I thought I would post my recent experience with all 5 of these glasses, all 10x42's. I own a pair of Nikon Monarchs and have had them for yrs. About 3 yrs ago I came to realize that in low light or the last 2 to 1 1/2 hours before dark the Monarch was really not up to pare. It was lousy with glare and the evening haze fogged the picture so bad I know I wasn't seeing the game I could have been, so I started looking at other glasses.
The first pair I bought was a pair of Vortex Vipers. Upon receiving them I was out comparing them to the Monarchs the last 2 hours of daylight. At first you could not tell a difference but as the light faded it became slightly obvious they offered a better view. They had a clearer and crisper image while pulling in more light. The difference was not that big and it took me a good half hour or so to really decide that yes, these are better glasses. However, the edge to edge flare was not to good and I found you had to look right thru the sweet spot to have good focus. I used them one season then sold them knowing I could find better without having to spend a fortune on one of the big 3.
This yr I ordered a pair of Minox Hg's and Bushnell E2's at the same time. Upon receiving them I set them up on tripods, well actually a brick wall with a towel underneath, with the Monarchs. I looked thru all 3 of them for 2 hours at the same spot on the mountain until dark. I determined, and the wife, that the Minox and E2's were slightly better than the Monarchs, but not much. Even as the light faded there was not that big a difference from the Monarchs and the Vortex was actually better than these two binos for low light clarity IMO. The focus was very slow on the Minox and I really didn't like the center focusing system of the E2's. You adjust the right diopter in the center on the e2 then you can lock it and focus both lenses, it was just awkward. Looking thru the E2's and Minox there was not much difference. At one time the Minox looked better and the next the E2's looked better. Rather then keeping either one of them because they are not much better than the Monarch I sent them back.
Next up was the Pentax DCF ED's. Basically it took about 2 minutes to determine these are one fine glass and are far superior to the Monarch, E2, Minox, and Vortex, in every regard. The image stays crisp and clear well after dark with no glare and very little edge to edge flare. They focus super fast, the right diopter locks, and there is plenty of twist up on the eye cups for anyone that also lock. The flatness of the field of view is not to bad either. Color rendition is excellent and I'm unable to detect any chromatic aberration. My next stop was Zeiss Fl T,s but the Pentax at half the price I feel is a bargain. If your looking for a mid priced glass you should really check these out. They are really nice glass.
The first pair I bought was a pair of Vortex Vipers. Upon receiving them I was out comparing them to the Monarchs the last 2 hours of daylight. At first you could not tell a difference but as the light faded it became slightly obvious they offered a better view. They had a clearer and crisper image while pulling in more light. The difference was not that big and it took me a good half hour or so to really decide that yes, these are better glasses. However, the edge to edge flare was not to good and I found you had to look right thru the sweet spot to have good focus. I used them one season then sold them knowing I could find better without having to spend a fortune on one of the big 3.
This yr I ordered a pair of Minox Hg's and Bushnell E2's at the same time. Upon receiving them I set them up on tripods, well actually a brick wall with a towel underneath, with the Monarchs. I looked thru all 3 of them for 2 hours at the same spot on the mountain until dark. I determined, and the wife, that the Minox and E2's were slightly better than the Monarchs, but not much. Even as the light faded there was not that big a difference from the Monarchs and the Vortex was actually better than these two binos for low light clarity IMO. The focus was very slow on the Minox and I really didn't like the center focusing system of the E2's. You adjust the right diopter in the center on the e2 then you can lock it and focus both lenses, it was just awkward. Looking thru the E2's and Minox there was not much difference. At one time the Minox looked better and the next the E2's looked better. Rather then keeping either one of them because they are not much better than the Monarch I sent them back.
Next up was the Pentax DCF ED's. Basically it took about 2 minutes to determine these are one fine glass and are far superior to the Monarch, E2, Minox, and Vortex, in every regard. The image stays crisp and clear well after dark with no glare and very little edge to edge flare. They focus super fast, the right diopter locks, and there is plenty of twist up on the eye cups for anyone that also lock. The flatness of the field of view is not to bad either. Color rendition is excellent and I'm unable to detect any chromatic aberration. My next stop was Zeiss Fl T,s but the Pentax at half the price I feel is a bargain. If your looking for a mid priced glass you should really check these out. They are really nice glass.
