I’ve always liked Mavic hubs, but since the mid-1990s the French company has been a trend setter in marketing complete wheel systems as opposed to hubs a la carte. Yet, supposed proprietary designs haven’t stopped me from hacking together some sweet wheels with a tasty, smooth Mavic center. My favourite rim to build on is the Hed Belgium rim (same rim as used on their low profile Ardennes and Bastogne wheelsets). It’s a little pricey compared to Velocity or Mavic, but the Belgium is a quality piece. It is also VERY consistant and builds up nice.
Early generation Mavic Ksyrium Elites are the easiest to build on, though I have also used Mavic Classics Pro hubs (f&r) and Cosmic Carbone hubs (r only, no 16h rim available from Hed). This set is my latest Ksyrium Elite hack, along with a 3-4yr old Hed Ardennes front that I rebuilt with a fresh Bastogne rim after the sidewalls had gotten thin from winter training. 
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