The DVO Diamond is a multi-adjustable enduro fork that’s now available with reduced offset. With 35mm legs and big tyre clearance.

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It’s one of the heavier forks out there, in part due to the largest internal oil volume. Extra damping fluid should improve the consistency of DH performance though, and also smooth impact response, due to the damper shaft displacing proportionally less oil.

DVO’s unique sealed cartridge uses tuneable shim stacks to metre oil flow, and a bladder design to separate air and oil that compresses during fork travel, rather than expands, like others here.

‘Backwards’ orientated compression dials

Volume spacers aren’t used to tune fork progression (you can add oil to the air spring if needed). Instead, DVO relies on balancing the negative spring preload (its O.T.T. feature) and compression damping. This can get a bit complicated, but the benefit is an ideal set up should be achievable for all rider weights and aggression levels.

The Diamond has external high and low-speed compression adjustment (with quirky ’backwards’ orientated dials), and low-speed rebound. Weirdly it also uses 160mm rotor brake mounts that require an adaptor.

Added fine-tuning with OTT adjuster

The six clicks of low-speed compression are enough to almost lock out the fork, and are easily toggled to stabilise the front end for climbing, or even mucking about on jumps or pump tracks. There’s a broad adjustment range on both high-speed compression and rebound for tuning bump response too.

After plenty of experimentation with the set-up, we ran the Off The Top adjuster deeper into its wide-range for more initial stroke sensitivity. This literally sucks the Diamond into the first third of travel for bump-tracing suppleness, but also eats into overall useable travel, so the front end rides lower.

With the wheel glued to the floor, the Diamond can feel incredibly smooth tracking undulations and rounded holes, and is really confident and composed pin-balling through high-speed holes and rock gardens. It doesn’t lurch, shake or wildly oscillate.

Faced with continuous jagged, fist-sized, hits and square edges, there’s a sharper edge to bump absorption that fatigues hands on the longest runs more than a Fox 36 and RockShox Lyrik though, plus the chassis is significantly heavier than the other forks here; noticeable when lifting the front to manual or switching direction aggressively.

The DVO is solid and calm, but doesn’t quite have the same small bump sensitivity, off-camber grip or vibration reduction of either the new FIT4 damper or RockShox Charger II, and is marginally less comfortable on the roughest tracks.