DT Swiss EXC 1200 Classic 29in wheelset review: perfect performance but far too expensive

DT Swiss EXC 1200 Classic wheelset setup and tubeless inflation

Tyre installation proved to be tricky.

The rim’s 37mm external width and deep 9mm well means the tyre needs to be stretched significantly during installation.

Whether that’s the initial bead or the final part of the tyre installation prior to inflation, installation isn’t as easy compared to slightly narrower and shallower rims. You can forget about using metal tyre levers.

While the carbon fibre rim construction is durable, it marks and chips when a metal lever is used against it. Plastic levers won’t damage it, but they’re not as tough as metal ones and make installing tyres trickier.

Combined, these factors make installing tyres – especially tough ones best suited to enduro – much trickier than other rims.

DT Swiss EXC 1200 Classic wheelset on-trail feel

The EXC 1200 wheels are way more forgiving than I was expecting.

Carbon rims are frequently stiff and rigid, transferring plenty of hand-fatiguing buzz into your hands.

That’s not the case with these costly DT Swiss wheels, despite their wide rim and high spoke-tension build.

A muted and smooth ride quality dominates, making them indistinguishable from the often-regarded as smooth feel of alloy hoops such as DT’s own E 1900.

While the difference in feel from less expensive alloy models could be seen as a bit of an own goal, it’s a resoundingly positive thing.

The high-quality carbon construction and even, perfectly tensioned spokes, give them a solid and muted, rather than stiff or harsh feel – even on the most chattery, rough descents.

Successfully calming fatigue-inducing vibrations, they help reduce tiredness on longer descents, meaning there’s little to dislike about the feel of the EXC 1200s.

Unsympathetically hitting a section of matted roots or embedded rocks elicits zero spoke twang, resulting in a very quiet ride. The spokes remain in consistent tension, no matter how hard the wheels are pushed.

There’s great steering accuracy, even at high lean angles, and accurate line tracing during choppy direction changes. They don’t banana, flex or bend when pushed hard into the terrain.

Upping steering predictability and rider confidence, they can be abused under heavy-handed riders and pushed towards their limits with impunity.

Ham-fisted riders will be able to get the rim to emit a ‘dong’ sound when it bottoms out onto the trail’s floor, but the sound is dull and any sensation of an impact gets filtered out before it can reach the rest of the bike.

Bangs of this nature are absorbed well and, despite multiple bottom-outs, the rims suffered no visible damage during my testing.

Whether or not the 28 front and 32 rear spoke counts contribute here is hard to say, but they certainly don’t detract anything from the feel.

The 180 hub’s Ratchet DEG freehub engages quickly, with very little free play.

It’s an upgrade over the Ratchet EXP and is something pickier riders will appreciate.

The pause between pedal input and the rear wheel powering up is almost zero, but it’s still not as quick as Industry Nine’s Hydra or 1/1.

The quicker engagement is accompanied by a different freewheel sound.

Now higher in pitch, it’s buzzier than the EXP or LN hubs, but not as loud as Industry Nine models. Whether or not that’s a positive is down to your preference.

The weight of 1,814g a pair is light for an enduro wheelset and helps them roll faster than chunkier mountain bike wheels on flatter terrain. This means you can spec weightier tyres before the bike’s overall weight increases.

Whether or not the high-quality ceramic bearings boost rolling speed further is incalculable on an average descent, but there’s no denying they’ll last a long time before they need replacing.

How does the DT Swiss EXC 1200 Classic wheelset compare?

Lined up in a blind test against DT’s other enduro wheels – the EXC 1501, EX 1700 and E 1900 (all of which I’ve tested) – you’d be hard-pressed to find any significant differences on the trail.

Hammer through rocks, berms, roots and flat corners, and there will only be marginal distinctions between them – each wheelset feeling accurate and solid, but far from harsh or chattery.

Lighter wheels are going to pick up speed quicker on flatter sections and probably maintain that pace for longer.

There's a difference of 356g between the heaviest E 1900 (2,170g) and lightest EXC 1200, but cost-wise there’s a gulf, with the former coming in at £449.98 and the latter £2,349.98. Yikes.

The EXC 1200 wheels are a tougher sell against the more reasonably priced EXC 1501s. The latter cost only £1,549.98 a pair and – the biggest surprise here – weigh 1,752g a pair, which is 62g less.

The 180 hub’s ceramic bearings are nice to have, as is the Ratchet DEG freewheel, but both can be added to the EXC 1501’s 240s later, should you wish. If you’re looking to save weight, the EXC 1501 wheels are the pick, without the intimidating price tag.

Back to the alloy wheels, costing £759.98 and weighing 2,023g a pair, the EX 1700s are a good compromise, but they’re only 147g lighter than the cheapest E 1900. Does the 350 hub’s Rachet EXP freehub and slightly higher-tech rim construction warrant the extra cost? For some maybe, but others are going to be less convinced.

What do I recommend? If it was my money, I wouldn’t go for any of these.

Instead, I’d buy the FR 1500 Classic wheels, which weigh 2,079g, cost £854.98 a pair, have a 240 hub and should be stronger than the ASTM-4 classified EXC 1501, EX 1700 and E 1900 because they’ve got a level-5 rating.