On Test | The new 2023 Giant Reign gets more travel, in-frame storage & mullet compatibility

It was back in 2019 when the current version of the Giant Reign was launched. While it was a good bike, it did come out at a time when Giant was still working out the 29er thing. As such, the Reign was a bit short on travel with a 160mm fork and just 146mm at the rear. Three years on, and Giant certainly hasn’t held back this time round. As well as featuring more travel, the Reign gets an all-new chassis for 2023 with in-frame storage, mixed-wheel compatibility, and loads of build options.

2023 giant reign advanced pro 29 1
Featuring a brand new chassis for 2023, the Giant Reign increases suspension travel to 160mm at the rear and 170mm up front.

The 2023 Giant Reign

Purpose built for enduro riding and racing, the Giant Reign is designed to go up against the likes of the Norco Range, Canyon Strive and Trek Slash.

To match its competitors, the new Reign has received a substantial increase in suspension travel. It’s now equipped with a 170mm travel fork as standard, and it features 160mm of rear wheel travel courtesy of the Maestro dual-link platform.

While most Reign models will come standard with 29in wheels front and rear, it’s possible to set the bike up as a mullet. This is made possible thanks to a 3-position flip chip in the rocker link that offers a significant change in BB height to accommodate the smaller 27.5in rear wheel.

2023 giant reign advanced pro 29 1
The Giant Reign features the dual link Maestro suspension platform, with an updated flip chip that offers the option to run a 27.5in rear wheel.
2023 giant reign
A unique 3-position flip chip in the rearward rocker link allows riders to tweak the angles and BB height. It also makes the new Reign mullet compatible.

All-new frame

The 2023 Giant Reign will be available in both carbon and alloy variants. The frames feature a similar overall shape, and they utilise the same suspension design with a composite one-piece rocker link and a welded alloy lower link.

New for 2023 is the addition of in-frame storage. Brought over from the latest Trance 29, a hatch underneath the bottle cage mount provides you easy access to a hollow cavity in the downtube. The hatch uses a tool-free dial to lock it in place, and the included soft tool roll allows you to carry a tube and basic spares inside the frame.

The Reign also receives updated frame armour with a large rubberised guard covering most of the downtube, and a textured protector along the drive-side chainstay.

Giant is sticking with its 92mm wide press-fit bottom bracket shell, though we expect many will be happy to see the lack of any thru-headset cable routing. Speaking of, the Reign updates to the newer and more user-friendly bolt-in cable ports that we first saw on the latest Anthem.

2023 giant reign advanced pro 29 1
There are new bolt-in cable ports, which we’ve found to work well on the latest Trance 29 and Anthem.

Giant Reign geometry & sizing

The old Giant Reign wasn’t exactly outdated in terms of its geometry, but the new frame has made some key updates that bring it into line with the competition.

Depending on the flip chip position, the head angle comes in at 63.5-64.2°, while the seat tube angle clocks in at 78.3-79°. Reach has increased slightly, while the seat tube is a little shorter to provide more clearance with big-stroke dropper posts. The chainstays have gotten a smidge longer than the old bike, with the rear centre listed at 442-445mm.

2023 giant reign advanced pro 29 1
Chainstays have gotten a little longer on the new Reign.

As mentioned above, there’s a 3-position flip chip in the rearward pivot of the rocker link that provides Low, Mid and High positions. There’s a 5mm difference in BB height between each setting, providing a significant change to help riders tune the bike’s angles and ride height.

We like the addition of that middle geometry setting, which is lacking with the 2-position flip chip found on the latest Trance 29 and Trance X. We did occasionally find ourselves wishing for an in-between setting on those bikes, so it’d be great to see the new option available with the existing Trance range.

giant reign 2023 geometry size chart
Giant Reign Size Chart
2023 giant reign
There’s a generous layering of armour along the downtube and along the drive-side chainstay.

The new Giant Reign SX

There will also be a brand new Giant Reign SX for 2023. Designed for bikepark riding, the Reign SX is built around the same alloy frame as the standard Reign, though it comes with a dedicated mullet setup with a 29in front wheel and 27.5in rear wheel.

2023 giant reign sx
The Giant Reign SX is also new for 2023, with its Fox 40 and coil shock helping to distinguish it from the standard Reign.

To suit its rowdier intentions, the Reign SX gets a 190mm travel dual crown Fox 40. This slackens out the head angle to 63.1° in the Low position, though you still have access to the Mid and High positions with the adjustable flip chip.

Out back is a DHX2 coil shock that features a slightly longer 65mm stroke (compared to 62.5mm on the standard Reign models), which increases rear travel to 165mm. Because of the extra travel, the Reign SX is only has clearance for a 27.5in rear wheel.

Since it’s built for lift-assisted riding, the Reign SX doesn’t come with a dropper post, and it also features a 10-speed drivetrain.

2023 giant reign
The increased travel and slacker geometry is very much intended for bikepark shredding.

Giant Reign price & specs

There are currently five models in the 2023 Giant Reign lineup. Prices will start at $4,399 AUD for the Reign 2, and will go up to $8,999 AUD for the Reign Advanced Pro 1.

For riders who want to build up their own custom bike, Giant Australia will also have limited quantities of the Reign Advanced Pro frameset, which comes with a unique paint job and a Fox DHX2 coil shock.

Curiously there are no models equipped with Fox Live Valve, which has become a common sight on Giant’s latest full suspension models. Given that Giant Factory Off-Road Team riders have been racing this season with a prototype Fox RAD shock with wireless sensors, perhaps we’ll see another Reign model added to the lineup in the future with a few more electronic bits on it?

Conjecture aside, we’ve just got our hands on a Reign Advanced Pro 1 to put through the wringer over the next couple of weeks. We’re very curious to see how all the updates play out on the trail, so stay tuned for our in-depth review and video coming soon. In the meantime, check out the specs and prices on the full range below.

2023 giant reign advanced pro 1
The Giant Reign Advanced Pro 1 is currently the top-end model in the range, which features a full carbon frame, a Fox 38 and a Float X2.

2023 Giant Reign Advanced Pro 1

2023 giant reign advanced pro 2
The Giant Reign Advanced Pro 2 is the cheapest model in the range to feature a carbon frame.

2023 Giant Reign Advanced Pro 2

2023 giant reign advanced pro frameset carbon
Fancy building your own bike? Giant Australia will have a limited number of Reign Advanced Pro framesets coming into the country for 2023. Snazzy!

2023 Giant Reign Advanced Pro Frameset

2023 giant reign sx
Designed for lift-assisted riding, the Giant Reign SX comes with a coil shock and a Fox 40 dual-crown fork.

2023 Giant Reign SX

2023 giant reign 1
The Giant Reign 1 is arguably the best value pick of the bunch thanks to its alloy frame, Fox 38 GRIP2 fork, Float X shock and Shimano SLX drivetrain.

2023 Giant Reign 1

2023 giant reign 2
The Giant Reign 2 is the cheapest model in the 2023 lineup and comes with a RockShox Yari RC fork and a Shimano Deore groupset.

2023 Giant Reign 2

2023 giant reign advanced pro 1
The new Giant Reign is a great-looking bike that seems to have all the features you could want on a modern enduro race machine. Will it live up to our expectations on the trail? Stay tuned for our review coming soon!

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