My SRAM Rival 1 drivetrain runs loud and rough as hell. Is this normal?

I've built my bike with a Rival 1 drivetrain a while ago. Other than the brake calipers, it's a full Rival 1 kit with the XG-1150 cassette. Right when I installed it I noticed that it runs a bit more loud and rough than I would like. On the first ride I also noticed that on the 12T and 10T when I pedal it feels super über rough. I rode it for a while, and then i've read tales on the interwebz that even on 11spd drivetrains, Eagle chains work a bit better and smooth things out. I got a GX Eagle chain, which i've been running since. It's true, the roughness in the 12T and 10T is gone. But still, the drivetrain is loud in every single gear.
If the drivetrain is clean, it's almost okay, and if I ride mostly pavement it stays that way for a short while. But when it sees dirt... Oh my god. I clean everything meticoulusly (Park Tool chain scrubber, degreaser, soapy water, compressed air etc.), go for an offroad ride, and after about 2-3 hours on dirt it sounds like I haven't cleaned or oiled my drivetrain in decades. It's so bad, it drives me insane.

At this point i've tried like 8 different lubes ranging from wet lubes to PTFE dry lubes to Squirt wax. Nothing worked. I know how to set up an RD, my hanger is straight etc. 

I know that 1x drivetrains will never be buttery smooth and quiet in the lowest and highest gears because of the chain line, but even when the chain is dead straight the drivetrain is so loud. I've also read that on clutch RDs the return spring is stronger and more tension on the chain can mean more noise. But I also have a 1x10 on my grocery getter which consists of a ZEE RD, Deore cassette, and XT chain, and it runs much, much quieter (and also shifts better) than my Rival 1.

Long story short, is this normal? Are all Rival 1 and other SRAM 1x11 drivetrains this loud? I see Rival 1 on so many bikes, but if they run this loud on all of them I don't understand how people can ride them and I also don't understand how SRAM had the balls to release a drivetrain like this.

Zurichman wrote:HollyBoni my Sram Rival 1 doesn't run loud when it is clean. I will say though when it gets cruddy in the field I thought it was a little bit loud. I thought all gravel rigs were like that as I have read numerous times that riders take chain lube with them to  put on their drive trains in the middle of long gravel races.

Zman

Interesting. I guess this is gonna be hard, unless we both get sound meters.  All I can compare it to now is my 1x10 which runs quieter (and is like 1-2 generations older, and about quarter the price). Or an ancient, beat to hell Shimano/SRAM 3x9 with worn out cassette and a chain that's long gone. That thing also runs quieter. 

On long rides i'd understand the noise, but even on a 2-3 hour dirt ride it starts making a racket. 2-3 hours isn't exactly like an epic gravel race. I certainly rode that much offroad on MTBs a few years ago and didn't have this issue. I don't get it.

drwelby wrote:Derailleur hanger straight?

Can you do a quick swap to any other rear derailleur and just limit-screw it to run on the 12? That would at least get the derailleur out of the equation.

I might try that. BTW everything was purchased brand new and it's been loud from the start. 

dangle wrote:You seem like a pretty meticulous person, so I'm going to assume that your chain is hitting the narrow-wide teeth of the derailleur pulley wheels correctly.

What's your chainring and offset? I'm curious if going to a chainring that pushes out more towards the drivetrain could keep things quieter in the little gears (hopefully without affecting the climbing gears).

Stock SRAM Rival 1 chainrings (I have two). Don't know the offset TBH, i'm guessing it's 6mm (that's the standard one right?), I don't think these come in anything else. Even when the chain is dead straight the drivetrain is much louder than what I would call acceptable.
I know all this might sound nitpicky but i'm used to lower end, older and used stuff. This is my first bike with all new components. When I spent 500 European pesos on a groupset I expected it to perform better than a 1x10 that I cobbled together from older parts... 

ljsmith wrote:I have 3 bikes with SRAM 1x drivetrains.  Two are Force, one is Rival.  All of them are very quiet. 

I have the gauge for the B-gap. I even tried playing with the B-gap. I just kept pedalling in one gear and adjusting the B-gap all over the place to see if there was a change, but there wasn't.

When sizing the chain I followed the manual to the dot. I also have two chainrings, a 38T and a 42T. I sized the chain on the 38T, but sometimes I throw on the 42T for a ride or two on pavement. That results in a chain that's too short, but the drivetrain doesn't run louder than usual. My bike also has 440mm chainstays which isn't too short, and I also run a GX Eagle chain. 

dangle wrote:Everything shifts fine, but it's just loud?

It shifts fine, sometimes it hesitates a tiny bit. I'd say my Shimano 1x10 shifts faster and smoother but nothing out of the ordinary IMO. It's just noisy (in every gear).

Volsung wrote:I'll only admit to this because of the anonymity of the internets but I installed a chain while drunk and ran it through my derailleur wrong. 

I KNOW WHO YOU ARE! 

Zurichman wrote:HolliBoni I see in your 1st post that you say that your Sram Rival 1 was a full kit except for the brake calipers. I bought a new set of wheels and have to get a set of rotors for them Centerlock. I am guessing I want to buy the Sram Centerline X rounded rotor centerlock in 160mm versus the 140mm. The 160mm will have better stopping power right?

Thanks
Zman

HollyBoni wrote:

I'm using centerlock XT rotors. Personally I don't see the point of 140mm rotors, i'd go 160 for sure. 

ljsmith wrote:I prefer to run a smaller rotor in the rear.  When you brake all the weight shifts forward, if you use the same size rotors front and rear its too easy to lock the rear wheel. 

If I wanted to run a smaller rear i'd go 180/160. 

Volsung wrote:How are your jockey wheels?  I have Sram on my cargo bike and I snapped one of mine.  

If it's a constant noise its gotta be something that's always moving.

Sorry for shooting down everyone's ideas, I really appreciate the help, but so far I don't think i've missed anything that was posted here. Other than trying another RD, which I haven't done yet because i'm lazy.