Yup, I've given the whole thread a read.
If I can find a good deal and some knowledgeable folk offer some good advice to queries, it'll worth my effort to try it.
If not, I might stick to the mainstream.
You're a brave man, i applaud that.
on price matching, the lower prices are usually because people buy during a "sale" on aliX. Also depends on the region you're in. For example, if in EU, you see prices incl. VAT. Not the case in the UK. Shipping depends on region too. Those who live in Australia pay less in shipping. Long story short, it's complicated. There's a guy selling er9 on the forum btw, his user name is very long and has plates in it i think.
everything kind of works with everything. er9 doesnt sell rotors, cranks, cassette, chain, anyway. i have an ultralight steel & alu cassette, chinese, i m very happy with it, but you ll find people here saying it's shit. as long as it's calibrated properly, it works great, on my setup anyway.
there's a number of youtubers saying that expensive rotors dont brake any better than cheaper ones, so you may want to save your money there. It also depends on the riding you do, and your weight.