Marin DSX 1 - Off-road MTB Trail Review

Marin DSX 1 - Off-road MTB Trail Review
Been loving my @marin_bikes DSX 1 Flat Bar Gravel Bike, but today we're going to see how it handles mountain bike trails.

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[marin_bikes]

Nice video, Kyle. You did a great job of showing how a gravel bike (drop bar or flat bar) can make otherwise tame trails a bit more fun when out on skinnier tires and without suspension. Regarding the price hike, it wasn't due to supply and demand, but rather because of the cost of raw materials, components and freight. Even cardboard costs us a lot more than it did last year at this time. Cheers!

[johnstrubinger]

I got my DSX 1 in November 2022 . Absolutely love this bike. It's exactly as stated Made for Fun !

[manabiker]

I have a 2017 Specialized Sequoia, Cromoly steel, I'm putting flat bars on it, I've got Red Shift suspension stem/seatpost on it, I've had it 4 yrs now, I ride mostly gravel in winter in Michigan I put around a thousand miles in every winter/fall/spring, Mountain bike spring/summer/fall. Gravel bikes are evolving, starting with Cyclecross bikes, and now closer to MTBs, flat bars will feel much better, I'll be more at home, and I like the shifter/brakes to be seperate, (why didn't I do this sooner, my rear shifter just stopped working), always wanted to go Flat, can't wait.. Happy Trails

[marksandoval]

I'm a Mountain biker at heart but I love riding Gravel too. However, I prefer things like suspension, flatbars, and wide-range 1x drivetrains. A full-rigid, dropbar Gravelbike is a total no-go for me. For me. The ultimate Gravelbike is a light-weight full-sus XC bike mounted up with fast-rolling Gravel tires. I'm currently riding Gravel on an Epic with 70x43 Gravel King tires. It's very fast on pavement and hardpack but doesn't get overwhelmed on rougher singletrack. It's the ultimate "All-Surface" rig. I frequently do rides that combine pavement, gravel, and easier singletrack. If you have an XC bike, try riding it with Gravel tires? I think you will like it.

[harrygrimley]

One thing I have noticed. No matter what I ride when I'm out on trails I'm always smiling.

[mikep]

Sweet ! Pushing The Boundaries of that Gravel Bike 🤘🏼🤘🏼🤘🏼

[TravelsWithTony]

great stuff. I am strongly considering this as I want an all-round bike. Currently riding a Giant Any Road 2, and that's great for when I want faster rides on better roads (I have it set up more like a road bike) since the geometry is perfect for me. But the Marin looks like a good deal for cobbles and dirt trails and even light touring along the mixed surface trails along the Danube (currently living in Vienna). So your video has me leaning heavily towards getting one and luckily my local dealer just got a few in and I'll be test-driving it tomorrow.

[jasoncarbajal]

Ive owned a DSX-1 for roughly 6 months, even though I havent had a chance to upgrade anything except pedals and grips but it still rips pretty hard. Of all our mtb bike trails, I take it on one trail in particular trail that has been created in the last 2 years it has minimal rock or root exposure, the bike is a blast. For a size L, it seems to have a fairly short wheel base with a nice rake, which makes it super snappy and really easy to control in the trees

[iangustafsson]

Cool review! Gravel bikes definitely breathe life into old trails.

[JaredRMorgan]

Pretty cool seeing you push the limits of what the bike was intended. I had been wanting to take my little gravel build onto some single track, but haven’t yet got the chance.

[MikeM]

Nice video. I ordered a DSX1 two months ago and it may be another two months before I see it.

[caseyholthaus]

Homie, your videos make me want this bike so bad and LBS is searching for a Large and small for my wife and I. I sold my Karate Monkey and this will be my replacement. I’ve owned a lot of higher end cool bikes but more excited about the this and it’s nothing fancy but going to be so much fun. Thanks for the videos!

[GiArK]

Awesome review and perspective!!! Bring back the rigid!

[seemovielove]

I do not expect this bike to perform like this Marin Rift Zone but I can see that you can ride it on trails. That would be good enough for me. Initially, I plan to buy Rift Zone 3 but I like to ride it fast on gravel or dirt road (Marin Rift Zone would not be able to with 32T chainring). To me, there is no perfect world. This bike is much faster on gravel or dirt road. It would be a perfect dual sport if this bike has dual crankset 32T and 42T.

[jp]

Thanks for posting Kyle. I also underbike trails to help with strength and skills conditioning. Makes me appreciate when I jump on my lighter titanium bike after a few rides on my heavy vintage steel ones.

[davedelarosa]

Looking at these trails reminds of how I learned to ride dirt out at Rowlett Creek Preserve in Garland. Which just happened to be on a rigid back in the 90's- so beyond the discs, and carbon, and decent drive train...and 25ish years it could been the same, man!

[jimjim]

Wicked review thanks. You've helped me chose exactly which bike fits me best.

[TheStorm]

Hey! Are the rims on the DSX 1 tubeless? and what frame size would you recommend for 184 cm? Thanks.

[huskerfan]

I actually notice riding ridged that it gets interesting and makes me want to ride more compared to just riding my race bike

[bonvaicu]

I’m undecided between specialized diverge evo and specialized chisel….. this video helps me decide