DLX Technologies have always been at the pinnacle of paintball marker technology, constantly advancing what a paintball marker can do, as well as making them look damn good. Seriously, Luxes look like the paintball equivalent of a supercar. But with the Luxe TM40 being phased out in favor of the IDOL, is the IDOL a massive improvement over its predecessor? Let's take a deep dive into the IDOL and find out more!
The Luxe IDOL Review
The first thing that is instantly noticeable is the packaging. The IDOL comes in a new case that has loops you can fit a carry handle into. Sure, this isn't a huge improvement or anything, but it's always nice to have options. The case is a little larger than the TM40 marker case, but there is more room to fit anything you may need. When the case is opened, you'll see two sleeves made of a weatherproof material. On the left side is the sleeve that contains the IDOL and the right sleeve has your barrel and extras. Each sleeve is also secured in place by an adjustable bungee cord, making it so these sleeves will never come loose and bounce around. The right sleeve also has 7 rows with elastic loops to bring extra barrel inserts, barrel fronts or barrel backs.
Inside of the sleeves is where we get into the meat and potatoes of the DLX Luxe IDOL. The right sleeve does contain a barrel sock, charging cable, full set of allen wrenches, carry handle, quick-start guide, lubricant, and spare o-rings. These items are expected to be in the packaging of a marker that costs $1800, so having everything there means there is no need to purchase anything else. The left sleeve holds the Luxe IDOL itself in place, although it's not a snug fit and it can move around a bit. This isn't a huge cause for concern, since the sleeve is weather proof and offers some impact protection.
The barrel has had some improvements made over the previous Luxe barrels. Staying true to the Luxe fashion, the porting is still that signature straight and linear pattern that we have seen before, except there's added porting at the end of the barrel and the porting holes are smaller. The smaller porting makes it extremely difficult for dirt, debris or water to enter your barrel system. The barrel back is also closed off, eliminating any windows that may expose the insert. Closing this off is a welcome feature since dirt and mud can't build up in those windows and makes the barrel super easy to clean off.
Now for the IDOL itself. A lot of the changes from the TM40 to the IDOL are more cosmetic and ergonomic, but there are a handful of internal changes that improve reliability too. Externally, the IDOL keeps the legacy of the Luxe aesthetic going, with sleek milling and a defined pattern, almost looking like a supercar. DLX Technologies has always made arguably the best looking paintball guns out there, and the IDOL is no exception to that. The fore grip has been redesigned, with two large bumps that protrude out, allowing your fingers to fit into the grooves flawlessly. The fore grip is also a bit thinner than the TM40's fore grip, and allows the user to firmly grasp their IDOL and have full control over it. The rear grip has been completely redone, doing away with the snap-on grips and external screws that were present. The IDOL uses a textured rubber grip that is held in place by a metal backstrap that snaps in place. The metal backstrap also covers the battery compartment, USB-C charging port, and tournament lock switch. The trigger has also been completely reworked, going from the blade style shape to a new 'shallow deuce' shape. The trigger assembly also was reworked and feels vastly better than any other Luxe out there. The ASA also saw a redesign, using a shorter and flat lever to prevent accidental engagement of the air system. All of these little features and improvements add up to create this new amalgamation of the Luxe lineup, and it delivers a truly user-friendly experience.
What about inside of the IDOL? What improvements were made there? To start, the core received a minor improvement that goes a long way. The bolt system still uses an open face, but there is a post that sits in the middle to help prevent rollback. This ultimately leads to improved consistency over the chronograph and provides better paint handling. Another internal upgrade are the air transfer plugs found inside the frame. Two stainless steel, free floating plugs with o-rings on both sides sit in between the ASA to the frame, and in between the frame to the body. These little plugs move freely, so if anything gets slightly tweaked on the IDOL, you won't leak any air if this happens during a game.
The final major change is the electronics. For the first time in the Luxe's lineage, the IDOL features a full color screen that provides the user with all of the information they need. This 1" display also makes programming incredibly easy. The electronic boards themselves are also modular, which cuts down on cost of repairs as you only need to swap out the components that get damaged versus the entire board. This also gives amateur techs the ability to make quick repairs at home.
So all of that sounds awesome, right? But what about the most important thing? How does the IDOL feel when you shoot it? The IDOL shoots like a TM40 with a dash of the much earlier Luxe ICE. The IDOL has a very smooth shot quality with a slightly more crisp sound signature. To put it bluntly, it feels and sounds like a TM40 that is very well broken in, and remains extremely consistent in its velocity and grouping.
Closing Remarks
I think it's safe to say that the Luxe IDOL was meticulously designed with massive improvements made in the reliability department. I do believe that this is a massive step in the right direction for DLX Technologies, and I am very curious to see what they come up with next. Keeping a lot of the features that I personally loved from the TM40, and just making them better does make the IDOL a true competitor to the Planet Eclipse CS3.
If you're looking to pick up a Luxe IDOL, you can do so right HERE!
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