Shimano users may think of 11 speed as fairly new, but I switched all three of my Campy bikes over to 11 speed in 2009. No regrets at all. Unless you're a beginner, 11 speed is the way to go. 12 speed is here and the other brands will probably not wait 4 years to follow suit. Right now I'd gain nothing but an 11T cog I don't need, so I've got no incentive to switch to 12.

About wheels suffering from 11 speed. I guess is depends on the brand. Campy hubs fit 9 through 12 speeds. No hub width changes have been made in a long time. Campy offers a lot of rear wheels with G3 spoking where the rear wheel has groups of 3 spokes - two for the drive side and one for the nondrive side. Seems to work well.

The major reason to go with 10 versus 11 is money - the answer to all questions. But it might be a penny-wise, pound-foolish sort of deal. I'm thinking now to go with the 11-speed and get better components across the board in the process.

If you build bikes, then 10s and 11s could get much cheaper quickly.

It will be interesting how this all shakes down.

Shimano introduced a whole new hub that was 11s specific, then a few short years later, another hub that is 12s specific.

All the while, they seem to be continuing to support the 8/9/10 speed parts.

There is a lot of 11s support, but will it die off in favor of 12s + 8/9/10 speed, and skip the 11s?

You can ride with pretty much anything. My first 'serious' road bike had a 53/42 crankset and a 7 speed 13-23 cassette. Fine for flats and downhills, but I lived in a very hilly area so my lowest gear was 42/23. Except for downhills, I never used the 53 ring. Now my lowest gear is 34/30. But that's not low enough for some riders, so 11 speed 34/32 it is.

The point is, it really won't matter. You'll just ride. Frame geometry and fit are far more important.

delete.

totally agree.

usually i ride 6 speed but on occasion and nice weather i will ride my 9 speed. fit, frame geometry, bicycle tuneup, tires, weather, comfy seat are just a few items that are way more important than gears. normally i don't use much more than 3 or 4 gears depending on the wind. i am not opposed to 11 speeds or more, but most of us have no use for such excess.

exception i suppose would be for hilly country or athletes. in the flat lands, excess gears do nothing at all. a good comfy touring seat for me is to be preferred over any 10 or 11 gears. most days 6 gears does fine and quite the over kill at that.

Id say go with a group set you can run on all your bikes that way you can swap parts and wheels .

unless you are one of those wierd people that only has 1 bike .....?

Scotty0424 , what have you decided upon? I am deciding between 11s and 12s Campagnolo right now. The price difference is significant. Currently all my bikes run vintage stuff so the expense of changing to modern stuff is going to involve new hubs, which is going to hurt. I'd rather just go 10 speed as I see no need for more than that, but the 11s Campy will work with Shimano cassettes and chains which is a huge convenience factor when servicing the drive train, plus it gives he more hub choices.

Please update your choice. Thanks.

Just me not impressed with broad speed ranges..?

Up to 8sp my experiences were clunky and un-refined. Over 8sp the same, but for a seemingly different reason - flat-sided chain struggling to cross over smoothly.

But all my 8sp have been in a sweet spot. The chain still has bulged sides, allowing it to engage instantly. I'm currently having to persevere with a 2x10 because i need the range, but if i could find this range on an eight, i'd go 2x8 instead.
11sp would be no step up, at all.