Merida Silex 200 review

Merida set a high standard with the original Silex. Its mountain-bike inspired geometry resulted in an off-road bike with assured, stable handling that was able to react quickly to steering inputs.

This new Silex steps things up another level, sporting a progressive frameset geometry and even better handling.

This build, with its road-focused drivetrain, doesn’t realise the frameset’s full potential, however.

Merida Silex 200 frame

The new SIlex sees the head tube angle relaxed back to 69.5 degrees, while the fork length is increased to 415mm.

Not only does this allow for increased tyre clearance (up to 45mm on 700c rims), it also makes the frame compatible with gravel suspension forks.

At the rear, longer 430mm chainstays bring increased tyre clearance, and the reworked bottom bracket and chainstays now allow for a larger, 46-tooth maximum chainring size.

The aluminium frame closely follows the design of the pricier carbon version. Instead of complex carbon structures, though, this one gets hydroformed and multi-butted tubing.

This aluminium frame also gains rack mounts alongside its front and rear mudguards, with a multitude of mounts for three water bottles, a top tube bento box and fork-leg mounts.

Merida has also used its Wire Port integrated cable-routing design, which routes all the cables and hoses through the upper headset bearing, making for a clean-looking bike with no irritating cable loops to get in the way of a bar bag.

Of course, the downside of this is servicing your headset bearings will be trickier and more time-consuming.

The sloping top tube gives a low standover height and makes the bike super-manoeuvrable when traversing twisty singletrack.

All things considered, the frame and full-carbon fork are a cut above most budget gravel bikes, but that leads to a few budget concessions on the build.

Merida Silex 200 specifications

The wheelset is Merida’s Comp SL 2, with 22mm-tall rims that have a broad 23mm internal width. These are laced to solid, if unremarkable, Merida-branded VP cartridge hubs via double-butted stainless spokes.

The freehub engagement is quick and the wheels ride with an impressive combination of stiffness and compliance.

The rims are tubeless-compatible too, but you’ll need to spend extra on valves and tubeless tape before attempting a conversion.

The Maxxis Rambler tyres in a size 700 x 45c are as big as the Silex can handle. As on the Saracen Levarg I've also tested, these have proven some of the best gravel tyres around for sludgy, sloppy, UK winter conditions.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said for the Silex’s drivetrain. There’s nothing fundamentally wrong with Shimano’s basic nine-speed Sora R3000 – the 2x 46/32-tooth crankset, paired with an 11-32-tooth cassette, offers a decent spread for off-road riding.

It lacks a little at the top end for fast road work, but I can live with that on a bike such as this.

What isn’t quite up to scratch, however, is how the drivetrain copes with rough, choppy terrain and lots of filth. Unlike Shimano GRX, for example, Sora doesn’t have any sort of chain-tensioning system.

When you get into really rough stuff, the Sora derailleur bounces a lot and the chain follows suit. It’s testament to the quality of Shimano’s tensioning springs that I didn’t drop the chain.

That said, it’s a very noisy bike to ride in the rough and the constant jarring also influences the shifting accuracy.

I had to make quite a few stops throughout the test riding to adjust the cable tension through the derailleur’s barrel adjuster.

It’s a shame the drivetrain doesn’t quite deliver, because the Silex frame design really does.

The short stem and long fork create an ideal balance of sharp handling, stability and shock absorption, and the frame’s low standover height makes it imminently chuckable when things get twisty.

I revelled in taking the Silex on trails usually reserved for suspension-equipped gravel bikes or hardtail mountain bikes.

It has such assured handling that I had no reservations over pitching the Silex into some truly testing terrain.

The Promax mechanical disc brakes are paired with large 180/160mm rotors front and rear, which helps overcome some of the shortfall between mechanical and hydraulic braking systems.

The Promax brakes feel a little soft initially, but push through to the further reaches of the lever travel and there’s some feedback to be had.

On the road, the Silex is excellent, the Sora gears in their natural habitat are a testament to just how good entry-level gear systems have got. The wide bar, with a subtle flare, feels good on the road and off.

At the back, the Merida saddle and I never quite gelled. The hull of the saddle is well shaped, but the padding adorning it compressed all too easily, exposing the firmness underneath.

Merida Silex 200 bottom line

Overall, the Silex has a very accomplished frame and fork, with superbly sorted geometry and truly impeccable handling.

In this guise, though, it doesn’t quite cut it as a pure off-roader.

As a rough-stuff commuter bike and occasional gravel ride, it’s ideal. However, for a pure-gravel experience, I’d step up to the 2x GRX-equipped Silex 400 at £1,650.

Or, I'd even totally stretch the budget to get the Silex 700, which has the latest 12-speed 1x GRX mechanical drivetrain and quality Easton AX tubeless-ready gravel wheels.

That way, you would get the very best out of a brilliant frameset design.