Modern bins better? Roof prisms YES!
ingle1970 said:
Are todays binoculars really better than they have ever been ? .Obviously they are lighter and made of exotic materials , and nitrogen purged , but have the optics taken a significant leap ? . the reason i ask is i consider the zeiss 7*42 classic , yet to be bettered , does anyone agree / disagree ?.
At Focus Optics, Corley near Coventry, West Midlands you can
compare a huge range of different makes of bins from the cheapest
to the most exotic. I've got a mid-range pair of Eschenbach 8X32
roof prism bins. They are very good, good contrast, clear, sharp image.
I compared them to some second hand Leitz roof prism bins about
20 years old - before they changed their name to Leica.
I was very disappointed with the Leica bins - although beautifully made,
they were not as bright as my cheaper bins and not as sharp.
However, when I compared my Eschenbachs with new Leica,
Swarovskis, Nikon roof prisms etc. you could see a big difference.
These high end binoculars are all superb - so bright with tremendous
sharpness and clarity. So, yes, I think there have been huge
improvements in roof prism binoculars over the last 20 years.
As for porro prism binoculars, well for decades you have been able
to buy superb examples. Yes, they can be bulky and heavy but
don't believe all the tosh out there about having to pay £1000
to get anything half decent. Some (not all, you have to be careful)
of the Russian stuff can be very good indeed. And most of the fairly
modern Carl Zeiss Jena bins are excellent. I have a pair of mint
Carl Zeiss Octarem 8X50 bins - these are among the best porro
prism bins you can get. They are a match in image quality
to many of the more modern and more expensive roof prism
bins - however, they are BIG and heavy!! On e-bay people
are paying silly money for Carl Zeiss Jena bins - keep your
eyes peeled and you can buy them for peanuts at car
boot sales or in second hand shops.
soaring eagle
P.S. The link below gives a review of 3 roof prism binoculars.
Zeiss Dialyt 10X40B (approx 20 years old, but top of the range then).
Docter 10X42B/CF (expensive German roof prism)
TS 10X42 (current roof prism made in China and costs less then £100)
The Docter comes out on top, but not by much.
The TS performs very well in most areas and out-performs the
Zeiss in most areas. I've seen the Zeiss Dialyt bins go for over
£300 on e-bay and the Docter bins for even more.
Who says you have to pay hundreds of pounds to get
good roor prism binoculars?
http://de.geocities.com/holger_merlitz/dialyt10x40.html