Originally Posted by R. Danneskjöld

That's obviously a matter of opinion and your opinion is only one of many.

I've gone from six, to seven, to eight, to nine speed and chuckle when I read the hand wringing about the fragility of nine speed systems. I've never had a problem, nor have all of the disparate folks that I've ridden with, and I appreciate the extra gear/tighter spacing, depending upon cassette choice.