. The highest praise of a suspension snob: "I don't notice it..."

    I am not as smitten with my Diamond, but there's still some adjusting I can do. I am comparing to my beloved Marzocchi 350 and not to Pike or Fox 36.
     
    Danmtchl and PATKOUG like this.
  11. "the climb mode worked great. I expected it to be too firm and not allow the rear to track the rough stuff. It let the bike settle a little into its travel, and seemed to track the ground very well."

    I second your quote here @herzalot
    I feel like the diamond does this also in "6" low speed.

    And the side mounted 3 position lever is such an easy reach on my foes. Alough I think I can run it open or trail almost always
     
    Danmtchl, herzalot and PATKOUG like this.
  12. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    Red and green, just in time for Xmas:
    upload_2021-12-16_11-11-4.jpeg

    Feels pretty dang supple for an air shock, around the block. Trail test soonish
     
  13. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    Danmtchl likes this.
  14. Danmtchl

    Danmtchl iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    Bakersfield
    Name:
    Dan
    Current Bike:
    2020 Trek Fuel EX 9.7
    When I got my Fuel, I wanted to go with DVO, I call my friend Geoff there and he said it would be a couple of weeks. They never came and I decided to go with Rock Shox. One of these days I will get to try some of there stuff out. Always here good things.
     
    UPSed likes this.
  15. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    Tested it out on car wreck before work today. So far seems Topaz has got to be the most supple coil-like air shock out there. Maybe edges out the xfusion vector by a hair, which is another one that works well for heavier riders due to its huge air chamber and many external adjustments. Topaz is more supple off the top despite much higher pressure for same 30% sag ( 230 psi vs 130 in vector) and seems to have a tad more mid-stroke support. I was a little worried after seeing reviews saying it bobbed when climbing even in firm mode, which did not happen on my Rune (high anti-squat) so I don’t feel the need to add a volume spacer to the negative chamber, and used 80% of travel on a conservative run down car wreck (I didn’t do the huck) so probably don’t need to add one to positive, more testing needed for that.
    Love the simplicity, future home-serviceability, and the climb switch instead of spinning the lsc dial; and hated the inconvenient location of the rebound knob on the vector air. Love my vector coil though, never giving that up, will be spare or for Summit
     
  16. herzalot

    herzalot iMTB Hooligan

    Location:
    Laguna Beach
    Name:
    Chris
    Current Bike:
    2020 Revel Rail,Yeti SB 130 LR
    Glad you like it. Thought you might. I liked mine a lot.
     
    Danmtchl likes this.
  17. sir crashalot

    sir crashalot iMTB Rockstah

    Location:
    laguna beach
    Name:
    gary fishman
    Current Bike:
    2018 banshee rune
    upload_2023-4-15_20-45-9.jpeg
    i dunno why it took me till now to figure out this zip tie ghetto method of adding a 4th comp setting that feels like just adding a few clicks
     
  18. Bluesrider

    Bluesrider Well-Known Member

    Location:
    Newbury Park Ca.
    Name:
    Todd
    Current Bike:
    Santa Cruz Hightower
    I’m on the DVO Onyx D1 set at 160mm and love it, great riding fork. I may bump the travel to 170mm just to give it a try. Plan to get the new Topaz rear shock soon.
     


As a former Amazon Associate I continue to get screwed trying to stay qualified as an Amazon Affiliate. So I quit!


Want to donate to imtbtrails?