Nikon Monarch HG 8x30 - worth or not to buy, considering prose n cons? (1 Viewer)

[dries1]

I believe "fun factor" is a personal thing attached to the individual owning the binocular or whatever they're reviewing and therefore really doesn't belong in a review . Am I wrong?

I totally agree with this, its amazing the ridiculous and vague words such as "fun factor" are used for a review, laughable.

 

[Paultricounty]

I totally agree with this, its amazing the ridiculous and vague words such as "fun factor" are used for a review, laughable.

I totally agree. I wouldnt even know where to start the parameters to measure my subjective reasoning for most fun. Interesting though. How about fun binoculars, Canon IS, EL range, Leica Geovid‘s.

Oops, yes 8x30MHG worth buying. Will remain an excellent pair of binoculars for decades, if they last that long.

 

[albie...]

"Fun Factor" for me is sharing with the community my enjoyment of a new bin or scope or eye piece ,etc. Oh I can't forgot new watches, love to show them off , Lol .

 

[wdc]

The 8x30 size is an in between size, and will serve a purpose for many... it should be smaller and lighter than an 8x32, and more comfortable to use than an 8 x 25. Both the Swaro 8x30 and the Nikon MHG are good in that size. I like them both, but prefer the Nikon for the way it fits me personally. Best to try them if you can. If you don't wear eyeglasses, I would look at (and through) the Leica Ultravid HD+ 8x32 in a similar size factor with a bigger objective and exit pupil.

I use 8x30 when I don't want to take a larger objective somewhere, but still want a bin. Of course you can go smaller if portability is the main issue.

 

[FVG]

The 8x30 size is an in between size, and will serve a purpose for many... it should be smaller and lighter than an 8x32, and more comfortable to use than an 8 x 25. Both the Swaro 8x30 and the Nikon MHG are good in that size. I like them both, but prefer the Nikon for the way it fits me personally. Best to try them if you can. If you don't wear eyeglasses, I would look at (and through) the Leica Ultravid HD+ 8x32 in a similar size factor with a bigger objective and exit pupil. I use 8x30 when I don't want to take a larger objective somewhere, but still want a bin. Of course you can go smaller if portability is the main issue.

I'am big fan of the 8x30 size. Don't forget the new Zeiss SFL 8x30 in this category.

 

[And.rea]

For me… the MHG just lacked something. You know how it is when you really like a binocular, you just want to pick it up all the time. The ‘fun factor’ is what I call it., well, the MHG lacks the fun factor. On the other hand, the Leica UV ‘has the fun factor’…And, the view is a better all around and should, for double the price. The UV was still light weight, but for me, ergonomically it was a better fit.

What is "something lacked"? What is your meaning/definition of "fun factor"? What is the meaning of "view as better all around and should, for double the price."?
Is there a plausible explanation for your assertions that is comprehensible to others? Facts are good,
with regard to both binoculars mentioned, comprehensible naming of the differences. Which UV you mean?
There are many ...

 

[lmans66]

What is "something lacked"? What is your meaning/definition of "fun factor"? What is the meaning of "view as better all around and should, for double the price."?
Is there a plausible explanation for your assertions that is comprehensible to others? Facts are good,
with regard to both binoculars mentioned, comprehensible naming of the differences. Which UV you mean?
There are many ...

Something Lacked...fun...pretty intangible so I can't be definitive in this response. But I know when I had them in my hands at home, I enjoyed it....I remember going thru my home-tests etc... Very nice, thus I purchased. But in the field, there was nothing that made me 'want to hold them'... Nothing that made me think to myself...'wow, I love these bins'.

Now, nothing negative, but simply they didn't speak to me. No flash, wow....no 'let me hold these all day as they feel good in the hands'... So given I had this 'flat response' from me as I held the bins, I returned. When I own a pair of bins, they speak to me. The MHG did not.

 

[Elkhornsun]

I have the Monarch 7 8x30 binos and they are excellent for the price. They are small enough and inexpensive enough that I leave them in my truck so they are readily available. My favorite pocketable binos are the Swarovski 10x25 CL Pocket Mountain that are small enough that inside their carry case it can fit in a water bottle pocket. but the Swarvos cost 3x as much and not something I would leave in a vehicle.

Nikon publishes "relative brightness" numbers for it Monarch binos and the 8x42 have double the value of the 8x30. but then the 42mm objective has a surface area that is 96% greater than that of a 30mm objective.

Nikon OceanPro 7x50 has relative brightness value of 50.4

Nikon Monarch HG 8x42 has relative brightness value of 28.1

Nikon Monarch HG 10x42 has relative brightness value of 17.6

Nikon Monarch HG 8x30 has relative brightness value of 14.4

 

[brocknroller]

I have the Monarch 7 8x30 binos and they are excellent for the price. They are small enough and inexpensive enough that I leave them in my truck so they are readily available. My favorite pocketable binos are the Swarovski 10x25 CL Pocket Mountain that are small enough that inside their carry case it can fit in a water bottle pocket. but the Swarvos cost 3x as much and not something I would leave in a vehicle.

Nikon publishes "relative brightness" numbers for it Monarch binos and the 8x42 have double the value of the 8x30. but then the 42mm objective has a surface area that is 96% greater than that of a 30mm objective.

Nikon OceanPro 7x50 has relative brightness value of 50.4

Nikon Monarch HG 8x42 has relative brightness value of 28.1

Nikon Monarch HG 10x42 has relative brightness value of 17.6

Nikon Monarch HG 8x30 has relative brightness value of 14.4

They are a good buy for the price, but the blurry edges bothered me since my eyes dart head into the blur when I panned with them. Having owned Nikon SEs, E2s, LXs, and EDGs, I'm used to sharp edges or at least gradual field curvature.

The 8x32 M7 also had noticeable glare. As I recall, there was something shiny inside the objective tubes causing it. I'm not sure if Nikon fixed that problem. I tired the 8x30 M7 when it first came out.

What I did really like was the ergonomics. For small bins, they fit my large hands well. Sharper edges and reduced glare, and I'm interested. I'm hoping that will be the case with the 8x30 HG.

Except for the rare "atomspheric river," you have "Elkhornsun" in Monterey County, California, so "relative brightness" doesn't mean much with a perptually contracted entrance pupil.

Considering how many cloudy days a year we have in Central PA, I should carry an 8x42, and I did for a couple years, but found it too heavy and unsteady, so now I carry 8x30s or 8x32s.

After a cold and cloudy start to spring, we are getting more sunny and dry days, so I went out birding at Fisherman's Paradise again yesterday. Saw another Merganser hen and her ducklings, another pair of geese with their goslings (note that the Mother Goose's partner stayed with her whereas the male Merganser was nowhere to be found on both encounters), and a Great Blue Heron. But what stole the show was a barn swallow with its aerial acrobatics chasing flying insects and flying in spirals into her nest, whch was recessed inside the hollow of a felled tree. I read that swallows winter in South America and fly 600 miles per day! Considering how small these birds are, that's quite remarkable.

Brock

 

[Paultricounty]

They are a good buy for the price, but the blurry edges bothered me since my eyes dart head into the blur when I panned with them. Having owned Nikon SEs, E2s, LXs, and EDGs, I'm used to sharp edges or at least gradual field curvature.

The 8x32 M7 also had noticeable glare. As I recall, there was something shiny inside the objective tubes causing it. I'm not sure if Nikon fixed that problem. I tired the 8x30 M7 when it first came out.

What I did really like was the ergonomics. For small bins, they fit my large hands well. Sharper edges and reduced glare, and I'm interested. I'm hoping that will be the case with the 8x30 HG.

Except for the rare "atomspheric river," you have "Elkhornsun" in Monterey County, California, so "relative brightness" doesn't mean much with a perptually contracted entrance pupil.

Considering how many cloudy days a year we have in Central PA, I should carry an 8x42, and I did for a couple years, but found it too heavy and unsteady, so now I carry 8x30s or 8x32s.

After a cold and cloudy start to spring, we are getting more sunny and dry days, so I went out birding at Fisherman's Paradise again yesterday. Saw another Merganser hen and her ducklings, another pair of geese with their goslings (note that the Mother Goose's partner stayed with her whereas the male Merganser was nowhere to be found on both encounters), and a Great Blue Heron. But what stole the show was a barn swallow with its aerial acrobatics chasing flying insects and flying in spirals into her nest, whch was recessed inside the hollow of a felled tree. I read that swallows winter in South America and fly 600 miles per day! Considering how small these birds are, that's quite remarkable.

Brock

Brock I think you’re mixing up the binoculars, the MHG has a field flattener, not as good as EDG, but better edges than the E2..

 

[A2GG]

After a cold and cloudy start to spring, we are getting more sunny and dry days, so I went out birding at Fisherman's Paradise again yesterday. Saw another Merganser hen and her ducklings, another pair of geese with their goslings (note that the Mother Goose's partner stayed with her whereas the male Merganser was nowhere to be found on both encounters), and a Great Blue Heron. But what stole the show was a barn swallow with its aerial acrobatics chasing flying insects and flying in spirals into her nest, whch was recessed inside the hollow of a felled tree. I read that swallows winter in South America and fly 600 miles per day! Considering how small these birds are, that's quite remarkable.

hey Brock,
The first photo is a Wood Duck hen. The male Wood Duck doesn't stick around after the eggs hatch.
nice photos

p.s. this morning I spotted - for the second time - a female Hooded Merganser with 7 juveniles. The merganser came up as rare (for the area) on ebird because it should have migrated up north by now. The male Hooded Merganser does the same as the male Wood Duck and leaves after the eggs hatch.

 

[brocknroller]

hey Brock,
The first photo is a Wood Duck hen. The male Wood Duck doesn't stick around after the eggs hatch.
nice photos

p.s. this morning I spotted - for the second time - a female Hooded Merganser with 7 juveniles. The merganser came up as rare (for the area) on ebird because it should have migrated up north by now. The male Hooded Merganser does the same as the male Wood Duck and leaves after the eggs hatch.

Thanks! I thought it was a Hooded Mergasser hen, which I saw at a duck pond where I used to live but it was with the male, whose crest was much more striking than the female, which had a "duck tail" haircut like the Wood Duck.

Looking at them side by side, I can clearly see the difference. The Wood Duck's spikey hair is only on the neck, not top of her head. The eye color and markings are also different.

What they have in common is dead beat dads.

Got these pix from All About Birds:

Hooded Merganser Photos and Videos for, All About Birds, Cornell Lab of Ornithology

“Hooded” is something of an understatement for this extravagantly crested little duck. Adult males are a sight to behold, with sharp black-and-white patterns set off by chestnut flanks. Females get their own distinctive elegance from their cinnamon crest. Hooded Mergansers are fairly common on...

www.allaboutbirds.org

Brock

 

[A2GG]

What they have in common is dead beat dads.

yep lol 😝

 

[Scott98]

Hoodies and wood ducks- both very cool birds! Beautiful paint jobs.

 

[brocknroller]

yep lol 😝

OTOH, male Ospreys and male Cardinals are devoted fathers who take care of their young. I saw the former on the PBS series "Wild Scandinavia," and the latter in my backyard. So, there is some balance to nature, though in birdworld, the biggest portion of the work raising their young still falls on the moms, as with humans!

Right now I'm seeing Starlings feeding their young under the eaves of my porch and under my neighbor's crooked roof. I leave water and sunflower seeds and peanuts on the porch, and some birds drink the water and take the seeds and peantus, but the Starling moms are too busy catching insects to stop and snack. They eat on the fly.

Brock

 

[dries1]

Though there are complaints on the hg 8x30 and the m7 8x30 here on bf, they are enjoyed by many outside of the forum. In other words Nikon is selling quite a few.