I used the Kaplan quicknotes and secret sauce to pass L1 but i’m feeling cheaper going into L2 
Has anybody strictly used the CFAI books to pass L2? Or is it worth the time savings to get the kaplan quicknotes? (spending the time savings at work for OT)
There are many people who have passed with just CFAI text alone. Depends entirely on whether you start now, your reading speed and how much time you have at your disposal.
But there are many people who recomend this way of studying, but according to me it depends on three factors I mentioned above. All the best.
Note: I am not a guy who can read from the CFAI book directly and write an exam
I like Schweser, but you can pass using the text alone.
I’m like Sooraj. If 3rd party notes did not exist, I don’t think I would have got past 3rd week after getting my books for L1. I just can’t read stuff written in that style. I’m hoping Schweser notes + practice exams + secret sauce + a little CFAI text is going to get me through.
I am reading the CFAI texts right now since the Schwesr stuff still isn’t out. I started in Quant…and damn…it is some SLOW reading! The other thing I noticed is how long it takes to actually do the the EOC questions. Hours and hours. They are kinda repetitive, but everyone says they are worth it. I didn’t touch the EOC’s for Level 1.
Check out the free elan quant sample if you dont want read cfai