Zeiss Ultron or Septon?

[papasito]

I have an Ultron 50/1,8 in Icarex mount.


Now can buy one of these two lenses

a- Another Ultron (in M42 mount) U$S 390 to have both versions.

b- Septon 50/2 with Ultramatic CS body and 135/4 lens u$s 320

None cheap. The normal price, I guess.

I would like to buy one.

Which to choose?

[Pancolart]

It is hard to find Septon without separation. Check well before buying. Would be nice to see a comparison of both lenses.

[tb_a]

The Ultron was Tronnier's masterpiece as the successor of the older Septon.
I think that's the better deal, particularly in M42.
BTW, Zeiss is only the branding, actually it's a Voigtländer lens.

[stevemark]

[kds315*]

Well I have the M42 ULTRON since many years; superb lens!!

Album: https://www.flickr.com/photos/kds315/albums/72157632970595464

[papasito]

[papasito]

[papasito]

[calvin83]

I have both with mint glass... I am not able to decide which one is better.

[D1N0]

Get A Zenitar-M 50mm 1.7 instead. Probably my best 50 ish lens.

[stevemark]

[D1N0]

[Pancolart]

Anyone wants to do separation recementing here a bargain Septon: https://www.ebay.de/itm/septon-50-2-voigtlander/333929430808

[stevemark]

[Blazer0ne]

...

[iangreenhalgh1]

[tomasg]

[iangreenhalgh1]

I like interesting flares, in fact one of my favourite 50s and one I would highly recommend as a cheaper, easier to find alternative to the Ultron or Septon is the Schneider Xenon 1.9/50 in DKL mount. That Xenon has all kinds of possibilities for creating flares, use it late in the day when the sun is low in the sky and you can get some really beautiful, dreamy flaring.

I also really love the Hexanon 1.7/50, it is one of the very best in it's class imho.

So many great 50s out there, it really does boil down to personal preference if the aesthetics and character of the rendering rather than pixel level technical details are of more concern, which I think is the vast majority of us.

[tomasg]

[quote="iangreenhalgh1"]I like interesting flares, in fact one of my favourite 50s and one I would highly recommend as a cheaper, easier to find alternative to the Ultron or Septon is the Schneider Xenon 1.9/50 in DKL mount. That Xenon has all kinds of possibilities for creating flares, use it late in the day when the sun is low in the sky and you can get some really beautiful, dreamy flaring.

The Zenitar looks to flare in a way that can be used creatively in some situations. I have a Xenon 50/1.9 but never noticed it to be prone to flare, but mine is a very late M42 version, so perhaps with different coatings.

I also really love the Hexanon 1.7/50, it is one of the very best in it's class imho.

I find this comparison very interesting (using google translate), and very different from the norm, most would say the Rokkor is by far the sharper lens, yet the author seems to find them comparable (at least that s what i understand from the translation):

https://spiral-m42.blogspot.com/search?updated-max=2021-02-03T22:36:00%2B09:00&max-results=2

So many great 50s out there, it really does boil down to personal preference if the aesthetics and character of the rendering rather than pixel level technical details are of more concern, which I think is the vast majority of us.

For me and for some of my friends in real life and on the web it seems it goes in phases, it starts with looking for sharpness (some people get stuck there forever), with time and using the lenses other aspects become more interesting, the next phase is usually bokeh, followed by color rendering phase and after that it s the size and weight phase. After that usually what follows is a looking back fase at the lenses one collected over the years and the realization that one can settle down.

It s just like with women, at one point we settle down with one that we usually marry

[iangreenhalgh1]

I have three or four Minolta 1.7/50s, another great lens. Sharper than the Hexanon? I don't know, I never noticed that, certainly the Hexanon is very sharp, but there is always copy variation to account for. All I am sure of is both the Rokkor and Hexanon are more than sharp enough for my use. I tend to prefer the Rokkor 2/45 to the Rokkor 1.7/50, for it's colours and rendering.

[jamaeolus]

I think the Ultron is a good buy. The Bessamatic/Septon just so so. I have both of these on my ebay "watch worldwide new listings" and you can get a good Septon for around 200, the Bessamatic (assuming its full functioning) is probably another hundred. The m42 Ulrons, when they appear tend to be at least twice that.

[calvin83]

I see no reason to get another Ultron unless you want to collect it in both mounts. Get a Septon without separation is a better idea.

[IAZA]

I have Zeiss Ultron m42, not mint, but still produce nice results. long time ago I was interested in septon, but the price never good enough.
septon results not really amazed me.
Zenitar 50/1,7 is nice, I had it once.
other German lens consideration are, Schneider xenon 50/1,9, Rodenstock Heligon 50/1,9 or 50/2,