I have been a big fan of SRAM Red components since first using them several years back. When the updated gruppo was released, I pored over the details, and made the decision I would have to upgrade. Unfortunately, reality and budget set in, and the big purchase never happened. But, in the last month of riding, I’ve been getting irritated by the drivetrain noise coming from my older cassette, so I decided to splurge and upgrade to the newer version. SRAM had been receiving criticism for the noise, and the way it was amplified by the design, so this was a major point in thinking through the redesign. The engineers listened, and successfully solved the noise issues with the new SRAM Red XG-1090 X-Dome cassette. This cassette has been the single most important upgrade I’ve done on my bike. Over the weekend I did my regular loop, and the drivetrain was dead silent. It was such a pleasure not hearing anything, and the peace I felt during the ride was worth the investment. To top it off, the new cassette is also lighter, so the Cervelo has gone back to a sub 14 lb weight. I highly recommend this upgrade. Now, if only I could upgrade the rest of the gruppo, I would be one very happy cyclist.
