Just received my new Maven B1.2 8x42 today and wanted to provide an initial impressions report. These are just my initial subjective observations.
Price Point - retailing for $900 it is fairly well positioned in an extremely competitive market. Maven is direct-marketed and appears to be targeting themselves as having both high performance and value. Personally, I consider this the mid-priced, sub-alpha market - competing with the likes of Monarch HG, GPO Passion, Opticron Aurora VHD, Zeiss Conquest, Vortex Razor, etc. Probably the best value/performance binocular segment.
Packaging - Wow! Upon opening the shipping box I was disappointingly shocked. The binocular comes in a cheap/thin cardboard shell (like an egg-crate). There is also no included binocular case - just a cloth bag, strap and synthetic rubber lens covers. While some might say that’s just the wrapper the product comes in, it certainly does not inspire or exude an initial impression that the package contains a high-quality optical instrument. We’ll see.
Housing and Physical Characteristics - the B1.2 is very compact for an 8x42 binocular, in fact it is roughly the same size as my Monarch HG. Upon fist glance and handling the build quality appears excellent. The rubber armor is first-rate, very grippy, and has a more pleasant feel than that of the Zeiss Conquest. Found no obvious flaws with fit and finish. Ergonomically, the barrels have a nice contour that easily fit my medium-sized hands - they are slightly heavier (26.8oz) than my Monarch HGs (23.5oz) but the weight feels about right to stabilize my hold on this glass. All very good. If there was a physical characteristic negative - although recessed, the objective lenses did not appear as deeply recessed as most of my other binoculars.
Focus and Diopter Adjustment - the focus mechanism is exceptionally smooth with just the right amount of resistance. There is no play or spongy feel. Focus speed is fast - which is my preference in an 8x birding glass. The diopter does not lock but it is sufficiently stiff to avoid accidental readjustments. Played with the focus quite a bit and once set the diopter needed no further adjustment. Looks to be “set it and forget it.”
Eyepieces - multi-position with 3-click stops. They are covered with a similar synthetic rubber to the rest of the body and rested comfortably against my eyes. I don’t wear glasses and felt the eye-relief was fine. No blackouts or kidney-bean effect while glassing/panning. Only negative was the resistance when expanding/collapsing as I felt it was too light - may result in unintended adjustment.
View - sorry this section is not more detailed as I’ve only had an initial look and haven’t even taken them birding yet. Will certainly post again after I’ve used and them a bit. However, while I do not anticipate a wholesale replacement of my Victory SFs, there are no obvious flaws and the view satisfies. On first look, they are crisp and bright, with very good depth-of field and exceptional close-focus. With a 420ft FOV the view felt open and unrestrictive. Center-field resolution is quite sharp and while I’m uncertain if this model is supposed to be “flat-field,” they were fairly sharp across most of the image without pronounced edge distortion. Colors appear quite neutral - some may prefer more pop or warm/cool bias. Overall, I felt the view quite good, especially at this price point. Won’t give firm comparisons yet as the view is quite different from my everyday MHGs (trying to avoid bias toward the familiar).
Bottom Line - my initial impressions of the B1.2 are quite positive - solid build quality with an exceptional focus mechanism, very good ergonomics and handling, sharp and satisfying image with very good depth of field and neutral colors. Once a consumer gets over the initial horror of being sent a $900 optic in a cheap cardboard box, the experienced will realize a quality binocular was hidden inside.
Will use it a while and directly compare with my everyday Nikon Monarch HG 8x42 with a report at a later date.
mavenbuilt.com
