Found! SunRace has a new 12-speed MZ90 11-50t cassette

Adding to its growing line of value-oriented wide-range mountain bike cassettes, SunRace has recently unveiled a brand new 12-speed option called the MZ90. This new cassette will be available in an enormous 11-50t size that’s designed to slide onto a standard Shimano freehub body, which makes it a potentially suitable option for those who want to run a SRAM Eagle 1×12 drivetrain on their mountain bike, but would prefer to use a rear wheel with a Shimano freehub driver.

The construction is basically the same as the SunRace MX80 11-50t 11-speed cassette we reviewed recently, with the two biggest sprockets made from 7075 alloy, and the rest made from hi-tensile steel. The largest seven sprockets attach to alloy carriers in two separate blocks, while the other five sprockets sit individually on the freehub.

SunRace MZ90 12-Speed Cassette

• 12-Speed
• Designed for Shimano freehub bodies
• 11-50t ratio
• Sprocket sizes: 11-13-15-17-19-21-24-28-32-36-42-50t
• Dual alloy spiders for the largest seven sprockets
• A7075 42t & 50t sprocket
• Hi-tensile steel sprockets (1st to 10th smallest sprockets)
• Alloy lockring
• Claimed weight: 586g (11-50t)
• RRP: £119.99

Obviously there’s another sprocket hiding in there, which will smooth out the ratio compared to the 11-speed version. Looking at SunRace’s specs, the 12-speed version mostly retains a tighter ratio in the higher gears, before it opens up towards that huge 50t low gear. Here’s the breakdown;

• MX80 11-speed 11-50t gear jumps: 2-2-3-3-3-4-4-4-6-8
• MZ90 12-speed 11-50t gear jumps: 2-2-2-2-3-3-4-4-4-6-8

Pricing will be £119.99 for the new MZ90 cassette, putting it quite a bit cheaper than the £179 SRAM GX Eagle 10-50t cassette. Availability in the UK is scheduled for the end of this month, and we’re expecting to receive our test sample not long after.

Also of note is that SunRace lists a SRAM 10-50t version on its website too, which is called the MZ91. The difference is in the mounting, as the MZ91 is designed to fit onto SRAM XD freehub bodies. We don’t have any pricing or availability information as of yet for that one, but we’ll be sure to post any updates here when we get them. Needless to say, if it’s priced similarly at £119.99, the MZ91 could be a great value cassette replacement option for SRAM Eagle 1×12 users.

If you’re interested in getting one, you can get in touch with Ison-Distribution or The Cycle Division, both of which distribute SunRace in the UK.