- Motor
- TQ HPR50
- Battery
- 360 Wh
- Fork Travel
- 160 mm
- Rear Travel
- 150 mm
- Weight
- 18.8 kg on my scale, without pedals
- Price
- €8.999
We were quite surprised to read about the new lightweight Canyon Spectral:ONfly coming with the TQ HPR50 motor. Shouldn’t it come with the Bosch Performance SX 55 Nm motor that is found on the Neuron:ONfly? Wouldn’t it have made more sense the other way around, putting the lighter motor on the less burly bike? Well, not necessarily. If Canyon decides this is the best motor for the bike, they don’t have to limit themselves by choices made on previous models.
But why does the Spectral:ONfly only come with a 360 Wh battery, not the 580 Wh? I asked my local Canyon contact but didn’t get much of an answer. Either the development of the bike started too early, or they decided against it due to increased weight. The latter makes sense to me. Combining this mild, compact motor with a heavier battery doesn’t necessarily make sense. If they wanted to design the lightest possible bike that is meant to be ridden with mild assistance, it makes sense keeping the weight down. If you want more range, there is an optional 160 Wh range extender.
Unsurprisingly, this €8.999 bike comes fitted with Sram AXS Transmission wireless shifting. And it’s the more expensive XX version with a 10-52t cassette. Brakes are the Sram Code Ultimate Stealth. These days, there is much talk about the Sram Mavens. But these Ultimate Stealths also scrub hard! The wheels too are top-of-the-line. The Reynolds Trail Blacklabel Export carbon 329 front and 327 rear has a claimed weight of 1.576 g for the set. That’s light for an emtb!
With a wheelbase of 1.280 mm, it’s not a small bike though. And they achieved such a long wheelbase even though the chainstays are only 440 mm long. It means the front-center is long, as confirmed by the 495 mm reach measurement.
The 76.5* effective seat tube angle is steep enough, I think. Sure, many bikes have even steeper seat tubes these days. But I think 76.5* is a good choice for a bike that is designed to be ridden with a good bit of muscle power. It puts less stress on the knees. I’ve come to enjoy a head angle of 64.5* as it offers a nice blend of stability and steering response. Canyon goes slightly slacker with 64*, and it works fine on this bike!
This isn’t just down to weight though. An 18 kg bike usually has lighter tyres with less rebound damping in the sidewalls, and it usually has lighter suspension with shorter travel. Also, the frame geometry typically isn’t very slack.
The size L Canyon Spectral:ONfly weighs 19.41 kg on my scales, that includes pedals and a bottle cage. It’s probably around 18.8 kg without those. You may or may not define that as Super Light, but it’s a very good weight for a bike specc’ed with Fox 36 forks and Minion EXO+ tyres. Burlier components such as these are good news for downhill performance. So, is that enough to make the Spectral:OF a more confident descender? I’ll get back to that.
If you come from a non-assist bike though, this bike will climb stuff we can only dream of clearing. We appreciate having the big 52t rear cog and it’s used a lot. We get up very steep climbs and we aren’t shot at the top. In stead of lying down, we can keep riding. This bike will get up steep stuff, but it isn’t designed with climbing in mind. And that’s okay, combined with this mild motor, I don’t see the need for longer chainstays that work better in the steep ups.
Sure, the bike is long, but that feeling disappears with a moderate amount of speed. The short rear end combined with the low weight makes for a light handling bike. It’s so fun going fast on flatter terrain and pop off even the smaller trail obstacles. We rode the Spectral:OF alongside full-power emtbs, and they were left in the dust on such trails. The TQ motor was so nice pedaling above cut-off speeds.
With a four-bar rear suspension design and low anti-rise, the rear wheel traction is great. There is little skipping and sliding as the suspension feels active when braking. Sure, there are tyres that can be ridden with lower pressure for an even more composed ride. But the Minon EXO+ isn’t that bad, it seems a nice match for this bike.
We took the bike off a few mildly intimidating jumps and steep descents, and it felt so capable, taking everything with ease. How is that possible? That’s not what we’re used to from a light 150/160 mm travel bike.
Well, no. The “Keep It Stable” system consists of a couple of springs, indirectly attached to the fork steerer tube. It was left in some kind of middle position on our first rides, and we didn’t think much about it. But when slackening the springs, the steering immediately felt twitchier. Riding slowly, I found myself correcting the steering a lot and it was more prone to folding when doing sharp turns.
Next, we slid the KISS-plate all the way backwards and the steering became annoyingly stiff and slow. Riding no hands required more shifting of our body weight to steer. I did not enjoy this much, and I was slower through the turns while descending. I guess I would have adapted if I kept riding this setting, but I very much enjoyed the initial KIS-position and went back to that.
Thanks to the TQ HPR50 motor, I guess the bike could be more appealing to the non-assist crowd rather than the power-hungry, full-power emtb’ers. The TQ motor gives you the assistance needed to tackle most climbs. The motor allows you to go properly fast or just have fun while keeping the heart rate down.
TQ HPR50 – the best motor?
I wouldn’t mind the stronger SX motor on the Spectral:ONfly, but that would probably result in a different bike. The HPR50 is a more compact motor that is easier designing a frame around. It’s a much more silent motor with milder and less noticeable support. If you want the most stealth and silent bike the TQ motor is a better option. If you want a bit of help going up combined with a ride-feel similar to a non-assist bike, the HPR50 is a great choice. Read our full review of the TQ HPR50 here.But why does the Spectral:ONfly only come with a 360 Wh battery, not the 580 Wh? I asked my local Canyon contact but didn’t get much of an answer. Either the development of the bike started too early, or they decided against it due to increased weight. The latter makes sense to me. Combining this mild, compact motor with a heavier battery doesn’t necessarily make sense. If they wanted to design the lightest possible bike that is meant to be ridden with mild assistance, it makes sense keeping the weight down. If you want more range, there is an optional 160 Wh range extender.
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Canyon Spectral:ONfly specs
As expected, the Spectral:OF is a mullet bike. It comes with Maxxis Minion DHR II 2.4” EXO+ tyres, 29” for the front and 27.5” at the back. These aren’t super burly downhill tyres, but they’re more rugged than what’s often found on an SL bike. The same can be said for the 160 mm Fox 36 Factory Grip2 fork, a capable fork that is rugged for such a light bike. The Fox Float X Factory shock is a fine choice too.Unsurprisingly, this €8.999 bike comes fitted with Sram AXS Transmission wireless shifting. And it’s the more expensive XX version with a 10-52t cassette. Brakes are the Sram Code Ultimate Stealth. These days, there is much talk about the Sram Mavens. But these Ultimate Stealths also scrub hard! The wheels too are top-of-the-line. The Reynolds Trail Blacklabel Export carbon 329 front and 327 rear has a claimed weight of 1.576 g for the set. That’s light for an emtb!
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Frame geometry
For us measuring just over 180 cm, Canyon emtbs in size M always felt spot-on. And the Spectral:ONfly felt perfect too, so we were confused when we noticed it was a size L. It turns out Canyon has changed the sizing of their latest frames as they always were a bit big for the size. The Spectral:Onfly in size L feels like a smaller bike than the Large Neuron:ONfly.With a wheelbase of 1.280 mm, it’s not a small bike though. And they achieved such a long wheelbase even though the chainstays are only 440 mm long. It means the front-center is long, as confirmed by the 495 mm reach measurement.
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The 76.5* effective seat tube angle is steep enough, I think. Sure, many bikes have even steeper seat tubes these days. But I think 76.5* is a good choice for a bike that is designed to be ridden with a good bit of muscle power. It puts less stress on the knees. I’ve come to enjoy a head angle of 64.5* as it offers a nice blend of stability and steering response. Canyon goes slightly slacker with 64*, and it works fine on this bike!
Can a light bike be stable on the descents?
It’s easy getting used to the confidence inspiring ride of a heavy emtb. The full power emtbs with bulkier motors and big batteries feel so stable at speed. When riding a bike weighing around 18 kg, much of that stability seems lost. Such a bike tends to feel bouncier; it won’t hold the line as well as it pings off obstacles.|
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This isn’t just down to weight though. An 18 kg bike usually has lighter tyres with less rebound damping in the sidewalls, and it usually has lighter suspension with shorter travel. Also, the frame geometry typically isn’t very slack.
The size L Canyon Spectral:ONfly weighs 19.41 kg on my scales, that includes pedals and a bottle cage. It’s probably around 18.8 kg without those. You may or may not define that as Super Light, but it’s a very good weight for a bike specc’ed with Fox 36 forks and Minion EXO+ tyres. Burlier components such as these are good news for downhill performance. So, is that enough to make the Spectral:OF a more confident descender? I’ll get back to that.
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Climbing on the Canyon Spectral:ONfly CF Ltd
You wouldn’t expect this lightweight Spectral to be a mean climbing machine. But that depends on your frame of reference. Coming from a full-power bike, the Spectral:OF feels significantly weaker. We come into extremely steep climbs and simply run out of power. The bike just stops moving even though we’re pushing hard, standing on the pedals.If you come from a non-assist bike though, this bike will climb stuff we can only dream of clearing. We appreciate having the big 52t rear cog and it’s used a lot. We get up very steep climbs and we aren’t shot at the top. In stead of lying down, we can keep riding. This bike will get up steep stuff, but it isn’t designed with climbing in mind. And that’s okay, combined with this mild motor, I don’t see the need for longer chainstays that work better in the steep ups.
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Light bike for light trails?
A light bike usually is fun on flat and low-speed trails. But the same might not be said of a long and slack bike. I’m surprised by the steering feel of the Spectral:OF. Despite the relatively slack head angle, there is no trace of instability or folding when doing sharp turns and riding slowly.Sure, the bike is long, but that feeling disappears with a moderate amount of speed. The short rear end combined with the low weight makes for a light handling bike. It’s so fun going fast on flatter terrain and pop off even the smaller trail obstacles. We rode the Spectral:OF alongside full-power emtbs, and they were left in the dust on such trails. The TQ motor was so nice pedaling above cut-off speeds.
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A lightweight descender
Having built up a lead over the full-power 160 and 170 mm travel bikes, we hit the descents. As expected, the Canyon kept being fast on narrow, winding trails. But as the trails opened up and we didn’t have to brake to avoid trees, the speed picked up. And the Spectral:OF actually maintained its lead.With a four-bar rear suspension design and low anti-rise, the rear wheel traction is great. There is little skipping and sliding as the suspension feels active when braking. Sure, there are tyres that can be ridden with lower pressure for an even more composed ride. But the Minon EXO+ isn’t that bad, it seems a nice match for this bike.
We took the bike off a few mildly intimidating jumps and steep descents, and it felt so capable, taking everything with ease. How is that possible? That’s not what we’re used to from a light 150/160 mm travel bike.
K.I.S.S. – Keep It Stable Stupid
The Canyon Spectral:ONfly has the geometry for aggressive descending. But why is the steering so light yet stable? We started fiddling with the KIS. Yeah, I know it’s “KIS” with just one “S”, I think there should have been two. You have to be a bit stupid to need help swinging the handlebars back to the neutral position, right?Well, no. The “Keep It Stable” system consists of a couple of springs, indirectly attached to the fork steerer tube. It was left in some kind of middle position on our first rides, and we didn’t think much about it. But when slackening the springs, the steering immediately felt twitchier. Riding slowly, I found myself correcting the steering a lot and it was more prone to folding when doing sharp turns.
Next, we slid the KISS-plate all the way backwards and the steering became annoyingly stiff and slow. Riding no hands required more shifting of our body weight to steer. I did not enjoy this much, and I was slower through the turns while descending. I guess I would have adapted if I kept riding this setting, but I very much enjoyed the initial KIS-position and went back to that.
Conclusion
The Canyon Spectral:ONfly is a fun, yet capable bike. It’s inspiring to pedal and it feels worthwhile pushing on after the motor assistance has dropped. This makes the SpectralOF fast on flatter terrain. And Canyon has done a great job making a light bike that maintains the confidence we’re used to from descending on heavier emtbs. I believe the Keep It Stable (Stupid) system has helped Canyon maintain a nice steering response while going aggressive on the frame geometry.Thanks to the TQ HPR50 motor, I guess the bike could be more appealing to the non-assist crowd rather than the power-hungry, full-power emtb’ers. The TQ motor gives you the assistance needed to tackle most climbs. The motor allows you to go properly fast or just have fun while keeping the heart rate down.
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