Originally Posted by biker7
If you want diversity and less shifting up front, a triple is the way to go. How's that?
Um. Well...I think you're having fun with us.
I'd say a compact double gives you the ability to shift less up front than a triple, not the other way around. With a triple, you're limited to how much of the cassette you can use with each front ring. And since the jumps between the front rings are less on a triple, you end up with more gear overlap than with a compact double. For example:
50-34 compact with 12-23 9-speed cassette: 3 gear overlaps
53-42-30 triple with 12-23 9-speed cassette: 10 gear overlaps