Noctivid 8x42- wow! (1 Viewer)

[samwise2010]

I have been using a monarch 8x42 (non ED glass) for the last 9 years, and they have served me well... not the sharpest but nice size, and weight, decent image quality for what I believe was $250 when I bought them. I have been thinking of upgrading and I had every intention of picking up an 8x42 NL pure. I had the chance to view through them this spring from a friend who pick some up, and I didn't really like the rolling ball effect as I was scanning the trees. I've never handled swarovskis before (except some curios I bought recently), so I guess I'm not used to that effect, and maybe it is something I could have gotten used to but I didn't want to chance feeling queezy doing something I love so much, and take so much joy in - bird watching.

I didn't really have Noctivids on my radar at all until I came across this forum, and had the chance to chat with some members who have handled them. I was interested in getting as much "wow" as I could get if I was going to spend this kind of money... and from the reviews and everything I heard from members, this could be the one. The only complaints I have found on here are 1) CA 2) not as wide angle of view as the new swaro/zeiss coming out, and not as ergonomic with the close double barrel/focus wheel position. So I had a plan to drive to a place 5 hours away to try all the top binos side by side (which is what would have made the most sense if I really wanted to know which ones were best for my hands/eyes), however I found a pair of 8x42 olive green noctivids on ebay and decided to take the risk.

I wanted to say that I think some peoples eyes must be extremely sensitive to CA because I have tried to see it and I can't... I heard the 8x handle this better than the 10x but I honestly couldnt see anything, except at the extreme edge when there was extreme contrast... but when scanning around on axis, there is nothing to my eyes. The angle of view is actually a lot better than my monarchs (not as big as the NL pures I looked through though) but it was plenty for me. The biggest thing I could see though when I was comparing the colours/image from my monarch, and the curios to the noctivid, was the beautiful view... I have heard people talk about "leica colours/contrast etc" so I was expecting that I could possibly find it off-putting, but if you have ever edited a photography image which I have done a million times (I did this professionally for 10 years), I tend to bump the temp a little warmer anyways and play with the light curve... and I find the beautiful leica view is exactly what I was hoping for... I believe the member Paul here calls it "delicious", I totally get it!

The rest of the bino exudes quality, from the focus wheel (position is fine for me) and the eye cups work flawlessly. The weight balance is great to hold, and I can't put these down.

I just wanted to give my report from someone who was afraid of some of the comments on here (eg CA), and was afraid since these have been out for a while, that I would be disappointed, but I took the risk, and I am 1000% happy!

Thanks for all the contributors on here, it really helps lurkers like me on here make decisions.

Sam

 

[Gdavis248]

Awesome little review! Thanks for posting. I would love to try these myself. Always hear about those “Leica colors”. Do you happen to wear glasses? I’m always curious about that since I’m a full time spectacles wearer unfortunately.

 

[samwise2010]

Awesome little review! Thanks for posting. I would love to try these myself. Always hear about those “Leica colors”. Do you happen to wear glasses? I’m always curious about that since I’m a full time spectacles wearer unfortunately.

I don’t wear glasses yet but I’ve heard from what I read that they are great for those who do. I’m sure someone else can qualify that!

 

[Conndomat]

Hello @samwise2010 ,

I congratulate Noctivid is a great glass.
In fact, I see a little more CA in the Noc. than in the EL/SF/NL, but only in very hard contrasts and that very subtly, so not a big problem.
The 10x Noctivid is imho more susceptible here, I like the 8x a bit better overall, great contrast, good stray light suppression, rich colors and extremely good axis sharpness, so everything done right.!

@Gdavis248

Me, a long-sighted glasses wearer gets along well with the Noctivid, to avoid shadowing I even have to go up two steps, but I can still see the whole FOV, so it should work for most glasses wearers, just like the Swaro 8.5x42...

Andreas

 

[samwise2010]

Hello @samwise2010 ,

I congratulate Noctivid is a great glass.
In fact, I see a little more CA in the Noc. than in the EL/SF/NL, but only in very hard contrasts and that very subtly, so not a big problem.
The 10x Noctivid is imho more susceptible here, I like the 8x a bit better overall, great contrast, good stray light suppression, rich colors and extremely good axis sharpness, so everything done right.!

@Gdavis248

Me, a long-sighted glasses wearer gets along well with the Noctivid, to avoid shadowing I even have to go up two steps, but I can still see the whole FOV, so it should work for most glasses wearers, just like the Swaro 8.5x42...

Andreas

Thanks yes I forgot to mention that point, the stray light suppression is excellent as well, I was pointing just off the sun coming through the trees and I could still see very good contrast and detail

 

[chill6x6]

That's a fine binocular! Love the green color! BTW...MOST binocular "problems" are magnified here to a level never seen by mankind.
Enjoy your Noctivids...it's a fine choice!

 

[samwise2010]

That's a fine binocular! Love the green color! BTW...MOST binocular "problems" are magnified here to a level never seen by mankind.
Enjoy your Noctivids...it's a fine choice!

This is true!! From star tests to CA etc I appreciate the wanting to dissect all the nitty gritty for sure, I can get like that…. Infact I recently had my wife walk in on me trying to replicate the star test with my Kowa scope…. Tin foil, flashlight etc… she doesn’t understand me sometimes lol.

 

[Gdavis248]

Hello @samwise2010 ,

I congratulate Noctivid is a great glass.
In fact, I see a little more CA in the Noc. than in the EL/SF/NL, but only in very hard contrasts and that very subtly, so not a big problem.
The 10x Noctivid is imho more susceptible here, I like the 8x a bit better overall, great contrast, good stray light suppression, rich colors and extremely good axis sharpness, so everything done right.!

@Gdavis248

Me, a long-sighted glasses wearer gets along well with the Noctivid, to avoid shadowing I even have to go up two steps, but I can still see the whole FOV, so it should work for most glasses wearers, just like the Swaro 8.5x42...

Andreas

Love to hear it! I would one day love to try these out. I’m pretty obsessed with my 8.5x42 Swaro EL’s but I’m constantly wondering how they compare to the Leica’s or Zeiss! If only I had a money tree!

 

[Dennis Mau]

To see, CA look at a something black against a white sky like a house roof vent and move the binocular up and down and look at the edges of the vent. You will see green at the top and purple at the bottom. The thicker and more noticeable the color band is, usually the higher the CA. As Andreas says, the Noctivid's do have slightly more CA than some of the other alphas, like the SF and NL, but it is not a problem. The Noctivid's like all Leica's have beautiful, saturated colors and the Noctivid's are extremely sharp on-axis. One of the sharpest I have seen. The Noctivid's are without a doubt the best Leica binocular, and it has the biggest AFOV. The only problem I had with it was the 32 oz. weight for an 8x42, and that is because it is built like a tank. I believe the Noctivid has the highest build quality of any binocular I have handled, and I have pretty much handled them all!

 

[samwise2010]

To see, CA look at a something black against a white sky like a house roof vent and move the binocular up and down and look at the edges of the vent. You will see green at the top and purple at the bottom. The thicker and more noticeable the color band is, usually the higher the CA. As Andreas says, the Noctivid's do have slightly more CA than some of the other alphas, like the SF and NL, but it is not a problem. The Noctivid's like all Leica's have beautiful, saturated colors and the Noctivid's are extremely sharp on-axis. One of the sharpest I have seen. The Noctivid's are without a doubt the best Leica binocular, and it has the biggest AFOV. The only problem I had with it was the 32 oz. weight for an 8x42, and that is because it is built like a tank. I believe the Noctivid has the highest build quality of any binocular I have handled, and I have pretty much handled them all!

I did as you said (roof line), I failed to notice much… I did notice how much CA my old monarchs had when comparing back and forth though. Anyways I just wanted to make this post to say that after everything I read it’s really blown out of proportion, to my eyes it’s really nothing… maybe some people can see CA better than I.

As far as the weight, It’s 30 oz, but you are right they are a tank…. I imagine compromising weight means compromising glass and therefore coatings so I am more than happy to Cary a few oz extra for that extra special image. I put them on a marsupial bino chest pack so they are not bothering me at all in terms of weight.

Thanks for chiming in, I read a lot of your previous posts prior to purchasing

 

[samwise2010]

Love to hear it! I would one day love to try these out. I’m pretty obsessed with my 8.5x42 Swaro EL’s but I’m constantly wondering how they compare to the Leica’s or Zeiss! If only I had a money tree!

Since you already have alpha glass I doubt you will be blown away by the difference I saw when coming from my beat up old monarchs. Your binos are the ones I would always drool over and covet from other guys who volunteered at the banding station with me. I sort of wanted a bino not man people have here…. I’ve never seen geeen noctivids in my birding circle so
I guess I just want to be special haha

 

[Dennis Mau]

I did as you said (roof line), I failed to notice much… I did notice how much CA my old monarchs had when comparing back and forth though. Anyways I just wanted to make this post to say that after everything I read it’s really blown out of proportion, to my eyes it’s really nothing… maybe some people can see CA better than I.

As far as the weight, It’s 30 oz, but you are right they are a tank…. I imagine compromising weight means compromising glass and therefore coatings so I am more than happy to Cary a few oz extra for that extra special image. I put them on a marsupial bino chest pack so they are not bothering me at all in terms of weight.

Thanks for chiming in, I read a lot of your previous posts prior to purchasing

Those green Noctivids could be the ones I sold! There are not a ton of green Noctivids around. I know you can handle the weight of a binocular much easier while carrying it with a harness or chest pack, but you still have to hold them up while you are looking at the bird and 10 oz. can make a difference in how long it is comfortable to hold them unless you are Schwarzenegger. I guess it depends on how strong you are and how old you are. I have never tried one, but I think a Finnstick would be a good idea, especially for holding larger, heavier binoculars.

 

[Rg548]

I would imagine they are awesome.
I'm a huge fan of the Ultravids, but have never looked through Noctovids. And Ultravids are incredible!
Your 'gamble' was safe..... lets face it, Leica are NOT going to put out a £2000 binocular with bad CA.... or 'bad' anything else for that matter... they are a quality company.... joint top of their game!
They will be amazing.... maybe not to everyones taste, or ergonomically suitable, but lets not pretend they will have flaws like bad CA.
I've said it before, people spend a lot of money, and relative to THAT cost, is how hard they look for faults..... and then get on a forum!!!!!
Anyone who is not into optics would look through Conquests or Kowa's, for example, and be completely blown away.

It is amazing that you nearly didn't buy them because of some people's exaggerated views on 'faults'.....
On a 2k bino.... Really!!!!

Well done on your purchase, and you will enjoy those for years.
Do not go on the 'upgrade' wagon because you heard SF's or NL's were better..... because they are not...
They are just different.
Anything over 1k is awesome.... But you have hit the Ultimate. Nice😍

 

[kimmik]

I had noctivid and el32 side by side on an overcast day. the contrast was better on noctivid, while ca was better on el. At the top, you get some you lose some.

 

[samwise2010]

Those green Noctivids could be the ones I sold! There are not a ton of green Noctivids around. I know you can handle the weight of a binocular much easier while carrying it with a harness or chest pack, but you still have to hold them up while you are looking at the bird and 10 oz. can make a difference in how long it is comfortable to hold them unless you are Schwarzenegger. I guess it depends on how strong you are and how old you are. I have never tried one, but I think a Finnstick would be a good idea, especially for holding larger, heavier binoculars.

I did an experiment this morning after reading your reply… I held the noctivids up to my eyes and set a timer. I could notice them after 2 mins and got tired after 3.5 mins. I waiting 5 mins and did the same thing with just holding up my arms and it was very similar.

 

[samwise2010]

I would imagine they are awesome.
I'm a huge fan of the Ultravids, but have never looked through Noctovids. And Ultravids are incredible!
Your 'gamble' was safe..... lets face it, Leica are NOT going to put out a £2000 binocular with bad CA.... or 'bad' anything else for that matter... they are a quality company.... joint top of their game!
They will be amazing.... maybe not to everyones taste, or ergonomically suitable, but lets not pretend they will have flaws like bad CA.
I've said it before, people spend a lot of money, and relative to THAT cost, is how hard they look for faults..... and then get on a forum!!!!!
Anyone who is not into optics would look through Conquests or Kowa's, for example, and be completely blown away.

It is amazing that you nearly didn't buy them because of some people's exaggerated views on 'faults'.....
On a 2k bino.... Really!!!!

Well done on your purchase, and you will enjoy those for years.
Do not go on the 'upgrade' wagon because you heard SF's or NL's were better..... because they are not...
They are just different.
Anything over 1k is awesome.... But you have hit the Ultimate. Nice😍

Thanks yes I probably should have picked up some conquests instead, that would have been the smart financial choice but I am a “buy once cry once” kind of guy haha.

 

[Dennis Mau]

I had noctivid and el32 side by side on an overcast day. the contrast was better on noctivid, while ca was better on el. At the top, you get some you lose some.

Exactly. The Noctivids knock it out of the park when it comes to contrast and on-axis sharpness. They are REALLY sharp on-axis, and they have excellent contrast.

 

[Dennis Mau]

Thanks yes I probably should have picked up some conquests instead, that would have been the smart financial choice but I am a “buy once cry once” kind of guy haha.

You made the right choice, getting the Noctivids over the Conquest HD. The difference in contrast alone is worth the money, and then you get those delicious colors on top of it!

 

[Dennis Mau]

I did an experiment this morning after reading your reply… I held the noctivids up to my eyes and set a timer. I could notice them after 2 mins and got tired after 3.5 mins. I waiting 5 mins and did the same thing with just holding up my arms and it was very similar.

You must be Sylvester Stallone!

 

[kimmik]

Exactly. The Noctivids knock it out of the park when it comes to contrast and on-axis sharpness. They are REALLY sharp on-axis, and they have excellent contrast.

Sharp but with mild CA, in the center. Moderate CA in the periphery.