DVO ONYX D1 38 SL FORK REVIEW

38^TH  TIMES THE CHARM

Words by Drew Rohde  |  Photos by Cole Gregg

Several months ago DVO released their new 38mm chassis enduro fork. We were excited for the opportunity to review DVO’s Onyx D1 38 fork and see how it compared to their 36mm chassis forks and more importantly, to other enduro forks on the market. The Onyx 38 fork is packed with newness from DVO and we’ll review each of the new technologies, construction and design elements below.

ABOUT THE DVO ONYX D1 38 SL

We’d already been riding the Onyx for about two months before we had the opportunity to talk with DVO’s Bryson Martin Jr at Sea Otter Classic. Our impressions had been made, but we wanted to ask questions around the performance, goals set forth by DVO and how this fork differs from their outgoing product.

CHASSIS | “We wanted something very stiff for steering precision, but also realized there are downsides from an overly stiff chassis,” Martin Jr. told us. “Our crew worked on everything from the lower legs, to the crown and of course the unique-looking arch,” he continued.

When DVO set out to create the new 38mm fork, they knew the market was demanding more. Customers wanted DVO to step up, it seems they have delivered. They focused on what they’re calling a “One Unit Chassis Design.” This philosophy led them to design the fork as a single unit, rather than a fork that they just beefed up in certain areas. “We didn’t want an overly stiff casting on the legs to mate up with a flexy crown pulled from another fork. It would yield unpredictable performance and so we stepped back and designed the entire fork to work together as a single chassis, with no one area needing to be oversized to compensate for another area,” Martin Jr. told us.

By far one of the most interesting aspects of the new DVO 38mm fork is the arch. It’s a very wide arch with a unique shape, and was designed to offer specific flex patterns in certain scenarios. DVO’s goal was to deliver stiffness where you need it without the deflection or abuse when you don’t.

The dual hollow bore crown design features variable wall-thickness that also helps tune the chassis’ flex and compliance properties. DVO also uses an oversized crown-race platform which puts more material around the steerer tube, to further aid in steering precision.

DAMPER | Also new on the Onyx 38 fork is the updated D1 damper. DVO told us the goal there was to improve their damper’s ability to remain open under high-speed impacts. “We’ve always had a slightly more progressive damper feel, but the downside to that is sometimes it can feel harsh under high speed hits. Some riders have noted compression spikes and so we wanted to rework the damper to truly open up and let that front wheel get out of the way as fast as possible,” Martin Jr explained.

How did they improve the D1 damper’s ability to remain open and active during high-speed hits? Well, by pretty much changing the entire layup. Porting has been changed, shim stacks have changed, needle profiles are different and DVO also modified the tunes in both compression and rebound profiles. The result was to create a more linear and plusher feel with higher-flow while also increasing the size of their Compression Bladder System by 30% for improved small bump sensitivity.

Another new option from DVO is the SL (Super-Light) air system. It’s a self-equalizing, dual-air chamber system that offers weight savings over the negative coil-sprung OTT system and simplified setup. For riders looking to set and forget, the SL option will likely be the way to go, as it offers nearly the same performance off the top, with roughly 80-90-gram weight savings. This weight drop is not exactly ride changing on a nearly 2,500-gram fork, but every bit helps.

THE DIRT | HOW DOES THE DVO ONYX D1 38 SL RIDE?

My first rides on board the fork were in dry, dusty Costa Rica, during a week-long trip of shuttle rides in the jungle. The first day had some highs and lows. I really liked certain aspects, but was unhappy with how it performed on certain portions of the tracks we were shuttling. I spent the better part of the first afternoon adjusting air pressures, volume reducers as well as compression and rebound settings. After three rounds of tuning adjustments, I found a happy baseline and was ready to start the real testing process.

I found the fork to be rather progressive when landing bigger drops or jumps, meaning I was not getting close to using full travel. While that may be alright for race runs, it wasn’t what I wanted for my daily riding in a foreign land. While the final tune was a departure from what I’d been expecting, once I let go of what I thought I needed and went off of feel, I loved it.

Settings | I sit at 180-185lbs, and have a preference for a supple fork that remains buttery off the top, yet offers a nice platform for pushing and popping out of berms and off of lips. I found a nice blend of feel around 68-76 PSI, depending on the trails. I ran the compression at 25 clicks from fully closed, there are 28 available. On low speed compression I was at 2 or 3 clicks (of 5) from fully closed, depending on how steep the trails were. Out of the 25 available adjustments from fully closed, my rebound sat at 16 clicks.

Downhill Performance | After getting my setup dialed in, I was more in tune with the feel and feedback the fork was giving me. Without sounding too cliché, and reminding the readers that I had my opinion made up long before I ever spoke to Bryson or the DVO crew, my feelings were almost exactly what DVO claims to deliver. The fork offers a very precise and solid platform to steer, load and push into, however it wasn’t abusive either. Sure, it’s a stiff fork and does like to be told what to do, but I found it to me more damped – mostly in terms of vibration frequencies – than other competitors. Could it be the extra weight and material in the legs absorbing the buzz? Quite possibly, but either way, it was welcome on long days of shuttling or extended descents. Aside from the portly weight, I am extremely pleased with the performance of the chassis and how it handles forces from all directions. It corners well, it performs nicely under hard braking and won’t do weird stuff when you’re pushing hard or just coasting along.

When it comes to the new damper and SL air system, my enjoyment remains. I have noticed the compression spike, or stiffness on other DVO products, especially when hitting sharp obstacles that you may not have seen or are unexpected. Riding new trails blind, and often with a veil of powdery dust, I was able to test the D1 SL’s ability to remain open and active many times. I can’t tell you how many times I’d dive into a steep corner following our tour guide only hoping to avoid the boulders I had seen just before we hid them behind his rear wheel. When I did inevitably hit some of those rocks, I felt the front wheel come up and get out of the way without the dreaded hand shock or subsequent shift of body weight pushing my chest forward up over the bars.

HOW DOES IT COMPARE?

Fox 38 vs RockShox Zeb vs DVO Onyx 38 D1 SC | Comparing the DVO Onyx 38 to the market leading Fox 38 and RockShox Zeb was pretty easy in some respects and more challenging in others. Just as the Fox and RockShox have their own pros and cons, the DVO Onyx 38 D1 SC has its own unique flavor. We tested the 170mm SL version, which did not offer DVO’s OTT (Off The Top) negative spring system. This meant it was a bit easier to set up, saved some weight but also offered a slightly less sensitive feel than its OTT twin. Was it noticeable? Not enough to where I wouldn’t opt for the SL version. In fact, I think I prefer it. Of course, that’s not really fair comparison as my only experience on OTT forks is on older 36mm forks. This is an entirely new beast and performs as such.

I’d rank the suppleness off the top to be right between the Fox and RockShox offerings. It’s a strange mix as the liveliness feels more Fox, but the effort you need to push into the fork, feels more RockShox. That may not make sense to riders who haven’t spent as much time pressing on forks back to back, but it was actually a blend that I really liked! I love the suppleness of the Fox forks; you may remember our Zeb vs 38 review a while back where I picked the 38 as my winner. What I have found though is that plushness can go a bit deeper into the travel than I’d like, leading to some struggles in finding the right ride height and low-speed compression settings or ramp up. The DVO feels more like the Fox initially but transforms to more of a RockShox progressive feel.

Comparing the DVO Onyx D1 SL to the Fox Factory 38 or RockShox Lyrik Ultimate purely on its performance and on-trail behaviors, this fork is absolutely a contender. There are some instances where this would be my number one fork choice, and others where I would give the edge to a Fox or RockShox unit. What does that mean? Well, I guess it means that depending on what type of feeling you prefer from your suspension and your terrain, this fork could be a very welcome upgrade, or it may not be as good as what you currently have. Ultimately it’s a very good product and when you get to this tier of performance, the real differentiator becomes the rider and their preferences. It’s a top-tier performer and during the four months that I’ve been riding, I have been very pleased and look forward to riding more.

Moving beyond the on-trail aspects of the fork, it is undeniably heavier (2,450) than the other two with the Zeb tipping scales just over 2,300 and the Fox sitting just below 2,200, but not enough to where we felt it detracted from the ride. Sure, we’d love if it were 100 grams lighter, but it may not offer some of the riding qualities we like so much either. As far as durability goes, the fork still performs well, isn’t weeping oil and looks good as new. It’s not making any weird noises and seems to be poised for a long life of abuse. If anything changes on that front we will update this review, but for now, it seems the fork’s price tag, performance and weight are within an acceptable range of the competition.

The Wolf’s Last Word

If you’re looking for another option in the 38mm enduro fork department, the DVO Onyx D1 SL fork is one we have been thoroughly enjoying. I would be happy to see this fork on plenty more test bikes coming through the shop and it will stay put on the front of my personal rig as well.

Price: $1,174
Website: DVOsuspension.com