M6 vs MP

Gid

Well-known
Local time
2:55 AM
Joined
Mar 10, 2005
Messages
1,794
Location
Suffolk, UK
I've tried searching, but there are so many threads referring to both of these cameras that it would take me a week to find the answer I want.

What do you get from an MP that you don't get in an M6 classic, besides an improved RF and a newer camera?

Thanks for your patience.
 
Hi, Magus. I guess I forgot quieter 🙂. There are quite a few MP's turning up used here in the UK in the £1400+ range, ffordes have three at the moment and Aperture have had a few through lately.
 
you get a rewind knob instead of a rewind crank and an all metal advance lever instead of the plastic-hinged lever.
 
Gid said:
I've tried searching, but there are so many threads referring to both of these cameras that it would take me a week to find the answer I want.

What do you get from an MP that you don't get in an M6 classic, besides an improved RF and a newer camera?

Thanks for your patience.


Having such questions, you'r not able to get a Leica MP.
You will realy not get more than a camerabody for loading films and mounting lenses.
So what?

Did Leica say, it will last for ever or maybe some decades more?
Is the feeling, having the very best mechanic and the latest developement in camerabody enough?
And the brighter rangefinder, the missing red dot and other internal improvements you don't see are small stepps between M6 and MP.

The M6 is the best rangefinder, but the MP is a little bit better.

🙄
 
Thank you. Your responses are roughly what I thought they would be. I am very happy with my M6 (classic), notwithstanding the occasional RF flare issue, which I work around. The camera looks like it just came out of its box for the first time and everything is perfect operationally. I am trying to rationalise my equipment and have decided that for 35mm I would like to have two very similar (or the same) bodies. I find switching between the M6 and the Hexar RF sometimes confusing, especially as I tend to use the Hexar on AE (I know I could switch to manual, but the interfaces are slightly different). I know that the MP shutter speed dial moves in the opposite direction to the M6 (classic) and that would probably confuse me just as much and I'd end up having to have two MPs😱 So, the question stems from being safe in the knowledge that if I buy one MP, I will surely have to have another :bang: , which would mean divesting myself of some other cameras that I am very fond of 🙁 .

Magus,

I did follow your quest for and final acquisition of the MP and I am very pleased that you achieved your goal. I share your love of top quality engineering, but I am less concerned about being the very first owner (although I can understand your joy).

Some of you may have noticed a common thread in my recent postings. Apologies if I am repeating myself, but your input is cheaper than therapy 🙂
 
Gid said:
I know that the MP shutter speed dial moves in the opposite direction to the M6 (classic) and that would probably confuse me just as much and I'd end up having to have two MPs😱

afair:
M6 TTL = M7 = M8 = 'wrong way' 🙂
M2 = M3 = M4* = M6 classic = new MP
 
ffttklackdedeng said:
afair:
M6 TTL = M7 = M8 = 'wrong way' 🙂
M2 = M3 = M4* = M6 classic = new MP

Thanks guys. Someone else posted the other day that the MP was the same as the M6 TTL. Unfortunately, you have now removed the only real barrier that I had with regard to the MP (apart from cost, that is)🙁

Better check out Ffordes then 🙂
 
JoNL said:
There are actually a number of internal changes from M6 to MP. They are summarized - unfortunately in German - here:

http://www.leica-camera-user.com/leica-kundenforum/4341-modifizierung-leica-mp.html#post40377

Translation:

  1. Finder:
    • All optical elements coated
    • Anti-scratch coating on the windows
    • Internal prism covered in black paint against reflections
    • Extra lens for more even lighting of the framelines and against reflexes (translator's note: the main "MP finder" innovation)
    • Some changes in shape of internal mirrors, against reflexes
    • Changes in cover geometry to protect against horizontal misalignment after mechanical shocks
    • ‎Two-step battery display (if "close to empty", the battery symbol will appear but the meter will still work; if "empty", only the battery symbol will appear)
  2. Electronics:
    • State-of-the-art upgraded metering circuit
    • Flash processor for digital in-factory fine tuning of the metering parameters; the abolition of potentiometers boosts reliability (translator's note: but makes adjustments more difficult for independent repairmen)
    • Better meter linearity
    • Voltage regulator for consistent metering results in spite of battery drain
  3. Flash operation:
    • Flash sync (not TTL metering, of course) will now work even if no battery is present.
    • Redesigned flash shoe.
  4. Film transport:
    • Minor gear shape redesigns for smoother operation and enhanced durability
  5. Battery cover:
    • Extra coin-slotted battery cover comes with the camera. (Edited May 14, 2007 to reflect fftklackdedeng's correction.)
  6. Shutter:
    • Shutter brake base board is now made of bronze, giving better long-term durability.
    • Shutter brake spring (translator's note: I won't bother to look up the precise technical designations, as most of us won't know anyway which spring is meant) is thinner and made from different material, for the same reason
    • Another brake spring (translator's note: see above) is harder and made of steel now
    • Second friction spring (translator's note: see above) is now slightly more elastic
I'm not sure that's worth $600, which elsewhere buys you an entire used M4 with a flare-free finder, or a Hexar RF, or a new Bessa R2/3/4, but then it's your money and your camera. The finder is probably the biggest innovation.

Philipp
 
Last edited:
Gid said:
I've tried searching, but there are so many threads referring to both of these cameras that it would take me a week to find the answer I want.

What do you get from an MP that you don't get in an M6 classic, besides an improved RF and a newer camera?

Thanks for your patience.


I bought an MP as a demo not long after they were first offered, and used it for a year and a half. During that time I had to take apart the eyepiece several times to clean out crud that accumulated inside it and finally seal it with automotive caulk. It is a non-threaded design with a large gap on one side and a rubber overlay that was supposed to seal it but didn't. Leica has since begun sealing it at the factory, but the design still requires sealant that the original M6 doesn't. I also had to shell out $180 for an add-on rewind crank because of difficulty rewinding it quickly at several weddings I was informally asked to shoot. Eventually I sold the MP (got back what I paid thanks to the new price having skyrocketed in the meantime) and used the money to buy two M6 classics from KEH in "bargain" grade (both at least ebay "Mint minus" 😀 ) plus a Voitlander 28/1.9 plus a brick of film. Whatever purported "improvements" there are in the MP metering and shutter, have not impacted me significantly enough to warrant mention. I rarely have a problem with the viewfinder "flare" but if I did, $165 to DAG would solve the problem a lot cheaper than buying an MP. Don't get me wrong, the MP is a beautiful camera, but functionally (all that matters to me) there was not, to my viewpoint, enough difference to justify the huge price spread.
 
Puh, Philipp! That was tough work! I was thinking about translating too, but some special words I didn't really knew..

Minor fix for the battery cover: an extra battery cover with a coin slit is included in the package.

I liked the shutter related points most, these guys are really perfectionists.. or crazy.. or both 😉
 
Ben Z said:
I bought an MP as a demo not long after they were first offered, and used it for a year and a half. During that time I had to take apart the eyepiece several times to clean out crud that accumulated inside it and finally seal it with automotive caulk. It is a non-threaded design with a large gap on one side and a rubber overlay that was supposed to seal it but didn't. Leica has since begun sealing it at the factory, but the design still requires sealant that the original M6 doesn't. I also had to shell out $180 for an add-on rewind crank because of difficulty rewinding it quickly at several weddings I was informally asked to shoot. Eventually I sold the MP (got back what I paid thanks to the new price having skyrocketed in the meantime) and used the money to buy two M6 classics from KEH in "bargain" grade (both at least ebay "Mint minus" 😀 ) plus a Voitlander 28/1.9 plus a brick of film. Whatever purported "improvements" there are in the MP metering and shutter, have not impacted me significantly enough to warrant mention. I rarely have a problem with the viewfinder "flare" but if I did, $165 to DAG would solve the problem a lot cheaper than buying an MP. Don't get me wrong, the MP is a beautiful camera, but functionally (all that matters to me) there was not, to my viewpoint, enough difference to justify the huge price spread.

That worries me. My M6 is about 18 years old, is perfect and I'm sure it will outlast me🙁 I'd hate to shell out extra for a sub standard camera🙂
 
To emphasize again, the MP is not "substandard", in fact it is a beautiful camera and a lot of people are using and taking great photographs with them. IMO what it isn't, is it isn't $2500 more camera than a clean $1000 M6.
 
Back
Top Bottom