Which Binoculars ? (1 Viewer)

[Shetlandtim]

My wife and I want to buy new binoculars, budget about £300 each. They are for general birdwatching. Would like some which are not too heavy. I keep hearing that 8x42 are the best for general bird watching. I am thinking of Nikon M7 or Monarch, a little over budget I know. Any suggestions for others I should look for.

I want to try before I buy so which is the best shop for binoculars that has a good range, I live in the oxford area.

 

[Mike Crawley]

It is certainly true that 8x42 seem to be becoming the binoculars of choice when people are changing/upgrading.

If you have a local RSPB reserve that sells binoculars I would suggest looking through the RSPB Harrier binoculars.
I volunteer at my local reserve and sold a pair of 8x42 last week.
They are available in 8x32, 8x42 and 10x42.
They cost a bit below your price range.

Harrier binoculars 8 x 32 - RSPB binoculars

Harrier binoculars 8 x 32

shopping.rspb.org.uk

They may not be what you are looking for and that’s fine but any profit made goes into conservation

edit - typo

 

[Shetlandtim]

Apologies, I see I have posted this in the wrong forum ? Can it be moved or should I delete it and post again in the correct forum ?

 

[4John]

My wife and I want to buy new binoculars, budget about £300 each. They are for general birdwatching. Would like some which are not too heavy. I keep hearing that 8x42 are the best for general bird watching. I am thinking of Nikon M7 or Monarch, a little over budget I know. Any suggestions for others I should look for.

I want to try before I buy so which is the best shop for binoculars that has a good range, I live in the oxford area.

I recommend you try before you buy at a shop with viewing facilities (i.e. not on the high street !) or a field day. Take a look at the In Focus Website. They have shops with viewing facilities and do field days all over the country, including Farmoor reserve in Oxford, but I can't see a field day there on their calendar any time soon. You may have to travel, but it's really worth it.

10x42 is another popular size. I recommend you try it too. I find the extra magnification useful in all situations. Some are happy with 8x32 or 10x32 because they are smaller and lighter. Try them too - see what works for you.

The Opticron range fits your budget too.

 

[Mono]

Apologies, I see I have posted this in the wrong forum ? Can it be moved or should I delete it and post again in the correct forum ?

I've moved it to the general binoculars forum.

 

[Will K]

You might look at Vortex Diamondbacks. Good quality glass for the price, and they have lifetime warranty. Although, their prices might have gone up recently, like pretty much everything else!

 

[Binastro]

Ace Optics Bath.

Castle cameras, Bournemouth or Winchester?

London Camera Exchange, Oxford, may have a more limited range.

Regards,
B.

 

[UncleWalt]

I have three binoculars -- 8x20 Leica Ultravid, 8x30 Nikon Monarch M7 and 8x42 Vortex Viper, 2018 edition -- all purchased for general birdwatching. I wanted a range of sizes because I sometimes carry a daypack for hiking, and at age 71, the total weight matters. Of the three binoculars, I use the Nikon Monarch M7 8x30 by far the most. For me, it's a great balance between weight and optical characteristics. You might want to test the 8x30 Monarchs, to compare with other binos you are considering.

A few comments on various characteristics:

• Weight: If the binos are lighter, you might take them with you more often.
• Magnification: Yes, 8x for general birdwatching.
• Light-gathering power: This depends largely on the size of the objective lens (consequently it is correlated with weight). But it also depends on the quality of the glass, which is why it's worth comparing 8x30 and 8x42 at the same price point. For general birdwatching, how much light-gathering power you need depends on how much viewing you expect to do under various lighting conditions. (In well-lit situations, you won't notice a brightness difference between 8x30 and 8x42, because of eye dilation/constriction. So when testing, compare brightness in a dim situation.) FWIW, I find the Monarch 8x30 perfectly fine for viewing during the day, even in the woods.
• Field of view: Compare the specs. It's a lot easier to find that bird in the tree when you have a larger field of view.
• Spherical aberration: When the center is in sharp focus, how much of the rest of the field of view is in focus? I find it annoying when binos have a lot of spherical aberration.)
• Chromatic aberration: When you look at, say, a thin tree branch against a bright sky, are you seeing green to one side of the branch and magenta to the other side? If so, how much? And is it just near the edges of the field of view, or also in the center?

 

[Trinovid]

My wife and I want to buy new binoculars, budget about £300 each. They are for general birdwatching.

Check out the Vortex Viper series if you can. I have their excellent 10x42 and also used the 12x50 the other day, making me a big fan of their mid-line binoculars. Also don’t make the mistake of judging them on their entry level Diamondback models.

 

[4John]

Check out the Vortex Viper series if you can. I have their excellent 10x42 and also used the 12x50 the other day, making me a big fan of their mid-line binoculars. Also don’t make the mistake of judging them on their entry level Diamondback models.

I second that. I have bought 2 pairs of Vortex Viper 10x42 for my daughters in the last year. Unfortunately at over £500 they are outside your budget. However, my daughters and I thought they were a cut above the cheaper Opticron offerings - so try some if you can. You might be persuaded to stretch your budget like I was.

 

[Maljunulo]

Have you considered one better binocular, as opposed to two less expensive examples?

 

[Dennis Mau]

I would recommend the Pentax ED 7x42. They are right at your price point, and they are an excellent binocular for the money. Best value I have seen in a long time.

 

[Viraj]

@Shetlandtim I think you made the right decision. I have a Monarch 7 in 8x30 and used it for more than 2 years. Even after getting an NL 8x42, my untrained eyes took a long time to see a clear difference in the image quality and justify the purchase of NL. Monarch 7 8x42 or M7 8x42 would be a bit better than my Monarch 7 8x30 in difficult light conditions. It will certainly fill all of your binocular requirements with minimal compromises. However, I got a small problem with loosened armor in my Monarch 7. I think the armor in M7 would be better. If it is possible I would suggest you have a look at GPO Passion ED 8x42 as well.

Edit: If you are convinced of buying a Pentax ED 7x42 Dennis suggested, I suggest you wait a bit. Certainly, you will see his Pentax ED 7x42 in the classified section, anytime soon.

 

[beacon hill]

If wait is an issue and are not fussed about wide FOV, consider the Viking Peregrine which are just 600g.
Also the Celestron trailseekers have £100 off RRP for this week only.

Hands up. That may be a little biased as I`m a dealer for both. But as always I only sell what I recommend.

 

[Vesplume]

As you think of Nikon M7 and Monarch HG 8x42, it means that you would appreciate lightweight binoculars providing a wide field of view with ED glass . So, you might be also interesting by the KOWA BD-II XD 8x42. This model appeals me on paper but I have no idea of the balance, color rendition, tension of the focus wheel, type of distorsion, etc.