Nikon 7430 Monarch 8x42mm All-Terrain Binoculars
by Nikon
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List Price: Our Price: Calculated in a shopping cart Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: Digital Camera See more product details |
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Digital Cameras Photo Reviews of Nikon 7430 Monarch 8x42mm All-Terrain Binoculars
Customer 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!)
Customer Review: Great Binoculars For a Great Price
Summary: 5 Stars
I spent a lot of time looking at reviews before I purchased these and I am very happy with them. I also went into a store and compared them to binoculars that cost hundreds more. The very high end ones were slightly better, but not enough to justify spending an extra $600. The lens covers can kind of be a pain but it's really not that big of a deal. These are a great value and also have a great warranty. Only real complaint is that I have not received my $50 rebate from Nikon yet.Customer Review: Best binoculars ever!!
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought these binoculars for an Alaska cruise. To my delight, we brought with us our older binoculars (another well known brand)and we were able to compare the two. With our well known American brand, we could see the shore when steaming along and see trees, etc. But with Nikon Monarch, we could not only see the trees, but the limbs, the birds in the trees, and the bears coming down to the water. In Glacier Bay, we could see inside the crags of the glaciers and spot glaciers high up mountains with detail. My wife and I have decided it's time to sell our older (only a few years) binoculars at our next garage sale. I don't have equal eye sight in each eye. With the Nikon Monarch I can see clearer than wearing glasses and much farther. I highly recommend these binoculars!Customer Review: Great Binoculars
Summary: 5 Stars
I wanted a good pair of binoculars but didn't want to spend big bucks for them; the Nikon 7430 turned out to be a great pair. I am not a bird watcher, but I do own a boat in Puget Sound Washington and wanted something that would give me close ups of marine life and scenery. I was amazed at the detail I could see using these. I would highly recommend them to anyone.Customer Review: Best Binoc for the money
Summary: 5 Stars
These are the best Binoculars for the money. I compared them to the Vortex Diamondback and Steiner 8x36 military marine. By far the Nikon's are extremely bright and clear. The last pair of Nikon's I owned were the 8x36 monarch's. Unfortunately they were stolen at the beach. They were great but if I had to choose I would still pick the 8x42 Monarch's