Road.cc Reviews Our EVO X Brakes

Technical Details

These employ a two-piston calliper and are made from forged aluminium with titanium hardware. They come fitted with resin pads, which provide a smoother, more progressive (and quieter) bite than sintered, but they do tend to wear faster than those.

The Evo X has a new lever designed for one-finger use, and it features a tooled reach adjustment (you need a 2mm Allen key). That might not be quite as convenient as a dial, but it’s lighter, and still easy to use – and reach is typically a set-and-forget adjustment anyway.

The streamlined master cylinder sits close to the bars, and the slim clamp is designed to integrate your dropper-post shifter and gear shifter, be those from TRP, SRAM or Shimano, via an adaptor kit (TRP Shifter Adapters for EVO Pro/Evo X, £20).

The Evo Xs are optimised for use with 1.8mm rotors (sold separately), and TRP recommends the 1.8mm RS02M in a 180mm diameter.

The Evo X is available in all black or, for a bit of bling, black and gold.

Performance

If I’m totally honest, I’m a bit of a hydraulic brake bleed-o-phobe. Past experiences at bleeding brakes have left me traumatised, so I asked editor Liam to fit them for me (he loves a bit of faff with internal cable routing…). Turns out the Evo X uses an easy plug-and-play system, and as I watched Liam work, I had to admit it did look really easy. It was something I could have probably handled.

The Evo Xs replaced my battle-weary SRAM Level T brakes, and the 1.8mm-thick RS02M 180mm rotors (£30 each) replaced my worn SRAM 2mm discs. I even took the time to bed it all in properly, which is absolutely unheard of for me!

The Evo X brakes have been the perfect addition to my downcountry bike over almost six months of testing, whatever the temperatures and conditions. What I’ve been most impressed by is their smooth modulation and confidence-inspiring precision, which is a huge help when scrubbing off speed into technical terrain.

Lever feel is excellent, with only a light input needed to reach the progressive rather than grabby bite point, and they’ve remained consistent with no changes in throw. Once you get used to them, you can just ride, without ever needing to think consciously about your braking.

I’ve found them pretty forgiving on my hands too, and although I like to push the limits of what my short travel ripper can handle, I never suffered any brake fade on long descents. The pads have never even uttered a squeal, even in the filthiest conditions, and they have also worn well, though I do swap between bikes frequently.

If you want to adjust for power/weight slightly, those recommended RS02M discs also come in 140mm, 160mm and 203mm diameters for between £22 and £35.

In short, these are very easy to recommend.

Verdict

The TRP EVO X brakes are easy to fit, look killer, and deliver on the power and performance. The light level feel and progressive modulation mean these are fit-and-forget stoppers, and I never felt under-gunned using them.