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Nagler V Ethos value for money?

saturn10

By saturn10
in Discussions - Eyepieces

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John

John

Posted
Posted

I moved from Nagler Type 6's to Ethos 13mm, 8mm and 6mm. I still have the 20mm and 31mm Naglers. I don't regret a penny of what I've spent doing it but I'd hardly call it great value for money because, as ever, the actual performance increments you get are very slight when moving between one premium type and another. The cost was offset to some degree by being able to replace 2 Naglers with a single Ethos, eg: the 13mm Ethos replaced the 13mm and 16mm Naglers.

I don't think I could quantify the benefits v's costs of the Ethos in any sensible way though - how do you put a value on slightly better views ?

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John

John

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Posted
....Are the Ethos eyepieces worth the extra money.

Read all the reviews and reports you can then you can make that decision. Sorry to sound obtuse but I really can't think of any sensible way to put a £ value on small differences in eyepiece performance :icon_salut:

You can get Ethos-like performance for just £50 if you buy a used Baader Genuine Orthoscopic, albeit with less than 50% of the field of view and tighter eye relief. But many folks are happy with those things.

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spaceboy

spaceboy

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Posted

I think you also have to consider what scope you are using the EP in. You could have a full set of Ethos but if your using them in a "budget" scope your never going to get the pound per view from the EP like you would if you were using the EP in a premium brand scope. Just my opinion and I'm sure many would disagree. I went with Naglers purely for the FOV (based on the fact they were going to be used in manual dob) and the selection of focal lengths they offer. While they perform well in my scope but can I warrant the high cost of the EP's when there are similar FOV's offered by cheaper brands ????

It's all down to what you are willing to pay at the end of the day. All eye pieces will show you objects in the night sky but some do a better job than others. But you also have to consider a great EP won't make a bad scope good.

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Chris H

Chris H

Posted
Posted
Thankyou again for all your advice.

Perhaps I need a set of ethos's.

By 'set' I presume you don't mean a complete set that will cost you ££££'s, even a set of two or three is going to set you back quite a bit.

What Nagler's have you bought and what scope do you have?

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ollypenrice

ollypenrice

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Posted

Actually I don't agree with Spaceboy's point above. We have some premium scopes, Takahashi and TEC, and some less premium ones like a home brewed 20 inch Dob with a fast mirror, F4.1. The big Dob is not a bad scope but it doesn't have a Carl Zambuto mirror. It is a sound but basic mirror. The effect of using a premium eyepiece like a Nagler or Ethos in the big scope is astounding. They clean up the coma at the edge of the field in a way that is hard to believe. The 'TeleVue effect' is higher in the basic but big scope than it is in the exquisite TEC, which would give a decent view if you put a milk bottle bottom in it!

Ethos or Nagler? They are both absurdly good, the Ethos being even better than the Naglers. Both are crazily expensive. I think the Naglers are better value but I'd rather have the Ethos!

Olly

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Moonshane

Moonshane

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I have one of both and they are bot my all round favourite eyepieces for their purpose (the reason I have them still of course!).

I have a 26mm Nagler, a wonderful widest (for me) field eyepiece which has an extra wide field and a good exit pupil size of around 6mm max.

I also have a 13mm Ethos which is one of only two eyepieces I generally use in my 16" dob. This is also superb for a closer look and with a massive field. I personally prefer the slightly smaller field of the Nagler.

That said, the detail you see in either is not any better or worse (i my opinion - others will differ) than in a Baader Genuine Ortho which is about a fifth of the price or even less of either of the above two eyepieces.

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spaceboy

spaceboy

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Posted
Actually I don't agree with Spaceboy's point above. We have some premium scopes, Takahashi and TEC, and some less premium ones like a home brewed 20 inch Dob with a fast mirror, F4.1. The big Dob is not a bad scope but it doesn't have a Carl Zambuto mirror. It is a sound but basic mirror. The effect of using a premium eyepiece like a Nagler or Ethos in the big scope is astounding. They clean up the coma at the edge of the field in a way that is hard to believe. The 'TeleVue effect' is higher in the basic but big scope than it is in the exquisite TEC, which would give a decent view if you put a milk bottle bottom in it!

Ethos or Nagler? They are both absurdly good, the Ethos being even better than the Naglers. Both are crazily expensive. I think the Naglers are better value but I'd rather have the Ethos!

Olly

How can you compare a 20" dob of any standard to a mass produced budget scope :icon_salut:

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Skills

Skills

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Posted

If you are just starting out I'd learn some lessons with cheapie eyepieces first. It's easy when your beginning to make blunders - drop things, scratch things, clean things inappropriately etc... Better to ruin a £50 eyepiece than a £400 one. If your thinking ethos territory then the additional expense is meaningless.

Cheaper eyepieces are useful to have if you ever want to do some outreach (no kids I dont know touch my ethos eyepieces!)

Ethos eyepieces aren't about value for money as other people have said. Are supercars value for money? No, they aren't meant to be

Good luck!

Adrian

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pvaz

pvaz

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Posted
Thanks for your reply, I am just starting out in astronomy and don't want to buy inferior eyepieces.

Are the Ethos eyepieces worth the extra money.

It's like going from a mercedes to a ferrari, you get that extra top speed and acceleration but it doesn't mean you'll use it. :icon_salut:

The main diference is FoV. With a nagler it's very wide but you can take it all at once. With an Ethos it's even wider and you will find it very hard to see all the edges at once so it feels, to a degree, as if the scope is not there. I think Ethos also have a very small edge on contrast for planetary observation. The diference is minimal, I found it wort it because I plan to keep them for a lifetime which, with the current life expectancy should give me another 50 years or so worth of observations. :D

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great_bear

great_bear

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Posted
I found it worth it because I plan to keep them for a lifetime which, with the current life expectancy should give me another 50 years or so worth of observations. :D

Ah - so you're saying that the Ethos isn't good value for old people then? :icon_salut:

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michael.h.f.wilkinson

michael.h.f.wilkinson

Posted
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I started out with some pretty decent Plossls (Vixen and Celestron (built by Vixen)) and some circle-T orthos. Only when I started feeling their limitation did I upgrade to Vixen LVs for the short end (eye relief is an issue for me). I now have a set of Naglers, Radians, and a stray TMB Paragon and Meade UWA. Much better than what I had, but the cheaper ones were worthwhile. I could not have afforded the more expensive optics at the time, and I have seen plenty of marvelous things with the old kit.

Start with basic but good stuff, upgrade only when you feel the need to.

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