ED3 8X43 or Prime HD 8X42? (1 Viewer)

Hi. I'm new here. Need to buy a new pair of binoculars in the next month, and I was looking a Minox 8X44 HD, which I liked, but an expert has pointed me to Zen Ray and mentioned ED3 8X43 and Prime HD 8X42. I'd like opinions on which of these two is better, or actually which of the three (minox included), if anyone has tried both or all three. And one is ED, the other HD. I really don't understand the difference, is one better than the other. Thanks!

Don't know about the ED3 or Minox, but the Prime is a very impressive binocular. But it is a good bit more expesive than the other two. I think cameraland new York has both the Zen3 and the Minox on their specials list

Leviticus,

Welcome to the forum. I can perhaps help a bit though I haven't tried all of them.

There is no difference between HD and ED glass, it just marketing. Neither are essential for a low chromatic aberration design though it does make the task easier.

The Minox I've only tried briefly at the UK Birdfair and wrote this in my notes:
"The new Minox BL HD I rather liked. It has a appealing simplicity to the design and the mechanicals felt nice and slick. The focus wheel patterning looks better in the flesh than the photos. The FOV was good, CA well behaved, and sharpness about right for the price which looks like it will be just below the Meopro offering. I think they may have dropped the MIG claim on this model, and it feels like a modern Kamakura offering... which I think is a positive."
I've since been corrected and there is a Made in Germany claim, but wouldn't be that unusual for much of the design and production to be done in Japan.

The Zen Rays are a bit of a rarity in the UK but the Hawke Frontier ED and Hawke Sapphire ED are widely thought by members here to be essentially the same as the Z-R EDII and EDIII. Both are very well regarded on the forum, the main difference is the colours and contrast are marginally better in the higher models. I personally thought is was worth the extra but others may not agree. Hawke have a single hinge variant of the Sapphire ED that I prefer. It is a bit more compact and I find it easier in the hand. These all have a wide view and broad sweetspot with a slightly complex field curvature profile and I have noted some distortion in certain situations, but I might be the only one on the forum to report it.

I was fortunate enough to win a ZenRay Prime 10x42 in a forum competition last summer. I am very pleased with mine, much preferring it to the other Hawke (and presumably Z-R) models. It is getting a little heavy but it is well balance and feels lighter in the hand to me than it's cousins. It is a flat view design. Tastes differ, and I prefer flat field in higher powers and curved fields in lower powers. I'd heartily recommend mine but I haven't tried the 8x.

Hope that helps.

David

Haven't tried the Minox but I have owned both the Prime and the ED3. I tend to agree with David's comments.

In terms of pure optics I think it is a toss-up depending on your preferences. If you like a flat field with good edge of field sharpness then the Prime HD is your binocular. If you have concerns about flatfield models then the ED3 is a very good optical performer. I don't there is much difference in the other optical performance areas between these two models.

Physically the Prime is an ounce or two heavier but the ED3 is an inch or so longer.

Hope this helps.

Thanks Perterra, Typo, and FrankD, for the very helpful information. Thanks in particular to the pointer to Cameraland. They have the Prime HD 10x42 at $499. That seems to me to be an incredible price, am I missing something? They ordinarily list there at $569, but most other places I see they are over $600. I’m tempted to go ahead and order them before the deal goes away. How long do these deals last? I see this one is dated 2/24.

One more question: most experts I talk to caution against magnification above 8 or 8.5, and I do have a bit of the shakes with 10s (even some shakiness with 8.5). How is the Prime HD 10/42 in that regard? Is is easier than most to keep steady?

Thanks!

Can't help on the shaking part but I suspect that is an individual thing

I have both the Prime HD and two ED 2's. Frank is right on his assessment.

The difference between the 2 is mainly one of ergonomics. The Prime has large diameter eye cups, larger than the ED series. If you have somewhat deep set eyes, or an IPD of less than about 60 mm, you might find them too large.

I think you are seeing the CLNY discount because ZR is probably going to change the eye cup design. There is a new ED 4 in the works too.

If you have the shakes at all (and it is s personal thing to a large degree) then I'd go with an 8x.

Leviticus Plews said:

One more question: most experts I talk to caution against magnification above 8 or 8.5, and I do have a bit of the shakes with 10s (even some shakiness with 8.5). How is the Prime HD 10/42 in that regard? Is is easier than most to keep steady?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

This really isn't an easy question to answer as it is very particular to the individual and the binocular in question.

I've a range of binoculars between 6x and 12x and until recently I would have said that at least between 7x and 10x there was no difference in the level of detail you actually see hand held because of shake. It's something I've tried a few times using resolution charts to be sure. However a couple of recent acquisitions have made me appreciate how important balance in the hand is to steadiness for me. The Prime has a clear advantage over my lower powered binoculars, but by comparison to my 8x it was closer to 9x than 10x so better but not shake free. I really have no idea if it would be the same for you. It's something you need to try for yourself.

David

Leviticus Plews said:

Thanks Perterra, Typo, and FrankD, for the very helpful information. Thanks in particular to the pointer to Cameraland. They have the Prime HD 10x42 at $499. That seems to me to be an incredible price, am I missing something? They ordinarily list there at $569, but most other places I see they are over $600. I’m tempted to go ahead and order them before the deal goes away. How long do these deals last? I see this one is dated 2/24.

One more question: most experts I talk to caution against magnification above 8 or 8.5, and I do have a bit of the shakes with 10s (even some shakiness with 8.5). How is the Prime HD 10/42 in that regard? Is is easier than most to keep steady?

Thanks!

Click to expand...

That CL deal for a Prime 10x42 HD at $499 is an open box Demo which is the reason for the low price. It shouldn't make a difference on the warranty.

http://www.cameralandny.com/demos-zenray.html

Bob