Which 7x50 Binocular for beginner ?

[aiesh_kaul]

Hi Everybody,

I am new to the forum and to the astronomy as well. I am planning to buy a 7x50 binocular to start with. I have been through a few forums earlier where a lot of people have suggested Orion Scenix 7x50 binocular. But this brand seems to be popular in U.S and not here in Australia and it is too expensive even if you find it here. as an alternative I am thinking of Saxon 7x50 Wide Angle binocular. It comes with the following major specs.

Angular FOV: 7 degrees
Lens Coating: Multi Coated
Prism Glass: BAK4

Folloiwng is the link for the product:

http://www.saxon.com.au/binoculars/standard-binoculars/saxon-7x50-wide-angle-binoculars.html

Please suggest me if it is a good one to start with and in case you are aware of any other 7x50's with similar or better features, please suggest.

Thanks,
Jimmy

[aiesh_kaul]

Just to add one more thing regarding my budget. I am not planing to spend over $200 at this stage.

Thanks,
Jimmy

[geolindon]

g day Jimmy n :welcome:

i very recently went through your process but with slightly different requirements. my thread is still just down the page. i have not yet got my binos so cannot give a personal review. for your budget the pentax XLF (best price under $100) and Andrews models (mid $100s) are well regarded though i think their fov is more around 6 than 7 deg.

enjoy, Lindon

[gaa_ian]

Welcome Jimmy
The Binoculars you are looking at are entry level & as Lindon poins out there are better alternatives in the $100 to $200 range.
I would suggest you get along to a local club Astronomy night to try out different Binos as performance in daylight can be very different to night time performance.
The Mid and High end binoculars will be stocked in my store soon :-)
At the top end binoculars are Multi coated, phase corrected, use ED Glass, are IPX 7 rated & transmit 95 to 98 % of the light that enters the lens, to the viewer.
Prices can range from a few 100 to a few thousand for binoculars !
Waterproof is good, especially for those dewy Astronomy nights.
I had a set of Pentax WP (16x) in the Gove club and they were excellent, giving the best view of Andromeda Galaxy I have ever seen to this day.

[aiesh_kaul]

Hi Lindon,

Thanks a lot for your suggestion. I tried to look for Pentax XLF but could not find it over the internet. However I was able to see Pentax XCF 10x50 but no 7x50. Could you please share the link with me so that I can have a look at it.

Also, I never heard of Andrews. Is it a good and reliable brand? I went to one of the website and it looks like they import these from china.

Thanks,
Jimmy

[aiesh_kaul]

Hello Ian,

Thank you very much for the valuable feedback. I see that the binocular you are talking about is 16X. I am planning to start with a hand holdable binocular at this stage and do not want a shaky image, so that's why I want to stick to 7x50 and later advanced to a bigger size.

Also, the specs that you have mentioned, I haven't seen so far in any of the product's description or specifications on the websites. You seem to have a great knowledge regarding binoculars.

I would really appreciate of you can suggest me a 7x50 with such features. I can spend $ 225 max.

Thanks,
Jimmy

[Renato1]

If you have darkish skies, 7X50s are good, especially for a beginner because of their wide angle field. If you have fairly light polluted skies, then you'll wish you had 10X50s despite their narrower field (though you can get wide angle ones - but some of them are poor at the edges).

I've bought some of the more expensive Andrews binoculars and I really like them, but I can't comment on their cheaper ones as I haven't tried them.
Regards,
Renato

[Amaranthus]

I agree with Renato regarding sky glow on 7x50s. Also, given the exit pupil size on these, you will need to have young eyes to get the full value out of the 50mm aperture at 7x magnification. Overall, for (non-stabilisied hand-held) binoculars, 10x50 seems to be a real sweet spot for astronomy.

[aiesh_kaul]

Hi Guys,

So what brand/model would be your pick for a 7x50 with this kind of budget ($100-$225).

Thanks,
Jimmy

[geolindon]

yes Jimmy, you are all over it!! my bads, sorry :(

Andrews do indeed import from China and link to the manufacturer at the top of their bino page.
mental - Alex's review (in my thread) would have influenced me if i was looking mainly for astronomy.
my impression is that Andrews and Bintel have a good reputation for good value at the various price points because of large turnover and low overheads.

i'll be interested in NSsecrets' range.


i found this very comprehensive review of 30 binoculars over 8 months helpful;

http://www.cloudynights.com/page/art...cular-reports/

i hope i have helped rather than hindered your search :) regards, L

[Amaranthus]

You won't get a great pair for that price (no ED glass or waterproofing), but otherwise, the Pentax XCF 10x50 would make a decent choice:
http://www.bintel.com.au/Binoculars/Pentax-Binoculars/Pentax-XCF-10x50/1656/productview.aspx ($139 at Bintel)

Has a 6.5 degree FOV, a 5mm exit pupil, and they're well reviewed:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/257802-USA/Pentax_65792_10x50_XCF_Binocular.ht ml

[1kmodem]

Going off a recommendation off this forum, I recently purchased a Olympus DPS-1. Haven't had much time to play around with it, but did check out the moon and looks crisp to me. I wear glasses and find no issues with eye relief .

First pair of Bino's so I've got nothing to compare it against. They were $99 at Ted's a few weeks back, you can email them to see if you can still get that price (I did).

Edit: they are 10x50's

[julianh72]

+1 for the Pentax XCF 10x50

They're not waterproof or nitrogen-purged, but that's Ok for my needs - I look after my stuff, and I've had no issues with them fogging up.

Note that you can get them cheaper from US sellers on eBay (less than AU$100, including postage) if you don't mind waiting a week or two for them to arrive - but international warranty support might be tricky if you ever need to go down that path.

If you are shopping on eBay, don't confuse the XCFs with the cheaper Pentax Whitetails - the XCFs are significantly better in all respects (optical quality, field of view, etc).

[dannat]

pentax xcf are not as good as the pcf models -as others have suggested the 7mm exit pupil is slightly wasted at places near gosford -better to use a bino like that at a dk sky site. older eyes can often open close to 6mm but with light pollution your eyes never fully dk adapt & often will only open as wide as 4-5mm..meaning your bino effectively operates as 7x35 [7 x 5mm]

i would think either a 8x42-10x50 will be a better option

the HG series at Andrews (http://www.andrewscom.com.au/binoculars) tick most boxes, if not Matt at telescopes-astornomy in SA has some good 11x70 or 13x70 -they have very good light gather & the 11x power can almost be handheld-they were 130 last time i checked

[gaa_ian]

Hi Jimmy
I would not be put off too much by products being made in China.
While there is a lot of rubbish coming out of China, there is also a lot of very good value well made products.
I can tell you for a fact that most of the well known manufacturers are badged from the OEM in China EG: Celestron, Meade, Orion, Skywatcher ....Etc
I still recon going to an observing night will help you heaps.
For $225 you can get a 4" travel scope ;)
Cheers
Ian

[inertia8]

I recommend seeing if any of the bino's you're looking at have tripod adaptors available.

In my experience, a cheap tripod can be a great help to brace the binocular's against the ground or something else, you may also hold onto the legs of the tripod and pull both arms tight braced against your body to stabilise, bino's against the eye sockets, which I find a lot more comfortable than holding my arms up on the bino's.

Make sure you open out the eye cups so as not to brush the lenses with your eyelashes.

[Brycepj]

I bought my Olypus DPI 10 x 50 from Michaels camera store in Elizabeth st melbourne for about $80 on sale and they are really good. For star gazing and terrestrial stuff as well. Have had lots of comments from friends regarding clarity of view.
Would highly recommend these they may be right on the limit for size and weight but I take them everywhere.

[ZeroID]

I have some Olympus 10 x 50 but I find they are soft in the edges of the field. I'm still using my old 12 x 50 Zenits which are flat to the edge.
10 x 50 or 12 x 50 is the best for astro binos hand held. After that you are into tripod territory.

Just another suggestion for astro binos. I added some 'dew sheilds' to my Zenits. Basically extending the front objective sheilding by about 50mm, not so much for dew but for light sheildling against local ambient lights coming in sideways. In suburban locations it does make a difference keeping glare off the front optical surface. Most normal binos don't have very long front surrounds so worth adding in my experience.

[aiesh_kaul]

Hello Everybody,

Thank you so much for your valuable feedback. You people are doing wonderful job. I ended up buying a saxon 7x50. Waiting for the delivery now. Would like to discuss about star charts and maps in some other thread.

Thanks,
Jimmy

[ausastronomer]

I still have my 16x60 Pentax PCF WP binoculars. IMO they perform way out of their price class (about $400 over 10 years ago). They are almost the equal of the very top level binoculars costing well over $1,500.)

I use them for everything from Astronomy to watching the Sydney to Hobart fleet go past Gerroa Headland.

Cheers
John B

[ausastronomer]

I agree 100%. I would have chosen from either 8 x 42, 10 x 42 or 10x 50. With my preference being towards 10 x 50's. I believe recommending 7 x 50 binoculars to beginners as astronomy binoculars is 30 years out of date. I just don't see a place for astronomy binoculars having an exit pupil over 6mm these days. 10 x 50's have better contrast and better resolution than 7 x 50's, notwithstanding they have a slightly smaller field of view. Beginner, or expert, if you can't put targets in the FOV of a pair of 10 x 50's, which will generally have a FOV of over 5 degrees, you may as well stay indoors. I have an exceptional quality pair of Steiner 7 x 50 Admiral Golds that I haven't used for Astronomy in well over 15 years, preferring to use the more powerful and smaller exit pupil 10 x 42's, 10 x 50's and 16 x 60's, which I own. The Steiner's despite costing $1,000 plus nearly 20 years ago have in fact been relegated to the centre console of the boat. They are a marine binocular and well suited to this purpose.

With a $225 budget, I would have been jumping all over these for about $207 shipped.

http://www.ryda.com.au/Pentax-10-x-50-PCF-Waterproof-II-Binoculars-p/65808.htm

These are a quantum leap up quality wise from the Pentax XCF's and some of the other cheaper options mentioned. Besides owning the previous series Pentax 16 x 60 PCF WP, I have also owned the 8 x 40 Pentax PCF WP and the 10 x 50 Pentax PCF V, which preceeded the WP series. The Pentax PCF WP series and the WP II series are a clear step ahead of the majority of the cheap and middle grade Chinese and Taiwanese binoculars, notwithstanding they are both made in China. The PCF V's I owned were made in Japan then production moved to China with the new series but to be honest I couldn't see any change in terms of optical or mechanical quality. Pentax specifications and quality control to the Chinese manufacturer must be pretty good. These have a lifetime warranty.

Cheers,
John B

[Amaranthus]

We tried to tell him this John!