Gun and Game Forum banner

Gen 1 vs. Digital NV Scopes..

3K views 5 replies 3 participants last post by  StanB 
#1 ·
I've been playing around and just finished another Night Vision comparison review on YouTube and figured I'd share it here too..

This one is Between two "budget" NV Scopes, the Firefield NVRS which is an traditional commercial Gen 1 scope, and the Sightmark Photon RT which is a Digitial scope.

The NVRS is less costly initially at $270-300, but generally needs an extra IR illuminator and mount which brings it to around $350 to work decently out to about 100 yards.

I've been generally wary of digital NV, especially for the prices most companies have been asking, but here recently I've noticed that the cheapest version of the Sightmark Photon RT (4.5x42s with 850nm illuminator) has been running $435 compared to the $550 and up that's been normal so I decided to give it a try, and I have to say it works much better than I anticipated and actually better IMO than the NVRS in it's ability to amplify light, and the built in illuminator on this thing works well out to 200-300 yards, so the only add-on needed is a pair of 30mm scope rings to mount it.

Anyway, here's the review... I'm also interested to get impressions from anyone using NV on how this stuff compares to other NV out there as there is a lot of Hype and Snake Oil claims on a lot of this stuff, so real world experience and feedback is always good to hear.



I've also gotten a Sightmark Wraith HD (thier latest digital Day/Night scope) to play with and am working on a comparison between it and the Photon RT next.
 
See less See more
#2 ·
good video.
I haven't gotten to hunt with my NVRS yet but I have been shooting with it and really like it so far. I took your advise and got a T-38 illuminator but at my short 25 yd range, its not necessary. but looking through the scope at objects farther off, the illuminator does make a difference.
I have been thinking about getting an infra red scope to use for scanning the area to locate animals and shooting them with the NVRS. what do you know about infra red scopes? lol
 
#3 ·
If by Infrared you meaning Thermal there are a couple of relatively cheap options, esp. if you don't mind connecting them to your smart phone and slower refresh rates. Both FLIR and SEEK have phone attachable devices and smaller stand-alone handhelds and there are a couple of other companies doing neat things too like Torrey Pines.

About the cheapest option going are the SEEK camera's that attach to your phone or tablet and you can find them used on FleaBay often for under $200 (just checked Amazon and their XR is running $200-300 new).

I've posted a couple of video's on them a while back (they are in my channel as well), but the Seek XR (eXtended Range) model has a narrower field of view at 20 degrees (their standard is 36 FOV) with a 206x156 sensor which by my math comes out to 1 pixel representing about a 5.8" square @ 100 yards. They are pretty choppy when you scan as they have a slow refresh rate of 9 frames a second, but offer a lot of bang for the buck since you can also use them for finding heat loss, bad wiring or connections and even water leaks around the house as well. (I have both a regular and an XR and have been satisfied with both for what they are).

Seek and Flir also make stand alone handhelds (not counting all the industrial use stuff out there) but they are a bit more pricey, just pay attention to the field of view and sensor resolution (all the cheaper ones are going to be slow frame rates) and do the MOA math to get a feel for what kind of detail you can see at 100 yards. (Horizontal FOV in Degrees x 60)/Horizontal Sensor Resolution = MOA or Per Pixel Square Inch area represented at 100 yards.
 
#4 ·
thanks for the info! I will check out more of your videos when I have time.:usa2:
I am assuming that being within cell tower range is not necessary when using a thermal scope that attach to the phone. (no cell phone service where I hunt.) I am not very "computer literate" and was kinda disappointed to read that thermal scopes need a "smart phone" to operate. :( I don't know how to use about 3/4 of what my phone can do as it is! :rolleyes: one of the main reasons I chose the NVRS scope was its ease of operation and lack of technological B.S.. its tough being a dinosaur in this high tech age!:confused:
 
#5 ·
No, but you would need service to download and I believe initially set up the software for the cell phone thermal camera, but after that they should work stand alone.

And there are a good number of thermal's that don't need a cell phone etc, I was just pointing out some of the most budget oriented options.

The Seek "Reveal" is a stand alone handheld imager, and FLIR also has their "Scout" series and there are several others on the market as well, but cost climbs up pretty quickly on thermal stuff.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top