Help With Shimano Groups

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Being only new to this Mountain Biking caper i dont understand the levels of groupsets etc with Shimano.With the road stuff i understand the difference in quality between 105/Ultegra etc but i have no idea what deore/alivio/Lx/Xt means in terms of cheap and topline gear levels.
Could someone please tell me whats the base level and what leads thru to the top level stuff??? Would be much appreciated...Thanks...

Here goes...

Acera: entry-level (8-speed)
Alivio: entry-level but a bit sturdier (8-speed)
Deore: decent quality, but a little heavy on some items (9-speed)
Deore LX: better finished, a little lighter, same functionality (9-speed)
Deore XT: great quality, best value, light & strong (9-speed)
XTR: pro quality, no expense spared (9-speed)

So generally if you're going to take your mountain-biking seriously you want to use at least Deore, and Deore XT is very popular as a good combo of price/performance

Cheers thanks for that Nick,now i have an idea of what is what...

ok..i willmake as simple as i can for you. i will list all of the shimano ATB selection from nicest and more expensive to the all around worst...keep in mind the best is lighter and works a hell of alot better.

XTR/XT/LX/Deore/Alivio

Originally posted by 7-Dayz
ok..i willmake as simple as i can for you. i will list all of the shimano ATB selection from nicest and more expensive to the all around worst...keep in mind the best is lighter and works a hell of alot better.

XTR/XT/LX/Deore/Alivio

How critical is the number of speeds in terms of long-term upgradability? Like Lasalles, I understand the road bikes, and would advise someone against buying Sora components as I suspect parts will be hard to find in the near future as the 10-speed groupsets move the 9-speeds down the lineup.

However, if I'm just looking for a cheap bash-around bike for the occasional social ride along a bike path, the prospect of picking up something new for just a few hundred (Aussie pesos) is pretty appealing. I really don't want to spend much as 95% of my cycling will be on-road, but don't want to make a myopic purchase. At present there are a number of run-out models going for just a few hundred with either 7-speed or 8-speed groupsets...
Suggestions?
:confused:

Here goes...

Acera: entry-level (8-speed)
Alivio: entry-level but a bit sturdier (8-speed)
Deore: decent quality, but a little heavy on some items (9-speed)
Deore LX: better finished, a little lighter, same functionality (9-speed)
Deore XT: great quality, best value, light & strong (9-speed)
XTR: pro quality, no expense spared (9-speed)

So generally if you're going to take your mountain-biking seriously you want to use at least Deore, and Deore XT is very popular as a good combo of price/performance

any idea what an XTS is then as i got that on my bike and how does it fair on the evolutionary chain pardon the pun lol

any idea what an XTS is then as i got that on my bike and how does it fair on the evolutionary chain pardon the pun lol
found it now.. its STX-RC RD-MC38...

now how does it fair... is it that old as if it is its in as new condition here.

Penguin,

STX-RC goes a long way back, probably around 2000 from the top of my head. I believe it was replaced by Deore, and then a year later, the STX level was dropped too.

As far as speeds go, I would think that 9sp is here to stay for a little while longer on MTB's. There would be issues with clearance and longevity of 10spd for MTB's, especially when mud is added into the mix.

I would advise against getting something 8spd as the 9spd stuff will filter down. Deore would be a good investment as it is all 9spd and is therefore capable of being mixed and matched (hubs/cassettes/chains etc) with other 9spd groupos
My 2c