raggedtrousers wrote: ↑Mon May 29, 2023 9:19 am
JayDee81 wrote: ↑Mon May 29, 2023 8:51 am
So far what I am getting from this is that Shimano is doing better what is actually important when you are riding the bike, that is shifting, while Sram is doing better the "quality of life" things such as ease of installation, battery changes etc. that don't matter while you are riding the bike.
That's kind of what I'm taking from it.
I think it seems agreed that Di2 shifts better, especially up front, though that isn't entirely problem free either from looking at threads on here. I'd really like to ride a Force D2 bike to make up my mind, but I don't see that being easy. As it stands, the current favourite is probably a UDi2 setup with a 105 rear mech so I can run the 11-36 for the Stelvio GF and the Fred Whitton. A heavily discounted Red AXS setup would be a contender if I could find one, too.
I dont have enough experience with 12spd di2 to comment on if the front shifting really has degraded from 11spd. I will say that Sram AXS front shifting is really good, if you can get the setup correct. It can be either very easy or really hard to do that, which I think is dependent on the frame you are using. My carbon gravel bike is what I would call "overly compliant" and it took me a while to get the setup right to shift from the small / big to the big / big combo. My ti road bike on the otherhand set up with the provided tool in ~2 min and has never dropped a chain on the stand or otherwise.
The one big plus for AXS on the bike are the dampers / clutches. I happen to really like having a silent bike and not having to worry about chainslap etc
For everyone else, there are three other things to consider about sram.
- They seem to be willing to warranty anything even if its the riders fault. I broke at sram RD by getting a stick in the drivetrain. I was very clear with them and the shope about what happened. They replaced it with a new unit when i asked about a repair.
- AXS as a product has actually gotten better since I owned it via feedback and firmware updates. Yes, there are limits to what they can do but there is a contrast between what they are doing and the rest of the bike industry in terms of adopting more modern engineering practices.
- They actually will help you find technical documentation / help with technical issues as an individual. Shimano in my experience, either wont respond or will tell you do go to a shop. If you wrench yourself, this is a big difference.
If I was buying a new bike, I wouldnt make a decission either way based on groupset between these two. If I was building a bike, I personally would go sram.