LinkGlide versus X-Horizon
One is Shimano’s latest and greatest budget-friendlier drivetrain. The other was SRAM’s premium option from 2012 to mid-2016. Welcome to the XX1/X01 versus CUES U6000 comparison you, and I, didn’t know we needed. But wait, Drew-Bob, is that even fair? That SRAM XX1 setup is decade-old tech*. But wait, Drew-Bob, is that even fair? A complete U6000 drivetrain (derailleur, shifter, chain, cassette) is less expensive than the XX1 rear derailleur. Just the derailleur.
*{Drewitors note: My XX1 derailleur was well used when I obtained it, so I don’t know how old it actually is, or how many miles are on it.}
The nature of parts intercompability has me briefly parking my CUES U6000 experience while the folks at Hayes Bicycle Group (HBG) dig me out an HG driver for the Ringlé Super Bubba X rear hub on the fresh SUNringlé Enduro Pro wheelset I’m reviewing. As I noted in my first look piece, the wheels ship with both XD and MS drivers, but the HG driver is an aftermarket option.
In place of CUES U6000 (oh woah, woah is me) I’ve had to dig out my BikeYoke Shifty equipped SRAM XX1 derailleur and X01 shifter. Sort of. The Clairebarian has raccooned my preferred X01 ‘e-bike’ shifter with its tack-tack-tack single-click shifting goodness so I’m on the multi-shift version just to add an extra degree of imprecision.
I have a lot of hours on Shimano LinkGlide at this point – both XT M8130 and CUES U6000 – and I think in a blind test most folks would have zero complaints about shifting speed compared to faster HG+ and Eagle setups and also zero complaints comparing the precision to SRAM T-Type shifting. In fact, I’d claim LinkGlide is the unicorn. For now.
Why for now? I don’t see how SRAM’s T-Type cable drivetrains won’t shift considerably faster than the AXS wireless versions while remaining much more precise than previous Eagle setups. The future drivetrain review the world needs is a GX T-Type cable vs. XT LinkGlide cable competition. I mean, I really, truly, want to believe that SRAM’s new cable-actuated budget drivetrains will challenge CUES U6000 but I think every SRAM product manager and engineer has to spend some time on CUES and SX for that to happen. Shame based product development?
Where was I? Right, U6000 is fantastic, and thus far the derailleur is bearing abuse well and the plasticky feeling shifter is holding up as well. Yes, the derailleur has a little bit of slop after more than a few meetings with unmovable objects, but the shifting is still oh-so-precise and away I roll. But then I push the clicker on the X01 11-speed shifter and I’m reminded that there’s a bold difference in action between XTR-level products and a setup that slots in below Shimano Deore.
The action on the decade-old SRAM shifter is lovely and the upgraded XX1 derailleur moves as tight & smooth as any rear mech ever made. The whole assembly including a GX-level XD cassette is notably lighter in my hands (I didn’t bother to put either on a scale). Gearing-wise I went from 11-43t with the Shimano setup to 10-42t with the SRAM, both with a 30t ring upfront, and I’m unbothered by the difference in high or low gearing.
From the smooth action in the stand, and lightning-fast shifting on the road, to a shockingly bad first few shifts on the trail. I know how to shift a bike. Heck, I friction shift my commuter. But jumping on the Arcturian being used to just plugging those LinkGlide shifts it’s a wonder I didn’t break a chain, fold a cog, bend a hanger, or all three. XT or CUES, I really didn’t recognize how much of a shifting crutch that LinkGlide setup ends up being.
It took the better part of a ride to remind myself not to shift in uphill switchbacks, not to shift as I’m entering technical climbs, and, while the chain runs lightning fast over the cogs, to apply pedal pressure with grace when I’m running up or down multiple gears. And then, while I would still choose the 11-speed ‘e-bike shifter,’ everything came together and I was hitting all my shifts riding the best drivetrain one could buy in 2012 and, I think, the best cable actuated drivetrain SRAM has ever produced.
Five Final Thoughts
Normally I prefer to be more amorphous, but I’ve come to MEATengines today with some steeled conclusions that I’ve arrived at, which I would like to share. There are plenty of used-in-good-condition drivetrain parts on the market and I can probably keep running 11-speed SRAM forever, and increasingly cheaply, should I choose, but for the purpose of this piece, and thinking about my ideal future drivetrain, here are some thoughts.
1) A Drivetrain for Drew-Bob
If I had to choose one drivetrain for me-myself-and-I, from my current stash of components, it would be this decade-old SRAM setup. Although, with Claire’s single-click shifter if she’d trade me (she’s tried both; she will not). I have years of experience shifting bikes and I have no qualms about shifting thoughtfully. I don’t have to think about the cost of either drivetrain, and this XX1/X01 setup was well and truly used before I had it so the brand-new replacement cost is irrelevant to me anyway.
Mountain bikes really come down to contact points. Grips, handlebar (shape), saddle, pedals, tires, brake levers, and, of course, shifters. Even running the XT M8130 shifter with the CUES U6000 setup doesn’t deliver the feel of the top-end SRAM option, and that should surprise no one. Nice things are nice.
2) Shimano XTR LinkGlide
Shimano XT M8130 is an excellent drivetrain, though arguably it would be even better with the steel cage sported by the CUES rear derailleurs. All that aside, Shimano XT doesn’t feel like XTR, especially once XTR is bedded in, and, more notably in terms of this process, as noted above, XT doesn’t feel like twelve-year-old X01/XX1 either.
While all the rumours point to Shimano going Di2-only with their top-end mountain bike drivetrain, I would love to see XTR-level LinkGlide. Keep HG+ for the electronic setups, but I hope a high-end cable option remains in the lineup, and I can’t see it being anything but LinkGlide. For the ultimate min-max chasm, I would happily run the XTR shifter with U6000.
3) A Drivetrain for Everyone
Ignoring the well-used shifting setups in my tickle trunk, the fact is that LinkGlide and T-Type drivetrains are significantly easier to shift offroad compared to what came before them. Riders are rewarded for pedaling hard into shifts, can shift nearly anytime they want, which means they can shift more often, and the massive increase in precision means drivetrains last longer to boot.
Ignoring the luxury options for the moment, this makes LinkGlide the drivetrain for everyone, right now. CUES U6000, Deore M5130, XT M8130, these drivetrains are all significantly less money than current T-Type options and don’t give up much in shifting speed for the massive increase in precision.
But I’m an optimist, and I know that (maybe, possibly, it could happen) once the powers that be at SRAM force their engineers and product managers to log massive miles on SX and NX drivetrains that (faster shifting) cable-actuated T-Type will make this a two-horse race. CUES LG vs. SX Transmission. Deore LG vs. NX Transmission. XT LG vs. GX Transmission. Just think how many articles are waiting to be written.
If a rider knows what they want, sell them what they want. But for anyone who isn’t sure, or really, anyone who doesn’t care, these LinkGlide and T-Type drivetrains make the most sense for when buying something new*.
*{Drewitors note: I’m not advocating taking away anyone’s Zee rear derailleur. But starting fresh, LinkGlide shifts significantly more precisely for anyone who hasn’t honed their shifting craft.}
I do know a few folks who have broken CUES derailleur bodies. Sure, I know a few folks who’ve borked every sort of derailleur. But in this case, looking at the failure modes of the current crop of Shimano rear derailleurs, I think there’s a potential dream combo that takes the steel cage from CUES U6000 and the tougher XT M8130 body and puts the two together.
Or, Shimano could just hurry it up by releasing Saint and Zee LinkGlide components. No, I haven’t heard any rumours of the sort either but we can add it to the MEATengines want list.
On that note, a T-Type cable-actuated setup brings up the possibility of a new DH drivetrain from SRAM. Does the future have fewer gears? No, 13-speed is a coming. But I can imagine a micro-drive 7-speed GX & XO (to compete with Zee & Saint) DH T-Type cable setup being sweet on a hardtail.
4) High-end Cable T-Type
[Alternate Reality]
I have a lot of hours on SRAM’s top-end 11-speed and 12-speed cable-actuated drivetrains (including their battery-powered servo-motor AXS and Transmission setups) and if I was Ken of SRAM for the day I wouldn’t abandon cable-actuated T-Type to the realm of GX and down. Combining the speed/precision ratio of Shimano’s LinkGlide (which cable T-Type will deliver) with the ergonomics and actuation of SRAM’s top-end cable groups from the last decade would make for a ridiculously nice shifting setup.
And yeah, maybe I’m playing the role of luxury Luddite here but XTR LinkGlide-Cable vs. X01/XX1 T-Type-Cable is the only boutique drivetrain competition I’m interested in. Folks think I’m crazy, but I actually see this happening some years down the line when mountain bicycles dump electronic everything and Flight Attendant and LiveValve end up being as relevant to most riders as K2 Smart Shocks.
I’m not saying eebs are going anywhere, just that cables are going to come back on all mountain bikes, me-powered and e-powered, where they simply make more sense. I doubt it will ever be in my budget (maybe well-used) but I’d be genuinely excited to try shifting an XX1 T-Type cable setup.
[/Alternate Reality]
5) Want Vs. Need
If I had to buy a new drivetrain tomorrow, it would be a U6000 setup with either an M8130 XT shifter or an under-bar friction thumb shifter depending on my mood at the moment. It’s simple economics in a frame-up bicycle build where I want to maximize brakes, tires, rear hub quality, cockpit ergonomics, saddle, pedals, and even my crankset before I think about upgrading my shifting setup.
Sure, on a complete bike, these components are all stepped up from price point to price point, but I don’t know that I’ll ever buy a new complete rig again. I always just end up with a bunch of take-off parts I can’t sell anyway, or something perfectly serviceable that isn’t my favourite but I can’t justify swapping.
But all that said, with the plethora of folks who have aftermarket upgraded to wireless drivetrains in the last couple of years there must been oodles of highish and higher-end drivetrains – SLX, XT, GX, XTR, X01/XX1 – just wasting away on benches and in boxes? So for those of us who aren’t worried about being able to plug shifts under heavy pedaling loads, there’s probably a used option out there worth considering as well.
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