Interesting concept. I can see the logic behind the smaller gaps in the front chainring - less jumps in cadence and torque with front shifts. I am more curious about how the ten speed cassette and chain will hold up with angry off-road adventures, in particular ghost shifting and long term indexing accuracy.

Hmmm I think I'd rather have a double up front like the SRAM XX, having a triple up front with smaller gaps is just creating even more overlap with gearing and not really sorting out the chainline.

"... Shimano are calling their new drivetrain technology Dyna-Sys, and insist they haven't simply added an extra cog to the cassette. In fact, they're calling it "a whole new way of shifting ..."

BS

Why would you want a triple????? SRAM seem to put more thought into 10 speed then Shimano did..... Thought that the SLX range was a good value buy for what you got now they just placed themselves out of that market!

I like what they've done with the crankset, less racer-centric than the SRAM equivalent.

Wonder if the chainrings will be 9spd compatible, they always have been in the past?

I think Shimano will release a 2 x 10 XTR group, keeping the 'trail' XT/SLX with triples untill maybe later on when they will also release a double crank option for XT.

As a 29er rider a 2x10 and even 3 x 10 can be quite helpful. But I would prefer a 2 x 10 on simplicity. Interesting times though. Unlike Campag's 11 speed which really IMO is an exercise in stupid... 10 speed is something that's been proved before (all that road racing) and can benefit the MTB.

so basically shimano have been lazy and just added an extra gear to their existing groupsets............ disppointment of the century imo, sram are winning the gear it seems.

Surely its obvious that if you reduce the size of your front chainring you will be able to stay on the big ring more often!? Thats because its easier to pedal and you won't be able to get as high a top speed as before.

so this will make rear suspension work better.....what a load of cra...

Hopefully reaching this '10spd milestone' will mean that their next move in technolgy for mountain bikes will be something design from the ground up for a mountain bike. Something totally different. At the moment nothing has vastly changed since there was one chainring on the front and five on the back.

So by going to 10 speed you can now have 4 overlapping gears on the granny and big ring instead of the usual three. Excellent work it will certainly be a "whole new way of shifting"

No SLX double - very short sighted.

i think this makes sense. previously the only difference between the ranges was weight, but now its becoming clear:

XTR double cog (im guessing will be announced soon) - XC racing

XT/SLX - versatile trail riding or durable value

Saint - tough and heavy

i have a compact setup on my road bike and know that sometimes i miss that third cog, why limit XT/SLX to just two cogs when weight isnt that essential?

yeah, but why limit them to three only either? surely they could've 'won' by having the option of double or triple...

No duel control shifters !!!!!! :(

I think a lot of people were looking forward to Shimano 2x10. Not sure if anyone cares about having 30 gears. Seems like this is all the negatives of 10 speed and none of the benefits of 2x10.

Pointless. 10 spd vs 9 speed makes almost no difference to the rider.

I've just converted my 'Cross bike from 10 speed to 9 speed because it's more reliable in the mud and cheaper.

Still prefer my Hammerschmidt, shame it's still really expensive and heavy, because the quality of the shifting, the ground clearance, the gear ratios, the minimal maintenance and superb reliability wipe the floor clean compared to any front mech system.

Sram, please develop a more affordable, lighter weight Hammerschmidt, you'll clear up the market! ( the reported "drag" of Hammerschmidt is rubbish, it soon goes away after a few months riding)

With the advent of 11-36t rear cassettes, do you really need a double or triple up front now? If I had a lightweight XC or Trail bike I'd run a single 36t up front with a 11-36t at the rear. A 1:1 hill climbing ratio is surely low enough for sub 28lb bikes?

(back in the late 80's, MTB's had 28/38/48t up front with 7 speed 12-28 out back which gave you a 1:1 low ratio, plenty low enough to get up 1:4 inclines, and the bikes were heavier then)

Woo Hoo! So loads of discount 'old' 9 speed stuff on sale soon to finish my Stiffee build!

'haven't just added another cog to the cassette' my arse.

I have a 12-27 cassette on my bike because I never ever need anything higher or a granny ring, so it's nice to see it's not going to be compatable with road cassettes.... NOT!!!! Oh well.

Definition of Epic Fail isn't it. "What people really want is less usable ratios and more overlap!" More gears but less range, madness. Sure you can go with the big block now to claim that back but this isn't any sort of progress.

"...and insist they haven't simply added an extra cog to the cassette.."

No they've done sooo much more by going back to cicra mid 90's and giving us all a 24t inner cog and a 42t outer cog. What else..?

It amazes me how far frames, brakes, components and most of all suspension has come along since mountain biking took off, but gears haven't really changed that much.

Come on Shimano do something interesting and new and truly innovative. Otherwise you'll be known as the small S.

They are pretty much off track here. While more and more people with 9 speed setups are converting to 2x9 the come out with 3x10 groups... The only reason I'm still on 3x9 on my XC bikes is that I have spare chainrings to use but once that's done, I'll go with a two ring setup. Although I could grind the teeth off my 44T rings after all!

Anyways Shimano can try to defend themselves, they really just added a cog and they failed. Yipee I'll get discounted XT shifters and RD to complete my XT group!

3x10 nonsense aside, let's don't forget that unlike SRAM, Shimano is already pushing their 1:2 actuation ratio to the limit with their 9sp MTB and 10sp RD systems.

The only way of getting reliable shifting from a Shimano rear mech for more than a couple of weeks is to have a perfectly aligned hanger, high quality (expensive) sealed cables and a bit of luck.

To get reliable shifting from the new 10sp mech you will probably need a sonic screwdriver.

3x10 nonsense aside, let's don't forget that unlike SRAM, Shimano is already pushing their 1:2 actuation ratio to the limit with their 9sp MTB and 10sp RD systems.

To get reliable shifting from a Shimano rear mech for more than a couple of weeks, you need to have a perfectly aligned hanger, high quality (expensive) cables and a bit of luck.

In order to adjust the new 10sp mech after a week in Wales you'll probably need a sonic screwdriver.

If people think things through before opening their mouths, they might realise that what Shimano are saying actually makes sense. Yes, it does look as though they have just added another cog, but using 3 rings instead of 2 you are less likely to adjust the rear mech to compensate for a too high/low gear immediately after a front shift.

Regarding chain line affecting suspension, the Santa Cruz engineer said something similar yesterday about how the chain angle does have an impact on suspension.

Again a 3 x 10 will have more even chain lines when looking from the side and also when looking from above, which will decrease wear on the system (When sticking to usuable gears - not extreme combinations).

In my opinion Sram and Shimano turn out good stuff these days and as long as you can enjoy your riding - what does it matter! Be grateful for the technology that we've got instead of always wanting, bigger, faster, newer, better.

I just wish everyone would stop treating it like supporting a football team. It's petty.

Sorry if I sound like a boring old twat. I am, ha!

The idea behind Shimano 1:2 it's because IT IS MORE RELIABLE. Less than that and you need better cables and the like...

not a big fan here. whats wrong with 27gears? is this not enough. i still dont like 9 speed, i wouldnd have it if it was nearly impossible to get hold of 8 speed. pah

not a big fan here. whats wrong with 27gears? is this not enough. i still dont like 9 speed, i wouldnd have it if it was nearly impossible to get hold of 8 speed. pah

Need the XTR to come out!