NS SYNONYM RC 1
£6,299.99 The world’s most radical XC bike, bar none
Better known for their dirt jump and downhill bikes, Polish brand NS’s secret race weapon is the 100mm-travel Synonym. This bike is as radical as they come in the XC world, largely thanks to the geometry, which puts it head and shoulders above the rest if long, low and slack is your thing. On paper, this stands up to scrutiny – if longer reaches and slacker head angles make for a faster ride downhill, and this is paired with an efficient platform for quick climbing, why wouldn’t it be a race winner?
The frame
Like on all the bikes here, there’s no rear pivot. Instead, flex in the carbon rear triangle helps the linkageactuated shock supply 100mm of travel. The trunnion-mounted damper sits vertically, leaving room for just one bottle cage in the frame. Cables enter and exit the down tube through bolted port covers, although we did experience cable rattle. With a monstrous 500mm reach (size large), longish 438mm chainstays, a slack 67-degree head angle and steep 77-degree seat angle, NS have truly pushed the boundaries of XC bike geometry.
The kit
You get a Fox DPS shock and 32 Step-Cast fork, both in Factory flavour, with a bar-mounted, twoposition lockout lever (open or firm). A mixed SRAM GX/X01 Eagle drivetrain is complemented by X1 carbon cranks, while SRAM’s Level TLM brakes stop the bike. NS’s own alloy wheelset holds fast-rolling Maxxis Ikon and Rekon Race tyres. They come fitted with weighty tubes, but once set up tubeless were the lightest wheels on test. Finishing kit, including an 80mm stem (size large) and 750mm bar, is mostly from NS, although you do get a 125mm-travel KS LEV Ci carbon dropper post.
The ride
Boasting a reach longer than many enduro bikes, combined with a lengthy stem and steep seat angle, the stretched-out Synonym feels like no other bike in the test, and it took us a few rides to really work out how to get the best out of the bike. The NS rides best on steeper, gnarlier tracks littered with rocks and roots, holes and chutes. With the front wheel so far ahead of the bike, it’s incredibly stable and easy to push over or around obstacles, even with your weight pitched further forward and lower down, thanks to that long stem with its negative rise.
With gravity on your side, the bike accelerates quickly and will hold that speed, enabling you to get away with the slightly dodgy line choices
that are inevitable at the end of a race when you’re just hanging on. On those steeper tracks, the 2.2in Maxxis Ikon up front lets the side down a touch. It rolls fast, but is a very round tyre and is mounted on a rim that pinches it a tad. This means getting that already quite shallow shoulder tread to bite in corners isn’t easy, and there’s not as much volume in the tyre to take the sting out of the slightly harsh-feeling FIT4 damper.
On flatter, winding courses where you need to accelerate quickly, the NS lacks the urgency under power of some of the other bikes, and its length (the longest wheelbase on test) makes the twistiest of corners a little harder work to get around. It’s definitely a bike that works best on rough, flat-out descents.
When it comes to climbing, the Synonym provides little to complain about. The suspension is stable under pedalling in open mode, both when seated or sprinting out of the
BOASTING A REACH LONGER THAN MANY END UR O BIKES, COMBINED WITH A LENGTHY STEM AND STEEP SEAT ANGLE, THE STRETCHED OUT SYNONYM FEELS LIKE NO OTHER BIKE IN THE TEST
Best suited to the steepest tracks, both up and down, the Synonym is unique among XC bikes
saddle, and the steep seat angle puts you in a great position over the cranks on steeper pitches, even if it does feel a little odd on the flat.
We aren’t huge fans of Fox’s remote lockout – the release button is a bit short and it’s not as positive in action as some others – but it does firm things up well. The SRAM drivetrain shifts well, and we like the Level TLM brakes too, which supply ample power and a good lever feel. However the KS dropper became sticky after just a few rides, and suffered from a slippery lever with little leverage and a stiff cable run.