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Monarch 7 8x30 fix (1 Viewer)

Hezekiah received the envoys and showed them all that was in his storehouses—the Silverline Ultravids, the Leupold Gold Rings, the spicy Swaro SLC-HDs, and the fine Nikon Superior Es—most coveted among his treasures. There was nothing in his palace or in all his kingdom that Hezekiah did not show them.

Isaiah spake: The time will surely come when everything in your palace, and all that your predecessors have stored up until this day, will be carried off to China.

Jeremiah

Dear Jerry,

I'll have what your drinking. B :)

Kindest regards
Rev Father August Goodluck
 
Brock:

Mikefreiburg has told me he is now off the forum, and has moved along.

There may be another Nikon rep. watching the forum, I would expect, so keep posting.

Jerry

I do need to clarify this post.

Mike told me his role is changing at Nikon, and he will be off the forum.

Jerry
 
Highly likely.

I have a couple of Nikon bins with which it is very easy to induce glare with incorrect ER and eye placement. With correct ER there is no issue.

I am not going to mention which models simply to save some binotic nitpicker from misquoting that there are 'glare issues' when plainly there are not.

Hope that you get to work it out.

Best wishes,

Had some more time to spend with them, on a sunny day with lots of light. When I hold the binoculars right up to my eyes and push the eyecups against my face (I don't wear glasses), I have problems galore - blackouts, that sometimes are dark and other times are dark with a bright edge.

If I instead hold the bins against my eyebrow ridge and tilt (MOLCET, I believe) the view is better, and so long as I am looking at the centre of the image, it looks very nice.

Looking at trees under the sun gives flare, but otherwise the flare issue can be controlled with very careful binocular placement.

If, however, I then move my eyes to look around the image, I get blackouts again. I think that I'm just suffering the case where the exit pupil and my pupil dilation are close enough that alignment is a pain. I think I was just use to being able to look wherever I wanted to with my 8x42.

I think I'd rather train my arms to hold the weight of x42s than train my eyes to look only at the centre of the bin!
 
Had some more time to spend with them, on a sunny day with lots of light. When I hold the binoculars right up to my eyes and push the eyecups against my face (I don't wear glasses), I have problems galore - blackouts, that sometimes are dark and other times are dark with a bright edge.

If I instead hold the bins against my eyebrow ridge and tilt (MOLCET, I believe) the view is better, and so long as I am looking at the centre of the image, it looks very nice.

Looking at trees under the sun gives flare, but otherwise the flare issue can be controlled with very careful binocular placement.

If, however, I then move my eyes to look around the image, I get blackouts again. I think that I'm just suffering the case where the exit pupil and my pupil dilation are close enough that alignment is a pain. I think I was just use to being able to look wherever I wanted to with my 8x42.

I think I'd rather train my arms to hold the weight of x42s than train my eyes to look only at the centre of the bin!

Sam,

You are like me. You need a binocular with an ER of 16mm or longer to see things comfortably.

The Monarch 7 8x30 has 15.1mm. The Monarch 7 8x42 has 17.1mm and the Monarch 5 8x42 has a whopping 19.5mm but a narrow FOV. I've never used any of these three binoculars but I'm sure, from my own experience, that the Monarch 5 would give me the easiest view.

You have to make some some compromises with ER if you want a wide FOV, especially with the lower cost binoculars. Longer ER = smaller FOV as in the Zeiss Terra 8x42 which has 18mm ER and a FOV of 375'@1000yards.

Curiously, 8x32s, on average seem to have wider FOVs, so it might be a good idea to look into that format if you want a lightweight 8x binocular with a wide FOV although you will still have the shorter ER to deal with there but a wider selection and you can find many with 16mm ER.

The best bet, if you want to stick with 42mm is to try to get a 7x42. They are getting harder and harder to find. Almost all of them have long ER. The best, and only, low cost one seems to be the Leupold Hawthorne which has an ER of 18mm and a FOV of 389'@1000 yards. It is still available. Other than those only Nikon and Leica sell them. Start saving your money if you want one of them. All the EDGs have long ER as do all the Swarovisons.

Bob
 
Had some more time to spend with them, on a sunny day with lots of light. When I hold the binoculars right up to my eyes and push the eyecups against my face (I don't wear glasses), I have problems galore - blackouts, that sometimes are dark and other times are dark with a bright edge.

If I instead hold the bins against my eyebrow ridge and tilt (MOLCET, I believe) the view is better, and so long as I am looking at the centre of the image, it looks very nice.

Looking at trees under the sun gives flare, but otherwise the flare issue can be controlled with very careful binocular placement.

If, however, I then move my eyes to look around the image, I get blackouts again. I think that I'm just suffering the case where the exit pupil and my pupil dilation are close enough that alignment is a pain. I think I was just use to being able to look wherever I wanted to with my 8x42.

I think I'd rather train my arms to hold the weight of x42s than train my eyes to look only at the centre of the bin!

Sam,

I's not easy to diagnose ER issues at a distance but I found the M7 8x30 a bit tricky on eye positioning. The eyecup reach seemed a fraction short without glasses but with little practice and a version of the Molcet it worked pretty well. With my glasses it was pretty good from the start. Kite's version the Lynx, has different eyecups and was a little easier to position without glasses but resulted in a very short ER. I didn't note any significant glare issues with the M7 but it was fairly overcast that day. The Lynx needed careful eye positioning facing the sun but wasn't too bad IMO.

The M5 and M7 8x42s appeared more forgiving on eye positioning. I may have been unlucky with the samples I've tried but neither were as sharp as the M7 8x30 or the Prostaff 7 I tried along side. I've tried a few M7 8x42s now and the size of sweet spot seems alarmingly variable. A couple I'd count as pretty poor.

David
 
Had some more time to spend with them, on a sunny day with lots of light. When I hold the binoculars right up to my eyes and push the eyecups against my face (I don't wear glasses), I have problems galore - blackouts, that sometimes are dark and other times are dark with a bright edge.

If I instead hold the bins against my eyebrow ridge and tilt (MOLCET, I believe) the view is better, and so long as I am looking at the centre of the image, it looks very nice.

Looking at trees under the sun gives flare, but otherwise the flare issue can be controlled with very careful binocular placement.

If, however, I then move my eyes to look around the image, I get blackouts again. I think that I'm just suffering the case where the exit pupil and my pupil dilation are close enough that alignment is a pain. I think I was just use to being able to look wherever I wanted to with my 8x42.

I think I'd rather train my arms to hold the weight of x42s than train my eyes to look only at the centre of the bin!

Sam

While you might have a point about ER being the/a problem my experience has been different.

I think that before I start that it is worth adding that I wanted a small lightweight binocular and a compact or a x42 would not have been alternatives.

I had a Monarch 7 8x30 for a couple of days and initially in good light they were fine with no problems. In fact I wondered what all the fuss was about as I considered them to be one of the best value for money binos on the market even though there was an bright uncoated ring about half way down the barrel. But when the sun dropped in the evening I started to get a crescent shaped grey area to the side opposite the sun.

The next day I tried to find out why this was happening; was it ER, eye position or internal reflection.

I set up in a room with an open velux window which doesn't face into the sun and focused on the trees outside. It was a bright morning and the view was sharp, with good contrast and no veiling. Without moving my eye position on the binos, I panned away from the window onto a white wall and the grey crescent appeared on the side opposite the window. I tried this at windows facing in other directions and the same thing happened. The only conclusion that I could reach was that the grey crescent was caused by something in the barrels reflecting the side light from the window - possibly the uncoated ring.

To sum up - I never had a problem with eye placement and was careful not to change my eye position when panning. Being a Nikon 8x32 SE owner I know what a problem that can be. The effect could be achieved at will and in my case it certainly wasn't ER or eye placement.

As a result of this they were returned, very reluctantly, as otherwise they would have been ideal for my purpose and are exceptional value for money.

Please don't let my experience put off anyone from trying them as you will have to spend considerably more money for the quality of view provided and this problem might not be an issue for you. As is often said - try before you buy.

Stan
 
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Sam,

I's not easy to diagnose ER issues at a distance but I found the M7 8x30 a bit tricky on eye positioning. The eyecup reach seemed a fraction short without glasses but with little practice and a version of the Molcet it worked pretty well. With my glasses it was pretty good from the start. Kite's version the Lynx, has different eyecups and was a little easier to position without glasses but resulted in a very short ER.

David
David...I dont understand ..The eyecup can be used to control EXCESSIVE eye relief ,keeping the eye at the right distance.When you explain your experience with the linx without glasses,I assume You used the cups fully extended..Couldnt You have reached the right distance for the ER to be effective,by collapsing the eyecups ¿ Or are the Lynx eyecups cutting usable ER even when fully collapsed??...It is a shame when a good design looses precious usable eye relief by a poorly designed ocular casing or eyecup.. simple to correct and not necessarily more expensive using the right design..(zeiss fl)
 
Mayoayo,

I think the problem is slightly short eye relief in this case for some people. Not excessive eye relief. If your eyes are deep set, like mine are, you can fine tune or adjust the eye relief by the point where you brace the eye cups on and/or under your brow ridge. My guess is that most people can get by with the ER of 15.1mm the Nikon 8x30 has and have no problems with it. For others it is somewhat short. I prefer 17mm but I can get along with 16mm OK. I find it easier for me to use my Kahles 8x32 and Nikon 8x32 HG L which have 16mm ER than my Swarovski 8x30 SLC which has 15mm.

Bob
 
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David...I dont understand ..The eyecup can be used to control EXCESSIVE eye relief ,keeping the eye at the right distance.When you explain your experience with the linx without glasses,I assume You used the cups fully extended..Couldnt You have reached the right distance for the ER to be effective,by collapsing the eyecups ¿ Or are the Lynx eyecups cutting usable ER even when fully collapsed??...It is a shame when a good design looses precious usable eye relief by a poorly designed ocular casing or eyecup.. simple to correct and not necessarily more expensive using the right design..(zeiss fl)

As far as I know the real eye relief on the M7 and the Lynx are the same. I've not had them side by side but I believe the eyecups on the Lynx are a millimetre or two taller reducing the available ER when down. Normally 15mm or even 14mm with pressure on my glasses is fine and I can get the full FOV with the M7 but not the Lynx suggesting less than 14mm is available. Without glasses the shorter eyecups on the M7 meant that even when extended they did didn't quite reach my eye socket and needed to to be supported on my brow. The Lynx on the other hand fitted my face better.

Hope that's clearer.

David
 
Yes,thats what i thought..so even with eyecups fully collapsed the ER is tight in the Monarch,and short in the Lynx...I personally like 16 mm at least,although gets my glasses pretty messy after a while..15 is too little,but i have used shorter and got used to the view...(swift 820)
 
As part of my search for a new pair of light binoculars, I picked up an M7 10x30 from Amazon, which arrived today. Serial number 30014xx.

So far I am pleased with the image but have noticed a grey haze across the view when looking in the shadows of the trees under an overcast sky. I did not notice the same haze with my previous binoculars (Talon 8x42), nor with the Swaro 8x25 I am also demoing at the moment.

After reading about uncoated internal components (a topic I am not well versed in) I had a look and see what I think is a 'shiny' part. The attached photo shows the objective end of the M7 10x30 while I am shining a flashlight, trying to catch the 'shiny' part (yellow arrow)

For those in the know, is this the uncoated ring others have seen?

Hi Sam,

I found this forum thread through Google search. Before I purchased my Monarch 7 10x30 from B&H, I found this thread and thoroughly read the issues. Well, I received my Monarch 7's over a week ago and they're on their way back to B&H.

BTW, I left my review of the Monarch 7 10x30 on the Amazon site.

Picture 1: Here's the problem from my Monarch 7 10x30s

Picture 2: Here's a good view from my Monarch ATB 12x42s

In both shots, the iPhone camera was about 7" from the eye-piece end looking into a bright source of light. You can clearly see the splinter of light which affects the end user's vision.

Was very noticeable to me when looking into a moderately bright source... my Monarch 5 20x56 nor the Monarch ATB 12x42 binos do this...
 

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Hi Sam,

I found this forum thread through Google search. Before I purchased my Monarch 7 10x30 from B&H, I found this thread and thoroughly read the issues. Well, I received my Monarch 7's over a week ago and they're on their way back to B&H.

BTW, I left my review of the Monarch 7 10x30 on the Amazon site.

Picture 1: Here's the problem from my Monarch 7 10x30s

Picture 2: Here's a good view from my Monarch ATB 12x42s

In both shots, the iPhone camera was about 7" from the eye-piece end looking into a bright source of light. You can clearly see the splinter of light which affects the end user's vision.

Was very noticeable to me when looking into a moderately bright source... my Monarch 5 20x56 nor the Monarch ATB 12x42 binos do this...

Hi,
This shortcoming of inexpensive binoculars. Flare light from one of the four sides is found in all Chinese binoculars, some binoculars Bushnell and etc.
What it involves is unknown, I guess from a technological feature for quick adjustment the prisms.
In Swarovski, Leica, Zeiss this is not observed.
 
Hi Alex,

That's an interesting observation. Do you get this complaint often in Eastern Europe from binocular users? I see from the personal information you posted that you have interests and possibly experience in this field.

Bob
 

Just in case the data in the above link should change, I believe the following line in this vendor listing for the NIkon Monarch 7 8X30 caught Stanbo's attention ......

The manufacturer is no longer making this product Order now!

I just checked the Nikon international web site and the Nikon USA site, and both appear to show the model as current. We shall see if the vendor got it right.

If true that was fast!!

Hopefully one of our members attending the August Bird Fair across the pond can get some information out of the Nikon reps about the production status and the actual glare issue. Mike F. said in a prior post that he would look into glare issue. Then there was a following member post saying Mike's responsibilities at Nikon changed. We never heard back from Mike or anyone else from Nikon. I sent a follow-up PM to Mike a couple of weeks ago about the nature of the problem but never got a response.
 
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As far as I know, the Nikon 8X30 EII Porro is sill current. The Nikon Intl web site still shows it with the current models. Nikon USA discontinued offering it a few years ago but it is available from Japan and other far east vendors. Nikon did recently discontinue the Nikon 8X32 SE Porro along with the rest of the SE line so you may be thinking of that. If you are sure the 8X30 EII is now gone, please let us know more. That would be a shame because it is a great binocular.

The link you posted is interesting and may be right. It is not unknown for vendors to be slow in updating their web sites. However, I agree with Steve, that sure was fast if true. My hope is they fix the glare problem and continue the product. I would have bought one if not for the glare or if I had received a positive response from Mike F. that the issue was being acknowledged and addressed.
 
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It does occur to me that there is a Nikon 8x30 that has been discontinued in the recent past - the 8x30 Ell. I wonder if they have mixed up the models? I think it used to be in their list until recently, but has now disappeared.

Stan

I have a feeling that the Monarch 8x30 binocular is not being discontinued.

That retailer just from the website, does not look like a big player
in optics. Maybe someone, knows more about them.

Jerry
 
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