Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Optics ZEN Prime HD 10x42

Well, I have had this ordered for over six months now, having done so before this was much more than an idea on the CAD screen.

ZR has pretty well met their goal of flattening the field and sharpening the edges of their ED series binoculars. This is probably going to reignite the alpha view vs the less $$$ than alpha view argument, but it is what it is. As far as I can see there is not very much room (if there even is any) left in here to add much more useable stuff in the image. The sweet spot is noticeably larger than the ED series making the fov seem a lot bigger with the Prime.

This is a very bright binocular. Enough brighter the difference with the ED 3 just about has to be due to a higher light transmission percentage. The color balance and contrast are just about the same, leaving that out as a possible difference I think.

There seems to be a significant increase in apparrent "feel and quality" with the Prime as well. The focus is as slick and smooth as any binocular I have ever tried.

It is a shorter binocular (with conventional piano hinge style) than the ED series. It is also greater in cross section through the barrels. I can wrap my thumb and middle finger around the barrels of the ED 2-3, but not the Prime.

One possible downside is that the oculars (due to eye piece design) are pretty large in diameter, transferring that to the diameter of the eye cup. Some people with small or deep set eyes may find that problematic.

I'll post some more as I get to use this more. It appears that ZR has got a very good, even excellent binocular here and I can see about as much difference with the Prime over the ED 2-3 series as I could see with any of the alphas I tried over the same ED 2-3 binoculars. This is very easily the optical equal of the RTazor HD which is over 2x the money. The Razor is the only more expensive glass I have on hand right now, so I'll have to bend some effort over the next few days to see what side by sides I can scare up.

Nice write up. I had a feeling these would be the real deal

FYI, I received this e-mail from Charles at Zen-Ray:

Dear Zen-Ray Customer,

You are receiving this email because you have pre-ordered the next generation PRIME HD binoculars. Here at Zen-Ray, we all want to express our gratitude for your trust and support.

We have previously advised our customers that PRIME HD will be ready for volume shipment on Friday May 25th based on our production schedule. Unfortunately, there will be a slight delay in our delivery schedule. We do want you to know that the PRIME HD binoculars have successfully passed our most rigorous production qualification test. During the final assembly of PRIME HD binoculars, our engineers discovered that one of our suppliers provided an incorrect, but very similar part by mistake during the volume production. Although that part could have been used in the PRIME HD system with minimum impact to optical performance that's visible to naked eyes, we decided to reject that part because any other alternative is not acceptable by our quality standard. We have been working very hard with supplier to rectify the problem and minimize the impact on schedule. The latest word from factory is that this issue has been addressed. However, due to lead-time of the new parts, it will push out the product launch to July 5th. We are still working with our factory engineering and production team to look for ways to further improve the current new delivery schedule. We will keep you updated when we make more progress on it.

We fully understand how much inconvenience this may have caused you. Please, we hope that you can accept our most sincere apology. Please feel free to email us if you have any questions.

Sincerely Yours!

Zen-Ray Optics

ED2 was supposed to equal "alphas". ED3 was supposed to equal "alphas". Prime Hd's are supposed to equal "alphas". Around and around it goes..

In the general consensus of things does the consumer agree with these "equal 'alphas'"?

I know when I compared the Minox 15X58 side by side with the Swarovski 15X56 I could hardly tell any difference with the Swaro being slightly better. A friend with me thought the Minox was barely better and my brother couldn't tell any difference. That's pretty close to equal "alphas" to me.

As per usual, it's lost on you.

I guess as long as there are more than two optics choices this will always go around and around. However, I for one have never held any of the ZEN ED series binoculars as alpha euqal. Didn't yesterday, don't today, won't tomorrow. I said so in black and white in my first review of the ZEN ED. What I do think they are is 95%+ of the image at 1/4 the cost. I have always given the alpha the edge. I just don't give them the edge to justify their cost. That's my choice, others will always favor the alpha, that's their choice, and that's fine with me.

Zen Ray has never set out to be an alpha brand. What they wanted was just what it seems they have done, provide a high quality low cost binocular at several price points below $500. The ED 2 was supposed to be an improvement to the ED. It was. The ED 3 was what took Zen Ray into genuine OEM status of building their own binocular. It was supposed to improve quality and materials, which it did.

We now have the Prime HD. It is intended to advance ZR's own OEM ability and to improve the edge performance and widen the sweet spot across the field of view, and increase the overal quality of ZR's ability...in relationship to other Zen Ray products. I said nowhere in my OP anything about equalling alpha glass, just that the debate (which has not yet been setteled) will reignite. Even the alphas are not sitting on their laurels, Swarovski went with the Swarovision and the new SLC-HD. Zeiss has a new high end glass, and a new mid tier (for Zeiss anyway) glass. Competition always follows, and this discussion will always go around and around.

Other Prime commentary and some pictures can be found here.

http://www.birdforum.net/showthread.php?t=231804

Maybe not like you, but could be like you, I prefer my opinion to others'. What have you heard about the binocs?

Thanks Steve, you have made a valid point and i agree with everything you said. No harm no foul! I have read everything that has been posted about ZR optics and while they have been compared to the specific alpha brands not once did i hear the remark that they were better or in some instances equal! And i have owned a few Zen binoculars! At best they make you question why should you spend x amount of money when you can get pretty close at less than half the amount as the alternative? If you have the money buy alpha if not ZenRay gives close to the performance at less than half price! It's up to the individual! Enough said!!!

Steve,

Thanks for the review. I have the ZRS HD binoculars. I am very happy with that purchase with recommendation from this site. I have been saving up for a pair of PRIME HD. I know it's much more expensive than the orignal ZRS that I have. But I like what I have seen so far from the reviews that I have seen so far.

Larry

Thanks for the report Steve. It's always nice to hear from informed users such as yourself.
As to how good a binocular is, that's for the user to determine.
Image quality, while quite possibly the most important consideration, is not the only thing we users need to consider. User friendliness is also a consideration as well as rugged, water proof constuction.
What I found a long time ago is that it is often possible to buy a new binocular and test it for a few days and then return it if not satisfied for a full refund.
That is a unique oportunity to help us select what works best for us. Too bad we can't do that with rifles and rifle scopes. E

I posted some comments about the 8x Prime HD over in Steve's thread on birdforum but will copy/paste both my initial impression post and the follow up today below.

Ok, I just spent the last half hour out on the patio with the Prime HDs, the ZR 7x43s and the Vixen Foresta 7x50s. Both of the latter two binoculars have served as a form of reference standard for me for roof prism and porros prism binoculars respectively. I will get a comparison a bit later after I give my initial impressions of the Prime HD.

I didn't read Steve's post yet so some of this may be redundant. Upon opening the box and removing the binocular my first thoughts were "heavier than expected" and "nice armor". Surprisingly the smell of the binocular was the second thing to register on my senses. It is sort of funny how we take our sense of smell for granted. Smells stick with us long after the experience itself has faded. Smelling these binoculars reminds me of both the Meopta and the Swarovski SLC Neu series. They have that odor to the armor. Different from previous ZR models.

Focusing is counterclockwise (to the dismay of some) from close focus to infinity. I believe this is contrary to what was originally posted. The focusing speed is very close to ideal. It feels slightly slower than the ED3s but faster than the ED2s. From a nitpicky perspective I think I would prefer another 1/4 turn to the speed. Focusing tension is excellent. No slop, no backlash and excellent resistance. The overall feel is also enhanced by the texture of the knob itself. It has a similar series of small bumps in a checkerboard like pattern in comparison to the ED3s. I can feel them grab a bit on the tip of my finger as I work the focusing knob. I doubt my fingers will slip on it even under wet conditions.

Ok, on to what everyone wants to hear...the view. I think this is what everyone has been expecting from Zen Ray. The centerfield apparent sharpness that is often praised on the ED3s has now been extended over a much larger portion of the image. If I had to rate the ED3s that I have in possession at 65-70% sharp from the center then I would have to rate the Prime HDs at sharp out to at least 90% of the field but probably closer to 95%. It is impressive and makes the image feel very natural. One caveat to that though.... as I have heard in reference to some other models there is an area of excellent apparent sharpness through the center 2/3rds of the image followed by a very narrow band that seems to lose a very slight amount of apparent sharpness under close inspection. The last 5-10% of the image seems just as sharp as the center.
I want to bring up color fringing here because it seems tied in to the various levels of performance throughout the full field of view. In the center 85-90% of the image CA is wonderfully well controlled. I certainly cannot see it and I am moderately susceptible to it. The outer 5-10% does exhibit a mild level of CA. This seems tied into the area that is "back in focus" with the center of the field.

Apparent brightness anc apparent contrast are excellent. Certainly as good as the ED3 series. From talking to Charles I believe the average measured light transmission level is 89%. Going by memory of other light transmission tests (prior to All Binos) I believe that puts it on par with the original Swarovski EL and the Leica Ultravid but just behind the Zeiss FL.

Color representation appears entirely neutral at first glance and even after extended use. It isn't until I compare it to the Vixen Foresta porro that I note a slight "blue-green" coloration to the image. The Vixen is what I would call neutral (white) to every so slightly warm (extremely mild red) so it stands as a good reference when looking to compare color "biases".

The field of view is fairly flat. Pincushion distorition has been added to help rectify any rolling ball issues associated with the dual field flattener elements. I can see the distortion when panning up and down but not left to right.

Apparent sharpness is first rate. In both handholding and resting the binocular I can see extremely fine detail on just about everything I look at. The image is anything but "soft". Close focus appears to be about five feet.

All I can think of for now. I will post more as time allows.

Today's post.....

I wanted to write a follow up post to my original one. I forgot to mention one key issue when I did my initial post...the environmental conditions. I did not give it much thought at the time but the overall conditions were poor. We had approaching thunderstorms (and actually a tornado watch) in our area the day I posted my initial comments.

Since that time I have used this pre-production unit quite extensively under a variety of conditions. It has not failed to impress for an 8x full-sized binocular. Under full daylight conditions the image is nothing but...well, beautiful. Colors are extremely well saturated. The various shades of blue on the back of a male Eastern Bluebird are very well represented. Even the subtle shades of green on the back of a male Ruby-throated Hummingbird are very easy to identify. The contrast level is instantly notable.

Details easily jump out at you. It is one of those situations with a binocular where you think you have achieved perfect focus only to find that another bump of the focus knob brings out even more detail in the object being observed.

I did take the time to see how they handle stray light issues. The dreaded crescent is not evident in the image under regular use. If I push the bins and start heading towards the sun and if I shift my eye position down towards the bottom half of the exit pupil then I begin to notice a faint crescent with a midpoint at approximately 7 o'clock. It is faint and not comparable to what the first generation of 7x36 ED2s displayed under similar conditions and usage.

The size of the sweet spot continues to impress me. It is notably larger than that of the ED3 series so, therefore, the image feels very natural to my eyes.

One last thought that struck me this morning was the handling. It has reminded me of something for several days but I just couldn't put my finger on it. They remind me of the Nikon Monarchs (original Gen II version) in terms of length and overall feel in my hands. Yes, they weigh a bit more but the way they fit into my hands is very similar to the Monarchs.

Does this one also have dielectric coating? I assume it does from your brightness comparison.

Yes, current state of the art dielectric. It transmits like 90% in lab tests through the whole instrument.