Product Review: The new Maxxis DHX tread and all new DH casing

New DHX DH Quick Verdict

✅ Impressively well damped and protective

✅ Tread pattern very consistent and works well in a wide range of terrain

✅ Allows for incredibly low tire pressures due to massive casing support

❌ Very heavy at 1.5kg

Perhaps the most well recognised tire brand in mountain biking, Maxxis have dominated the gravity end of the sport for as long as most of us have been involved with it, with the original High Roller and  Minion DHF both the iconic tires of their respective eras under Greg Minaar and Sam Hill. For our money, they have remained at the top of the pile ever since, but there is no denying that in recent years there’s been plenty of competition in tire tech from other brands with tire inserts, radial casings and new patterns all pushing in to try and add even more performance to gravity tire systems. Add to that the fact that modern downhill and enduro bikes are being ridden harder and faster than ever before and you’ve got a market where no manufacturer can afford to just sit back and rest on their established reputation. 

Needless to say, with a host of gravity athletes on their roster at the pointy end of the sport, Maxxis haven’t been doing that and the latest thing to come from their race development program is the new DHX, along with a completely new DH casing that’s quite unlike anything we’ve ever ridden before in a mountain bike tire. We've done a good amount of riding on the new tire and casing through a mix of conditions now, so let's get into the detail on both below. 

The DHX tread pattern

Up till now, we’ve mainly been riding either High Roller 3 or Assegai tires on the front end of our long travel bikes here at TVB. The High Roller is an amazing tire for soft muddy conditions, biting into squishy ground tenaciously and it actually works quite well in the dry too with a defined cornering edge, but ride it on damp root and rock and you can tell that you’re perched on smaller knobs of rubber and as smaller 2.4’ tire, it doesn’t mute impact quite as well as the bigger 2.5' options can. Conversely the Assegai tread is brilliant on everything hardpack, no matter whether wet or dry, putting a ton of rubber on the ground. Its trade off however is that it does clog up more easily than the other Maxxis gravity tires when things get sticky and on a soft surface the large rounded profile can feel like it’s shearing across the top rather than digging in. 

That leaves an obvious gap in the middle for a ‘dry’ tire that can still cope when things are as bit more mucky and that seems to be where the DHX pattern comes in, offering a mid ground between the two. Designed on a simple 2-2 alternating centre tread pattern like the High Roller, it uses some of the widest and biggest knobs we’ve ever seen on a mountain bike tire, looking at a casual glance like an old DHF that vanished and came back after spending a year in the gym. Look closer however and it becomes apparent that the DHX is actually quite a different tread. Where the DHF had two rows of centre knobs close together, then a wide gap before the side knobs, the DHX spaces it’s central two further apart, both creating a central channel to help them bite, and simultaneously eliminating the 'DHF grip gap' when leaning the tire over before the side knobs engage.  

Every second set of centre knobs on the DHX is also L shaped, creating a larger braking edge and further reducing the gap over onto the side. The side knobs themselves are simply massive, with an enormously wide base, aimed at both increasing cornering stability and durability. Riding it, the pattern seems to do exactly what it sets out to. On dry trail, it’s a super well supported shape with loads of rubber in contact with ground at any angle and absolutely none of the squirmy feeling that soft conditions tires often exhibit when pushed on a hard surface. Performance over rock, root and off camber is solid with plenty of support and stability and rolling speed seems surprisingly good for such a meaty looking tread.

Unlike the DHF, (which I never used to get on with) there’s no momentary loss of grip between the centre and edge when leaning the tire over and it also seems more able to brake hard without losing traction. Riding softer surfaces, the DHX does indeed cope better than the Assegai with both a bit more bite and willingness to clear muck and debris. Outside of properly thick mud, it’s a tire you could just leave on and get good performance in pretty much any condition and as we head into more wintery conditions I’ve had no temptation to take it off just yet. All in all it seems like a well rounded tread pattern that's suitable for everything except the most full on of mud runs. 

The new Maxxis DH casing

Even more interesting than the tread is the new version of Maxxis’s DH casing, which is quite unlike anything I’ve ever ridden. Unlike all previous tires, where there is a largely similar level of support and protection throughout the whole tire, the new casing does something completely different. 

Compared to the previous generation DH casing, it’s actually softer across the top of the tread, being based on a dual ply 120pi casing, rather than the previous dual 60 tpi. That finer thread allows the top of the tire to deform more easily (like a current DD tire) for better grip  , while also improving tracking over high frequency chatter and it should also reduce rolling resistance compared to the previous version. Where things change is in the sidewall, where two inserts change the tires behavior.

One lightweight extra layer runs the full height of the sidewall, then a second, massively stiff Butyl insert extends from the rim up to a little under half height. Combined, those two inserts create ever increasing stiffness and protection as the tire compresses with the burlier butyl base providing a massive amount of support and protection to the rim. Maxxis suggest that the new DH casing should let riders use significantly lower pressures due to the hugely more supportive and protective sidewalls and chatting to some locals who work on the World Cup DH circuit, that does seem to be playing out even at Pro level, with team riders both dropping a couple of PSI and often getting rid of their tire inserts at the same time such is the level of protection. 

Here for our local trails, the idea of both being able to drop pressure for extra grip while essentially having a built in tire insert at the same time seems almost too good to be true, so we’ve been pretty keen to have a try and see how it feels in real life. 

New DH casing ride impressions

It’s still relatively early days, but I’ve been riding at around 3-4 psi below normal, which as you might imagine, produces a pronounced change in tire behaviour. At the reduced pressure, (I’ve been able to drop from my normal 20psi to a ridiculous 16psi for slower speed tracks) the tire feels much more glued to the ground, with almost no rebound or ping from small edges and obstacles. It’s actually so much more planted and muted that I’ve gone faster on rebound on the fork to help pop the front when I do want to pick up the front wheel. Tracking across the ground is excellent, and despite the low pressures, there’s absolutely no squirm or softness when braking or cornering. If anything, it feels more solid than a DD casing at 3 - 4 psi more. For riding complex technical terrain it makes a real difference, having a tire that doesn’t rebound from the terrain and instead just tracks the ground is very bit as helpful as it sounds. The rim protection from the new sidewall also seems massive, as I’ve had no rim or tire damage, burps or sealant leakages even at the lower pressures. It feels a little like riding with a tire insert fitted, but without any of the hassle of fitting or removal that come with those. 

Is there any possible downside to the new casing? Just one obvious one so far, and that’s weight, because this is also by some margin the heaviest front tire I’ve ever fitted to a bike. At 1550 grams (weighed by us) it is simply going to be too beefy for some riders and bikes. There are real performance benefits to the casing and on the front of a long travel E-Bike it feels totally appropriate but not everyone is going to feel the extra heft is worth it as a trade off, especially on regular mountain bikes or for mellower terrain. For those who do spend their time in technical ground, damage tires or rims and who aren't gram counting, the new casing is absolutely brilliant and for anyone currently finding they need to run tire inserts, this could be way to break free of the faff that comes with those. 

There will be lighter casing versions of the DHX coming later if the tread pattern sounds like your thing and you don’t want the burly carcass, but for now it’s DH only for the DHX. We’ve already got a good handful in stock and if toughness and grip are your priorities, then we’d strongly suggest giving one a try.