Same situation here, I'm deciding between a bx-4 pro guide or Nikon monarch 5, both 10x42, mostly for antelope hunting.
Any advise will be greatly appreciated.
Is the glass very good? I've read some meh reports. Why not talk to the Doug man or go with Nikon or Maven? There are binos people rave about in each class--under $500, under $1000, etc.
If my binocular budget was $500, I'd never select the BX-4 pro guides. First reason is the ridiculous, enormous eye "cups" (or should I say saucers) they are now using. I have no idea whose face they fit, but they make the binoculars basically unusable to me. So much side light comes in that glare on the eyepiece lens is always an issue. Second reason is they have that classic "made in china" image. I am not sure how to describe it, but just about every MIC bin I've looked through has it. The image is sharp at first glance, but then it's not, and then it is again and then it's not. It's very odd. I've never had that problem with Made in Japan binocs and certainly not Euro-made optics - only MIC. They are easy to impress in the store, but after you have them in the field you might change your mind. I've returned every single pair of MIC bins I've bought (probably 8-10 by now) for this very reason. The BX-4's remind me a LOT of the Zen-Ray Primes, and they may in fact be the same binocular. It wouldn't surprise me one bit.
I do not wear glasses, but I have a toucan sam of a nose and thus getting binos to my eyes doesn't work at all with wonky eye pieces. I am wondering if you didn't have a set of BX2 Tiogas in hand. Those have HUGE ocular lenses and are silly.
I don't think there is another binocular under $500 that comes close to it, but will be looking at some Tract in the next week or so.
I'm looking forward to next weekend to get my hands on some Tracts. Should be a fun expo.
I think I will be able to get them outside on a tripod with like Mavens and Swarovski.