Genetic Driser 4-10 handlebar

Genetic's Driser 4-10 handlebar is a good option if you want to tweak your position up a bit without affecting the look of your bike too much. It won't affect your bank balance too much either...

If you're in the market for a new bar, check out our guide to the best road bike handlebars which includes plenty of advice on how to choose and what you need to know.

> Buy now: Genetic Driser 4-10 for £25 from Genetic

The Driser is a pretty standard-looking alloy bar at first glance. It's made from 6061 alloy and has a fairly compact drop with a 4-degree flare, which adds a little bit of extra width there. I find that generally more comfortable than a straight drop, and also you get a little bit of extra width for a touch more leverage if you're heading off-road (or onto the cyclo-cross circuit).

We reviewed the Driser 4 a few years back, and with its 20mm of rise from the clamp it's obviously a riser-drop. This Driser 4-10 is more subtle, blending the rise into the flat section on the tops so it's not really visible. The downside is you only get half as much height gain, but even then 10mm can make quite a difference to the feel of the bike. It might be just the thing, for example, if you've got a favourite bike but you're not getting any younger or more flexible and you'd like a touch more height without spoiling the look. I really wouldn't know about any of that, but I'm told it's a thing.

It's a pretty stiff bar – there's not a lot of noticeable flex from the drops when you're putting down some watts, so it's direct-feeling and isn't as comfortable as some down there. The first bar I swapped it for was a Lauf Smoothie on the Úthald I reviewed and the difference between that bar (which is designed to flex) and this one was certainly noticeable.

The flat tops I found pretty good: it's a nice position for climbing, and the transition into the drop stays a bit wider and flatter and is an easy position to hold for cruising. Genetic says the tops are 'aero', which I guess they might be; it's not really backing that claim up with any data.

The only real issues I have with the shape are that there's not a lot of round bar to add GPS or light mounts to in the middle section, and the Driser could do with more in the way of cable channels. There's a slight indent under the flat tops, but nothing round from where the lever sits. There are no holes for running Di2 wires internally either.

Value & alternatives

At £49.99 it's decent value (and currently reduced to £25); you can get alloy bars for less, but with its bit of flare and the 10mm rise this one has some specific features you might need.

For more height gain you could go to the Driser 4 for about the same money. Most bars that are more orientated to gravel have more flare, such as the Bontrager GR with 13 degrees (for another £20); even the more road-focused Ritchey WCS Evo Max I reviewed back in 2016 had 12 degrees.

The small amount of flare here worked quite well for me, and the look is still quite classically road. I'd say this works best as a road bar because it's quite compact and stiff; it's OK off road, but more flared and less stiff options work better.

Conclusion

Overall, it's a good quality bar, and if you want to tweak your position upwards without affecting the look of the front end too much then it's going to be more or less ideal. It's well made with a durable finish, and there are plenty of markings to get your position just so.

> Buy now: Genetic Driser 4-10 for £25 from Genetic

Verdict

Good quality bar that sneaks a bit of rise into your front end