Would like some opinions on 10x42 binoculars I'm considering, $500 (soft) limit

[redneckbmxer24]

BX4’s are by far the best bang for the buck in bino’s. I’ve got two pair of 8x42’s as beaters and love them. If I’m buying binos I’m either getting BX4’s or stepping up to EL/NL’s.

 

[TxxAgg]

Do you mean the Meopta Meostar B1 Plus? They look amazing, but the list price is upwards of $1,200~$1,400. Are there certain older models that are fetching about $650 on the used market? How do these compare to the Nikon Monarch HG?

I had both. Both are great optically. The Nikons are lighter and fit me better. Can't go wrong either way. Although, I ended up with some Kowa 8x

 

[KenLee]

I'm still not convinced on the huge difference between my NLs and the Monarch 5s I used for 6 years. I'd buy the Monarch 7s at the $400 you say and never look back.

 

[BigCountry49]

Do you mean the Meopta Meostar B1 Plus? They look amazing, but the list price is upwards of $1,200~$1,400. Are there certain older models that are fetching about $650 on the used market? How do these compare to the Nikon Monarch HG?

Yea meostar b1 or cabelas euro hd can go for $650 if you look hard. I have also owned the monarch HG and they are in the same league but I favored meopta for slightly clearer glass and much better CA control.

I would recommend going to a hunt store and comparing binos for how they fit your hands/face too.

 

[Reed104R]

Watch out for the older B1's (2000-2006?), some have a yellowish haze.

 

[cytherian]

I'm still not convinced on the huge difference between my NLs and the Monarch 5s I used for 6 years. I'd buy the Monarch 7s at the $400 you say and never look back.

There are so many possibilities in this class, and I'm thinking I really can't go wrong with ones that have had very good reviews thus far like the Kona BD-II XD, Leupold BX-4, Nikon Monarch M7, etc. I may take a trip into NYC where I can go to several stores carrying the good stuff (most of the department stores near me have lower tier models), but of course standing in a store doesn't help much--really need to be outside. One good thing about Amazon is when items come from one of their warehouses, the return policy is free with no questions asked. I may try a couple this way.

 

[Thinkingman]

Copied from another thread...
Subjective feel

 

[mlgc20]

A few years ago I went thru the same research in that price range. IMO, optically there isn't a ton of separation, at least for my eyes. I ended up with the BX-4s. I felt like they were better ergonomically compared to the other brands I tried. I eventually moved to the BX-5s which is what I use today. But, I would definitely recommend the BX-4s.

 

[cytherian]

Of course, I had to watch Optica Exotica's shootout between the Monarch M7 and HG...

The M7 performs really well, but that edge-to-edge clarity and color saturation of the HG is so impressive. That nagging old law of diminishing returns as you pay more, though. But $600~$650 for used HG (from what I've seen in past sales) seems more appealing than $400 M7 new (though it may reach down to $350 during BF/CM sales). That is, if one has the patience to wait.

Anyway, it's hard to reply to everyone but I really appreciate the advice lended here. Lots of good things to consider!

 

[Blue72]

Of course, I had to watch Optica Exotica's shootout between the Monarch M7 and HG...

The M7 performs really well, but that edge-to-edge clarity and color saturation of the HG is so impressive. That nagging old law of diminishing returns as you pay more, though. But $600~$650 for used HG (from what I've seen in past sales) seems more appealing than $400 M7 new (though it may reach down to $350 during BF/CM sales). That is, if one has the patience to wait.

Anyway, it's hard to reply to everyone but I really appreciate the advice lended here. Lots of good things to consider!

you need to try the binoculars because the color saturation and edge to edge clarity on the monarch 7 are pretty nice too.

the Maven does color saturation too but with slightly better sharpness and edge to edge clarity then the Nikon. But has more CA and not as sharp in the central area as the Kowa. But the Kowa has slightly less edge quality

 

[KenLee]

Of course, I had to watch Optica Exotica's shootout between the Monarch M7 and HG...

The M7 performs really well, but that edge-to-edge clarity and color saturation of the HG is so impressive. That nagging old law of diminishing returns as you pay more, though. But $600~$650 for used HG (from what I've seen in past sales) seems more appealing than $400 M7 new (though it may reach down to $350 during BF/CM sales). That is, if one has the patience to wait.

Anyway, it's hard to reply to everyone but I really appreciate the advice lended here. Lots of good things to consider!

Shit, I'd buy a M7 at $350 and I have a new NL 8x42

 

[cytherian]

Yea meostar b1 or cabelas euro hd can go for $650 if you look hard. I have also owned the monarch HG and they are in the same league but I favored meopta for slightly clearer glass and much better CA control.

I would recommend going to a hunt store and comparing binos for how they fit your hands/face too.

Man... last March, 2022... blowout sale at Cabela's on the Instinct Euro HD. LINK $550 for the 10x42! Meopta glass. Can't beat that. I wonder if March is the "magical month" for some terrific bargains at Cabela's, or if this was just a one-off surprise?

 

[realunlucky]

Man... last March, 2022... blowout sale at Cabela's on the Instinct Euro HD. LINK $550 for the 10x42! Meopta glass. Can't beat that. I wonder if March is the "magical month" for some terrific bargains at Cabela's, or if this was just a one-off surprise?

Meopta no longer makes the cabelas glass

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

 

[Dryfirepete]

I've got a pair of Meopta MeoPro 10x42 HD and am really happy with them. Those should be roughly in the same price range (don't now how much they are, now). I guess they are comparable to the Nikon M7.

 

[cytherian]

you need to try the binoculars because the color saturation and edge to edge clarity on the monarch 7 are pretty nice too.

the Maven does color saturation too but with slightly better sharpness and edge to edge clarity then the Nikon. But has more CA and not as sharp in the central area as the Kowa. But the Kowa has slightly less edge quality

Do you mean Maven C3 vs. Monarch M7? They do offer a 10x50 that looks appealing. Bigger and heavier, but I'm not planning to do long excursions with these.

 

[Blue72]

Do you mean Maven C3 vs. Monarch M7? They do offer a 10x50 that looks appealing. Bigger and heavier, but I'm not planning to do long excursions with these.

I was talking about both. I owned the Nikon, Maven, Kowa, and Meopta

 

[MikeJ1970]

I really like my Bx4 Leupolds. Granted, I havent spent much time behind expensive glass. You can find them on sale for $425 fairly regularly. I think I bought mine from Cabelas for that price and ive seen them on europtic and amazon for about the same.

Dont forget, blck friday deals will be here soon.


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I'm curious when you bought yours because they list at $599 and the best sale price I've found is $499? I'm in the same boat as the OP so If I could find them for $425 it would definitely make my decision easier.

 

[Team4LongGun]

I'm curious when you bought yours because they list at $599 and the best sale price I've found is $499? I'm in the same boat as the OP so If I could find them for $425 it would definitely make my decision easier.

I think you will see some good prices pop up here in the next few weeks for black friday. If I recall, Midway did a sale last year and I got the bx-4's for that 425 price. Don't be afraid to call Doug and ask for the best price!!

I would also look for Kowa BDII's. To my eyes they are a tad better than the 4's.


Here is a link to the flyer which has the Kowas on sale

The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For

The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For We are THRILLED to be able to announce The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For. If what you've been hoping would go on sale is not listed here please just give us a call, 516-217-1000, to discuss what you were hoping for and we will hook you up, as we...

www.rokslide.com

here they are

Product Description

Product Description | Camera Land NY

cameralandny.com

 

[MikeJ1970]

I think you will see some good prices pop up here in the next few weeks for black friday. If I recall, Midway did a sale last year and I got the bx-4's for that 425 price. Don't be afraid to call Doug and ask for the best price!!

I would also look for Kowa BDII's. To my eyes they are a tad better than the 4's.


Here is a link to the flyer which has the Kowas on sale

The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For

The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For We are THRILLED to be able to announce The Kowa Sale You've Been Waiting For. If what you've been hoping would go on sale is not listed here please just give us a call, 516-217-1000, to discuss what you were hoping for and we will hook you up, as we...

www.rokslide.com

here they are

Product Description

Product Description | Camera Land NY

cameralandny.com

I actually just called CameraLand about a 1/2 hour ago. Doug wasn’t available so I talked to some other dude. The Kowa was one on my list and he said it’s tough to beat. Makes me wonder why the Backwoods Pursuit review ranked it so low. The price is definitely in the sweet spot of my budget so it just went to my top three. The other two are the BX-4 and the Meopta Optika (or Meopro HD if I can find a sweet deal).

 

[cytherian]

I actually just called CameraLand about a 1/2 hour ago. Doug wasn’t available so I talked to some other dude. The Kowa was one on my list and he said it’s tough to beat. Makes me wonder why the Backwoods Pursuit review ranked it so low. The price is definitely in the sweet spot of my budget so it just went to my top three. The other two are the BX-4 and the Meopta Optika (or Meopro HD if I can find a sweet deal).

From what I was gathering it was the edge-to-edge clarity and chromatic aberration that had Backwoods Pursuit lowering their opinion of the Kowa BD-II XD's. Their overall opinion, "Below average image resolution." They did say that in the center sweet spot things looked good, though.
If this was just 1 person, I'd take it with a grain of salt. But this was a large team of people looking at all of these binoculars in a direct 26 model shoot-out. So that carries more weight. Still... is there any way to directly measure edge-to-edge clarity? And what happens to the subjectivity when someone comes from a more expensive model with better characteristics, then the Kowa BD-II XD's viewed? That kind of thing can skew a perception, versus going the other way (from a lesser performer first).