Traction, tracking, chassis stiffness, mid-stroke support, range of damping adjustment, independence of damping circuits, and ease of setup. It was getting nearly impossible to differentiate one top-end long-travel suspension fork from another without the most persnickety pseudoscientific justifications of personal preference. Even then, the nature of mass production should always lead one to question if teensy weensy ‘wins’ come down to minuscule manufacturing dissimilitude.
With all due acknowledgment that I am not a great rider, reviewing top-end products against top-end products, especially in a short-term format, was beginning to feel like a bit of a charlatan’s game. Sure, in big-single-crown-fork world, I preferred the Manitou Mezzer Pro over a similarly boutique-level Zeb or Fox 38, and I could qualify why, but at the end of the day, for someone who rides a lot, the quality of local service and support is going to outweigh any difference in on-trail experience for 95%+ of folks riding bikes. And that definitely includes me.
Mood
That is one factor, along with just (really, really) not wanting to give it back, that has so delayed my DVO Onyx fork review. I get along well with more basic dampers on mid-level forks and I really enjoy my own SR Suntour Durolux EQ fork, and that always makes justifying the next cost step a bit difficult when looking at the price jump to brands’ top-end setups. But, if I were buying a big fork tomorrow, I could justify the boost from a more basic fork to this US$1150 DVO and I would choose it over any of the competing products I have ridden. But knowing and explaining are different matters.
Luckily for me, the promotional prophets have added a new metric to suspension measurement. That is, of course, mood. And I have to say, not only does the new SL Air Spring and re-worked D1 Damper make this Onyx fork happier than all previous DVO efforts, but I think this is the happiest fork on the market. It’s Italian-Marzocchi-Monster-T-as-you-remember-it plush off the top with no harshness, even with my preference for a stiff air-spring setup.
Not to worry though, because the fork transitions seamlessly to provide the combination of spring and damper support that riders running any current fork will expect. Again, I prefer my fork setup to ride quite high for the steep janky trails I enjoy, and the three ‘C’s (control, consistency, and comfort) are all well covered here.
Service
To fully wade into the quagmire of 38mm chassis stiffness, even when it is near-due for a service the DVO does not have the over-stiff feeling that some of its competitors get. To put that into relatable terms, I know several riders who find they service their Zeb or Fox 38 more often than they did their Lyrik or Fox 36 down to how harsh the forks feel near the end of their service interval.
I am not suggesting pushing the time between fork services, merely that someone who is treating service intervals as a suggestion rather than a maximum time between services may find the DVO delivers a better overall experience over that time frame. I don’t have any quantitative way to test this, but DVO accredits it to their ‘one unit chassis design’ where they are taking into consideration competitive expectations for steering precision while working to integrate some amount of compliance*.
{*Someone trying to be funny might call this the “Big Arch, Tiny Dropouts” school of chassis design)
Also on the service front, Pope Jimmy at SuspensionWerx pulled this fork apart with me just past the 50-hr range. The oil was still clean in the lowers and the damper and the fork still felt out of the box smooth to me, but I did notice a minor improvement in smoothness when I put it back on my bike.
I will note here that DVO has a fantastic service manual, for folks who want to teardown their forks at home or are just curious about what the process entails. They recommend a full service every 100 hours of riding. Some bike brands have pushed this interval as a marketing exercise, but in terms of both performance and longevity, it is a good rule to service your fork and shock every 100 hours of riding or yearly, whichever comes first. You will absolutely notice a difference in performance at that point.
Setup
As with other luxury-level trail utensils, the new D1 damper has a massive range of adjustments that should be adjustable to suit any rider’s weight or style. In my experience (185lb rider, multiple bikes) the fork is very easy to dial in. I started with 18% sag and the factory-recommended suspension settings and have returned to the factory range every time I have taken it upon myself to play with different setups.
One VERY IMPORTANT note aside from ye olde recommendation to RTFM is that the low-speed compression (LSC) and high-speed compression (HSC) knobs turn in different directions. I have talked to a couple of folks who thought they were running factory settings but had been counting from ‘open’ instead of ‘closed.’
As an aside, closed is closed. So unless specifically specified by a manufacturer for their product, always track your suspension settings from closed (slow) out, whether it is turns or clicks. It’s not just the current trend, it has been the right way of doing things forever.
{Above photo, and other action photos, courtesy Steve & Meg @ Hardtail.Life}
I am continuing to run zero air volume spacers but I understand that there are riders, including lighter weight riders than me, who do run 1-2. This comes down to air pressure and some riders preferring significantly softer setups. DVO recommends a sag range from 15-30% and for riders who prefer a 25-30% range the fork likely not be as progressive as they would prefer without adding spacers.
The LSC setting has five positions. On the full suspension rig (Transition Spire) I was running -4 and -3 from closed. On the hardtails (Marinster Truck & Arcturian) I was running -3 and -2 from closed. I have played around with rebound damping between the various bikes but my air pressure has remained approximately the same.
Teardown
Thanks to my friend James at SuspensionWerx for helping out with this teardown of the Onyx. In the busiest months of the year no less. I imagine most folks expect premium forks to have premium internals but it’s always nice to have a look inside.
The biggest differentiator between the Onyx and DVO’s past top-end D1 damped forks is oil volume, which has increased 30% but the brand has also extensively re-worked the internals to improve oil flow and reduce seal friction as much as possible. For example, it is ridiculous how much smoother the damper shaft glides through the latest seals.
In addition to the new damper and air system, and the focus on reducing stiction, two factors adding to the smoothness of the Onyx are the simple two-bolt floating axle setup and the factory-sized bushings. The lowers glide beautifully on the stanchions.
Without getting too much into different brands’ philosophies, I like that the bushings on the DVO lowers are replaceable. In my opinion, this is a key feature in owning the smoothest riding fork for the longest number of years. And, with the combination of a solid reputation for after-sale support, high-quality internals, and a lesser focus on weight savings (the SL moniker is beautifully ironic as it was with Marzocchi-Marzocchi – we are talking about ~5.5lb eeb-rated forks here), this is a fork that riders can expect to treat as a long term investment.
Ride
‘Awesome forks are awesome’ is probably insufficient for what the average consumer of mountain bicycle part reviews is looking for but I cannot offer you that the Onyx will make you faster or more steezy. I do think, especially for folks pushing their service intervals, that this is the most comfortable big-chassis option but if someone said “Why not save weight and get a less-stiff 170mm 36mm stanchion fork then?” I would have a hard time shooting wings off flies justifying the choice.
For current DVO fans or folks who wanted to be fans but never really worked their heads around setting up the previous OTT air spring system, the SL represents a performance improvement in a simpler package. It delivers on the thaumaturgic promise of super-plushness off the top with a seamless transition to meeting any rider’s expectations for mid-stroke support.
That is not to say the previous generation’s forks are not/were not great or are not worthy of continued use and service. It is simply that most folks I know looking to DVO for aftermarket suspension are drawn to the focus on a plush ride, without sacrificing support, and the new D1 SL setup delivers.
The D1 SL is a fork where any rider will notice the difference that the HSC adjustment range makes in sharp impacts, especially when deep in the travel and hard on the brakes. Whether that makes the fork a worthy investment over a more budget-friendly option with less adjustment, or less usable adjustment, is going to be a personal decision.
FTWIMC
For to whom it may concern, a small percentage of the tiny number of folks who read MEATengines, I’m sure, the Onyx lowers can fit a 29×2.8″ tire, with the fender installed, with plenty of breathing room. On the Chromag I am running a WTB 29×2.8″ Vigilante on an i40 RaceFace ARC rim. It is at 15psi with a CushCore Pro insert and the tire and fork work seamlessly together.
I realized as I was writing this that I was remiss not to plug in a 29×3″ XR4 just to see if it works – that tire does clear in my Durolux – so I will try to update that information here before I return the fork.
It is rare to use full travel on a hardtail, especially running low sag, but I have just barely kissed the end of the line on a couple occasions of particular tomfoolery. Usually, I’ll finish a ride with about 20-25mm of travel unused. Perfect in my book, and something anyone riding a hardtail is likely familiar with.
Also in the hardtail line of thinking, the D1 damper is fantastically stapler-affect free. Running 170mm travel on a hardtail, this has been my best experience in terms of having a fork soft enough to find traction over grabby-greasy rooted tendrils but that rides consistently through the travel and stands up under hard braking. Of the forks I have ridden, only the Mezzer rides higher without becoming harsh, but the Onyx is the more comfortable option.
The End.
Here in Vancouver, whether independent or brand-owned, we are blessed that well-equipped and well-trained service centers for nearly every suspension brand are within easy driving distance. Easy pedaling distance in many cases.
This represents a cost savings over needing to ship suspension for service, but also a ready opportunity to ask about, in the case of outfits servicing and selling multiple brands, for open advice on which fork best suits your honest expectations for performance, service costs, and ownership term.
I understand that computation may be different for folks less endowed with factory-approved service centers, without a local shop focusing on suspension, or without the space and experience to tackle a fork service themselves. I would always recommend considering the suspension service situation when buying a fork or a complete bike. That might be the difference maker that has you choosing one great option over another.
I have ridden a lot of great forks and would be privileged, from a performance perspective, to own any of them. But this is 2024.5 and thankfully, as noted above, mood is the new key differentiator between products (maybe that’s why the Onyx SL comes in three colours – black, green, and grey?).
So maybe the DVO isn’t the “angriest” fork on the market; it still handles trails awesomely when riding in anger (or terror). But it is my candidate for the happiest, most pleasant, boutique big-single-crown fork option and I would be surprised if any rider did not get along with it immediately.
The Onyx D1 38 SL is available at your preferred local bike shop, direct from DVO or any of their service centers.
Postscript:
Due to losing my gig, I will be finishing a few BikeMag reviews here at MEATengines (and hopefully taking on a few more reviews in the future). I am aiming for the same quality and accountability that I would expect from myself in a professional setting. As the readership here is small, if you enjoyed this piece I would certainly appreciate you sharing it with other folks you think will get something from it as well.
If you are interested in my first look at this D1 38 SL, it is still live at BikeMag/AndrewMajor.
Any questions, or concerns, about this piece or in general please feel encouraged to drop me an e-mail.
Welcome to MEATengines, I hope you enjoyed this piece. If you did, please consider buying me a coffee. Any questions, concerns, or comments – or to order a MEATengines water bottle – feel encouraged to drop me an e-mail, or join us at r/MEATengines.