The MDE DAMPER stands out with its distinctive character and authentic Italian charm. With a generous amount of travel and promising geometry, the DAMPER encourages you to get rowdy. Of course, we didn’t miss the chance to put it through its paces on some sunny trails in Italy.

The new MDE DAMPER offers up to 180 mm travel up front and depending on shock size, between 155 mm and 165 mm of rear wheel travel. Just like its predecessor, the 2020 model can be configured with different wheel size combinations. This is made possible by special interchangeable dropouts, which allow you to run either 27.5” or 29” wheels, or even to set up the DAMPER as a mullet rig, with a 29” front and 27.5” rear wheel. At 15.56 kg, our test bike might not exactly be lightweight, its balanced riding position and pedalling neutral rear end should deliver great climbing performance and, above all, make for outstanding descending. We tested the bike in several different configurations: as a pure 29er, with a 29/27.5” wheel combination and both with an air and a coil shock. MDE offer the DAMPER 29 in two builds, with prices starting at € 2,990. Frame only options start at € 1,690 without the shock.

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