Hi all,

As above really, is SRAM XX1 (rear mech, shifter and chain) compatible with other 11 speed cassettes such as Ultegra 6800?

The reason I ask is that XX1 is very, very tempting but I’m wondering how to get multiple wheels up and running cheaply. For example, I wouldn’t want to shell out £200+ an another cassette just to have a second rear wheel for a turbo training set up.

What do you think? I can’t think of any reason for it not to work unless the spacing between cogs on XX1 and Shimano 11 speed is different?

Many thanks, DanW

For example, I wouldn’t want to shell out £200+ an another cassette just to have a second rear wheel for a turbo training set up.

😯

REALLY?

Buy a 2nd hand road bike for £200 that sits permanently on the turbo… Will be eminently cheaper!

And no, I believe the spacing between cogs is different. I may not be correct however.

Living in a small flat and having to keep my only bike indoors I don’t have the luxury of space to own a second bike and certainly not own a second bike kept permanently set up on a turbo trainer. My knees also aren’t tolerant to multiple positions on multiple bikes despite lots of bike fitting and nonsense trying to get multiple bikes set up the same. Basically a second bike is a no go.

Knowing if an Ultegra 11 speed cassette for £50 on a second rear wheel is doable with XX1 is a far more practical solution.

If this is not possible then I won’t be pursuing XX1 I don’t think

It’s the cost of the cassettes that has put me off it too. And that’s despite working in the trade!

Plenty of shops are doing them cheaper than the best trade rates Fisher advertise, so the trade point is moot.

Not tried it, but suspect it’ll be close enough for turbo use. Seen reports of folk using X11SL chains on XX1, so the spacing can’t be a million miles out. The only thing is that you’ll need an 11 speed freehub to mount a 6800 cassette.

I’d also go XX1 if it wasn’t for the ludicrous cassette prices.

The only thing is that you’ll need an 11 speed freehub to mount a 6800 cassette.

That a bit of a bugger that I hadn’t thought of!

My rear hubs to choose from are American Classic, Hope Pro II Evo and Mavic. Still not going to be cheap if 2 new freehubs were needed to get the XX1 and Ultegra cassettes up and running (e.g. £60 second freehub, £50 second cassette).

Another possibility is I’ve seen some people claim to use 11 speed cassettes on 9/ 10 speed Mavic hubs since the freehub body is longer than most and usually you would include a 2mm spacer behind the cassette- removing this apparently gives the length of freehub body required for 11 speed Shimano. Could be cheap but it is an expensive test if it doesn’t work out!

Why a why is XX1 such an expensive upgrade for so few addition new parts?!

Do you have the turbo, a far FAR easier method would be to buy a turbo with adjustable resistance and then just throw in a road rear wheel. It wont matter what gear you are in (hell, make it singlespeed wheel!) as you just adjust the resistance on the turbo not with gears. You wont even need a disc hub so the most cheapest wheel that will take a sprocket the right with for your chain will do.

Why a why is XX1 such an expensive upgrade for so few addition new parts?!

It’s top of the range, new technology etc.. considering you don’t have to buy front mech or shifter it compares quite favourably with the equivalent XX/XTR groupsets.

In answer to your original question though.. it takes seconds to remove / refit the cassette – just swap it between wheels?

Like njee says it’s not amazingly expensive now you can get one pretty much the same as a xx cassette and only abit more than xtr 10 speed cassettes

The thing is when you hold one in the flesh you can sort of see the workmanship in it, it’s impressively light and machined beautifully, there I said it , the cassette is a thing of beauty

I must say its a million times easier to keep clean compared to an xt / xtr cassette, the spacing etc means it tends not to clog up with shite so much

In action it’s bloody genius having that 42 t you think coming from a 10peed 1x setup that you will spin away like using a granny ring and climbing gear but you don’t, as you still ( well me personally) run a 32 t up front you still keep the cadence up front, your legs don’t feel like they are just ‘spinning’ like with a granny, but at the back it’s still easier having the 42t

When you use it all on a big ride you sort of understand why it’s all designed to work together, oh and the ratios down the lower end are a vast improvement too, you definitely gain more speed due to the final small rings having 1 teeth less so the ratio is a massive improvement all together compared to 10 speed

I guess what I’m saying is that 10 speed was never designed for specifically a 1x setup (2x or 3x) , and xx1/0 was, and although the cassette is still expensive it’s bloody genius in action, it’s also the quietest, slickest shifting gearing I’ve ever used (and I’ve used all setups going)

Just bite the bullet once with it all and you’ll see what I mean

The Mavic hub will work – as you say, remove the spacer and it’ll be fine.

XX1 is cheaper than XX – at retail at least the cassette is the same price, the mech is only slightly more. The chainset and shifters are cheaper. It’s also cheaper than XTR.

To make it cheaper for me still at present I kept my Shimano chain set and I needed a new race face narrow wide anyways

Works perfect and seems to mesh just the same (ie, no dropped chain and pure silence on any rocky peak descent I’ve done so far)

Xx1 defo has tighter tolerances than the shimano clutch mech, whether it be cos of the mech, jockeys wheels or generally everything I’ve no idea but as the shimano stuff made it quieter but xx1 is completely silent full stop

It’s fairly fairly cheap on crc now, I got my lbs to price match but if they hadn’t crc would have been the route to go

Plus let’s say you get 6 months use out of the cassette now on in( depending where / how much you ride) I bet in 6 months it will have filtered down to x9 level so probably a cheaper one on its way

In answer to your original question though.. it takes seconds to remove / refit the cassette – just swap it between wheels?

That is quite a faff to be doing regularly although I hadn’t thought of it as an option. Not sure I can face it with 3 sessions on the turbo and 2 outside each week.

Do you have the turbo, a far FAR easier method would be to buy a turbo with adjustable resistance and then just throw in a road rear wheel. It wont matter what gear you are in (hell, make it singlespeed wheel!) as you just adjust the resistance on the turbo not with gears.

The turbo will then be useless with Trainerroad which relies on constant resistance throughout a session. Good idea though.

The Mavic hub will work – as you say, remove the spacer and it’ll be fine.

That sounds better 😀 Just need to take the cassette off the Mavic wheel and double check the spacer is there.

XX1 is cheaper than XX – at retail at least the cassette is the same price, the mech is only slightly more. The chainset and shifters are cheaper. It’s also cheaper than XTR.

Yeah, I agree the retail prices aren’t too different but Shimano gets heavily discounted whereas SRAM seems to be priced closer to retail with fewer massive discounts on retail. By comparison an XTR shifter is £60, cassette £120, rear mech £125. £305 vs £492 for the cheapest XX1 components (shifter, mech, cassette) I could find (bikediscount). It’s a big jump in price from 1×10 XTR to 1×11 XX1, especially with needing new freehubs, not easily switching multiple wheelsets, etc.

I am completely sold on the function and principles but man oh man is it a lot of pennies to just up the cadence on the longer, steeper climbs and save the legs a bit over 1×10 😕

Just a quick update; I now have both the XX1 and 11 speed Ultegra in my hands and the spacing and overall width look to be the same as Njee suggested. Not sure how the two will align once on the hub but I’m sure I can bodge through it for turbo use

The xx1 uses a jockey wheel that’s eccentric to the pivot – ie it uses chain growth to position the upper jockey wheel (rather than a parallelogram action). I don’t think it will tension correctly on the larger sprockets if you use a smaller cassette like the Ultegra one. But that’s just a theory.

With regards to cassette wear, I’d presume it will be similar to XX cassette wear as they are both exactly the same construction.
My XX cassette has lasted for over 2 and a half years now, and still has lots of life left. I just measure my chain and change it a couple of times a year. Keep the drivetrain clean too.

XO1 cassette is a bit cheaper too… A bit… £215 online.

The xx1 uses a jockey wheel that’s eccentric to the pivot – ie it uses chain growth to position the upper jockey wheel (rather than a parallelogram action). I don’t think it will tension correctly on the larger sprockets if you use a smaller cassette like the Ultegra one. But that’s just a theory.

I bit the bullet and bought XX1 finally!

Just in case anyone was wondering, a normal Mavic hub and £50 Ultegra 11 speed cassette works perfectly with XX1 for turbo use. So if anyone has XX1 and wants a cheap turbo set up then a secondhand Mavic Crossroc/ Crossride/ Crossland/ Crossone should be available for £40 or less and get you up and running with an Ultegra cassette.

I also like the Tacx Booster since the higher than normal resistance gives more than enough resistance to be tough despite the low gearing (~570W at 35kph, which is ~90rpm with a 32T front ring).

In the pic below I have left the original chain on, with the length set for a 42T XX1 cassette and it all seems fine on an 11-32T Ultegra 11 speed cassette.

From what i remember SRAM XX1 is designed to work on even numbered sprockets. A regular 11 speed cassette will not be all evens. Its nothing to do with spacing at all. Doubt you’ll need to worry about chain retention though on the turbo

That’s only the chainring.

Yup. XX1 cassette includes a 21t cog.

And because chain links are in pairs the chain will never get out of sync irrespective of rear sprocket size.

570w is peak power right?!

If you’re swapping cassettes to save on wear, you’re swapping chains too, right?