>>1607566why not? to get the same high/low ratios and the same number of gears (yes, I accounted for "overlap", you can count them yourself) you'd need an 11spd with one of those pie dish 52-11 cassettes. last time I checked, those don't come cheap, to put it mildly. this bike being an "entry level" hardtail.
have a play around with this:
http://gear-calculator.com - you might even learn something.
