Maven B1 vs B2

[Dos Perros]

Has anyone side by side compared the B1 with the B2? Specifically interested in comparisons between the B1 10x42 and either the B2 9x45 or B2 11x45. I understand the B1 uses Schmidt-Pechan prisms and the B2 uses Abbe-Koenig prisms so they are quite different in design. I understand the difference in size and weight, so I'm most interested in the difference in optical quality.

 

[Stwrt9]

I have been able to compare the B1 and the C1 in 10x42 and i really loved the B1. For the price point the C1 was ok for what it is but wasn't overly impressed with it. As for the B1 I am a huge fan, I thought there were optically better than anything i have held within that price point down to the Leupold HD Guides. I would think optically the B1's are right up there with the Swarovski SLC's. I will say I have only tried the B2's indoors at a show but they just didn't seem to fit my eyes very well and were a tad too big for what i was looking for in that magnification range. I'm sure they are much better outdoors in natural lighting. It would be different if i were using them off a tripod as well, but at that point you might as well go for something a bit bigger in magnification. I will say as much as I liked the B1 they too are a bit on the heavy side for a 10x42. Maven makes quality glass and for the price of their optics i doubt you will be dissapointed.

 

[307]

I have owned both the B1's, B2's, and my daughter has some B3's.

B1's are very good optically, smaller and lighter than the B2's.

B2's are better in light transmission and have a field flattening element, less distortion, and overall better view.

The prism style in the B2's (Abbe Koenig) is physically bigger than the prism style in the B1's (Schmidt Pechan), hence the size and weight penalty.

Get the B2's.

 

[Dos Perros]

I had bought some B2’s on the demo program and also found a pair old Swaro EL’s and had planned to return the one I didn’t like. Well the B2’s were better than the old Swaro’s but man were they heavy, something like 8oz heavier than my current 10x42’s and several ounces heavier than what they list. So I returned both pairs and ended up with the B1’s. Haven’t got to compare the B1’s to anything nice side by side yet but I’m kinda wishing I had kept the B2’s. I’ve come up with enough weight savings elsewhere to consider the heavier B2’s now.

 

[Boreal]

I compared the B1 and B2 at the local outdoors show last fall. Then compared to Leica trinovids, Swaro SLC, and Zeiss Conquest HD. In the end I got the B2 9x. Optically they are superb and the 45 mm objective gathers a lot of light. Overall, very comfortable for my 47 year old, LASIK corrected eyes.


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[oakdeiros80]

I tried the b1s and b2s side by side through the demo program and I could not see an appreciable difference in optical quality. Mostly outdoors with lots of light. Didn’t really get the chance to compare them in a long distance, low light setting. That being said, the b2s were way too big and heavy for the way I like to hunt, so I kept the b1s. If I were to get a pair as large as the b2s, I would want them to be 12x-15x for use off a tripod. On my chest, I really like the b1 10x.


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[TimberHunter]

Bumping this up because I’m attempting to decide between the B1 vs B2


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[TimberHunter]

Ttt


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[TimberHunter]

Ttt


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[TimberHunter]

No one else has anymore thoughts on B.1 vs B.2?



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[Ryan Avery]

Had both, IMO the B2 are fantastic. The B1 are just ok and would buy other binos over the B1 in that price range.


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[setch]

I was set on the B1s until reading this thread - thnx all

 

[Dos Perros]

You’re going to get the B2’s and think “man these are huge.”

 

[TimberHunter]

You’re going to get the B2’s and think “man these are huge.”

I agree they look large but I do majority of my glassing on a tripod


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[dreamingWest]

***My Eyes***

I had them both side by side for a couple of weeks in a hunting setting with and without a tripod. I also had the Swaro SLCs, Vortex Razor, Meopta Meopro at the same time. IMO, the B1s aren't "great" in their price range. I'd look elsewhere for 10x42s (Nikon Monarch HG, Zeiss, Leica). That said, I thought the B2s were great. Optically I thought the B2s were closer to the SLCs than they were to other binos. The SLCs were better in low light and had a much better depth of field.

The size and shape of the Maven B2s (due to the Abbe-Koenig prism I believe) does not detract form the bino at all. I didn't think I would like them for hand holding when I "unboxed" them. But after using them, I thought they were very ergonomic and were very comfortable. Between B1 and B2, I'd recommend the B2s.

 

[Steve C]

I have the B1 in 8x42 and 10x 42. I have a B2 in 9x45, had the 7x45 for review, and have access to a B2 11x45. I have the B3 in 8x30, had the 6x30 for review, and have a C1 8x42. The comments posted above I largely agree with. The B1 is the way to go if you don't like big binoculars. Having said that the B1 is not small. Th B2 is incredibly well balanced and I really don't notice what I would call excessive weight. I use a Rick Young Outdoors harness. Don't let the little straps fool you, that is the best harness going...provided you don't require bino protection. The 9x45 B2 is the sweet spot for the B2 series. Maven understates the fov of their binoculars. I have been around and around with them over the fact, but it is what it is. The real fov of the 7x45 is 420, not 389. The 9x is 405, not 367. The 8x B1 is 420, not 389. The 8x30 is 445, not 430, the 8x C1 is 360, not 341.. It is my personal opinion that most users tend to over magnify themselves when choosing binoculars. I tend to be mostly an 8x or 9x user, but I think magnification preference is a pretty personal deal, so I tend not to argue the point much, if any these days. The reason the argument even exists is that even way out west, both magnifications work. But personally if I can't see what I need with the 9x, the 11x won't cut it either, and a spotter is needed. Same thing with the 8x vs 10x B1. For whatever reason the 11x seems to have a shallower depth of field than it should. The wider field of the 9x with its better depth of focus makes for a lot easier on the eyes glassing. Depth of focus decreases with magnification, but the 11x seems shallower than some 12x, so I'm not sure what is going on there. I may someday spring for the high dollar glass, but until then my go to combo is the 8x30 B3 and the 9x45 B2. If pushed, I'd have to say the B2 is a better image, The contrast to my eyes is a little bit better, especially at distance. The operative words are "A little bit". When the image hits the eye balls, they both work.