Evolv X1 Review
Compare prices at 2 resellers Pros: Sensitive, inexpensive
Cons: Difficult to get on high volume feet, hard to size correctly
Manufacturer: Evolv
Our Verdict
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Evolv X1 | |||||
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Awards | ![]() | ![]() | |||
Price | $144.95 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers | $195.00 at Backcountry Compare at 3 sellers | $180.00 at Backcountry Compare at 3 sellers | $185.00 at Backcountry Compare at 2 sellers | $156.00 at Backcountry Compare at 3 sellers |
Overall Score ![]() |
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Star Rating | |||||
Pros | Sensitive, inexpensive | Versatile, durable, comfortable | Great precision, aggressive/down turned toe tip, sensitive, great toe and heel hooking, precise fit, comfortable, easy on/off | Incredible sensitivity, great edging, durability | Best edging shoe on the market |
Cons | Difficult to get on high volume feet, hard to size correctly | Expensive | Not comfortable for all-day climbing, expensive, not the most versatile, hard to fit, single strap broke prematurely | Specalized use, expensive, might be hard to resole | Expensive |
Bottom Line | Sensitive and covered in sticky rubber, these shoes are ready for steep gymnastic boulder problems | An awesome shoe for long climbs requiring a variety of crack climbing and edging techniques | A tried and true modern classic, this model excels while steep and technical climbing | An incredibly sensitive and comfortable shoe that excels at edging | This high performance model is the ultimate balance of support and sensitivity |
Rating Categories | Evolv X1 | La Sportiva Katana Lace | La Sportiva Solution | La Sportiva Futura | La Sportiva Genius |
Edging (20%) | |||||
Cracks (20%) | |||||
Comfort (20%) | |||||
Pockets (20%) | |||||
Sensitivity (20%) | |||||
Specs | Evolv X1 | La Sportiva Katana... | La Sportiva Solution | La Sportiva Futura | La Sportiva Genius |
Style | Velcro | Lace | Velcro | Velcro | Lace |
Upper | Synthratek VX | Leather/Lorica | Leather / Lorica | Leather/Synthetic Leather | Suede leather / Microfiber |
Width Options | Regular | Regular | Regular | Regular | Regular |
Lining | Unlined | Pacific (forefoot and back) | HF in toe box and arch area only | Unlined | Unlined |
Rubber Type | Trax SAS | Vibram XS Edge | Vibram XS Grip 2 | Vibram XS Grip2 | Vibram XS Grip2 |
Rubber Thickness (millimeters) | 4.2 mm | 4 mm | 4 mm | 3 mm | 3 mm |
Our Analysis and Test Results
These shoes are of the softer variety, geared towards gym rats and pebble wrestlers who need sensitivity and edging performance and are less likely to spend 45 minutes on some cotton mouth inducing runout slab. They are stiffer and more versatile than the bank account leveling $200 Scarpa Drago, but don't have the support and crack climbing abilities as some of our favorite sporty shoes, the La Sportiva Solutions.
Performance Comparison
Edging
Sized correctly, the X1s edge well, but the rubber is extremely soft and sticky, and some of our testers reported they felt the edge "rolled", a phenomenon we've experienced on some other Evolv models like the Shamans and the old Optimus Primes. They edge better than the super soft Scarpa Dragos and the clunky Black Diamond Momentums, but they can't touch the La Sportiva Genius, Solution or the Kataki when it comes to edging performance.
Crack Climbing
These shoes fit narrower than the La Sportiva Kataki, our Top Pick for Crack Climbing, so climbing hand size cracks in the X1 is a no-go, especially for wider footed climbers. The toe profile is delightfully low, allowing us to weasel into a few green camalot sized cracks and flares sometimes encountered in sport climbing. If you've got narrow feet and you downsize these shoes down too tight, you might get away with a few full pitches of crack climbing, but we don't recommend it.
Pockets
Pocket climbing comes down to a shoe's edging ability combined with the shape of the toe. A pointy toe can fit into smaller, shallower pockets than some comfortable, symmetrical shaped shoe you'd use to climb El Cap. The X1 isn't too shabby in the pockets, but we preferred climbing pockets in a stiffer, better edging shoe like the Butora Acro, or the La Sportiva Solution.
Sensitivity
These soft shoes are very sensitive, adding some versatility to such an aggressive shoe. If you haven't sized them painfully tight, you won't be totally out of luck when the climbing gets low angle and techy. They aren't as sensitive as the mega soft Scarpa Dragos, but we prefer a little more support for all the granite climbing in our Eastern Sierra testing zone. The Trax SAS rubber is super soft and sticking. Curiously, all the cat hair in our lead tester's house stuck to 4.2mm of rubber on the bottom of these shoes. We've never seen anything thing like this with climbing rubber.
Comfort
Evolv's sizing is pretty wonky. Our lead tester is 9.5 street size, and he had to size up to 10.5 before he could even wrestle his foot into the X1s. They're low volume, so if you've got high arches, getting these things on is going to be a bit of fight even if you've sized them too big for performance edging. So, low volume, narrow feet will feel the most comfortable in these shoes.
Value
These shoes are less than the Best Buy award-winning Butora Acro. We've used the Acros extensively, and feel that their superior comfort and performance is worth more than an additional 15 bones, and it remains the Best Buy. However, the X1 is a high quality, well-constructed shoe with the aggressive shape all the kids are into these days, and costs $40-$60 less than similar offerings from Sportiva, Scarpa, and Five Ten.
Conclusion
We're happy to see climbing shoe manufacturers trying to increase performance without raising the price. We hope to see more shoes like the X1. These are great for gym climbing, and are a huge step up from cheap, entry-level climbing shoes like the Evolv Defy and the Black Diamond Momentum.
— Matt Bento