Customer Review: SRAM GX Eagle Drivetrain (And Why This Should Be Your Next Purchase)

Another one of our customers has made the switch over to the Sram GX Eagle 12 speed drivetrain. Here in this review, our customer Bradley Perkins swapped his old Shimano SLX 2x10 groupset for the new Sram GX Eagle drivetrain. Read more to see if Brad made the right decision.

I’ve been wanting to switch to a 1x drivetrain for a long time but always heard that the range wouldn’t be as great as that of my 2x10 currently on my bike. Of course, that was until I saw the SRAM Eagle group set! The XX1 and XO1 were way out of my price range, so I never considered getting them. One day I stumbled upon Worldwide Cyclery’s site and saw they offered the SRAM GX Eagle 12-Speed Groupset with Cassette, Shifter, Derailleur and Chain for a very reasonable price. So, I pulled the trigger and ordered it.

This groupset is on my 2010 Giant Reign X. I had just blown out the original rear hub, so it was perfect timing to upgrade the hub to a Hope Pro 4 with the XD freehub to fit the massive Eagle GX 12 speed cassette. If anybody is wondering if you can use the cassette on a 135x12mm rear hub, you can! I couldn’t find any definitive answers on the web, but it does work. It is a tight fit though.

So how does it perform? Coming from a Shimano SLX 2x10, it is a night and day difference in shifting performance. It shifts quickly and precisely. It’s almost silent in comparison to my old drivetrain. It made my bike feel new again. On my first ride, I was blown away with how low the 50-tooth gear is. I was amazed at how easily it shifts into higher tooth gears if needed while climbing. I have it paired to a 32-tooth chairing and I could honestly do with a 34-tooth. Even with the 32-tooth chain ring, the top speed is faster than what I need on my local trails. A couple of my buddies tried it out and they are all filled with envy and want to switch over to the Sram ASAP! 

If you are on the fence about getting the Sram GX Eagle groupset, just do it! You won’t regret it!