Was there something about the Alivio you didn't like? Honestly, for a FD, there won't be any noticeable difference, and if you're going to run eight speed, the Alivio is the one to get these days. Nashbar usually has Alivio stuff, and the FD's are dirt cheap. I've got two Alivio FD's in my household right now, one on my wife's cruiser and the other on my son's mtb, both eight speed with Rapid Fire shifters. Both bikes shift as smooth as can be, and my son's mtb has a Deore RD, Alivio FD, Rapid Fire shifters, and in all honesty it's as smooth as my all-XT nine speed rig. The XT stuff is lighter, but for just the FD, there would be no meaningful difference at all.