Patriot

Chorus.

But then, I'm Campy biased after using both brands. Chorus is really better suited to a DA comparison. For a more direct comparison, Centaur is more like an Ultegra equal as far as performance goes.

There's nothing sloppy about Campy stuff. The shifting is much more snappy and mechanically sound than most of Shimanos stuff. When it shifts, you know it. You go "click", it goes "clunk". And, if it isn't tuned just right, it also lets you know it. Shimano tends to be very smooth and quiet, so determining the precision of your setup can be a bit more tedious. But, when it is right, Shimano is actually very nice shifting.

All in all, I still prefer Campy.