Kowa 773/774 vs Swarovski 80mm ATS/STS

[TylerS]

I'm considering buying a used Kowa 773 or a Swarovski 80mm ATS. I haven't looked through the Kowa since it's no longer in production. Has anyone made a direct comparison, and is there a significant optical difference between the two?

 

[Wheels]

There are several threads comparing them, try the search function.
Kowa will definitely hold its own against any Swarovski.

 

[alexscott2010]

Which ever one with the best deal. I run a Kowa 884 and its by far the best glass i've looked through. They are Apples to Apples

 

[particleman14]

You can't go wrong either way. I think swaros have slightly better resale value, but I prefer the kowa (TSN88) it always is a pleasure to peek through. If anything try the kowa dual focus system to see if you prefer that or the swaro barrel style. The view through either is going to spoil you.

 

[NM_Hunter1]

Any insight on ats 80 vs tsn88a vs tsn883? Considering all 3 but hard to know which way to go.

 

[Brian Fahs]

Kowa all day. Iowned all of the above mentioned some twice. I run a kowa 884 now and have settled on it. The focus mechanism is my favorite. That being said i own several sets of swarovski binoculars. Try to look throughall you can and see whats best to your eye

 

[NM_Hunter1]

Kowa all day. Iowned all of the above mentioned some twice. I run a kowa 884 now and have settled on it. The focus mechanism is my favorite. That being said i own several sets of swarovski binoculars. Try to look throughall you can and see whats best to your eye

Thank you for the insight. I've owned the 12x NL Pures since they came out and its painful to look through anything else now. Hoping to find something I feel similarly about in the spotter realm.

 

[Spiral Horn]

Did a bit of side-by-side between the Kowa and Swarovski spotters. The views they offer are both superb but very different. To me, the Kowa is slightly brighter and the colors a bit more accurate - anyway, I prefer it to the SW. Also, the Kowa focus is much easier to maintain on target at long distance as compared to the barrel focus of the SW. Have both the 88A and 66A and love them both.

 

[primal.wanderings]

I owned the 773 and now have the ATX with both a 95mm and 65mm objectives. The 773 held its own against the ATX95, but the 95 did have better resolution. I was not able to compare the 773 with the ATX65 because I didn’t have the 65mm objective at the time, but if memory serves me right I think the 773 beat out the ATX65 in all departments. There was also a difference in the color palate between the two brands. The 773 had more contrast and it seemed like the colors were more true to what you see with the naked eye, also a little more vibrant. The Swaro has more muted colors. In the end I went with Swaro because it had an armored body and was more versatile being able to swap out objectives, I was afraid I’d bang the Kowa up with its lack of body armor. However, I really wished I would’ve saved my money and stuck with the Kowa. I’m pretty sure I would’ve found the same amount of game animals with the Kowa and been $4000 richer