Canyon releases carbon version of Neuron — everything you need to know

Canyon has today launched a carbon version of its much-loved Neuron 130mm travel do-it-all trail bike. Alongside its new carbon frame, the Neuron CF range features a host of other upgrades to frame hardware, and improved builds.

Canyon has also released the Neuron:ON, an e-bike version of the bike, but we’ll have more on that later.

Canyon Neuron CF

Canyon Neuron CF vs Canyon Neuron AL

Getting the inevitable out of the way to start, and in keeping with wider industry trends, the Neuron has got a touch longer, lower and slacker for 2019.

The head tube angle is 67 degrees for the size small and extra small bikes, steepening just a touch to 67.5 degrees for larger sized bikes. The seat angle remains a constant 74.5 degrees throughout the size range.

The stack and reach have also grown a touch, with the reach coming in at 433mm on a size medium.

The 130mm travel is comparable to other similarly-minded bikes on the market, but the geometry isn’t particularly wild in the wider context of the modern mountain bike market.

This is in keeping with Canyon’s approach to geometry on its other bikes and fits in with its aim to make the Neuron a more accessible do-it-all platform for most riders — there are rowdier options, even in Canyon’s own lineup, for dedicated riders who prefer a bigger bike.

Canyon Neuron CF geometry chart

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Triple Phase dominates

As with all of its new mountain bikes, Canyon has adopted its 'triple phase' suspension layout on the new Neuron.

This is essentially a fancy way of marketing the contemporary bike-tester's favourite phrase, describing a suspension curve that is "active off the top of the stroke, supportive in the middle, but ramps up nicely towards the end of the travel."

(If none of that made sense to you, a good explainer on common suspension concepts can be found in our ultimate guide to mountain bike suspension.)

As with the Lux, the new suspension layout — which sees the shock slung below the top tube — is said to transmit forces more directly into the shock, allowing Canyon to reduce weight and wear on the linkages.

Canyon Lux CF SLX 9.0 Pro Race first ride review

As is expected, the tune on the shock is tailored to smaller and lighter riders on the size small and extra small bikes. The same is claimed to be done to the layup of the frame, with larger sizes gaining a touch more material to maintain the same level of stiffness as smaller sizes.

How to get your suspension setup dialled

On that note, both the extra small and small bikes use 27.5-inch wheels, and larger sizes move up to 29-inch wheels. Bar width and stem length also change proportionally with size.

Interestingly, both the 27.5- and 29-inch-sized bikes use a 29er fork with a 51mm offset.

Many brands are moving to shorter offsets because, in some scenarios, they can provide more stable handling, but Canyon has opted for the more traditional offset in a bid to keep the handling nimble and engaging.

Pushing the limits of fork offset: an experiment

Improved frame hardware

The bearings are, supposedly, filled with a highly water-resistant grease - Canyon

The hardware of the frame has also been improved, with double-sealed bearings that are filled with what Canyon claims to be a particularly hard-wearing and water resistant grease.

Interestingly, the bearing layout on the main pivot is asymmetrical, with an additional bearing added to the driveside to help cope with the additional loads put through the suspension links by the drivetrain. These forces are increased due to the higher-than-average levels of anti-squat built into the suspension design.

As with all of its carbon bikes, the Neuron features a bump stop to prevent damage to the top tube - Canyon

As with all of Canyon’s carbon mountain bikes, the Neuron features a knock-block style headset bump stop that prevents the bars from over-rotating and damaging the top tube in the event of a crash.

Fans of not-hating-themselves will also be delighted to see that the Neuron employs a good ol’ threaded bottom bracket. This is particularly notable because neither the recently updated Lux or Spectral use a threaded bottom bracket.

The quixle system hides the lever inside the thru-axle - Canyon

The bike also adopts Canyon’s Quixle thru-axle system, which sees a folding lever stowed away inside the thru-axle itself.

Fiddle-free cable routing

No internal cable routing woes here - Canyon

A particular highlight of the build is Canyon’s solution to cable routing. There’s no denying that hidden cables can make for a clean-looking bike, but any mechanic will be all too happy to tell you any number of internally-routed horror stories.

As with the Spectral, the Neuron features a large plate that bolts onto the down tube. This shrouds the cables, keeping the lines of the bike clean and protects them from damage all while making maintenance a lot less painful.

A very Canyon-like Canyon

Finally, ‘design language’ has been a particularly popular buzzphrase throughout Canyon’s launches this year and the new Neuron CF is unmistakably ‘Canyon’. The bike has adopted a silhouette that is largely similar to many of its bikes, defined largely by the kinked down tube before the head tube and the flat-mounted shock as seen on the Lux.

Canyon Neuron limited edition clothing

If you've been left wanting by other bike launches that didn't include a range of matching kit, then the Neuron is the bike for you with a jersey and socks in both men's and women's options available to accompany the bike. What more could you ask for?!

Canyon Neuron CF range overview — price, specs, details

In typically Canyon-like fashion, all of the bikes in the Neuron CF range present, on paper at least, stupendous value for money, with bikes starting at £2,449 for the Neuron CF 8.0 and rising to £5,099 for the top-end Neuron CF 9.0 Unlimited build.

Glancing at the spec lists, the Neuron CF 9.0 SL stands out in particular, with a full X01 Eagle groupset, a Fox 34 Performance Elite fork and, most notably, Reynolds TR309 carbon rims for just £3,349 / $4,799 / €3,699 / AU$5,399