Maven B.6 12x50 vs Vortex Razor HD, and UHD 12x50 ***Updated 1/23/22***

[Ithaca37]

@Jared Bloomgren, given the testing you are currently doing I'm interested in your thoughts on this question:

https://www.rokslide.com/forums/thr...s-smaller-maven-b-2-11x45-abbe-koenig.249431/

Looking forward to your review / results!

 

[Justin Crossley]

Jared's full review is complete! Click the link below to give it a read. He put the Maven head to head with the Vortex Razor HD and UHD so it should help those trying to decide.

Maven B.6 12x50 Review

 

[Jimmyc73]

Jared's full review is complete! Click the link below to give it a read. He put the Maven head to head with the Vortex Razor HD and UHD so it should help those trying to decide.

Maven B.6 12x50 Review

Great review. Definitely considering.

 

[gajda888]

Having a hard time picking between B6 and B1.2.

 

[Despotes]

Jared, did the Vortex UHD's outperform the Maven's as far as low light performance as well?

 

[Jared Bloomgren]

Jared, did the Vortex UHD's outperform the Maven's as far as low light performance as well?

Yes they did. Very minor difference however.

 

[stephen_seeks]

I am looking forward to giving the new Maven B.6 12x50’s a test and a full review! Review will be posted when testing is done!

***Update*** Maven B.6 12x50 Binocular Review

Thanks for this!

 

[Cmor_15]

How did the mavens perform in eye fatigue. I have gotten behind some alpha glass in the past and it seems that some certain glass is more relaxing for the eye. How would you compare the mavens to the alpha class in this area.

 

[Hoodie]

If you're getting eye strain from binoculars it's usually because there's a collimation issue. This can be more likely with cheaper binoculars due to quality control, but it can happen with expensive binoculars too. Any binocular that gets bumped can get knocked out of alignment. A Swaro EL that's misaligned will cause more eyestrain than a Vortex Viper that isn't.

There's tests you can do to check for this. Then you send them in to get realigned. There shouldn't be a big difference in $1k glass and $2-$3k glass when it comes to eye strain. If you're getting headaches with something in the Maven B series, it's probably out of collimation.

Exit pupil is another factor. A bigger exit pupil (like an 8x42 or 10x50) makes eye placement more forgiving. That can make it noticeably easier to sit behind binoculars for a long of period time.

 

[DMTJAGER]

Thanks Jared for a superb review.
I just bought my first new/but used binoculars in over 25 years and after a exhausting amount of mind numbing research in which I looked at evaluated and considered Meopta Airpro B2, GPO Passion HD's, Kowa Genisis HD, Vortex Razor HD, and a few I can't recall I choose the Maven B2 9x45.
Picked the Maven's because I confidently felt based on overwhelming data they were the best optical quality I could afford but also they had the best all around features as well.

 

[chutinlead]

I got a chance to handle a set of Maven 12x50s at the NRL Hunter match in Laramie and compare them directly to my Vortex Razor 12x50s. It was really hard to not buy a pair on the spot, especially at the 10% off they had the from at the match.

They were easier to get behind that my vortex's, I could read small text in a shaded cove of their range bench coverings, and felt great to handhold.

The only thing holding me back is trying to decide if I want to make the jump to range finding binos.

 

[Diablo7]

I have a pair of B6 9x45 and they are great!

 

[Jdeck09]

Jared's full review is complete! Click the link below to give it a read. He put the Maven head to head with the Vortex Razor HD and UHD so it should help those trying to decide.

Maven B.6 12x50 Review

How would these compare to the Leica Trinovid HDs?

 

[Buckmaster]

I am looking forward to giving the new Maven B.6 12x50’s a test and a full review! Review will be posted when testing is done!

***Update*** Maven B.6 12x50 Binocular Review

Jared excellent review, thanks!

 

[Buckmaster]

Have you had a chance to compare the B2 with this lineup? Wondering if it would be closer to the uhd with the ak prisms?

Also any idea if you're razor hd was one of the Chinese or Japan built?
Thanks again!

 

[Ithaca37]

I know this is an old thread but I wanted to chime in here with some feedback. I've used the Vortex Razor HD 12x50 for a couple years now and just recently picked up the Maven B.6 12x50. My intent was to compare and keep the binos I liked the most, selling the others.

They are close. In this price range of glass both are solid options and I think either would serve well, but it was indeed a win for the Mavens in my opinion. Clarity and color were slightly better with the Mavens, and brightness even more so.

Additionally...someone said this in an earlier reply, which didn't initially make sense to me but looking through both it does now...the Mavens are just "easier to get behind". They aligned quicker and easier, seemed to have better field of view and more efficient "target acquisition". This all could be personal preference and perception but I just wanted to say I agree with the "easier to get behind" comment.

Lastly, the Maven build quality seems a bit more robust vs. the Vortex. This comes with some cost, as the Vortex are indeed lighter weight and the Mavens heavier.

Again it was close, the Vortex Razor HD were by no means sub-par, I like them, I just feel the Maven B.6 have the edge.

 

[chutinlead]

I know this is an old thread but I wanted to chime in here with some feedback. I've used the Vortex Razor HD 12x50 for a couple years now and just recently picked up the Maven B.6 12x50. My intent was to compare and keep the binos I liked the most, selling the others.

They are close. In this price range of glass both are solid options and I think either would serve well, but it was indeed a win for the Mavens in my opinion. Clarity and color were slightly better with the Mavens, and brightness even more so.

Additionally...someone said this in an earlier reply, which didn't initially make sense to me but looking through both it does now...the Mavens are just "easier to get behind". They aligned quicker and easier, seemed to have better field of view and more efficient "target acquisition". This all could be personal preference and perception but I just wanted to say I agree with the "easier to get behind" comment.

Lastly, the Maven build quality seems a bit more robust vs. the Vortex. This comes with some cost, as the Vortex are indeed lighter weight and the Mavens heavier.

Again it was close, the Vortex Razor HD were by no means sub-par, I like them, I just feel the Maven B.6 have the edge.

I did the same comparison with my set of 12x50 Razors and couldn't see a significant difference between any. I kept them on my desk for a couple weeks checking at all times of day in different conditions and ended up sending the Mavens down the road. The only reason I kept the Razors was the warranty if I ever need it and I could get more out of reselling the Mavens. They are soooo close.

 

[Ithaca37]

I did the same comparison with my set of 12x50 Razors and couldn't see a significant difference between any. I kept them on my desk for a couple weeks checking at all times of day in different conditions and ended up sending the Mavens down the road. The only reason I kept the Razors was the warranty if I ever need it and I could get more out of reselling the Mavens. They are soooo close.

They are indeed close, it's totally possible that my observations are personal preference / perception more than reality but to me there was a bit of a difference.

 

[chutinlead]

They are indeed close, it's totally possible that my observations are personal preference / perception more than reality but to me there was a bit of a difference.

I think it might be down to individual samples at that point. I picked up a set of Mavens after comparing them in hand at a match and in those conditions, with that pair, the mavens had a slight advantage.

 

[Jared Bloomgren]

Agreed, very close indeed. Several have looked through both and some gave the edge to the Maven B.6, some gave the edge to the Vortex Razor UHD. They are both sweet glass for sure!

But I question, have you been comparing the Maven to the Razor HD or UHD, there is a difference there as well.

I put the Razor UHD above the Maven B.6 which was slightly better than the Razor HD.