Hello and welcome to my Flux DS bindings review.
In this review I will take a look at the DS as all-mountain snowboard bindings.
As per tradition here at SnowboardingProfiles.com I will give the DS a score out of 100 (based on several factors) and see how they compare with other all-mountain bindings.
Overall Rating
Bindings: Flux DS 2024
Price: $359 (USD recommended retail)
Style: All-Mountain
Flex Rating: Medium (6/10)
Flex Feel: Medium (5/10)
Rating Score: 84.4/100
Compared to other Men’s All-Mountain Bindings
Of the 25 current model aggressive all-mountain snowboards that we tested:
❄️ The DS ranked 9th out of 25
Overview of the DS’s Specs
Check out the tables for the DS’s specs and available sizes.
Specs
STYLE:
ALL-MOUNTAIN
PRICE:
$359 - BUYING OPTIONS
$359 - BUYING OPTIONS
Ability Level:
flex:
weight:
Felt normal
Mounts to:
2x4 | 4x4 | Channel
Sizing
SIZE | US BOOT SIZE | EURO BOOT SIZE | UK BOOT SIZE |
|---|---|---|---|
S | 4.5-7.5 | 36-40 | 3.5-6.5 |
M | 7-9.5 | 39-42.5 | 6-8.5 |
L | 9+ | 42+ | 8+ |
Who are the DS Most Suited To?
The DS are best suited to anyone looking for a mid-flexing binding that has more carving ability than you'd get from most mid-flexing bindings, but still turns easily at slower speeds.
Best suited to boards in the 3/10 to 7/10 flex range, but particularly good for that 4/10 to 6/10 range. While their overall flex is a 5/10, the way the stiffness is more concentrated in the baseplate means it works better on stiffer boards than a typical 5/10 flexing binding, IMO.
The DS in More Detail
O.k. let’s take a more detailed look at what the DS are capable of.
Demo Info
Bindings: Flux DS 2024, Medium
Date: March 7, 2023
Conditions
Cloudy but high cloud. Good visibility. Lightly snowing to start but very light. Slightly more than flurries buy not much more.
Temperature was -1°C (30°F) and -4°C (25°F) with wind, both morning and afternoon. SE winds 5kph (3mph) morning . 10kph (6mph) SSE in afternoon.
24 hour snow: 0.4" (1cm)
48 hour snow: 2" (5cm)
7 day snow: 25" (64cm)
On groomer: Nicely groomed with a good layer of soft on top. I'd say medium firm underneath.
Off groomer: A little bit of it being dust on crust, but the crust part underneath wasn't too hard/icy or anyhing, so not too bad overall.
Set Up
Bindings angles: +15/-15
Stance Width: 555mm (22”)
Board tested with: Lib Tech Terrain Wrecker
Boots tested with: Adidas Response ADV, size US9.5
Footbed length: 23.9cm (9.4”)
Footbed Length Fully Extended: 26.4cm (10.4")
Baseplate Length (underside): 23cm (9.1")
Highback Height: 19.1cm (7.5”)
Weight: 920 grams (2lbs)
* for one binding, including screws and disc. The average weight of a small sample size of around 80 bindings (2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023 & 2024 models) I have weighed is 920 grams (2lbs). So DS are bang on average and felt normal on snow too.
Flex
In Hand: The DS' highback is quite flexy both twisting and pulling back – particularly when pulling back right up the top – gets more rigid in he middle of the highback though, of course. The top half isn’t the flexiest ever that I’ve flexed for pull back, but it’s up there. Ankle and toe straps have a good bit of flex to them as well. They flexed more than my control bindings (Burton Malavita).
On Snow: Feeling the highback you really expect these to be really quite soft flexing bindings, but I'm guessing the baseplate is quite a bit stiffer than the highback, given how they feel on snow. They still certainly not stiff overall, but overall flex feels around a 5/10. Highback you'd think it would be closer to 3/10.
Responsiveness
The DS feel really good when carving. They're higher speed carving ability defies their flex. Not sure if that's because most of their stiffness comes from the baseplate or if it has something to do with the ankle support you get from them (more on that below) but whatever it is, these felt really nice carving in.
They were also good in terms of slow speed response.
Board Feel/Butterability
There's nothing to suggest that they would have especially good board feel (no mini-disc or anything like that) but they have really decent board feel. It may just be because there is minimal padding in the footbed (see shock absorption below).
Pop/Ollie Power
Felt like I could get a similar amount of pop from these as I do with my control bindings but that's really good, as I find the Malavitas good in this area.
Adjustability
Heel Cup: No
Stance Width: Full size disc that you can run horizontal, so good micro stance width adjustability.
Highback Lean: Apparently you can adjust the highback lean, but it's not obvious.
Ankle Strap Position: Yes - 2 positions.
Toe Strap Position: Yes - 2 positions.
Ankle and toe strap length: Tool-less.
Gas pedal/toe ramp extension: Yes - and even heel ramp extention as well - you can do both.
Highback Rotation: Yes and it's even tool-less.
Compatible with: 2 x 4 | 4 x 4 | The Channel
Shock Absorption
Pretty minimal, as in almost non-existent padding on the footbed. This is the weakest point of this binding. Though, it may contribute to its better expected board feel and may contribute to it's better than expected carving prowess too.
Comfort
Overall nice and comfortable, with the only thing taking away from it, being that minimally padded footbed.
Ankle Strap: Felt really good. They conformed really well to my boots and gave no pressure points.
Toe Strap: As Flux toe straps tend to be, these were some of the better toe straps that I've tried in terms of fit to my boots and comfort.
Canted Footbed: Not that I could tell.
Padded Footbed: Very minimal (see shock absorption above for more).
Highback: A little bit of padding at the bottom and lateral side of the highback, but the main thing is that it felt very comfortable on my calves when riding. No calf-bite whatsoever.
Ankle Support
Best in the business, in my experience (not just the DS but a lot of Flux bindings). I think it has to do with the way they fit the ankle strap on the inside of the baseplate, rather than outside.
Entry/Exit
Really nice and smooth ratchets. Easy to release straps on the move, when getting back foot out at lift.
Score Breakdown and Final Verdict
Check out the breakdown of the score in the table below.
RATING | SCORE WEIGHTING | |
|---|---|---|
CARVING | 4.0 | 12/15 |
SLOW SPEED RESPONSE | 4.0 | 12/15 |
BOARD FEEL | 4.0 | 12/15 |
SHOCK ABSORPTION | 2.5 | 7.5/15 |
ADJUSTABILITY | 4.0 | 12/15 |
COMFORT | 4.5 | 9/10 |
ANKLE SUPPORT | 5.0 | 10/10 |
ENTRY/EXIT | 4.0 | 4/5 |
TOTAL after normalizing | 84.4/100 |
The DS are really good bindings, with turning, carving and ankle support being their strongest attributes. But they also have really good board feel and a lot of adjustability.
Apart from their lack of shock absorption, these are excellent bindings, with high-end carving/turning abilities, that belies their flex.
More Info, Current Prices and Where to Buy Online
If you want to learn more about the DS, or are ready to buy or want to research availability and prices, check out the links below.
If you want to check out some other all mountain binding options or compare the DS to other all mountain bindings check out the next link.
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