I had this grinding noise for a while, so I replaced my chain since it was due. The grinding noise got worse, so now I replaced the rear Cassette and bought a new Small and Middle Ring, all XT. The chain is XTR. I can't seem to get it dialed in now. The grinding noise is gone, but I can't seem to shift from Granny to Middle Ring. On climbs in the middle ring, the chain seems to get stuck and I can hear that the bike wants to shift but doesn't. Is this just a matter of riding it and trying to dial it in as I ride? :-k
The granny to middle c ring problem is likely loose drlr cables. Checkem. They should be have almost no slack. If you find slack, adjust shifter to be at the small cring. Loosen the frnt derailleur cable, check drlr for alignment, grab cable with some vise grips, dnot smush the cable, pull to tension, not too tight, just taught, and turn drlr screw to secure. Tune the h l screws, as needed. Test. You can fine tune shifting by turning the cable adjustment at the shifter. New cables will loosen in a few months requiring adjustment.