Here's my take on it. You get started on a quest for what works best for you and for some that quest is short, for others it's longer, and for Dennis it's clearly neverending. He's in it for the quest, not the holy grail at the end of it. He sells holy grails like cheap tourist trinkets.
But for most of us certain bins come along that just defy much improvement. For me, the 8x32 SE is one. Could I live happily with it for the rest of my life? Yup. Will I? Quite likely.
The SV is another. Will I live happily with it for the rest of my life? I really think so. From here on out, my eyes will be the weak link in the optics chain anyway (mooreorless: I am hoping to amortize them for $50 a year rather than $58, but you never know
). Will something "better" come along? Maybe, but I don't think I'll much care. I'll be out looking at birds.
The 8x32 FL? Hmm, not so much. There's room for improvement there. And I do want a sub-twenty ounce mid-size lifer. Still waiting on that one.
As for compacts--well, let's not rehash that one.
So I do think you finish the quest at some point. I know I'm nearing the end of it. And that means I'll be happily birding for 40 years (god willing) with these things.
Ah, just heard my first Blackpoll of the year--gotta go.
Mark
Mark,
We are living in the Golden Age of Roof Optics. From everything I've read about the SV EL, you have as good quality a bin that can be made.
Looking for something better than the SV EL in two or three years will be chasing "ghosts". From here on in, it's only incremental improvement for higher prices with Swaros. Ironically, by seeking optical perfection, they have boxed themselves into a corner.
I think they realized that, and it's one reason they are bringing out the CL series to reach a new market segment.
This point of diminishing return$ for incremental change$ (a phrase that's catching on, not just in sports optics, but in other areas such as fiber optics) was already true of the Leica Ultravids and Zeiss FLs (Zeiss FLs could use less astigmatism, but if that's truly the company's design philosophy, as Steve Ingraham contended, then that might not happen).
None-the-less, the Big Three companies will want to continue to make more money and that means some new "bells and whistles" down the line for higher prices. Leica and Zeiss might even be forced to come out with an open bridge design to offer something different enough to justify charging higher prices.
As long as you don't fall for the "Siren's Song," the SV EL should serve you well for a lifetime.
I do think some people can be contented with just one bin. Or at least one full sized bin. Others will be forever chasing the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.
Although I have taken pot shots at Dennis along with others, because he gets really enthused about a bin and says its the best he's ever seen and then a month or two later, repeats this process, but for him and others who keep on the Quest, "becoming" may be superior to "being".
It's the thrill of the hunt, the excitement of the chase that matters more than final contentment.
Maybe I'm just getting old, but I'm looking for contentment rather than the excitement of the chase. I'm also too poor these days to keep up with the latest and greatest optics, and I really do prefer porros.
So I'm also looking for Final Line-up. I doubt if I will find contentment in one bin, because I like midsized binoculars for their convenience and wide FsOV but also need a full sized bin, because of the number of cloudy days we have. The midsized bins just don't cut it for me anymore. Could be my eyes more than the bins.
If I lived in a location with sunny, dry warm weather year round, I could be content with an 8x30 EII and 10x35 EII for the rest of my life.
But given my climate and aging eyes, I will need to supplement them with full sized counterparts that I have yet to identify. Given the dearth of high quality porros, I may be forced to buy roofs, and if I do, they are going to cost me an arm and a leg to match the image quality of what I have.
Here's what Henry had to say about the 8x30 EII on BF in 2005:
"I think at least in part owing to these excellent results I’ve found the subjective “sharpness” in the center of the field of the EII to be about as good as I have seen in any binocular and better than any roof I have tried other than the 8X42 FL. This particular specimen looks a tiny bit sharper and a tiny bit higher contrast than my particular 8x32 SE."
I agree with his comparison of the 8x30 EII with the 8x32 SE, and my 8x30 EII is also as sharp as any roof I've tried including the EDG, LX, and EL. Sharper than the 8x30 SLCNeu. I don't doubt that the 8x42 and 8x56 FLs would beat it, but I wouldn't buy either of them because of the astigmatism.
So at least part of my Quest is over, the midsized range. In the full sized range the Quest continues...
Sir Galahad