prj71

I'm thinking the manufactures are putting whatever they can on the bikes just so they can sell a complete bike.

Darth Lefty 

Maybe? longtime forum member and shop owner psimet was announcing the arrival of the long anticipated glut last week over in the roadie forum

3speed

I wonder if that’s the case too. But then they shouldn’t be charging higher-end prices when they ended up specing lower-end parts. A Sram SX bike shouldn’t cost too terribly much.
Some of the Trek hybrids are coming in with “Power” brand brakes that are just terrible. They’re basically what you get if you find the cheapest hydraulic brakes Amazon has to offer. Yet they still charge what the bike cost with original spec of Shimano or at least Tektro brakes.

TJClay

For $600 SRAM AXS is incredible. My Turbo Levo came with SLX and never shifted perfectly. Easy swap and it shifts perfectly every single time.

LTC19951025

The $600 SRAM GX AXS is very smooth when shifting gears

geo8086

OP here. I wanted to update this thread with my ultimate solution to my OEM SRAM SX 12-speed shifting problem on my 2021 Specialized Rockhopper Expert:

I ordered a Shimano SLX derailleur and shifter from Singapore on e-bay (they took over 2 months to arrive), installed them on my bike, and now the bike shifts perfectly with the Shimano SLX derailleur & shifter and SRAM SX cassette. I was worried about mixing vendors like this, but it worked perfectly.

I still can't peddle backwards in my granny-gear without the chain falling off, but I wasn't expecting a derailleur to fix that. I think my lesson-learned here is to avoid bikes with bottom-tier 12-speed drivetrains. The SRAM SX derailleur & shifter I removed look pristine. I guess the manufacturing tolerances just weren't up-to-snuff for 12-speed shifting. It does have a lot of plastic in it.

whatshubdoc

Go GX. I have a set for sale if interested. Also have XO1 set.