The Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 is the Big Aperture Habicht you have been dreaming about! (1 Viewer)

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We don't even talk about Fujinon binoculars much on Bird Forum, and we don't even have a sub-forum for them but On Cloudy Nights the Fujinon FMTR-SX is discussed a lot for astronomical use, and it is generally considered the best hand held astronomical binocular you can buy so when I thought about getting a good binocular for the night sky I thought I would try one. I have had the Fujinon FMT-SX 7x50, and I was very impressed with it but the small 52.5 degree AFOV never impressed me that much. With a 65 degree AFOV the 10x Fujinon is a different animal. I was shocked how good optically it is! It is truly a 50 mm alpha porro. It is one of the best binoculars I have looked through, and I can see why it is ranked 2nd place above the almost $3K Swarovski EL 10x50 on Albinos. That goes to show you when you compare the very best porro to the very best roof the porro will win. This is the big aperture Habicht you have been dreaming about. It is a big porro with huge prisms and over 95% transmission just like the Habicht except it has a much bigger sweet spot being sharp almost to the edge. It has the same sparkle and magic that the Habicht does because of its incredible transmission. The build quality is first class "alpha like" with an excellent rubber armoring and attached tethered objective covers. It has some shortcomings as a birding binocular weighing almost 50 oz. and having a 9 m close focus with IF focusing but if you can tolerate the weight man what a view! The IF focusing is not as bad as you think it might be because if you think about it how often do you really look at birds or anything at less than about 9 m and if you do can just dial the IF in a setting or two, and you are in focus. Of course for Pelagic Birding at a distance, astronomy or boating it is no problem because the focus just stays the same. In fact, I think an IF binocular is superior to a center focus binocular because it seems to be more accurate setting the focus of each eye and Holger Merlitz agrees. It certainly allows for a more waterproof design than a center focus binocular. For astronomical use I don't think the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 can be beat because of it's sharp edges star fields are sharp out to the edge with no distortion. If you can tolerate the weight the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 is an alpha porro that bests the Swarosvki EL 10x50 for 1/3 of the price.

Binoculars rankings - 10x50 - AllBinos.com

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Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 - binoculars review - AllBinos.com

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[Sterngucker]

No it's not. IF is even slower than slow or stiff CF.

 

[dries1]

Dennis,

How long will you stick with the 1400 grams of weight with that 10X50?, that is if they are used hand held, and not mounted. On a dark sky they provide some great views. I have never viewed through them during daylight.

Andy W.

 

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Dennis,

How long will you stick with the 1400 grams of weight with that 10X50?, that is if they are used hand held, and not mounted. On a dark sky they provide some great views. I have never viewed through them during daylight.

Andy W.

The Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 binoculars are mainly astro use on a tripod or in a chair. Last night I was looking at the Saturn and Jupiter conjunction, the moon and the Orion Nebulae, and they performed brilliantly! I was surprised how good they are for terrestrial use also. I could see using them for Pelagic Birding from a static position or on a tripod, monopod or with a harness. As long as your not hiking they are not bad. I see why they are the talk of the town over at Cloudy Nights. I had my NL 8x42, the Habicht 10x42 and the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 out on the patio looking at birds out in the trees and the Habicht and Fujinon held their own. I am not even sure they weren't better than the NL with the 3D image they have. Every thing looks more "real" than the NL. I set the Fujinon on diopter +2, and it was good for most of the viewing I was doing out to about 100 yards. I didn't have to change the focus. The Fujinons are sharper at the edges than the NL and especially the Habicht. That Habicht is amazingly bright for a 40 mm though. Those porros really transmit the light with their simple optical systems with very few lenses especially if they have good glass and coatings like the Fujinon and the Habicht.

 

[Chosun Juan]

The Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 binoculars are mainly astro use on a tripod or in a chair. Last night I was looking at the Saturn and Jupiter conjunction, the moon and the Orion Nebulae, and they performed brilliantly! I was surprised how good they are for terrestrial use also. I could see using them for Pelagic Birding from a static position or on a tripod, monopod or with a harness. As long as your not hiking they are not bad. I see why they are the talk of the town over at Cloudy Nights. I had my NL 8x42, the Habicht 10x42 and the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 out on the patio looking at birds out in the trees and the Habicht and Fujinon held their own. I am not even sure they weren't better than the NL with the 3D image they have. Every thing looks more "real" than the NL. I set the Fujinon on diopter +2, and it was good for most of the viewing I was doing out to about 100 yards. I didn't have to change the focus. The Fujinons are sharper at the edges than the NL and especially the Habicht. That Habicht is amazingly bright for a 40 mm though. Those porros really transmit the light with their simple optical systems with very few lenses especially if they have good glass and coatings like the Fujinon and the Habicht.

I wonder if the Canon 10x42L IS wouldn't best it for effective resolution over a reasonable hand held astro session.



Chosun 🙅

 

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I wonder if the Canon 10x42L IS wouldn't best it for effective resolution over a reasonable hand held astro session.



Chosun 🙅

It would probably close with the IS advantage on the Canon but the Fujinon has that 10 mm aperture advantage. The Canon would be certainly be a more relaxing view. I am sure the Fujinon would beat the Canon on a tripod with the 50 mm aperture and better transmission. The Fujinon would probably go deeper seeing fainter stars but IS will usually give you at least a .5 magnitude resolution advantage with equivalent apertures.

 

[Robert Moore]

Dennis,

How long will you stick with the 1400 grams of weight with that 10X50?, that is if they are used hand held, and not mounted. On a dark sky they provide some great views. I have never viewed through them during daylight.

Andy W.

I have the 10x50 FMTR-SX and the daylight views are excellent with very little CA and almost as good as the Swarovision 10x50 field pro that I also have and compared it to. Best deal out if you are wanting a 10x50 for Astronomy. Eye relief is also excellent if you have to wear glasses.

 

[Robert Moore]

The Fujinon has a warmer image the the Swarovision. When looking at the moon side by side you can really see the difference. The Swarovski is pure white on the moon and Fujinon looks a little yellow only when compared side by side.

 

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I have the 10x50 FMTR-SX and the daylight views are excellent with very little CA and almost as good as the Swarovision 10x50 field pro that I also have and compared it to. Best deal out if you are wanting a 10x50 for Astronomy. Eye relief is also excellent if you have to wear glasses.

Yes, the Fujinon is a deal especially if you get the FMT-SX 10x50 without the rubber armour which retails for about $650 and can be had on Astromart for around $500 sometimes. I like the rubber armour and the tethered objective covers on the R model though. It surprised me you don't get a case with the R model, so I ordered one from Fujinon for $30.00.

 

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The Fujinon has a warmer image the the Swarovision. When looking at the moon side by side you can really see the difference. The Swarovski is pure white on the moon and Fujinon looks a little yellow only when compared side by side.

Swarovskis are always white and clean. That is the way the Habicht is. Very white clean and BRIGHT image. It is hard to beat that 95% transmission. Which one shows more CA on the Lunar Limb the Swaro or the Fuji?

 

[Robert Moore]

Swarovskis are always white and clean. That is the way the Habicht is. Very white clean and BRIGHT image. It is hard to beat that 95% transmission. Which one shows more CA on the Lunar Limb the Swaro or the Fuji?

I see more CA with the Fujinon. The 10x50 Fujinon is far better than the 16x70 Fujinon as far as CA. I have both and I think the 10x50 is the best in the Fujinon series.

 

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I see more CA with the Fujinon. The 10x50 Fujinon is far better than the 16x70 Fujinon as far as CA. I have both and I think the 10x50 is the best in the Fujinon series.

That makes sense. Usually the bigger aperture and higher magnification optic will have more CA. Usually porros don't have much CA, and they don't even need HD glass like a roof does. Another reason they are less expensive. Nice to know I picked the best one. Thanks, for the reply!

 

[Grial]

Greetings to all . I've owned an FMTR-SX 10x50 for a while. That was about three years ago. This binoculars seemed fantastic to me for use in the night sky and for long-range views of the area, for example from a height. In all other cases of observation, I was seriously hampered by IF and overweight. In 2018, I bought an EL SW 10x50FP. Three weeks later, Fujinon was sold without regret. In my opinion, there was not a single area where FUJI surpassed EL. Note that the color rendering in FMTR-SX is not neutral. The white color in it always has a peach tint. And the CA in it is much worse fixed than in EL. Perhaps because of this, in any conditions of use, the view through EL with its neutral color rendering was brighter and more expressive for me. This, of course, is only my view of these remarkable instruments, and the influence of the optical qualities of each individual sample is not excluded. In addition, I note that the Habicht 10x40W, despite its features, still serves me faithfully and will remain for my grandchildren.

 

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Having had both the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 and the Swarovski EL 10x50 I would agree they are both excellent binoculars but here are a few things I prefer about the Fujinon. The biggest thing I like about the Fujinon is the 8% greater transmission due to it being a much more efficient porro design which gives the view an almost sparkle effect which is similar to what I get with the Habichts, and it is also a BIG advantage in low light. Also, I much prefer the 3D image that the porro provides versus the flatter roof prism image of the EL and the porro has a more relaxed view because of the simplicity of the design versus the more complex roof. The Fujinon is considerably better than the EL with glare also which seems to be a weak spot with the Swarovski EL in general. The Swarovski with the center focus and lighter weight is a better all around binocular but for astronomy use I will take the Fujinon. What is remarkable is the Fujinon can be had for around $500 on Astromart and the EL is$3K. That is 6 TIMES AS EXPENSIVE! It is a tribute to the porro design that we could even compare these two binoculars at all considering the huge price difference.

Binoculars rankings - 10x50 - AllBinos.com

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Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50 - binoculars review - AllBinos.com

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Swarovski EL 10x50 Swarovision - binoculars review - AllBinos.com

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[Conndomat]

Greetings to all . I've owned an FMTR-SX 10x50 for a while. That was about three years ago. This binoculars seemed fantastic to me for use in the night sky and for long-range views of the area, for example from a height. In all other cases of observation, I was seriously hampered by IF and overweight. In 2018, I bought an EL SW 10x50FP. Three weeks later, Fujinon was sold without regret. In my opinion, there was not a single area where FUJI surpassed EL. Note that the color rendering in FMTR-SX is not neutral. The white color in it always has a peach tint. And the CA in it is much worse fixed than in EL. Perhaps because of this, in any conditions of use, the view through EL with its neutral color rendering was brighter and more expressive for me. This, of course, is only my view of these remarkable instruments, and the influence of the optical qualities of each individual sample is not excluded. In addition, I note that the Habicht 10x40W, despite its features, still serves me faithfully and will remain for my grandchildren.

Complete agreement!

I've had the Fujinon 10x50 for many years in direct comparison with the EL 10x50, but this is superior in almost all respects!

The 95% transmission of the Fujinon is an illusion that the old measuring methods of allbino's were totally wrong!
The glass has already been measured from another side and a maximum transmission of 88-90% is achieved.
Gijs even measured only 85% ...

"De Fujinon 10x50 FMTR-SX.Rond deze kijker doen o.a. op internet sterke verhalen de ronde. Zo wordt al lange tijd beweerd, dat de kijker een lichttransmissie van 95% heeft. Onze metingen hebben dat niet kunnen bevestigen. De hoogste waarde aan doorgelaten licht voor waarnemen bij daglicht in het spectrale gebied waar het oog optimaal gevoelig is (550-560 nm) is ongeveer 85% en dat is aanzienlijk minder dan de geclaimde 95%. Opgemerkt moet worden dat bij een lichttransmissie van 85% de beeldhelderheid waarneembaar minder is dan bij een lichttransmissie van 95%."

I can confirm this through many tests, the Fujinon 10x50 is not brighter than the EL in the dark.
In addition, it suffers from significantly more CA during the day and the susceptibility to stray light is also not good, the only point where the Fuji is superior to the EL would be the 3D effect.
The Fujinon is a very good glass for the price, but does not come close to the EL.

By the way, I had the whole FMT series for many years, the optically best glass is IMHO the 10x70, unfortunately you need an extremely dark sky and the necessary pupil dilation to use the glass.

Andreas

Addition: The AFOV of the Fujinon 10x50 is not 65 ° but 61 °, Dennis uses this useless multiplication formula again, it doesn't really fit any binoculars.

 

[71North]

Though I lack first hand experience regarding some of the mentioned binoculars, I’ll chime in with my humble opinions.

Purchased the FMTR-SX 10x50 at 40% discount on black friday. I am mightly impressed!
I find it bright, pin sharp almost to the edge, sturdy and with good «whiteness» I consider the CA modest, compares favourably to my GPO 10X42 HD, also better than the Canon 12x36 IS II & Canon 10x30 IS II.
In comparison with a friends 10x42 SLC I find it at least equal overall, brightness and edge sharpness definitely superior(of course).
A paradox though is the need for me to use a monopod to get the best from the Fujinon 10x50, while my venerable Canon 15x45 IS gives fantastic views of moon and deep skies in total handheld stability, at 300 grams lighter for added handholding easiness

Optically, I find the Fujinons the best bang for the buck I’ve ever spent on a new binocular.

Season’s greetings to all!

Yngve

 

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Though I lack first hand experience regarding some of the mentioned binoculars, I’ll chime in with my humble opinions.

Purchased the FMTR-SX 10x50 at 40% discount on black friday. I am mightly impressed!
I find it bright, pin sharp almost to the edge, sturdy and with good «whiteness» I consider the CA modest, compares favourably to my GPO 10X42 HD, also better than the Canon 12x36 IS II & Canon 10x30 IS II.
In comparison with a friends 10x42 SLC I find it at least equal overall, brightness and edge sharpness definitely superior(of course).
A paradox though is the need for me to use a monopod to get the best from the Fujinon 10x50, while my venerable Canon 15x45 IS gives fantastic views of moon and deep skies in total handheld stability, at 300 grams lighter for added handholding easiness

Optically, I find the Fujinons the best bang for the buck I’ve ever spent on a new binocular.

Season’s greetings to all!

Yngve

"Optically, I find the Fujinons the best bang for the buck I’ve ever spent on a new binocular."

Me, too. They are even more bang for the buck than the Nikon E2 8x30. They are my new best value binocular. I compared the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50, Habicht 10x40 GA and my Swarovski NL 8x42 yesterday side by side and if I had to sell one it would be the NL. My point is an alpha porro will beat an alpha roof every time. I honestly think a porro is still a superior design and if the manufacturers made some improvements on them, they would leave roofs in the dust.

 

[71North]

"Optically, I find the Fujinons the best bang for the buck I’ve ever spent on a new binocular."

Me, too. They are even more bang for the buck than the Nikon E2 8x30. They are my new best value binocular. I compared the Fujinon FMTR-SX 10x50, Habicht 10x40 GA and my Swarovski NL 8x42 yesterday side by side and if I had to sell one it would be the NL. My point is an alpha porro will beat an alpha roof every time. I honestly think a porro is still a superior design and if the manufacturers made some improvements on them, they would leave roofs in the dust.

Hmm, agreed indeed.

I’ve feared the day I get the chance to try the NL 8x42, sensing it might convince me to finally replace the trusty Trinovid 8x42 BA as my main 8x binocular.
Your opinion makes me lust even more for one of the alpha brands to produce a superior 8x42 central focusing and IP68 rated porro, magnesium lightweighted and with NL class FOV. Thereafter preferably offering it to us porro stalwarts for a fraction of the alpha roof prices.

 

[Mask of Porro]

My point is an alpha porro will beat an alpha roof every time. I honestly think a porro is still a superior design and if the manufacturers made some improvements on them, they would leave roofs in the dust.

I agree. However I don't think we will see that when people line up at the door like a boxing day sale to pay multi-$K for an alpha roof. Why would they make a better product and charge less. Even if the profit margin was the same they would have to sell more volume to make up the difference.

BTW I'm in love with my 7x42GA Habicht. Would like to get a 10x40 one day

If they got the idea to charge as much as a roof and profit the bigger difference due to lower manufacturing costs they are making a mistake IMO. No way I'm paying $3K for any bino. Alpha views for half the price is one of the huge attractions for a Porro.

 

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Complete agreement!

I've had the Fujinon 10x50 for many years in direct comparison with the EL 10x50, but this is superior in almost all respects!

The 95% transmission of the Fujinon is an illusion that the old measuring methods of allbino's were totally wrong!
The glass has already been measured from another side and a maximum transmission of 88-90% is achieved.
Gijs even measured only 85% ...

"De Fujinon 10x50 FMTR-SX.Rond deze kijker doen o.a. op internet sterke verhalen de ronde. Zo wordt al lange tijd beweerd, dat de kijker een lichttransmissie van 95% heeft. Onze metingen hebben dat niet kunnen bevestigen. De hoogste waarde aan doorgelaten licht voor waarnemen bij daglicht in het spectrale gebied waar het oog optimaal gevoelig is (550-560 nm) is ongeveer 85% en dat is aanzienlijk minder dan de geclaimde 95%. Opgemerkt moet worden dat bij een lichttransmissie van 85% de beeldhelderheid waarneembaar minder is dan bij een lichttransmissie van 95%."

I can confirm this through many tests, the Fujinon 10x50 is not brighter than the EL in the dark.
In addition, it suffers from significantly more CA during the day and the susceptibility to stray light is also not good, the only point where the Fuji is superior to the EL would be the 3D effect.
The Fujinon is a very good glass for the price, but does not come close to the EL.

By the way, I had the whole FMT series for many years, the optically best glass is IMHO the 10x70, unfortunately you need an extremely dark sky and the necessary pupil dilation to use the glass.

Andreas

Addition: The AFOV of the Fujinon 10x50 is not 65 ° but 61 °, Dennis uses this useless multiplication formula again, it doesn't really fit any binoculars.

The Fujinon 10x50 FMTR-SX and the Swarovski EL 10x50 were just recently tested in 2018 for the EL and 2020 for the Fujinon using Allbinos latest methods. Gijs old transmission testing on the Fujinon was done way back in 2013 so I am sure Fujinon has updated their coatings since then. Also, Fujinon themselves say the FMTR-SX has 95% transmission. Some people criticize Allbinos transmission testing but Arek says they have updated their methodology in the last few years, so I have no reason to doubt him.

"Transmission
It's the first criterion that we are going to change, and we are going to do so in two areas. Firstly, this category is going to be even more important because optical instruments will be able to get 25 points, not 15. Transmission influences brightness of images, their contrast, coloring and also, indirectly, the performance of a pair of binoculars against bright light. It is one of the most unbiased parameters in our tests, involving precise measurements with usage of a spectrophotometer and the measurement of zero point done with the help of four lasers with four different wavelengths."

Allbinos also ranks the Fujinon and the EL 7.0 and 7.4 on CA so really about the same and on stray light or IR as they call it they said the Fujinon was quite good and scored it 4.0 and on the EL they said it should be better and scored it 3.3. Below are some pictures of the internal tubes of the Fujinon and EL showing the obvious reflections inside the EL tubes, whereas, the Fujinon were nicely baffled.

I have had both binoculars and used them in different situations including bright light conditions and under low light and I confer with Albinos results in that the Fujinon is brighter and shows less glare in almost every condition. The value of the 3D view is alone enough to choose the Fujinon over the EL. Allbinos ranked the Fujinon above EL for a reason, and it wasn't just based on a subjective opinion. The EL is a better all around binocular but for sheer optical performance the Fujinon is number one. The only binocular that beat it was the $6K Nikon 10x50 WX.

Binoculars rankings - 10x50 - AllBinos.com

The best binocular tests on the net. The comprehensive database of binoculars with their parameters and users opinions. Interesting articles and comparisons.

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