I had a mechanic change my brakes and shifters cables a while back. He installed some fancy Jagwire ones as I heard good things about the brand. The thing is… the feeling was much worse than the previous Shimano cables. It was just harder to operate. I feel much friction, I can tell the cable threads like rubbing then moving the lever sideways,
I wonder… what could be the cause of this? can the levers feel be improved?
if you are feeling an uncomfortable friction on your lever, have you considered lube?
Have you ever had your brakes taken a part and maintenanced? Sweat+rain+never changing your bar tape does add up to corrosion.
Jagwire cables are pretty sweet and really do offer awesome braking/shifting, heard good things through shops and people I cycle with, so I tend to lean towards your gear. Sorry 
I felt they were rougher or that there was more friction right away. I don’t know why I didn’t point it out then.
If you have replaced all the cables and outers, the cables may now be routed in different angles. This may be a cause of the new feeling. If it is now too tight, you will definitely notice that!
Yeah, I thought of the angle of the cables too… not sure. Anyway, one of these days I’ll replace all cables, it’s probably about time anyway.
I would say down to routing, my front shifter cable I had to adjust route 3 times to make smooth operation.
Go electronic takes all the hassle away.
The gauge of the cable may be a different match than that of the cable housing. Look at the cables and if you are capable of readjusting them, loosen them at the derailleur if necessary and try sliding the cable out of the housing from the levers and see how it feels.
I build everything myself, and the only tricky part of adjusting the derailleurs, in my experience, usually involves adjusting the correct cable length at point of tension. For example, I place a screw driver in between the downtube and front derailleur arm to pry it wide and hold the spring shut before tightening the derailleur cable.
The cable routing should not normally be a problem since there is only one correct way to do it. The mechanic may have been careless and failed to note the original routing, and twisted it up. You should be able to just look at the cables and see if they are routed differently than before. Taking photos before changing cables is always a great idea… I would just take it back and make him do it again if you are unsure…
Will look into this… when I find the time and the energy! but thanks for the insights.