So, I bought a Madone 6.5 framset and would like to build up with either Ultegra or Sram Red, just cant make up my mind which. I have 2 bikes currently, one with Ultegra, the other with Ultegra/DA mix. I am comfortable with Ultegra, but would like to try Sram. Any thoughts?

Go test ride a bike with SRAM and see if you like it.

They are both fine.

I agree with test ride.

I appreciate wanting to get some community feedback before a major purchase, but I expect that you will get 100 people in this thread saying Shimano, 100 saying SRAM, 100 saying neither - get Campy, and about 1000 saying go test ride them all and decide for yourself. After 20 pages, you'll be right where you started

This topic is like asking a group of rednecks which brand of truck to buy...

Good luck and have fun with the new bike!

Incorrect.

The correct answer is Shimano.

I have both Ultegra and Red. I like them both. If you're just looking for a change, you can't go wrong with Red.

Shifting Shimano and SRAM are different but both work very well. Both my wife and I have both and we both like both. Like others have suggested, try it to see if you like it, or simply get it to try something different.

I also have both, and I really prefer the Sram.

I do however, run Ultegra cassettes(with Sram shifters) as they seem to shift better (smoother) and are not as noisy.

Lance won the TDF 6 times on Shimano. Andy lost his chance on Sram. Lance has never won since he switched to Sram. Go figure!

I agree. Skip the red cassette. It's a cool toy, but it's not worth it. I bought one and now I wish I had a shimano cassette and $100 to spend on something else...

It's a seriously awesome piece of engineering though.

Shimano = smooth and quiet (I call it vague and deceiving)

SRAM = sharp and loud (I call it precise and ensuring)

I prefer the confidence you feel when shifting with a SRAM-equipped bike. Once you hear that positive rear shift happen, it means you're locked in and good to go.

Shimano, OTOH, makes you think you're in the next gear, when really you might not fully be and then once you mash down on the pedals you get slippage. Slippage = not cool. Sometimes it's also hard to even tell if a down-shift (to a larger cog) even happened. Some people prefer how "smooth" Shimano shifting is, but IMO it's not a good thing.

But, as others have said, you need to go try them both and decide for yourself. Good luck!

I'm riding 105 on one bike and Force on the other and i prefer SRAM. I like the SRAM hoods better and prefer doubletap. I say test ride a SRAM bike then decide from there.

lmao.

In the best Bikeforums style, SRAM. That's what I ride. And on Bikeforums, if you are responding to a question like this, it's always what you ride and everyone else is nuts.

Having ridden everything out there, SRAM is it for me. Maxing the bike out and being able to flawlessly shift is pretty nice. Not having to soft pedal up a hill to shift is also pretty nice. Having a ton of adjustability in my shifters so I can customize them the way I like them, not what Shimano wants to me have is very nice.

But it's not my bike....

Can I ask why your options are Red and Ultegra? Why not Red and DA, or Ultegra and Force? I personally have no experience with SRAM at all, but from what people say on this board the only advantage of RED over Force is a little weight. If you're cutting costs on the Shimano groupo why not the SRAM too?

Just one bit of info. Most people (on BF) tend to slip the comparison the other direction:

<no shimano equiv> : Red
Dura Ace : Force
Ultegra : Rival

So, if you're considering Red, you should be at least considering Dura Ace.

thats what i was going to say! Honestly they both work great but its more a personal preference thing. I like having different bikes so i have a steel frame with shimano, a Ti frame with Campy, and an Alu frame that has Shimano but and swaping it over to SRAM. My next build will be a carbon frame but i will pick my favorite components brand for it and likely it will be kinda mixed and not just one solid group of everything. obviously where i can mix brands. If i were you i would go test ride a SRAM bike and see if you like it if so i say give it a try and if not stay with what you know and like. you might even want to try Campy out as well.

Microshift.

You'll lose the element of surprise when you attack.


Oh, wait...this is cycling forum?

Sarcasm noted (?), but I do like Microshift. Sounds like OP has some money to spend though, and MS on a Madone might just open the gates to the Apocalypse.

I tested both before deciding on Shimano (6700). I didn't like how much force it took on Sram to shift from small to big chain ring and the noise made me worried I would snap the paddle. Shimano, this is the first generation that has under the tape routing so it seems to be a bit touchy with the housing and ferrule you use (need a metal not plastic one for reliable shifting). However I really liked the shape of the 6700 hoods with the kneck channel for your thumb and index finger. I also like the quiet smooth shifting. I prefer that Sram is rebuildable whereas Shimano is not but oh well.

Light is right. I ran sram all last year including cyclocross...including MTB racing...including road racing. Mud...muck, rain, snow...not one missed shift. Sram Red and Rival in use. One bike still has 7800 because I think it's still better than 7900.

With that said, one of my teammates ended up with a faulty Force shifter. What did SRAM do? Sent him Red replacements in less than 2 weeks.

I have ultegra currently on my bike, and have a few spares, so I thought I could use these interchangeably. I would then have 2 bikes with ultegra, so it would be easy swapping things around if needed. If I went to Sram, I was looking at Red, as it is within my budget

shimaYES

No brainer, SRAM Red...