German Precision Optics (hereafter GPO) is a newcomer on the
scene with a base in Germany and an agent in the USA called GPO, USA. Both
German and American companies are owned and run by guys with many years of
experience in sports optics working for, amongst others, Zeiss, and one of whom
started his sports optics career machining parts for binoculars. GPO has
organised distribution in the States via GPO, USA while in Europe distribution
is not yet finalised although part of the market will be handled via the RUAG
Group under the GECO brand name. No distribution agreements have been reached
in the UK at the time of writing this.
The binos currently offered are the EDs (lower priced) and HDs (upper-mid
priced) and it is the HD 8x42 that is being reviewed here. HD models are made
in Japan and it is clear that GPO has put considerable thought into the design
as will become apparent when I describe the eyecups fitted to this model.
When I first took this unit out of its box I was immediately struck by the
extremely high standard of fit and finish. I know that some of this can be
regarded as a subjective judgement but the precise fit of the armour, the feel
of precision of the eyecups as they are adjusted and the depth of lustre of the
paint on the bridge all impressed me greatly. This is possibly the
best-finished bino I have come across.
I have complained on Bird Forum often enough about Zeiss eyecups and those
fitted to the GPO, while not quite perfect, really do put some eyecups from
better-known brands to shame. They are specially designed by GPO and made from
machined aluminium incorporating a brass pin as a positive ‘stop’ to make the
positions easily detectable by feel even wearing gloves and to be absolutely
reliable. Moreover to prevent the eyecups being inadvertently loosened or even
unscrewed when they are backed out to the non-spectacle wearer’s position, they
actually unscrew from the binos in a clockwise direction. It is gratifying that
this level of careful thought has been given to a component that some more
established brands regard as trivial. Are they perfect? Not quite because I
would like to see 2 stops available at both the spectacle and non-spectacle
positions but guess what? These eyecups don’t wobble and flop loosely as you
screw them up and down, they glide with a tight precision which means if you
leave them in a place other than one of the click-stops, they don’t move.
The rainguard isn’t quite the success of the eyecups because although it
shrouds the eyepieces very well, it grips them too tightly so that getting them
on and off quickly in the rain isn’t easy. In addition the split ring on one
side for temporarily attaching that side to the strap to keep it out of the way
and not flopping around rotating the strap, works as well as on most other
rainguards i.e. not at all. Almost any movement of the strap causes the
rainguard to free itself and using it to attach the guard to the other end of
the strap doesn’t work either because it very soon becomes detached from there
too. Far better to thread the guard through the two lengths of strap by which
you adjust the overall length of the neck strap and it stays put. Forgive me if
I don’t comment on the objective covers as I never use these myself and they
are subject to many different personal preferences so I will refrain from going
there.
The neck strap is nicely padded but is of the old-fashioned kind that hangs
from the back of your neck instead of the type that is tailored to fit around
your shoulders. Personally I find this uncomfortable unless I am wearing
clothes with a high collar that the strap can rest against but there are plenty
of after-market straps to solve this one if needed. The carrying case is of the
semi-hard clamshell design and I found no problem in putting the bins inside
with the neck strap wrapped around them.
The armour is specially made from TPE or ‘thermoplastic rubber’ as this was the
only material that would provide the high level of finish that GPO required.
The surface of the armour is divided into smooth and textured areas and I find
the latter to be reminiscent of the ‘leatherette’ covers of classic Leicas and Zeisses
of the past. The armour endows the GPO with an appearance simultaneously
classic and modern. I am enclosing some photos with this review and I hope they
convey this appearance adequately.
A quick glance over the specifications demonstrates that the GPO is competitive
on FOV and close focus, and that the weight is towards the top end of 42mm
models although at 830g / 29.3ozs it is pretty much the same as Swaro’s EL
8.5x42 and not too many people have trouble carrying those around. So not a
class-leader by these parameters but up there with the competition.
The dioptre adjustment is accessed by pulling up the focus wheel and you would
think that this arrangement was sufficient to prevent unintended movement of
the dioptre but GPO have gone for a belt and braces approach because the action
of the adjustment moves in tiny increments with a detent between each. I did
wonder if this would allow me to get precisely the adjustment I required but
actually I did.
Getting down to business, how do the optics perform? Actually they are really,
really nice. Stepping outside to view black overhead cables against white
clouds revealed no CA in the centre-field and I had to search for it in the
extreme field edge, while a look across the valley to where a metallic blue car
and a metallic red car usually park delivered rich colours from both, verifying
that the opposite ends of the spectrum are well transmitted.
A walk across a local piece of open land and scattered woodland gave a
surprising opportunity to test for glare as the sun suddenly appeared on an
otherwise unpromising day. I could see a small semi-circular milky area in the
lower part of the FOV but only when I was much closer to the sun than I would
normally dare view. Following a request on Bird Forum to go into more detail
than simply saying ‘closer to the sun than usual’ I went outside in bright
sunshine to test this once again and then posted the following: “With the bins
viewing horizontally I could rotate my view until directly under the sun with
no glare. Lifting the bins up until I was in danger of the sun creeping into
the field of view provoked a small area of glare in the lower portion of the
field of view but ensuring my eyes were centred on axis meant this didn't
appear until it was dangerous to proceed any further. I came indoors with my
vision dazzled by the brightness for a minute or two. In terms of degrees how
close did I get to the sun? I don't know but hey, I sure as hell didn't want to
get any closer and wouldn't normally view anywhere near as close as this”
Visiting a local nature reserve with a fellow Bird Forum member gave a view
over a lagoon covered in choppy waves resulting from the breeze and populated
by dozens of Black-headed Gulls, while in the back-ground the leaves on trees
were wafting to and fro with the breeze. The GPO reproduced this scene with
excellent contrast. The white plumage of the gulls contrasted nicely with their
dark heads, while the shining sides of the wavelets of the water contrasted
with their other, darker sides, and the same thing was happening with the
leaves being wafted in the trees as they displayed first a shiny side wet with
rain and then a dark underside that wasn’t catching the light. But it wasn’t
just that the borders between extremely contrasting regions were emphasised but
also less obviously contrasting regions too. Lifting my Zeiss SF’s to view the
scene it was apparent that they didn’t have quite the same nuance of contrast
and this made the view through the GPO’s a little punchier and a tiny bit more
‘alive’. I am not talking night and day differences here but enough to make me
view the HDs with additional respect.
On the following day I visited my traditional test site with a wide variety of
waterfowl and other subjects. Examining the plumage details of an aggressive
male Mute Swan as it sailed along with wings arched over its back confirmed the
GPO’s ability to deliver detail down to the finest vanes and filaments. The GPO
also revealed the many subtle tones of browns on a Canada Goose’s flanks and
wing coverts at close range and at longer distances the barring effect was
stunning. I shall never look at a Canada Goose again in quite the same way and
it is surely the sign of a good bino that it can make you take a second and
third look at such a familiar bird and find new aspects to enjoy.
The GPO’s smooth focus is a good balance between speed and precision. Using my
standard measurement of the number of turns to focus from a distant target
(that’s a farm 4km or 2.5 miles away) down to a very close object (2.0m or
2.19yd away) it accomplished this in 0.9 turns so a little faster than Zeiss SF
at 1 turn but not as fast as my favourite butterfly-bino, Zeiss’s Conquest HD
8x32 with 0.5 turns. The focus works in an anti-clockwise fashion from near to
far and I hope that this idiosyncrasy doesn’t put anyone off from trying out
this fine instrument. My wife and a fellow BF member tried them and didn’t
notice or comment on this.
At the GPO’s price level (€980 in Europe and $980 in the USA and an estimated
£825 when it reaches the UK) there are many good models from both established
brands in Europe/UK like Kowa, Leica, Meopta, Minox, Nikon, and Zeiss as well
as more recent entrants such as Kite and Vortex, while in the States there are
all these brands plus Maven. Quite simply there are too many models in this
frame to discuss them all here, and to pick out one or two would be unfair on
the rest.
What you get with the GPO is a stunningly finished instrument that delivers
crisp, satisfying images that exceeded my expectations at its price point.