Kowa BDII-XD - september 2019 (1 Viewer)

Dennis,

FOV 7.2 (Kowa)VS 6.9 (HG) is not much of a difference. I think the $$ of the Kowa is the attraction. I can only compare the 8X32 Kowa and the 8X42 Nikon MHG, so not really a good comparison.
As far as I am concerned the MHG is still a well done glass for the asking price. There are many other models I believe are wayyyyyy over overpriced, esp the premium glass.

If one needs a light 8X32, that initial impressions are, it is constructed well (time will tell), and it has a usable FOV of slightly less than 8 degrees, and cost $399, then the Kowa is a viable glass for that person.


Andy W.

[email protected] said:

You enter the discount code BIRD12 on checkout for 12% off. I talked them into expedited shipping.I wonder if they will compare at all to the Nikon Monarch HG 10x42.

https://www.usa-binoculars.com/produ...ngle-binocular

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Dennis, Where did your order ship from ? USA-Binoculars states they have various shipping locations in the USA. Just wondering if they were dropped shipped from Kowa direct. Thanks, Gwen

[email protected] said:

Direct from Kowa in Torrance, CA.

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Thanks Dennis

This is exciting to see. I have the Genesis 8.5x44. No complaints about the image but smaller and less weight would be nice. If Kowa makes a similar update to the Genesis I'd have to trade up.

Until then I was thinking about picking up the 8x42 Monarch HG but the BDII might be all I need.

Kicking myself for not trying the 6.5 at Birdfair now, especially as my Fieldpro-owning brother did, and thought it was a pretty decent unit. I thought the image showed by Kowa's 6x30 YF was really good and although the BD IIs are roofs and inevitably more expensive (someone at Kowa really ought to look at the business case for up-marketing the YF to Prominar or Genesis equivalent...), it's probably easier to achieve really good image quality in a lower magnification binocular. As some have commented, optical quality in lower priced binoculars is now so good that field of view is now being targeted in order to get ahead of the pack - Kite's 8x30 Lynx offers 151m and this BD II 8x32 a tad more (154m). That's the same FOV as the much vaunted Nikon 8x30 EII, with 16.5mm eye relief (as opposed to the EII's 13.8mm, which I found insufficient for use with glasses when I tried it). The 6.5x is probably the closest thing one can get to the Komz and Leitz 6x24s (collectors' favourites and thus rare and expensive), somewhat inferior in FOV (10 vs 12 degrees) but more punchy in terms of magnification, with far more modern coatings, and glasses friendly.

gcole said:

Now with countries like China and others, that price to quality is shrinking every year...

...PWhether the new Kowa’s glass has real Fluorite or is just another variety of ED glass, it will not be long before the only difference between the thousands of dollar optics versus the hundred dollars optics will be ???

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I second those sentiments wholeheartedly. Price to quality today is already pretty impressive and I'm pretty sure will keep improving.

Serious Questions Now ......

Okay, let's cut the bull ...... :cat:

Let's answer the tough questions:
1. How many turns of the focuser from cf to infinity ?
2. Can we see a close up photo of the eye cups in fully down position from the ocular end (ie. how much ER will the rim eat up?)
3. What's the field quality like? ie. define it in terms of sweet spot size, pincushion amounts and positions, field curvature, and is there any astigmatism?
4. What is the colour rendition like ?
5. Unless folks are getting these from the Narnia binocular shop where crystals are actually a thing, then that FL glass is going to be needed to control CA in such a short bin - so what's the CA response as you travel across the field?

6.5x vs 8x .......?
Can anyone detail a case for/ against ? What circumstances would the 6.5x be used in and hold the advantage? What height of tree canopy (and canopy dwelling little geewhizzits) would the 6.5x start to be outclassed by the 8x ?

10x42 - no pussyfooting around now ...... :cat:
Kowa BDII-XD ? or Nikon MHG ?




Chosun :gh:

You're going to need a bigger sample size of users to get comprehensive answers Chosun. Hurry up Lee!

-Bill

My personal test for focus speed it how many times I have to turn the focus wheel to refocus from a farmhouse 4km / 2.5miles away onto the corner of my office 2 metres away and the answer for the little Kowa is 0.5 of a turn, so it is as fast as a Conquest HD 8x32 and twice as fast as SF 8x42. For further comparison and Ultravid HD 8x32 is 0.85 turns and Kowa 8x33 is 0.75. All figures are approximate but have been checked a few times.

The eyecups have 4 positions and I have no problems using them with my spectacles.

Lee

wdc said:

You're going to need a bigger sample size of users to get comprehensive answers Chosun. Hurry up Lee!

-Bill

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Bill

We all use and report on binos in different ways because we see things differently and have different tastes and priorities. All points of view whichever member they come from are welcome.

Lee

Troubador said:

My personal test for focus speed it how many times I have to turn the focus wheel to refocus from a farmhouse 4km / 2.5miles away onto the corner of my office 2 metres away and the answer for the little Kowa is 0.5 of a turn, so it is as fast as a Conquest HD 8x32 and twice as fast as SF 8x42. For further comparison and Ultravid HD 8x32 is 0.85 turns and Kowa 8x33 is 0.75. All figures are approximate but have been checked a few times.

The eyecups have 4 positions and I have no problems using them with my spectacles.

Lee

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I appreciate this info Lee. Speed of focus is very, very high on my list. I personally do not like a real fast focus because I find that even if a bino has super sharp glass, it is very easy to overshoot, and much easier with a slower one. Just my personal preference.

Thanks Lee, for the insights in addition to Dennis' and Andy's comments. I will soon be ordering a 6.5x32, mostly out of curiousity, but I have a feeling it will be a handy work truck pair, given its small stature.

Justin

jremmons said:

Thanks Lee, for the insights in addition to Dennis' and Andy's comments. I will soon be ordering a 6.5x32, mostly out of curiousity, but I have a feeling it will be a handy work truck pair, given its small stature.

Justin

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"Buy 3 of them"

In some habitats that are full of birds and dragonflies and butterflies and flowers and reptiles and more, a fast focus means you don't miss much.

A slower focus is great, and is the best way to go, if you are only birding or doing less fast-changing nature observations.

But a slower focus might mean that you can't refocus from a close butterfly then on to a distant hawk and then back to nearby dragonfly or lizard or snake fast enough before its skedaddled off.

Its not a case of fast focus is bad and slow focus is good. You need both if you enjoy looking at all aspects of nature.

Lee

I wonder if a fast focuser is somewhat balanced, or ameliorated, by a lower mag bin with a greater depth of field, such as the Kowa.

-Bill

Troubador said:

...... A slower focus is great, and is the best way to go, if you are only birding or doing less fast-changing nature observations. .....

Lee

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That's a matter of opinion !



Chosun :gh:

Chosun Juan said:

Okay, let's cut the bull ...... :cat:

Let's answer the tough questions:
1. How many turns of the focuser from cf to infinity ?
2. Can we see a close up photo of the eye cups in fully down position from the ocular end (ie. how much ER will the rim eat up?)
3. What's the field quality like? ie. define it in terms of sweet spot size, pincushion amounts and positions, field curvature, and is there any astigmatism?
4. What is the colour rendition like ?
5. Unless folks are getting these from the Narnia binocular shop where crystals are actually a thing, then that FL glass is going to be needed to control CA in such a short bin - so what's the CA response as you travel across the field?

6.5x vs 8x .......?
Can anyone detail a case for/ against ? What circumstances would the 6.5x be used in and hold the advantage? What height of tree canopy (and canopy dwelling little geewhizzits) would the 6.5x start to be outclassed by the 8x ?

10x42 - no pussyfooting around now ...... :cat:
Kowa BDII-XD ? or Nikon MHG ?




Chosun :gh:

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Chosun. You should just buy a Kowa and try it yourself. It sounds like you have a lot of boxes to check when you choose a binocular and the Kowa's may not check every one. If you don't like it they are easy to return. Amazon has free returns for any reason and their shipping to Australia is pretty inexpensive. I have found most binoculars you have to try yourself to see if they work for you anyway. A lot of binoculars that many people like don't work for me personally. Two in particular are the Zeiss SF and the Zeiss Victory Compact. The magnification is going to be like any other binocular you have tried with the lower magnification having better DOF, a bigger FOV and being easier to hold steady, whereas, the higher magnifications are going to show more detail and have a smaller FOV. You have to decide how you are going to use them the majority of the time. I personally like having different magnifications for different uses. The big thing about the Kowa's and their main selling feature is they are Wide Angle. What ever magnification you choose is going to have a class leading FOV. The two I have purchased have excellent build quality and I feel they are excellent optically for their price point. No, they are not going to be Nikon EDG's but they don't cost $2000.00 either. I see no CA on-axis and very little if any on the edge of the FOV. I would call their color rendition neutral being not as warm as a Nikon but not as cold as say a Zeiss. Sweetspot size is about 80% with slight astigmatism and field curvature. The big difference with the Nikon HG is it has sharper edges and a flatter field if that is your preference but the Kowa has a noticeably bigger FOV at least in the 10x42 and better CA control especially on the edge. The HG has quite a bit of CA on the edge IMO. That being said I think the 6.5x32 is really unusual with a 10 degree FOV and impressive DOF it is kind of like you said you see a big volume of FOV with them. They are different than any binocular I have used. They are like looking out a big picture window except everything is magnified six and a half times.

Thanks for the feedback and pics Dennis :t:
Those eye cups look reasonably low profile, and yes of course I'd have to try them out for ER with glasses (particularly the 10x) and handling.

I've never used lower than a 7x in an actual birding situation which is why I asked about the 6.5x. I can't even really think of a location and situation where the vegetation is dense enough to restrict views but not overly high. The only thing I could think of is perhaps ridge top heathland, or maybe dense riparian melaleucca and callistemon vegetation - but jeez, that's pretty specialist.

For example, I prefer 8x to 7x - I find that helps in id'ing little geewhizzits in even a 20m high canopy such as is found in an open woodland. Anything denser than that is likely to see 30m + canopies. I also prefer the shallower dof of the 8x (with my preferred fast focus) as it gives me a positive focus range and the subconscious memory of which direction I last turned the wheel to get there gives me a spatial awareness of which way to turn if the bird changes direction and distance. With 7x I sometimes feel a bit lost and not too sure of which way to go. I also find that the blurring of foreground and background with the higher magnification gives better subject isolation (the way that photographers aim to do).

The idea of a 175m Fov does sound intriguing though.

Perhaps I'm more interested in the 10x, although it would have to go some way to beat the 42mm Nikon MHG which I find super stable to hold and about as small as I'd want to go anyway. The idea of a wide angle 10x is appealing, though for circling raptors about 140m Fov is about the minimum you would want here, so even at 126m I'd have to try it out on Little Eagles to see if it cuts the mustard. I like the metal focus wheel so that's a big plus for the Kowa, but that armour style looks pretty hideous - pretty sure I'd skin it and get a custom kangaroo leather armour made ! :cat:

Also - not sure the field characteristics are up to snuff - I already have a Willy Wonka funhouse bin in the Zen ED3 with it's wild pincushion, and the excessive field curvature induced fuzzy edges of the Swift Audubon annoyed me more than I cared for too. I really wouldn't like a lesser field quality than the MHG, so that puts me off ordering the Kowa on spec. If the industry ever gets it's act together here I might get the chance for a test drive at the next Bird Fair.

I wonder how the new 8x42 BDII-XD Kowa compares with the 8x43 Zen ED3? ............

Who knows - perhaps I'll end up with 2 or 3 binoculars ! I'd probably need to get the name of Chuck's psychologist then though ! :-O





Chosun :gh:

Chosun Juan said:

That's a matter of opinion !

Chosun :gh:

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Of course it is and don't forget 'slower' is an imprecise term subject individual interpretation and taste too.

Lee

dries1 said:

I don't think Kowa would put Fluorite glass in a 400 dollar binocular. Below is a quote from USA Binoculars.

"Kowa XD Lenses: Kowa’s Advanced XD Lenses have characteristics close to Fluorite Crystals, and when combined with a concave lens possessing special dispersion properties, reduces chromatic aberration to almost non-existent levels, for razor-sharp images".

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Hi,

that's actually what they did, put fluoride glass in a 400 dollar bino.
Not fluorite crystal, mind you, as Kowa uses in their top spotting scope offerings (and some very expensive astro scopes and a lot of Canon photo lenses), but ED (or XD as Kowa marketing calls it) glass which usually has a quite high fluoride content which helps it to achieve performance quite close to fluorite crystal in some areas.

Joachim

dries1 said:

I don't think Kowa would put Fluorite glass in a 400 dollar binocular. Below is a quote from USA Binoculars.

Andy W.

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Kowa for sure aren't putting fluorite crystal lenses in these but they will be using fluorite-doped glass or Extra low Dispersion glass, ED for short, and Zeiss's Terra ED 8x32 priced at $400 has Schott ED glass in it. Whether it is the best ED glass or an economy type is another question, and maybe glass makers have been trying to bring the cost of ED glass down and have succeeded.

Lee