that marginal gain thing is what gets me. i can afford them but is it worth coming up with another 1500 or so for just a fraction better? I really would like to see the 12x42nl vs my 12x50hd. I think I'll look around for someone with a pair near me.
I remember when I went from my cheap walmarts to my moms nikons... and then from nikons to something a little better and from that to my vortex's i have now. each time i was like, damn, i wish i would of just bought these in the first place. I didnt see that when i bought the UHDs for my woman. i even tried some dark tests, but my 12x50s always held the edge especially for the money. . but if I see "damn this is good" view when i look through a pair of NLs, ill buy them.
I had the Razor HD 12x50. In a store, I don't think you see the differences. But, like others are saying, when you are glassing all day, you begin to notice. It also helps if someone who knows how to point out differences can have you look at things like a white wall, and then show you where the color fringing is. You don't really see the color fringing all that often, but it is there making the image less clear.
Try this with your Razor on a clear bright day, look out a couple hundred yards on something very white, and pay attention to the edges. You will probably see a purple like halo. Then, focus it on a sign with letters a few hundred yards away, and put the letters in the center. Then, move the binoculars so that the letters are the the very edge of the field of view. You'll see that the outer 1/3 of the Razors is noticably different than the center.
If you buy EL you will have much less color fringing if any, and as you move the letters to the edge of the field of view, the outer 1/3 will remain clear.
What that means is that with Razors, if you only look through the center of the glass, you'll never really feel like you need to upgrade. But, if you want to move your eyes and look through the entire field of view, then you will want to upgrade.
As a practical matter, when I had the Razor HD, I have been glassing all day next to someone with better glass than me. I aboslutely loved my Razor and couldn't believe how clear they were. I was SOOOO happy. Then, they spotted a coues deer, and walked me into the right spot to see it. I knew I was looking at the correct saguaro cactus but I just couldn't see the deer in my binos. I looked through theirs and saw it. I look through mine and even though I knew exactly where it was, I still really couldn't see it. That was with my Razor HD vs. 12 EL at about a mile.
So, given that story, when lots of us hunters who heavily rely on our glass hear others talk about how they don't see the difference and don't need it, well, we know that there are animals out there that they aren't seeing.
I upgraded from Razor HD 12x to a Leica 12x Ultravid because it was enough difference to pay the $1000. I don't know that I would spend the money to go from that to the 12x NL pure. But, that's a personal decision because the Leica is "good enough" for the money I have to invest right now.
You very well could stick with your Razor HD. But, if you are there for your third day of glassing 5-8 hours a day, and you sit down behind a pair of Swaro 15 EL, all that time will give you the ability to see a difference in many things. They aren't as obvious as the jumps to the Razor, but they are real. That is what happened to me on my first hunt.
Opinions vary, but if you look at who is telling you to buy the best bino you can, it is typically the hunters who live behind the glass picking apart a bowl, basin, or canyon for hours, knowing that if they just catch the ear twitch, a black nose, or a shiny antler tine they can have a chance at an animal. The ones who are OK with something less are hunting in a different area or just aren't hunting the same way.
On the other hand, I was glassing for caribou on the tundra this year, and I could see them with my naked eye out to a mile and more. I left my 18x in the tent and carried my 10x Fury for the last couple of days because I didn't need the magnification or clarity of the UHD.
So, the answer depends upon the context...
