What is a good first downhill bike?

A good "first" downhill bike is going to be the same as a good "second" or "third" downhill bike... there are very few things that differentiate them.

Any DH bike worth it's (considerable) weight will be in the $2500+ range regardless of brand. So, forget brand and find one that speaks to you. As prices go down so does durability. I would also suggest that you put aside any DH that includes any group HIGHER than Shimano SLX or SRAM X7... much cheaper to replace when you break it AND excellent performance.

Got £3249 laying around? http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-gb/bikes/model/20...

Down hill bikes are very heavy and have very long shock travel. They are not good for anything else.

http://www.bicycling.com/gearfinderproductlist?gfp...

I find your question a tad spurious, how can anyone have six or seven years of experience on a MTB and have no idea what would be good.

I suggest a giant glory dh1 I have one, it served me well

are you sure you want a 50 lb bike for $3000 just to ''try it''?

i mean, it would totally suck at regular mt biking as well as anything on the road

wle