Nikon 7430 Monarch 8x42mm All-Terrain Binoculars by Nikon
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Our Price: $514.50 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Category: Digital Camera See more digital camera details and other models |
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Digital camera reviews of Nikon 7430 Monarch 8x42mm All-Terrain Binoculars
Digital camera Review: A little overrated.
Summary: 4 Stars
This is a very good binocular, but not equal to those that cost 2-3X as much, as asserted by some reviewers. It is covered in a dark grayish green rubber-like material that should offer some protection against bumps and makes it easy to grip in wet weather. (When seen in sunlight, the color is not the near black shown in the photo.) This is my first binocular with 'turn and slide' eyecups rather than the fold down style of eyecups. I much prefer this 'turn and slide' style. The long 19.6mm eye relief allows me to easily view the entire field when wearing my eyeglasses. An oddity of this binocular is that the focus wheel is turned clockwise to go from near to far focus, the opposite of my other four binos. This is annoying, as I often begin turning the wheel the wrong way when focusing.
During general use in daylight, I noticed some moderate chromatic aberration (CA) when viewing dark tree branches against the bright sky. Overall it is not bad; but it can be fairly noticeable in some lighting conditions. There is a little pincushion distortion, most noticeable near the edge of view, when looking at straight lines at close distances. The field of view is about average for this style. The image is TACK SHARP in the center of the field, deteriorating only when relatively close to the edge of the field. Colors are vivid and true. Collimation and alignment of the optical components is good.
However, the most stringent non-scientific testing of optics the layperson can perform is during the night, by stargazing. Stargazing will bring out optical shortcomings that may not be visible in daylight, so I did some informal testing over several nights. The 42mm objectives place some limits on light gathering and resolving power when stargazing, but the purpose of these sessions was to test the optics, not to locate difficult objects.
I started with the first-quarter Moon and immediately noticed the CA. It appears as a bright, thin, yellow-green outline around the Moon's limb. There is also moderate light scatter that appears as haze around the Moon, and the infamous roof prism 'X' shape of faint light beams can be seen emanating from the Moon. The craters and mountains are exceptionally sharp and detailed, with good contrast between the sunlit and shadow areas.
Jupiter appears as a small pearl in the sky, with some CA, very minimal light scatter and no 'X' light. I am able to easily discern the four brightest moons of Jupiter, which appear as tiny pinpoints of light near the planet. These pinpoints of light are good indicaters of the sharpness of this instrument. Stars will not focus to pinpoints due to the diffraction of our atmosphere (not a fault of the binocular); Jupiter's moons are not affected as much by atmospherics, so they appear more point-like. The view of Jupiter and his moons is beautiful through this binocular. Saturn is not up for viewing, it would look similar to Jupiter, on a smaller scale. At this low 8X power, Saturn's rings would not be resolved. (Even my 20X80's won't show the rings.)
I did not see ANY indications of coma, astigmatism, internal reflections, or ghost images during my day or night viewing, and other than a little CA and some light scatter, I am very impressed with this binocular. The fact that I am able to see all four of Jupiter's brightest moons with this relatively small binocular in my somewhat light polluted sky is a testament to the high optical quality, and shows what the binocular is capable of.
The soft carry case has a belt-loop, but no means of attaching a shoulder strap, which I would much prefer. The binocular fits into it nicely, but there is no room for the bino's neck strap. If the case had a shoulder strap and was at least two inches taller to allow for the neck strap, I would say it was a pretty nice carry case. I have already ordered a padded cordura, sm/tall, binocular case from Buckstitch Canvas, as a replacement.
The bino's unpadded neckstrap is wide enough to be reasonably comfortable on my neck for an hour, the longest I have worn it, but I will probably replace it with an Op/Tech E-Z Comfort strap (on Amazon).
At first I was skeptical of the eyelens cover, but I have grown to like it. It is basically two standard rubber eyelens covers connected by a flexible bridge, better than some 'raincovers' that are just a single piece. It is quite practical when attached to the neck strap; just slide it up the strap to view, then slide it back down when finished; no chance of it getting lost, and it stays in place over the eyelenses fairly well, though a little loose.
I like the tethered lens caps; but I think those caps and tethers should be a bit more 'substantial' to match the build of the binocular.
In summary: The Nikon Monarch 8X42 ATB binocular is a high quality, daylight use binocular, with very good-to-excellent optics. It has some minor optical anomolies that will have little effect on most daytime viewing, and the backward focusing. I would say this binocular is worth the asking price and MUCH MORE; but not 2-3 times more. At the current very low price and Nikon's significant rebate, it is an absolute steal! (Amazon deleted the dollar amount of the rebate from this review!) Overall, I am very impressed with the views, capabilities, and feel of this instrument. It is the one I grab first for daytime viewing. I do not recommend it as a primary stargazing or low light binocular; binos with larger objectives are better suited to those purposes.
ADDED: I just received my rebate check (three days before Christmas). Perfect! Also; I have received my Buckstitch bino case, it is as if the case was custom made to fit this bino and strap, but the case's shoulder strap could be just a bit longer.
(Look out Fujinon and Steiner, quality Chinese optics have nearly caught up to you!)
Digital camera Review: Almost perfect field binocs
Summary: 4 Stars
I am a wildlife biologist (mostly birds) who uses binocs for work all the time. I ordered the Nikon monarch 8x42s after losing my previous pair (same model) in the field. They are the best binoculars for the money in my opinion, plus they are lightweight and pretty rugged as binocs go. They have changed the design since my first pair, now instead of having guaranteed-to-lose cheap covers for the lenses, the have attached the lenscaps to the binocs with a little plastic strap (not in the photo on amazon). At first I was happy with this improvement, unfortunately after 1 month one lenscap has broken off and the other strap is tearing and will probably go soon. Why they don't give you decent lenscaps is beyond me. If you use these a lot you will probably lose the caps, be warned. Still a great product for the money though, my favorite field work binoculars. Get a lenspen or some wipes to keep them clean since they don't have caps!Digital camera Review: As Advertised
Summary: 4 Stars
These are replacements for my trusty but funny looking Nikon Travelites which were seriously dropped. I use them mostly for sporting events (football and the like), concerts, casual birding, a bit of night sky scanning and on the water at Lake Tahoe on ocassion. The Monarchs are rugged, extremely bright, have excellent optics (that 3D effect) and unlike other reviewers I actually like the captive lens caps - no problems here. I also like the ability to easily view with (sun)glasses on, something really lacking with my old pair. I am however still trying to get used to the larger form factor. The Travelites while not as bright or sharp were small enough to fit into a fanny pack, on a belt or even in a front pocket if needed, While not huge like a full sized set the 8X42 Monarchs though compact remain "something to carry" even if the case is a pretty good one. I find when hiking that I now slide them in the case into a small day pack rather than sling the short strap. This size vs. performance was a planned trade off and I am not unhappy one bit with my choice expecially with the rock bottom Amazon price and the Nikon mail in rebate on top! These are a step up for me. Excellent!Digital camera Review: Bargain of the century?
Summary: 5 Stars
Bought these bins recently, they really are excellent, very easy to use, good feel, amazing light gathering and reproduction, and only 1 and 1/2 pounds. If you read Cornell Lab of Ornithology review, there is only 1 set of binoculars under 1000 dollars that beat these,(and they are 6x lenses not really suitable for general birding.)Everything about them feels and works like 1000 dollar lenses with two exceptions, the lens cap and raingaurd, the former in particular would be a disgrace on 50 dollar lenses, i am going to see if i can buy generic replacements. Lots of other web reviews also rave about them, and 98% of people would not tell the difference between these and top range Zeiss, Leica etc. And for 300 dollars you can take them anywhere and enjoy them.Digital camera Review: Beautiful Binoculars
Summary: 5 Stars
I recently purchased these binoculars and am very happy. The image quality is excellant and they are very light. Also, the price was very reasonable. I am very happy using Amazon.com and they will be the first place I look.