Advice on Habicht please. (1 Viewer)

[Rg548]

I am still contemplating buying a Habicht.

It is only going to be used for low light work, evenings and dawn.
My Leica 8x32 BN will still be my daily use bin, it's perfect.

So...
For twighlight viewing, and bearing in mind I am 55 yrs old, so pupils i guess max out at 5mm if i'm lucky...
Is the 10x40 better than the 7x42 ??

At my age, will the greater magnification of the 10x outweigh the 6mm exit pupil of the 7x for low light ??

I can't do a direct comparisons of these models easily, at low light times...

So thought I would throw it out to the knowledgeable folk here...
Thanks

 

[PatR]

I am afraid that I cannot compare the 7x and 10x Habichts but I do have the 7x42 and in my honest opinion it is one of the brightest binoculars I have ever had the pleasure of using and is an absolute delight in the evenings when the light is fading. It is also one of the sharpest and most satisfying to use. I thought my GPO/Geco 8x56 AK prism bino's were superb in low light (they are) but the Habicht's eclipse them.

Is 7x better than the 10x? If I compare it to my 10x42 Pure's then no, they are sublime in low light and I use them with the SW headrest to mitigate any shake (approaching 73 years of age) but tend to reach for the Habicht's as they are much more comfortable over a longer period.

I love my 7X42's, bought after considerable research and bought online as no one here in Mid Wales (or indeed around the country) had them in stock to try without travelling vast distances. But thankfully they were superb and everything everyone said they were. A bit tunnel vision..meh couldn't care, they bring a smile every time I use them.

Again that old chestnut rears its ugly head, try before you buy as everyone eyes are different but I took a chance, checked the returns policy should I could not get on with them, and ordered them from the fantastic Ace Optics in Bath.

I wish you well in your search. Others with far more optical nounce and experience will undoubtedly chip in with their thoughts and recommendations but in low light, the 7x42 Habicht's are the ones I choose preferring the steadiness of the magnification over any percieved or otherwise, difference in light transmission.

 

[Scott98]

Do you really want the Habicht in particular or just a good low light bino? I would think any 42mm would satisfy the need for more light. The Habicht are only going to eke out a few percent more light than the same size roof, if that. The major improvement will come from the larger aperture.

I'm about the same age as you and I love 7x42's, I wouldn't worry about exit pupil concerns, I like the easy eye placement of the 6mm exit pupil, I haven't noticed any loss of light versus my 8x42

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

Dennis, post 3,
None of the Swarovski Habichts we have investigated has transmission values "over 96%".
Habicht 8x30 95-96%
Habicht 7x42 94%
Habicht 10x40 94-94,5%

Gijs van Ginkel

 

[jring]

Hi,

for a 50 something observer (like me) a good pair of 10x50 or 10x60 would probably the best pair of low light bins due to maximum useful exit pupil size and higher magnification, which helps too in low light - if, and only if, the user can hold 10x steady enough for more than a few seconds (this is why a very good pair of 10x42 is not getting much use with me)...

If somebody would force me to get a pair of Habichts for some reason, I would probably take the 10x40, as it is the least flawed model in the range - at least it would be an interesting comparion with my SE 10x42.
I am quite sure that I would not like the very narrow afov of the 7x42 and I did try the 8x30 alongside my E2 in the same size and liked the latter a lot better.

Joachim

 

[Hermann]

If somebody would force me to get a pair of Habichts for some reason, I would probably take the 10x40, as it is the least flawed model in the range - at least it would be an interesting comparion with my SE 10x42.

I've got both the 10x40 and the 7x42. The 7x42 gets a heck of a lot more use, despite the narrow AFOV. Large exit pupils are always nice.

I am quite sure that I would not like the very narrow afov of the 7x42 and I did try the 8x30 alongside my E2 in the same size and liked the latter a lot better.

The 8x30 is out IMO. Too much glare.

Hermann

 

[jring]

Hi Hermann,

I have a Leitz Trini 7x42 in green rubber - the one before the brick - which allows me to have the cake (exit pupil) and eat it too (nice fov).

Now if I only could find a multicoated version of this for real competitive low light performance - if multicoated versions even exist (the brick is multicoated, of course but neither light nor elegant).

Joachim

 

[John A Roberts]

And following on from Gijs (post #5),

Swarovski shows all three with the same maximum transmission value of 96% (frequency/ frequencies unspecified):




John


p.s. A compilation of transmission graphs covering around 60 years of Habicht production, can be found in post #73 at:
Why are those dang Habicht's so BRIGHT!

Besides the high peak transmission of the current coatings, they also have remarkably even transmission across much of the visible spectrum.

The graphs are from Gijs’ great body of work that can be found at: https://www.houseofoutdoor.com/verrekijkers/verrekijkers-testen-en-vergelijken/

 

[John A Roberts]

I trust Swarovski's numbers more than yours, sorry! 1 or 2% isn't going to make much difference anyway. You're just nitpicking. Give it up.

. . .

So on a forum dedicated to particular technology - when you're mistaken on a technical detail - you:
question the other person's credibility; undermine your original point; criticise the notion of detail, and; give a direction to the person

A more gracious response could have been along the lines of: 'Well you're right there, I made an error by not first checking the source!'


John


- - - -
To understand the now missing quote from Dennis, see posts #10 and 12 below.

 

[Binocollector]

So on a forum dedicated to particular technology - when you're mistaken on a technical detail - you:
question the other person's credibility; undermine your original point; criticise the notion of detail, and; give a direction to the person

Yeah, and if all else fails, he deletes his post(s). As he seems to have done, since it's gone now.
Besides his original statement was that Habichts have over 96% transmission when Swarovski themselves never said that.

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

John Roberts, post 8,
The Swarovski binoculars we had investigated were sometimes not the most recent ones and the Swarovski tables you show with the transmission values of 96% compared with our data obtained from binoculars that were new (8x30) or a few years old demonstrate that Swarovski really lives up to its leading motto "improve, what is already good".
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[John A Roberts]

Yeah, and if all else fails, he deletes his post(s). As he seems to have done, since it's gone now.
. . .

And it's not the first time that Dennis has done that!


- - - -
In this thread Dennis deleted three posts:
• In the first, he stated that that the 7x42 and 10x40W Habichts had in excess of 96% transmission (hence Gijs' comments in what is now post #4).

• The second post was in response to Gijs' comments - it's the one that I quoted from (in now post #9).

• And the third was in response to Joachim's second post (now post #7).


John

 

[William Lewis]

Dennis, post 3,
None of the Swarovski Habichts we have investigated has transmission values "over 96%".
Habicht 8x30 95-96%
Habicht 7x42 94%
Habicht 10x40 94-94,5%

Gijs van Ginkel

That's interesting Gijs. When I was comparing my habicht 7x42 to my SLC 8x56 I really struggled to see any difference in transmission during daylight - your results may explained the reason why. I wonder why the 7x42 with the least glass in it (simple eye piece) has less transmission than the 10 or the 8?

I haven't any experience with the 10x so can't really help unfortunately but my experience using the 7x ga as my only bin for a year or so was very positive. The main negative that I found was the eye lenses tendency to fog up. For low light I'd always look for a larger exit pupil, there are other benefits to that too.

Will

 

[Granpoli]

I am afraid that I cannot compare the 7x and 10x Habichts but I do have the 7x42 and in my honest opinion it is one of the brightest binoculars I have ever had the pleasure of using and is an absolute delight in the evenings when the light is fading. It is also one of the sharpest and most satisfying to use. I thought my GPO/Geco 8x56 AK prism bino's were superb in low light (they are) but the Habicht's eclipse them.

Is 7x better than the 10x? If I compare it to my 10x42 Pure's then no, they are sublime in low light and I use them with the SW headrest to mitigate any shake (approaching 73 years of age) but tend to reach for the Habicht's as they are much more comfortable over a longer period.

I love my 7X42's, bought after considerable research and bought online as no one here in Mid Wales (or indeed around the country) had them in stock to try without travelling vast distances. But thankfully they were superb and everything everyone said they were. A bit tunnel vision..meh couldn't care, they bring a smile every time I use them.

Again that old chestnut rears its ugly head, try before you buy as everyone eyes are different but I took a chance, checked the returns policy should I could not get on with them, and ordered them from the fantastic Ace Optics in Bath.

I wish you well in your search. Others with far more optical nounce and experience will undoubtedly chip in with their thoughts and recommendations but in low light, the 7x42 Habicht's are the ones I choose preferring the steadiness of the magnification over any percieved or otherwise, difference in light transmission.

 

[Granpoli]

Hello,
You've used this 7x42 Habicht for astronomical observations?

 

[PatR]

Hello,
You've used this 7x42 Habicht for astronomical observations?

Hola,
No not seriously but I have used them to observe the sky at night and they have been just fine. I use my GPO/Geco 8x56’s with the AK prisms and mount them on a tripod if I want to do real astro or my Opticron MM4 77 scope.

 

[[email protected]]

The Habicht 7x42 will be the brightest of the two, and it will have the easiest eye placement because of the bigger EP, it will have better DOF which is important with the Habicht because the focuser is quite tight and 7x will be easier to hold steady, but the AFOV is very narrow compared to the Habicht 10x40. The Habicht 10x40 will be nearly as bright, and it will show more detail in daylight and low light because of the higher magnification. It has a much bigger AFOV than the 7x42 also, but 10x will be harder to hold steady, and eye placement will be slightly more difficult.

You have to decide what your priorities are. Do you just want the brightest binocular available with more comfortable eye placement and a steadier view, or do you want to see more detail with a larger FOV? A lot of the choice is between 7x and 10x. If I had to choose between the two, I would go with the Habicht 7x42 because even though it has a narrow AFOV it has more advantages than the Habicht 10x42.

That being said, I replaced my Habicht 7x42 with a Zeiss FL 8x42 because it is almost as bright in low light, shows more detail, the focuser is easier, and it has a bigger AFOV.

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

William Lewis, post 13,
We have investigated quite a few Swarovski binoculars and when you follow the performance of these as far as light transmission is concerned you will observe a gradual increase in light transmission for the same types of binoculars, since Swarovski is constantly improving its existing binoculars. So an 8x30 Habicht from 2000 generally has a slighly lower light transmisssion as one from 2020. This constant performance improvement is the result of Swarovski"s leading policy "ïmprove what is already good".
Perhaps you can also see it in my power point presentation at a meeting of the Binocular History Society of a few years ago which you can find on the WEB-site of House of Outdoor. For investigators of older binoculars it is, therefore, important to mention the production year of these binoculars.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[Gijs van Ginkel]

William Lewis, post 13,
We have investigated quite a few Swarovski binoculars and when you follow the performance of these as far as light transmission is concerned you will observe a gradual increase in light transmission for the same types of binoculars, since Swarovski is constantly improving its existing binoculars. So an 8x30 Habicht from 2000 generally has a slighly lower light transmisssion as one from 2020. This constant performance improvement is the result of Swarovski"s leading policy "ïmprove what is already good".
Perhaps you can also see it in my power point presentation at a meeting of the Binocular History Society of a few years ago which you can find on the WEB-site of House of Outdoor. For investigators of older binoculars it is, therefore, important to mention the production year of these binoculars.
Gijs van Ginkel

 

[iseegeorgesstar]

I am still contemplating buying a Habicht.

It is only going to be used for low light work, evenings and dawn.
My Leica 8x32 BN will still be my daily use bin, it's perfect.

So...
For twighlight viewing, and bearing in mind I am 55 yrs old, so pupils i guess max out at 5mm if i'm lucky...
Is the 10x40 better than the 7x42 ??

At my age, will the greater magnification of the 10x outweigh the 6mm exit pupil of the 7x for low light ??

I can't do a direct comparisons of these models easily, at low light times...

So thought I would throw it out to the knowledgeable folk here...
Thanks

As someone else pointed out. I think it's as much a question of if you can keep the view stable as it is a question of greater mag vs. exit pupil. I imagine a compact 8x32mm roof is a much more different ergonomic experience/instrument than a 10x40mm porro.

Related, I have a pair of 10x40 W GA Habicht on the way from an overseas vendor. My first porro. I went with this model because of comments I've seen here about how it is a delight to use. Also for my purposes, I personally want the extra reach of 10x. I was thinking if in the distant future I become a porro-holic and decide I want another instrument with greater fov or lower mag then I would try out/get the Nikon 8x30 e2.