>>1828266XT was top tier full stop until XTR came out, then it became top consumer tier with XTR being the ultimate premium range used by most pros, but even XTR was inferior to some of the boutique stuff which could only be bought by the individual component - as opposed to by the full groupset, there were companies making insane parts that top racers were using whenever they could, lighter, stronger, more reliable often hand made CNC bits and bobs that appear now and again on ebay for $$$$$$$, and the same goes for frames, most pros were using frames that consumers could buy, but there were team out there riding custom made frames that you'd have to get measured and fitted for and pay through the nose to buy.
Point being a top end '''consumer''' frame with full XT group is a mid range bike (albeit upper mid range), if you look at what else was available, but that's not at all detrimental, XT and XT II are amazing groups, as is DX, in terms of quality of design, materials, functionality, reliability, aesthetics etc, among the best ever put together and definitely overbuilt to fuck compared to the built to fail plastic shite they sell today.
I've owned most of the popular 80s and 90s mtb groups and I still own bikes fitted with XT, XTII and DX, I love them all but if I see a Roberts, Cunningham or a Brodie race bike fitted with early WTB, Grafton, Gravity Research, Chris King, Cook Bros etc components then I know that I'm looking at a true thoroughbred that puts my bikes firmly in their place.
