The products mentioned in this article are selected or reviewed independently by our journalists. When you buy through links on our site we may earn an affiliate commission, but this never influences our opinion.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0 review

Is the Sender the perfect balance between performance and price?

Our rating

4.5

2999.00
4799.00

Steve Behr

Published: October 15, 2019 at 2:00 pm

Our review
The Sender manages to calm the roughest and wildest tracks, and makes speed easily won

Pros:

Fast, stable and controlled; great spec; a true budget racer

Cons:

Handlebar is an odd shape

Launched in 2016, the Sender has become a staple on the top steps of the World Cup podium, thanks to Troy Brosnan’s skillful and consistent riding.

The bike has remained largely unchanged since its conception, and we don’t blame Canyon for sticking to the formula – it's managed to create one of best-performing downhill bikes currently on the market.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0 frame

The Sender uses a carbon fibre mainframe and alloy rear triangle. Its four-bar Horst link rear-end delivers 200mm of travel.

There also an additional linkage that drives the rear shock – which Canyon claims helped to tune the suspension to what it considers ideal anti-squat, pedal kickback, anti-rise and progression characteristics – and a small sag marker on the rocker link and driveside seatstay means you won't need to be double-jointed to check your bike is set up correctly.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
The rear end uses a Horst-link style suspension system. - Steve Behr

Chainstay length is adjustable between 430mm and 446mm using flip-chips at the rear dropouts. You can alter the 63-degree head angle too, by one-degree in either direction, by swapping headset cups.

Canyon’s Cable Cushion system claims to eliminate all rattle and movement from the internal routing. You also get a large down tube protector to help stop frame damage from rock strikes, and an integrated mudguard, attached to the seatstay brace, to shield the shock and linkage from grime, which should help increase bearing and shock service intervals.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
The frame's integrated fork bumpers double up as the port for the internal cable routing. - Steve Behr

Geometry-wise, Canyon was ahead of the game when this bike launched nearly four years ago. The large size has a 460mm reach, a 1,273mm wheelbase and a 63-degree head angle. I opted to run the bike in the longest 446mm chainstay setting.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0 kit

Canyon has specced some top-notch kit, including a RockShox BoXXer RC fork with Charger damper and DebonAir spring, and a Vivid RC2 air-sprung rear shock.

Also from the SRAM group are the GX DH groupset and full-fat Code R brakes.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
The venerable BoXXer has a Charger damper and BebonAir air spring. - Steve Behr

Other big-name kit includes an e*thirteen chainguide, SDG I-Beam seatpost and I-Fly saddle, and DT Swiss FR 2020 wheels, with a 30mm internal width.

The bike is finished off with Maxxis Minion DHR II DH tyres and Canyon-branded bar, stem and grips.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
The Maxxis tyres are tubeless-ready from the factory which helps save you wasting your time converting them to tubeless at a later date. - Steve Behr

Canyon Sender CF 7.0 ride impressions

The Canyon Sender CF 7.0 is a very balanced bike and was easy to ride confidently and quickly from the get-go.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
There are no surprises when you're riding the Sender, it goes exactly where you want it to. - Steve Behr

The suspension feels supportive, the geometry perfect and the spec almost faultless. There’s a good front-to-back balance, with the 460mm reach on the large working well with the 446mm chainstay length and 1,273mm wheelbase. This makes the bike feel particularly calm and easy to control.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
Canyon's Moto Link tweaks the suspension to ride in a very predictable and controlled way. - Steve Behr

You aren’t expending unnecessary energy taming it, instead it lets you instinctively and naturally take lines, and push hard over techy terrain and through turns.

The ride is confident: hit a rough section of track with randomly placed bumps and it will behave predictably time and again. Likewise on jumps, regardless of take-off size and shape, it’s predictably and reliably going to behave in the same way.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
You can spank turns, too! - Steve Behr

This is great because it means you can just get on with the job of riding as fast, or as flamboyantly, as you want.

The suspension plays an integral part in this too. On medium to large hits, the fork and shock work together flawlessly, absorbing even the harshest impacts without so much as a whimper.

It’s also a doddle to set up thanks to the air springs. If the bike needs a quick fettle to get it back in check, it’s as easy as cracking out the shock pump for a re-tune.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
There's a sag indicator on the driveside seat stay/rocker link pivot that indicates when the bike is sitting into 30 per cent of its travel. - Steve Behr

There is a trade-off though. While the suspension is active, it doesn’t reach the levels of smoothness provided by bikes with more rearward axle paths. But it certainly does a great job of ironing out most square-edged hits with no fuss, and does the majority of the heavy lifting for you.

The adjustable wheelbase is a nice feature and relatively easy to use, with only two Allen keys required. However, I didn’t find that the shorter setting provided any benefit over the longer one. In fact, the long setting didn’t prove to be any less flickable than the shorter one and did offer a better balance overall.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
It's possible to adjust the bike's wheelbase at the rear axle to one of two positions. - Steve Behr

There is a small amount of buzz through the bars, but this could be rectified by using a different set of grips or bars, and I didn’t feel that the bike’s chassis had any in-built harshness. Despite this bit of buzz and feedback, it is fair to say that it’s a very fast bike, and that’s the overriding sensation you get when you’re riding it. It just wants to go fast and will do so without raising every hair on your body.

It does struggle a bit on slightly flatter, slower-paced trails though. You need to lean quite far forwards over the bars to stop the front end feeling distant and like it wants to wander. I put this down to the geometry not being designed for flatter, slower tracks, and this comes as no surprise — the bike’s a downhill race machine, after all.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
The Code R brake levers have plenty of power. - Steve Behr

The spec is impeccable. The Code R brakes offer exceptional power with great modulation and are a clear step up from the Guide REs we see on other bikes in this price range.

SRAM’s GX DH drivetrain is fantastic and ideally suited to the bike. I was never left wanting for more than seven gears, and it means the chain can be kept shorter and the chain line is better.

The tubeless Maxxis Minion DHR II tyres performed as expected and I didn’t burp, rip the casing or puncture them. But if you’re living in a particularly damp country, you’re going to want to invest in some mud tyres.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0
Canyon's G5 direct mount stem has two positions. - Steve Behr

I’d also be tempted to change Canyon’s G5 handle bar out for a different one. The bar’s shape makes them feel like they have down-sweep, which isn’t something I enjoyed.

However, all of these features add up to a solid performer that feels like it’s worth way more than the £2,999 / $4,799 asking price.

The Sender is a smooth, predictable machine that’s fantastic value for money. The geometry and suspension, coupled with the great spec, make it easy to ride fast, and if you’re a potential podium-topper, it’ll give you a great shot at your goals.

Canyon Sender CF 7.0 geometry

  • Seat angle: 74 degrees
  • Head angle: 63 degrees
  • Chainstay: 44.6cm / 17.56in
  • Seat tube: 45cm / 17.72in
  • Top tube: 66.1cm / 26.02in
  • Head tube: 13cm / 5.12in
  • Bottom bracket drop: 0.6cm / 0.24in
  • Bottom bracket height: 34.7cm / 13.66in
  • Wheelbase: 1,273mm / 50.12in
  • Stack: 61.6cm / 24.25in
  • Reach: 46cm / 18.11in

Product

Brandcanyon
Price4799.00 AUD,2999.00 GBP
Weight16.6000, KILOGRAM (L) - Without pedals

Features

ForkRockShox BoXXer RC, 200mm (7.9in) travel
br_stemCanyon V22
br_chainSRAM PC-1110
br_frameCarbon fibre, 200mm (7.9in) travel
TyresMaxxis Minion DHR II 3C MaxxGrip 27.5x2.4in
br_brakesSRAM Code R, 200/180mm rotors
br_cranksTruvativ Descendant, 36t
br_saddleSDG I-Fly
br_wheelsDT Swiss FR 2020 rims on DT Swiss Hubs
br_headsetAcros
br_shifterSRAM GX DH
br_cassetteSRAM PG-720, 11-25t
br_seatpostSDG I-Beam rigid
br_gripsTapeCanyon G5
br_handlebarCanyon G5
br_rearShockRockShox Vivid R2C
br_bottomBracketSRAM GXP
br_availableSizesS, M, L, XL
br_rearDerailleurSRAM GX DH (1x7)
This website is owned and published by Our Media Ltd. www.ourmedia.co.uk
© Our Media 2023