Issue #030, Review - November 10, 2017

Giant Reign Advanced 0 Review

“Good things made even better” is the motto for the new Giant Reign Advanced 0. The old Giant Reign was very popular with racers thanks to its potent geometry. For the coming season Giant has made the main frame even longer and reworked the rear triangle. Has this made the bike even faster?

For an overview of the test fleet head to the main article: Let’s go Racing! – The 10 fastest enduro bikes in test

The new Giant Reign Advanced 0 comes with top-of-the-line components as standard! At the rear of the carbon frame is a RockShox Super Deluxe Coil shock, which is mounted to a new carbon trunnion-mount linkage. For long uphills or fast sprints, the shock can be stiffened directly from the handlebar. At the front, Giant relies on a RockShox Lyrik RCT3 suspension fork with 160 mm of travel. Providing grip is a MAXXIS Shorty 2.5″ WT on the front and a High Roller II at the back. Both tires come mounted tubeless as standard – nice! Giant’s own dropper post performs reliably, but the remote lever seems outdated. Due to the low stack height (593 mm in size L), all testers installed two large spacers under the 40 mm stem.

Even with a coil shock and an aluminium rear triangle, Giant have kept the Reign Advanced 0’s weight down to 13.56 kg (without pedals). In combination with the effective suspension adjustment on the handlebars, the bike is surprisingly efficient. If you ride predominantly long and steep climbs, it is advisable to push the saddle as far forward as possible in order to compensate for the slack seat tube angle (73°). On downhills, the greatest strength of the new Reign is its enormous stability. The rear suspension generates huge amounts of traction and stays glued to the ground. Paired with a 65° head angle and a reach of 473 mm (size L), the bike rides through rock gardens as if on rails.

High speeds are its greatest strength! You get onto the bike, take a good grip on the handlebar, and then let go of the brakes. Let’s go! On long stages, the rear end of the Reign saves a lot of energy. Long, open turns at high speed are no problem with this bike. If the trail is tight and twisty, however, you will have to manhandle it. At slow speeds the Reign feels slightly undefined and sluggish. If you want to be fast on flat sections, you will have to pedal hard and try to make yourself light. When pumping, it feels as if a lot of power is absorbed by the plush rear suspension.

Giant Reign Advanced 0 in Detail

Fork RockShox Lyrik RCT3 160 mm
Rear shock RockShox Super Deluxe Coil RT 160 mm
Brakes SRAM Guide RS
Drivetrain SRAM X01 Eagle
Seat post Giant Contact S Switch
Stem Truvativ Descendant
Handlebar Giant Contact SLR Dh Carbon
Tires Maxxis Shorty / Maxxis Highroller II
Wheels DT Swiss EX 1501 Spline One
Price € 6,999

The geometry of the Giant Reign Advanced 0

Size	S	M	L	XL
Seat tube	380 mm	431 mm	464 mm	496 mm
Top tube	600 mm	635 mm	655 mm	680 mm
Head angle	65°	65°	65°	65°
Seat angle	73°	73°	73°	73°
Chainstay	435 mm	435 mm	435 mm	435 mm
BB Drop	10 mm	10 mm	10 mm	10 mm
Wheelbase	1174 mm	1209 mm	1232 mm	1258 mm
Reach	424 mm	459 mm	473 mm	495 mm
Stack	575 mm	575 mm	593 mm	602 mm
Wheelsize	27.5″	27.5″	27.5″	27.5″

Conclusion

The Giant Reign shows its strengths mainly on long, hard, and fast descents. If you want to plow through a trail at Mach 5, this is your bike. If you are looking for an agile, playful bike, you will need to look elsewhere.