NIKON MONARCH HG 8x42 binoculars

Product Information

How much you decide to spend will largely depend on your personal circumstances, how often you use your optics and how much you want to get out of them. Apparent angle of view of Hawke APO 10x42 is 2.9% larger than Nikon MHG 10x42 (FoV x magnification).

Boasting as the premium MONARCH binoculars, MONARCH HG 8×42 is the ultimate all-terrain binoculars. It comes with Nikon’s Field Flattener Lens System, which when paired with its wide field of view, offers an outstandingly sharp, clear view of the lens periphery. Also, it has the best of Nikon’s optical system. The ED glass and multilayer coating deliver reliable brightness and quality resolution. Edge sharpness is primarily determined by two aberrations: field curvature and astigmatism. This old post attempts to explain how they interact. Discussion about the perception of the sharp area as a horizontal ellipse in the field of view: https://www.cloudynights.com/topic/741239-elliptical-sharpness-range-of-wide-angle-binoculars/ AFoV (ISO 14132-1:2002): 63.6 degrees (manufacturer's specification is missing, therefore self-calculated) I think that this caution Nikon is using in keeping its better binoculars from competing with each other is one of the reasons why the Monarch HG 42mm binoculars were built on lightweight Magnesium frames and why they have a wide fields with a field flattener but do not have an expensive to make flat field like the EDGs have. It makes them a reasonably priced attractive lightweight binocular alternative, with larger exit pupils, to the smaller but more expensive 32mm binoculars.The diameter of the light-effective objective should be measured by someone else using a better method. Even if the Hawke APO is "only" a 10x40, the optical advantages will outweigh the cost until well into twilight. very "fast" focusing with correspondingly small depth of field of a 10x42 (probably advantageous for some birdwatchers, 10x42 is more often to focus, you can get used to it, turns slower than usual) But the ergonomic advantages of the Monarch HG (light weight, smooth focus, etc) really add up vs the Conquest HD, and combined with the super wide FOV and long eye relief they are just very EASY binoculars to use, as you have found. The HG uses the same ED glass as the EGE, the same field flattener lens system, has dielectric and phase corrected coatings on the prisms and is fully multi-coated. The total score of 144 puts it right in the mix of the second tier group that includes excellent binoculars like the Kowa Genesis 8x33, Zeiss Conquest HD 8x32, and Meostar 8x32, among others. And there’s no shame in being slightly better than the M7, which is a really good binocular for the money.

First, the objectives and eyepieces of both binoculars were carefully cleaned. When comparing the binoculars at a maximum sun elevation of seasonal and local/geographical 20 degrees (midday sun), cloudless sky and bright sunshine and observation around the horizontal, both binoculars show veiling glare over the entire field of view. This is easily recognizable by a veil over the entire field of view and a clearly visible reduction in contrast when viewing a high, dark green hedge. The angle to the sun until the veil glare begins is clearly smaller with the Hawke APO 10x42 (FoV = 7.1 degrees) than with the Nikon MHG 8x42 (FoV = 8.3 degrees). Because of the different real angles of view of the compared binoculars I cannot make an evaluation. However, the bright sun is outside the viewing angles of both binoculars in this evaluation. Relax and pursue your hobbies in all weathers, as the nitrogen-filled body gives superior waterproof performance to a depth of up to 5 m for as long as 10 minutes. Internal fogging is prevented inside the optical system even in low-pressure environments up to an altitude of 5,000 m equivalent, so you’ll always see clearly when you need it most. or if you look at it the other way around, for the same price, you usually get a better image than a roof prism binocular at the same price.

Conclusion

Many of these cheap instruments are fine for the occasional user, but for the BEST compact Nikon bird watching binocular I have opted for a higher end instrument as I feel it is more important than ever to have quality optics to make be best use of the limited amount of light that a compact can collect and use. I live in northern Delaware near Kennett Square but I spend most of my time for work in Pa, what a great state for outdoor nature viewing. At the given prices I think the Nikon HG wins hands down. At cost non-issue the SLC is clearly the best as it should be at ~2x the cost. I don't think the SLC's price gives you 2x more bino than the HG. 10% more might even be a stretch...maybe... The prisms have also been phase corrected and have multilayer coatings of the best, very highly-reflective dielectric material, meaning more light gets transmitted and in the right way for the brightest, highest quality views possible. If I'd been impressed with the HG so far then I was even more satisfied with the image it delivers. Aside from the pin-sharpness, the colours were natural and vivid and the contrast excellent. These features combined to beautifully produce wonderful and memorable views of Waxwings during the winter invasion. The minimum 92 per cent light transmission is commendable and ensures a pleasingly bright image – even in low light conditions. When birding in woodland and scrub, to my eyes, a '3D' effect becomes evident and is testament to the model's high resolution.