Which suspension design is right for you will depend on a host of personal factors.
Do you like your bike to insulate you from each of the trail’s bumps and imperfections? Would you rather climbing performance be prioritised above all? Maybe you need a middle ground where both are good, but neither is perfect.
Equally, maybe you dislike maintenance and want the suspension design that's simplest to keep in working order.
Others may have a penchant for a specific frame material – whether that’s carbon, aluminium or steel is entirely up to you.
To help you sort through the many options and find a setup that suits you best, I tested four mountain bikes, each with a different type of suspension. Each has its merits, but one stood out with the best-performing design.
Four bikes, four suspension designs
Starling Murmur – single-pivot
The Starling Murmur features a single-pivot suspension platform. The Murmur is archetypal of this design, with two triangles joined by a single pivot. The shock is attached directly to the front and rear of the bike, with no linkage.
Scott Genius 910 TR – Horst-link
Despite the seeming complexity of its hidden shock, the Scott Genius 910 TR has a humble Horst-link design. Here, the rear wheel is attached to the seatstay and shock linkage, rather than the chainstay. While there is a main pivot, the design gives the system a floating pivot location.
Santa Cruz Bronson CC X0 AXS RSV – twin-link
Santa Cruz’s Bronson is synonymous with the twin-link virtual pivot point design. Here, the front and rear triangles are attached with two links that counter-rotate as the suspension compresses. This creates a floating or virtual pivot point that moves when the bike cycles through its travel.
Atherton Bikes A.150.1 – six-bar
The Atherton Bikes A.150.1’s six-bar design increases the complexity. In simple terms, this approach combines a Horst–link and a twin-link design in one system, where the rear wheel is attached to the seatstay, but the chainstay – instead of bolting directly to the front triangle – connects to it via another two links. Like the twin-link design, the six-bar system has a floating pivot point.
Eliminating variables
Firstly, and maybe most obviously, components such as wheels and tyres can have a massive effect on how a bike feels.
The Genius is a prime example of this; it went from pingy and skittish with the stock tyres to calm and damped when fitted with burlier rubber.
Likewise, damper tunes can interfere with suspension feel; with the wrong valving, any bike can be made to feel bad – so making sure the shock’s internals are optimised for the frame and your needs is seriously important.
Being mindful of suspension tunes and tyre types is key to drilling down successfully into each system’s performance.
It’s also impossible to eliminate all variables.
By the nature of having different designs, and frame shapes and materials as a result of that, the bikes are going to have unique characters on the trail.
One element of that is the suspension system, but it’s also going to be created by the various frame materials, frame shapes and component choices.
Single-pivot glory
Starting with Starling’s Murmur, it has proven there’s plenty of life left in the simple single-pivot design.
Defying conventional expectations of how this layout is perceived, the Murmur is not only smooth and supple at the start of its stroke, absorbing bumps whether you’re pedalling or freewheeling, but it also has loads of support throughout its travel.
Larger, successive hits are where it reaches its suspension’s limits, but the frame’s softer, more forgiving steel construction makes up for much of the lost ground convincingly.
The adaptability of the Murmur’s frame is another massive tick in the box; fit a longer shock and fork, and it’s transformed into a Mega Murmur for even gnarlier riding.
Horst-link predictability
In its stock form, the Scott Genius’ performance is stifled by its tyres and flexy wheels. If your bag is razzing along double tracks with the occasional foray into trail-centre reds, it’ll be absolutely fine.
Increase the trail technicality to a level more befitting of its performance potential, though, and you’ll be pining for better rubber.
Once fitted, the Scott’s predictable Horst-link design offers one of the widest performance bands of any system.
It has excellent starting-stroke suppleness, with a gradual ramp-up towards bottom-out, all without pedal kickback.
On the brakes, it remains supple and smooth, until the bumps get very large.
Its hidden-shock design and sleek frame are certainly appealing for the tech-focused rider, but neither add anything tangible to its already solid performance.
Twin-link tuning
Santa Cruz’s latest Bronson is the brand’s freshest take on what a generalist mountain bike should be.
The brand has succeeded in specifying the right tyres and components throughout, and tweaks to the VPP suspension design and geometry elevate it beyond the previous iteration’s performance.
Overridingly predictable and muted, the Bronson is a reliable and unwavering companion on the trails, no matter how wild they get.
Its suspension design builds on the Horst-link’s generalist feel, but has less suspension bob and is a pinch more predictable on the brakes. However, caution still needs to be exercised around the largest, squarest-edge hits to avoid dinging the back wheel.
Unsurprisingly, the mixed-wheel setup builds on the suspension’s character; let it run and gobble up bumps in a straight line, but initiate a turn and a whole world of fun is unleashed as the rear end breaks traction predictably.
This latest iteration of VPP suspension design is the best yet, with a brilliantly wide performance band for all types of riding.
Six-bar sensation
Finally, the Atherton A.150.1.
Using a six-bar design, the A.150’s layout certainly looks complicated, with no fewer than seven pivots.
Its enormously ingenious 3D-printed titanium lugs and carbon tube design make offering 22 geometry sizes and customisation feasible.
While its suspension design and construction look complicated, out on the trail it acts like Occam’s Razor, cutting through the hectic chatter usually transmitted to the rider.
It translates upsetting, destabilising inputs into a simple, calm and muted ride feel that no other design can quite match.
The breadth of performance really struck me; on every trail, over all types of bump and obstacle, whether braking, freewheeling or pedalling, it feels otherworldly.
Simply put, the Atherton A.150.1 is like a cheat code for bike riding – it opens up speed, line and performance potential other designs can’t.
That means it’ll be great for all types of rider – from beginner to expert – and is the reason I fell in love with the complicated suspension system.
Which suspension design is best?
Ignoring budget constraints and potential maintenance implications for one second, there’s no denying the breadth of performance of the six-bar linkage.
It takes all the performance benefits from the other designs and rolls them into one high-performing package.
All of the crucial metrics are managed with absolute precision – pedal bob, on-the–brakes performance, off-the-top smoothness and bottom-out resistance.
There isn’t a better-performing design on the market and it's where I'd spend my money.
However, it’s never as simple as that.
The six-bar linkage has a large number of pivots, and those pivot bearings will eventually need replacing.
The humble single pivot is considerably less complicated, with most designs only having two bearings, making replacement easier and cheaper.
Sitting in a middle ground of complexity and performance are the Horst-link and twin-link layouts.
These represent a good compromise between getting the desired kinematics and ease of maintenance, at a sensible cost.
The Horst-link design is vastly popular, and there are loads of different bikes from varying manufacturers with the system, so finding the right bike for your needs will be easier and potentially less expensive.
In terms of performance, the six-bar design is unbeatable, but the single pivot is the easiest to maintain.
The twin- and Horst-link systems balance complexity and performance.
Meanwhile, the widely available Horst-link design opens up bike choice, which is a great plus for prospective buyers.
