Need advice on derailleur set. Sram or Shimano?

[iris ji]

Thinking of change a derailleur set for my current XC MTB, Which one should I choose between Shimano Deore XT and SRAM X01 ? Or should I just pay more money and get a XTR ? Or do you have other recommendations ? What factors should I pay attention to ? thx for answering!

[Duck!]

Depends what you like the shift feel of as much as anything. The well-tried Shimano setup with the release trigger in easy reach of the index finger to me seems most natural, but others prefer the weirdly-located SRAM trigger that you have to push up to release..... New XT has a really punchy main lever feel, so there's no wondering if you've engaged a shift or not, which you can sometimes get with older ones. Next, although they're improving, SRAM bits have a reputation for questionable reliability. Shimano just works. Finally, if you go X01 (or any SRAM 11-sp) you'll need to change the freewheel body on the rear hub, providing there is a conversion kit available for your hub, or use a Shimano cassette.

[nickdos]

Really depends if you're wanting to go 1x or not. SRAM if still the better option for single front chainring due to wider gear range. If you're happy with 2x then I'd stick with XT.