Amplid Singular Directional Snowboard

Another new addition to the Amplid collection for this season, the Singular Directional takes the same revolutionary all-terrain concept as the Singular Twin but is reshaped into a more carving-focused directional twin shape. It is ideal for riders who spend most of their time carving around the mountain and hunting out powder stashes but with the odd lap through the park. As with the Twin, the Singular Directional was another favourite amongst staff at our board test. So what is the Singular Directional? After many years of data gathering, Amplid has come up with a state-of-the-art shape with perfect length and width. Wide enough to eliminate toe drag but not so broad that edge-to-edge transitions become sluggish. Long enough to have enough edge support and floatation, but not too long to keep the deck nimble. Match that optimum shape with some of the most advanced construction available, and you get a board that is nothing short of a revelation to ride in any terrain and any conditions. Beautifully smooth, rock-solid on edge, floaty in the pow and well balanced underfoot, the Singular Directional feels like it’s morphing from powder board to carving board to all-terrain board as you ride along. Want to take a lap in the park, no problem. The Singular Directional delivers a surprisingly well-balanced ride, so it feels really at home taking park laps, which is a bit of a revelation for a board that carves and rides powder as well. This board is the future of all-terrain snowboarding today.

Rider Style:

Intermediate to expert riders looking for a more freeride focussed board that can still handle the park like a freestyle board.

Shape Overview: Directional Twin

The Singular’s advanced directional twin shape has been specially designed to deliver the perfect ratio between the shape and width of the nose with the width of the riding platform. Sharing the same advanced nose profile as the Singular Twin but featuring a shorter squared-off tail, the Singular Directional still feels well balanced underfoot with a controllable and predictable feel for when you want to hit the park. As with the Singular Twin, the Singular Directional features Amplids All-Terrain Tips technology. This innovative design creates a fuller profile after the contact points giving the nose more volume without overly adding weight. This gives outstanding performance in deep snow whilst also allowing the board to blast through chop and crud. However, unlike the Twin, the Singular Directional doesn’t carry that technology through the entire length of the tail. By cutting the tail shorter and stiffening it up, the Singular Directional comes into its element when you’re just charging around the mountain. That shorter tail working in harmony with the 1cm set-back on the stance lets you drive this board through the turn whilst also improving lift in the pow. Again as with the Twin, the directional version shares the same mid-tight sidecut, so it delivers the perfect balance between long and short radius turns.

Profile: Directional Cruise Camber

Cruise Camber features a more mellow camber under the feet to deliver a smooth yet responsive feel under the feet. Powering up the edge length without feeling overly aggressive, it’s perfect for anyone who wants excellent performance with minimal effort. Early rise in the nose helps increase buoyancy at the front of the board, helping to deliver the Ticket’s effortless powder performance.

Construction:

Heading up the Singular Directional’s high-end construction is the Omni Core featuring Hex 02 technology. This state-of-the-art wood core is the industry standard for lightweight, durable and versatile performance. Amplid has tweaked this core multiple times over the years, so there’s nothing left to improve. To add additional strength to the core and help reduce core compression at the binding edges, Amplid inserts tough, pre-cured composite impact plates placed beneath the bindings. These significantly reduce the risk of top sheet dings and breakages. Hex 02 replaces specific areas of weightier wood at the tips with a featherlight recycled paper honeycomb, practically eliminating swing weight. To give the Singular Directional its ultra-smooth ride, Amplid fits their Viscodamp 2.0 dampening technology. Full-depth channels are strategically CNC-ed into the nose and tail of the snowboard core. A low-shore-hardness Thermoplastic Polyurethane (TPU), a softer version of the material used in skateboard wheels, is poured into the channels and cured. Vibrations create shear forces between the upper and the lower laminate. The TPU material is bonded to the top and bottom fibreglass laminates and absorbs energy during initial shear deformation. During the elastic return to its original shape, the TPU sucks up vibrational energy and delays successive vibration oscillations. Now, to give the Singular Directional a more carving focussed ride, it swaps the Twin’s freestyle focussed bi-ax structural layers for torsionally stiffer quad-ax glass. Working in harmony with the Carbon Pop Band that adds extra pop through the length and additional dampening from the Basalt Suspension Strips, the Singular Directional delivers a strong and powerful ride whilst still retaining that classic Amplid feel.

Sintered 7 Base

Amplid’s ultra-high density sintered base goes like sh**-off-a-shovel in all snow conditions. It is tough and therefore more resistant to damage.