Originally Posted by
bblair
Chain #1: SRAM PC Red22 11 speed on a SRAM cassette. It's the shiny one. Very quiet when clean and lubricated. Replace at approx. 7700 miles and well before 0.5% using my Park chain checker tool.
Chain #2: KMC X11 with the oil slick purple finish. Maybe a couple of hundred miles. Always seems noisy, like a dry chain even when freshly lubed.
I used SRAM 9sp chains for years with my Shimano drivetrain, then decided to try a KMC chain. People here at BF like them, they were inexpensive. But the KMC was noisier to my ear than the SRAM, and did not shift as smoothly, though it did shift. Then I tried a Shimano chain, and it was the best of the three.
The KMC chain needs to work with Shimano, SRAM and Campagnolo, whereas a Shimano chain would be optimized for a Shimano drivetrain. I wonder if that gives Shimano any edge in performance and noise over KMC.
But chain noise is highly subjective, and reports are anecdotal. Good luck!