AGV AX9 Dual-Sport Helmet Review

[MotoNews]

Published in: Gear

There are a lot of options when it comes to ADV helmets, and it’s easy to get overwhelmed. In the middle price range, Italian manufacturer AGV has been putting up some great lids in the past few years. New from AGV is the AX9, a redesign of the popular AX-8 Dual Evo. I’ve been riding with the AX9 for a few weeks now, and can say it’s been an upgrade from my last bucket.

On the street the AX9 is a great performer. The fit is close and it hugs the jawline well helping to keep it quiet. Almost too quiet, as I sometimes had a hard time hearing surrounding noises like traffic. Popping the shield up to the first detent not only let a little sound in but air as well.

For highway miles you’ll be glad to shut out the drone of 70 mile per hour wind. Unfortunately, at 70 miles per hour the very large and solid peak catches the wind hard. We’d like to see some relief cuts to reduce peak lift. It’s easy to remove however, and have been taking it off every time I expect to be riding over 50.

The AX9 also transforms for off-highway use. The front chin vent is completely removable. Take it off, and presto, you’re treated to a much less restricted cowl screen. In this configuration, the AX9 flows air like an open face. Around the city, I’ve found the open chin vent to be a comfort I won’t go without again. The AX9 also features two brow vents and two exhaust vents. The exhaust vents can’t be closed, a feature we’d like to see on a $500 helmet.

Once you hit the dirt, you can pop the visor off without any tools, save for a coin to turn some plastic screws. The visor, by the way, is massive. The field of view in this helmet is impressive, and the eyeport is more than large enough for whatever goggles you want to run. It’s worth mentioning that the AX9 comes with a pinlock visor, like many helmets at this price point. The pinlock is no frills, but works. Even in DC humidity I couldn’t get the AX9 to fog up. 

Comfort wise the AX9 is excellent. The interior padding is soft and cushy. Thick pillowy pads of foam wrapped in a buttery smooth microsuede separate you from the EPS foam. The weight on the AX9 is 1,605 grams, roughly on par with the Arai XD4. To keep the fight tight and quiet, AGV included a pretty tight neck roll, so be ready to yank it on and off until it starts to break in.

Overall, this is a helmet to look at if comfort is your primary concern. AGV clearly put some work into making sure this helmet could stay on your head all day without complaints. It’s not the most feature packed or technical helmet on the market, but if you’re stuck with 10 hour travel days, you’re noggin will thank you. MSRP: $499.95 AGV.com

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Pros:

Comfortable interior
Great field of view
Lots of configurable options
Very quiet

Cons:

Almost too quiet for me
Non-Closable exhaust vents

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