DVO Beryl suspension fork review

DVO’s Beryl is the affordable version of its flagship Diamond fork, using the same chassis and a lot of the features. The stroke is naturally supple but supportive and simpler spring adjustments make set up easy, as long as you’re an average weight rider. You’ll have to get inside to get the full tuning potential though.

Construction

The Beryl gets the same 35mm legged structure as the Diamond which includes a stout sloped crown, broad bracing arch and short bolt-on fender. The bolt-through axle gets a recessed and replaceable receiver and you can retrofit DVO’s QR 15mm axle. They’re both anodized green to match the metal three-position compression damping switch and air spring caps. The Beryl doesn’t get the externally adjustable OTT (Off The Top) negative spring preload, but you can increase sensitivity by installing spacers (one is fitted as standard with another supplied with the fork). Travel can be changed internally from 130 - 160mm on the 29ers and 140 - 170mm on the 27.5in versions. The 29er fork will also take a 27.5 x 2.8in tire although you’ll have to take the fender off as it’s a tire skimmer even with a 2.5in. The brake mount is only 160mm so you’ll need to add an adaptor for 180mm and 200mm rotors and it only comes in a 44mm offset option in 27.5 and 51mm in 29er.

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Performance

Sturdy construction and plenty of oil in the fork also makes it relatively heavy at just over 2.2kg in the 29er version we tested. That means you’d be better off looking at the 34mm legged DVO Sapphire if you only need 130-140mm of ‘Downcountry’ suspension, but if you’ll be using at full stretch then it’s comparable to Yari and other affordable Enduro forks. The bolt-through axle is smooth and impressively filth proof and the whole fork is designed to be largely fit and forget with much longer service intervals than normal.

If you’re in the 70-80kg weight range then the coil negative spring eases the Beryl into its stroke with seamless smoothness so traction and tracking are impeccable over smaller, staccato surfaces. The mid-stroke float is superb with the D2 bladder damper in its fully open mode but you can stiffen it up noticeably in the mid position if you’re a heavier rider who wants it to stand up more obviously through turns. If you’re running over 125 psi you’ll probably want to put the second OTT spacer in, too, although that will push it further into its stroke before you even weight it. Heavier or lighter riders will need to fit a stronger or weaker negative spring to balance the required air pressure, too.

Having said that, we always find we’re perpetually tweaking the external OTT and various damper options on the Diamond, but the Beryl pretty much sits in the sweet spot we’re always chasing as standard. Plenty of free-flowing oil means it feels superbly damped and settled on the trail too, only feeling slightly rougher than the best forks when you’re really hammering through multiple high-speed slaps. The bottom-out is also pretty blunt when you do occasionally slam it to its full travel.

The amount of oil sloshing about and the mechanical nature of most of the adjustments make it a heroically reliable fork and DVO has a fantastic reputation for customer support through its website which is also loaded with excellent servicing and set up videos.

Verdict

It’s on the heavy side and riders outside the weight sweet spot will need to tweak internally and potentially add new negative springs. Otherwise, it’s a fantastically supple and smooth fork with awesome mid-stroke float and simple but effective adjustment that neither feels or looks like a cheaper fork unless you’re absolutely battering through the rowdiest rock fields. Bombproof reliability boosts user-friendliness and value for money even further.  

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Tech Specs: DVO Beryl

• Weight: 2215g (29er cut to fit)
• Colors: Black
• Price: $599 / £549.95