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8 x 30 Habicht W vs 8 x 32 Nikon SE (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Anansi
- Start date
plyscope
Andy J.
The Nikon SE has better edge to edge sharpness (larger sweet spot).
http://www.brinbest.com/id38.html
http://www.brinbest.com/id38.html
The SE has a bigger sweetspot but the on-axis sharpness and brightness of the Habicht is a LITTLE bit better. The focus on the Habicht is quite stiff IMO making it difficult to use for birding. Overall the SE is a better birding binocular. Try the Nikon EII 8x30 also.
But the Habicht has the greatest design ever! The Nikon is just a hideous Asian design. 
The stiff focus is something you get use to quite easily.
But I'm not the most objective person in this case. Since 4 years now I'm more then happy owner of a Habicht 7x42 and wouldn't exchange it for any other binocular.
The stiff focus is something you get use to quite easily.
But I'm not the most objective person in this case. Since 4 years now I'm more then happy owner of a Habicht 7x42 and wouldn't exchange it for any other binocular.
I disagree about the Habicht focus. I never did adjust to the stiffness. That and the smallish hard eyecups which are too short for the ER causes you to hold the binocular away from the eyecups to see the full FOV. Then your eyebrows are constantly greasing up the eyepieces because they are too close so everytime you use it you have to clean the eyepieces. NOT good for the coatings. I hated the 7x42 Habicht. All the problems of the 8x30 Habicht plus a smallish FOV. Hideous is a matter of opinion. The SE or EII are certainly a more comfortable and birder friendly glass to use. The 8x30 Habicht is great optically but it has a lot of shortcomings for a birder. I wouldn't even try using it in cold weather. The Habicht is a cool looking binocular but looks aren't everything.But the Habicht has the greatest design ever! The Nikon is just a hideous Asian design.
The stiff focus is something you get use to quite easily.
But I'm not the most objective person in this case. Since 4 years now I'm more then happy owner of a Habicht 7x42 and wouldn't exchange it for any other binocular.
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james holdsworth
Consulting Biologist
But the Habicht has the greatest design ever! The Nikon is just a hideous Asian design.
The stiff focus is something you get use to quite easily.
But I'm not the most objective person in this case. Since 4 years now I'm more then happy owner of a Habicht 7x42 and wouldn't exchange it for any other binocular.
Pretty sure the basic design used for the SE or EII's is based on Zeiss oberkochen porro's.
Denco
I had a pair of Fuji Fmtr-sx 8 x 30. The optics were great, but the eyecups were a hard and nearly inflexible rubber. I had to jam my eyes into the eyecups and stopped using the binos when my eyeballs got to sore. And yes the eyecups got oily too. I sold them, but I would like a good replacement for them someday.
I had a pair of Fuji Fmtr-sx 8 x 30. The optics were great, but the eyecups were a hard and nearly inflexible rubber. I had to jam my eyes into the eyecups and stopped using the binos when my eyeballs got to sore. And yes the eyecups got oily too. I sold them, but I would like a good replacement for them someday.
I've seen a few hundred birders in the past week. A few SE's but not one Habicht showed up in the sample. Yes, I could have missed them (sample variation) but who cares. Most use roofs...probably 50% alphas. I still use my SE but my wife has abandoned hers in favor of the 8X32 Swarovision. That little gem is the best 8X32 in the world!:t
PS
I love drinking the Swaro Koolaid. B It has a nice focus, too!:eek!:
PS
I love drinking the Swaro Koolaid. B
It has a nice focus, too!:eek!:It's hard to beat the little Swarovision 8x32 for an all around birding binocular isn't it. Pileatus don't you think it is better optically than the SE? I know the SE is good but I think the SV is a little better. One binocular and no messing around. HaHa!I've seen a few hundred birders in the past week. A few SE's but not one Habicht showed up in the sample. Yes, I could have missed them (sample variation) but who cares. Most use roofs...probably 50% alphas. I still use my SE but my wife has abandoned hers in favor of the 8X32 Swarovision. That little gem is the best 8X32 in the world!:t
PS
I love drinking the Swaro Koolaid. B
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I had the little Fuji's too. Nice optics but I agree with you on the eyecups. I hate it when your eyebrows hit the eyepieces. You have to clean them everytime you use them. PIA.
brocknroller
porromaniac
But the Habicht has the greatest design ever! The Nikon is just a hideous Asian design.
The stiff focus is something you get use to quite easily.
But I'm not the most objective person in this case. Since 4 years now I'm more then happy owner of a Habicht 7x42 and wouldn't exchange it for any other binocular.
The stiff focuser might be less of an issue with the 7x42 model because the better depth of field would require less focusing.
But wouldn't you trade that 50-year-old design 6.5* FOV Habiicht for a Nikon 7x42 EDG with 8* FOV? It's a huge jump from a 45.5* AFOV to a 56* AFOV.
One look through the EDG and you'll cry out loud: WHO TOOK THE BLINDERS OFF!?
Brock
FWIW I have the FMT 8x30 too, and had it out just yesterday. I whittled down the eyecups on mine so the eye relief is just right. I gotta say it is seriously sharp, just stunning! But it utterly fails at what an 8x30 is "supposed to be": lightweight (outweighs alpha 8x42s), quick (stiff IF focus is a severe drawback for normal birding) and compact (the prisms would look nice on a military 7x50). Plus I couldn't throw a baseball to its closest focus. I am hankering for the little Habicht myself. Dennis says it's sharp, Gijs says it's bright, what more do you want? I'll put Marvel Mystery Oil on the seals if I have to.
Ron
Ron
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Did you read my post?
For me I just noticed the stiffer focus, but never seen it as a problem. I do a lot of bird-guiding and most of the time I'm quicker in focus then anyone in the group even in cold weather.
I wear glasses and don't have any problems with the eycups. So I never got any problems with dirty eyepieces due to body contact.
I choose the 7x because the huge amount of light that comes trough.
Also it might have to do something with the fact that the SE aren't available until last year.
If my 7x Habicht ever get stolen or lost I wouldn't hesitate to buy another. Altough I might take another look trough a pair EL SV 8x32. ;-)
Hideous is indeed a matter of opinion.
brocknroller
porromaniac
All of what you said -- the good, the bad, and the ugly - - apply to the Fuji 6x30 FMTR-SX as well. It had a larger FOV (8.5*) and larger prisms (and you thought the 8x30s had large prism housings?), and it's even heavier than the 8x30! It was hard for me to hold steady, and it's a 6x bin.
Try turning your 8x30 Fuji upside down and using them that way, you might find they are more comfortable to hold with the prisms on the bottom since they give you something to grip. The prism bottoms are roundish, not flat, so I didn't find them good for thumb support, better when I wrapped them around the prisms. Only issue is that the strap lugs are then on top, so I wrapped the strap around the centerpost.
But I have to admit that the image was so fantastic and the depth of field and 3-D effect so eye popping that I wish I had kept them and explored ways to make them work better for me even if the HarperHyperBeltDrive was a flop.
Brock
