2010 Swarovski EL

Indeed the Swarovski bino's are really nice.  I recently had a side by side comparison between the Swarovski's and the Burris signature series.

The Swarovski's were lighter in weight but I honestly thought the Burris bino's had a sharper image.

For the differance of a thousand bucks or more, my choice would be the Burris Signature Series.

Was your side by side comparison inside or outside and at what time of day?

Find is very hard to believe that the burris's had a sharper image....but whatever....i have the new ELs and they are well worth the money....they gather light like nothing I have ever seen before and if you are a serious deer hunter i would really look at getting  a pair because they will help you shoot the deer that you actually want to kill instead of the 125 that you thought was 150 from 400 yards away.....

Little To Farnorth Said:
Find is very hard to believe that the burris's had a sharper image....but whatever....i have the new ELs and they are well worth the money....they gather light like nothing I have ever seen before and if you are a serious deer hunter i would really look at getting  a pair because they will help you shoot the deer that you actually want to kill instead of the 125 that you thought was 150 from 400 yards away.....

What do the new ones cost? Im sure they went up $500

If you're spending nearly $2K and it doesn't have a rangefinder on board you need to shop some more.

I can say for certain that pre-Swarobright SLC's are brighter @ 1st light than Geovids are, prolly give you 1-2min more @ each sunup/sundown.  Resolution is a push and I'd rather have the LRF @ my fingertips all the time.

how do they gather light?  i thought it was how much was permitted to pass through the glass combined with the coatings helped with the resolution?  do they have some thing on them pushing the light into the objective so it gets more light than others?

Apply this to "light gathering":

Light gathering is a bit of a contradiction in terms.  The best and most finely ground piece of premuim glass still rejects (does not allow to pass through) X% of light at each surface.  Coating and multi-coating pick out certain wavelengths of light, reject them and allow more of the rest to pass through.  There is no apparatus or mechanical way to increase the amount of light that passes through your binocular lenses short of an artificial light source.  The only real mechanical advantage a premuim set of binocs has over budget binocs is the ability to focus the image onto your eye with greater precision.

The vast majority of the gains made in optics (cameras, spotters, scopes, binocs, etc.) for the last 30-40yrs have almost all been in the lense coatings.

I don't know for sure but I'd bet that computer modeling the acutal shape of each lense within a given optical system has helped resolution greatly.  I'd guess that's how the more budget priced binocs have become as good as they are in the last 10-15yrs.

Resolution is the amount of detail you're able to perceive through a given optical system.  In that regard the quality of the glass itself coupled with precise alignment within that system is mostly responsible for resolution.

Lense coatings are primarily responsible for rejecting less light at each surface than is possible with plain uncoated glass.  Very crudely, some light is rejected by the leading edge surface of a given lense.  Some light gets "trapped" inside the lense, and some light is rejected by the backside surface of the lense.  Coatings are applied in an attempt to mitigate the rejection/entrapment.  Again, this is a very crude description.

The new 10x42 swarovision go for close to $2500.  From what I have seen and read they have improved them dramatically. 

Enslow Said:
The new 10x42 swarovision go for close to $2500.  From what I have seen and read they have improved them dramatically. 

Can't fathom that $$ and no LRF @ your fingertips.  A guy can get a spankin new set of HD Geovids or a demo set of Victory RF's for the same $$.

It would be nice to have a rangefinder, but I really need the most lightgathering I can get without getting too heavy. 

They'll all get you 15-20min past legal shooting hrs with the exception of maybe very dense woods or the dark side of a mountian when the sun sets.  Very few spots in ND that a 10x or 8x W/40MM-42MM obj doesn't get you WELL past legal shooting hrs AM or PM.  Weight is the trade-off, though a little extra weight fends off a bit of the "shakies".

The edges of cattails are like a blackwall during the last 5 minutes. 

Looking  into the rising or setting sun and trying to spot and then judge deer against a vegetation type background is a difficult task for sure.  Cattails, CRP, and tree-rows as a background will test your optical gear for certain.

IMO if you're looking for the absolute best in optical performance it's a tie between Zeiss Victory's and Leica HD's sans LRF.  IMO swaro EL's are a step behind.  I've owned all 3 FWIW albeit not the most modern versions of any of them.  Swaro unquestionably has THE BEST warrentee in the business.

Horsager Said:
Apply this to "light gathering":

Light gathering is a bit of a contradiction in terms.  The best and most finely ground piece of premuim glass still rejects (does not allow to pass through) X% of light at each surface.  Coating and multi-coating pick out certain wavelengths of light, reject them and allow more of the rest to pass through.  There is no apparatus or mechanical way to increase the amount of light that passes through your binocular lenses short of an artificial light source.  The only real mechanical advantage a premuim set of binocs has over budget binocs is the ability to focus the image onto your eye with greater precision.

The vast majority of the gains made in optics (cameras, spotters, scopes, binocs, etc.) for the last 30-40yrs have almost all been in the lense coatings.

I don't know for sure but I'd bet that computer modeling the acutal shape of each lense within a given optical system has helped resolution greatly.  I'd guess that's how the more budget priced binocs have become as good as they are in the last 10-15yrs.

that is exactly what i was getting at.  every one always says how much light does it gather.  well it really does not "gather" anything it is how much it is allowed to pass through.

I thought the victorys were better also until the 2010 EL's came out.  I also had a chance to look through the Nikon Edge and they are very nice. 

Before you make your decision make certian you've compared Victory's WITH Luotec, to Swarovision, to Leica Ultravid HD's.  Basically comparing everyone's ED glass with their newest and best coatings.  Then trust your own eyes.

Sounds like they all cost about what a mid range 10 day cruise for two does!
Not trying to be critical or sarcastic at all!     No problem - everyone has their own priorities.  LOL    Everyone to his/her own budget decisions. 
Undoubtedly fine top of the line binocs, better than my cheap Leos!  
I haven't heard or read anything about Steiners the past few years.  Are they still around? 

I believe Steiner is German for Tasco, or maybe it's Simmons, I forget which.

Horse,

If you get a chance you should take a peek through the new EL's and us know what you think of them.