My Capra that I’ve had since February and has done just over 1500 miles is getting to the point where I need to replace the cassette. It currently has an 11sp e13 cassette, and these are around £250.
Looking on bike discount, they do SRAM GX eagle upgrade kits for £250 or I can get NX eagle with cranks for £250. The other option is to just buy a cheaper 11sp cassette, but where’s the fun in that?
Are there any issues with 12sp GX/NX groupsets? Is GX that much better than NX?
Will I need a new chainring for my current race face cranks to run a 12 chain?

You should just need cassette, chain and maybe a ring, no need to replace the rest

Sorry, pardon?
Are you saying that a rear cassette is £250?
What is e13?

NX is heavy and supposedly a bit clunky.
GX has lots of happy users but many say it’s very fussy about set-up.
Hence I’ve decided to stay with 11 speed for now, personally. Decent choice of wide-ish range cassettes under £100.

I’m guessing it’s the 9-46t E13 TRS cassette, which would imply you have an XD driver rear hub? NX Eagle cassette is an 11-50t on a shimano cassette so you’d need a GX eagle or higher cassette.

Mike, the Capra is 11sp with slx shifter and mech. The e13 cassette has been good with the 9-46t range, but I’m not paying £250 for one. If I stick with 11sp I’ll get a new chain and GX cassette and save myself a few quid. I did/do quite fancy going up to 12sp though

Yes that’s the one ta11pau1. I didn’t realise NX was only for shimano freehubs.

I’d personally get a GX eagle cassette chain and shifter. Keep your existing cranks and ring.

Be prepared to blow through jockey wheels though as the bearings don’t last 5 mins.

I’ve got 11 speed xtr on my other bike and I’d put gx eagle on any new build I do but with a higher spec crank (one of the carbon ones).

Stupid question maybe, but that e13 cassette… is it actually knackered all the way up or just the low end? Asking mostly because it’s possible to replace that cassette in halves, like with the Hope.

As others have mentioned, it’s a light cassette on an XD freehub and NX is even heavier than XT and uses a Shimano freehub, so without a new freehub body will not fit.

I’d go with half a cassette if you can, but if the rest of your shifting is as good as the cassette, I’d suck it up and replace the e13 personally. I’m giving very serious consideration to going the trs+ route with 11sp X0 rather than going 12…

I’ve got 11spd NX mech and shifter but with the next cassette up (GX maybe) on my hardtail and it works perfectly. Was very easy to set up and just as smooth as my full GX set on my other bike.

You could do the same with eagle and use the NX mech to keep the cost down with a lighter cassette.

It would be mad to spend £250 on a cassette alone (although I have seen them at £160) when the GX upgrade can be bought for £220 from Germany (or it was last week). You would get a steel and therefore harder wearing cassette and 12sp with a similar range. And then you can sell the existing shifter/mech.

My first choice is definitely to go GX eagle. As much as the e13 cassette has been great, I think with a 32t chainring that a 10-50 cassette is likely to be of more use than 9-46.

I think you can get the GX Cassette for around £137 on ebay Brand New, still not cheap but a lot better than £220.

If you don’t need the full range a gx 11 speed cassette for about £80 would likely be your cheapest option. If not I guess you’re having to go to 12 speed eagle cassettes / shifters / mech. Plus a new chain and maybe a new chainring.

I’m going to have to replace the cassette and chain. The mech did get bent a month or 2 back (I’d bent it back and it’s been ok if not quite as slick since) so it might need replacing at some point in the not to distant future. Just thought maybe it was time to swap it all out and do a bit of future proofing.

“I think you can get the GX Cassette for around £137 on ebay Brand New, still not cheap but a lot better than £220.”

If you refer to the price I quoted, £220 was for the GX gear upgrade, not just the cassette. So that’s cassette, shifter, rear mech and chain. That was with bike-discount.de up to last week anyway.

The GX 12 cassette on its own won’t be compatible with the OP’s existing kit anyway. I have seen it at £120 after code and cashback which is superb value btw for such a hard wearing and light cassette.

Either way and even at £250 for the kit, it still renders the e13 choice absurd. e13 need to be under £100 to make any sense.

Cheers everyone for your help.
Think I’ll be shopping around for the cheapest GX upgrade kit as an early Christmas present to myself. From a quick glance it looks like the German sites are still the cheapest. Maybe I should hang on a week or so and hope Maybot decides to give us a people’s vote and hope the pound sores 😀