RockShox Reverb AXS XPLR Dropper Seatpost [Rider Review]

Our "Rider Review" article series features the honest reviews from verified purchasers of Worldwide Cyclery. They contain the photos, thoughts, feedback & overall review you are looking for. 

Not long ago the dropper seatpost changed the game in the mountain bike industry. Rockshox then blew the past the line with their Reverb AXS dropper post. Yes, a wireless electric dropper post. Our friend, Gamble has been running the XPLR. See what they think! 

Overview

10 years ago I didn't think I needed a dropper, they were a fad. 5 years ago you'd have to pry them out of my cold dead hands. 5 years ago I also would have told you that cables are fine, electronic shifting with all those pesky wires aren't worth it, and would have never guessed how well the SRAM AXS gear would work just a short time later. I've got thousands of miles on my gravel bike's AXS shifting, 500+ on my mountain bike shifter and dropper, another 500+ on this dropper, and they have been near flawless. The only issues with any AXS equipment have been due to neglect on my end, or crashing directly on the mech and needing to straighten the hanger. If you've not used AXS before, it feels almost like a video game controller to operate your bike. When you hit the button the action is instant, much like on your video game console wireless controller, you can't tell the lag between when you press the button and when things happen. Cable droppers you feel the cable pull and stretch and the actuation points and sort of have to finesse it or just mash it hard, with this AXS unit you hit an electrical button and it just works, no thinking about force or anything.

I can go multiple weeks between charges easily.

This item does not include any kind of controller, but I'm using the shifter combo button press to operate the dropper. Essentially you press both shifter buttons at the same time and it activates the dropper. It was a bit of a faf to set up but because I didn't seek out instructions and thought it would work the same as other AXS gear. Essentially you put the rear mech into pairing mode, pair each front shifter, then pair the dropper. Instructions can be found on the SRAM site.

AXS dropper battery life is excellent. I can go multiple weeks between charges easily. I keep a spare in my pack just in case something happens, but I'm a bit of a hoarder with my ride spares kit. One thing to be wary of is that the dropper(and mech) tries to stay awake with vibration, so if you are going for a road trip or packing it for airline travel, to remove the battery from the dropper itself. The batteries are the same between droppers and mechs which is handy as well. The shifter/controller(not included with this kit) batteries are coin cell type CR2032 and last well over a year with no fuss, no need to worry about those. I of course carry a spare in my pack as well, but that's a personal hoarding problem.

The basic mechanical seat post features of this dropper are excellent. It clamps to the frame fine, no brainer there, but the seat clamps and adjustment are top notch. You loosen the side bolt a little bit, then adjust tilt with a bolt in the front. If you are changing saddles or moving yours front to back, the tilt won't change on you by loosening the side clamps.

Final Thoughts

The Reverb AXS dropper post seems like something that really isn't needed. But, once you realize the perks of not having to worry about another dropper post cable, it then becomes well worth it.