VC2 meter vs Leica MR

[Roel]

I use a Leica MR meter on my Leica M4. I'm not sure about the accuracy of the meter and was thinking of trading it and get a modern VC2 meter.

The guy at the store told me he would sell me the VC2 meter but he thought the Leica MR was more accurate. The VC2 was ok but 'just' a little electronic meter...

Any views on this? I just bought the VC 40mm/1.4 so i thought I want to get good readings in the (un)available light range.

Thanks, Roel

BTW: how are you guys liking the LH5 hood for the 40mm/1.4? I think I saw a post somewhere of a non VC hood available for half the price. Don't know which they mean and if it is any good but opinions are welcome.

 

[FrankS]

I really like the VC2 meter and kept it while selling off my MR meters. It's smaller, easier to put on/remove, and very accurate when used as a reflected light meter should be used.

 

[Tom A]

There is no contest between the MR and the VC II meter. The MR uses obsolete batteries (and scratches the top-plate too). It has a needle and they tend to stick.However, it is coupled to the shutter speed dial and eliminates the chance that you forget the speed you set your VCII to.
I carry the VCII as a "handheld" meter rather than clutter up the top of the camera. CV made a neat little neckstrap with a shoe on it. You slid the meter on it and it could be stuck in the breastpocket and just taken out when you need to confirm your exposures. The VCII is more accurate than the MR and you can pick up batteries anywhere.
If you are Nikon RF user, you can shift the shoe on the meter to clear the shutterspeed dial. Just unscrew the three screws at the bottom and move it over until you see the off set screw-holes.

 

[kross]

i just bought a nokton 40mm, lh5 and vc2..... i like the lens setup.... as for the vc2, i'm getting mostly underexpose....it's probably me... i'll need to verify it with my dslr meter tonight....

cheers...

 

[ferider]

I use a Leica MR meter on my Leica M4. I'm not sure about the accuracy of the meter and was thinking of trading it and get a modern VC2 meter.

: : :

BTW: how are you guys liking the LH5 hood for the 40mm/1.4? I think I saw a post somewhere of a non VC hood available for half the price. Don't know which they mean and if it is any good but opinions are welcome.

I had both meters, and preferred the VC2 meter. But compared to a hand-held
meter in a belt pocket they are both too slow to use, IMO. Plus incident rocks.

WRT the 40/1.4 hood, I like the lens but not the hood. Too difficult to put lens
cap on when the hood is on.

Roland.

 

[dadsm3]

Yes, the VC's look cool, but most guys who've used an MR before all forget that it's not coupled to the speed....
I agree with Roland, for an extra hun you could have a Sekonic L-308s that'll keep your camera small, and they're as fast as you can pull them out of your pocket. Plus incident.

 

[wlewisiii]

I had a VCII & found it to be a very nice and accurate meter. However, I sold it and now use an old Sekonic L-28C Studio Deluxe because, as mentioned above, incident metering is just a fun tool to use. Or the built in meter on my Bessa R for when reflective is fine.

In the end it probably has more to do with how you like to use a meter more than anything else.

William

 

[HuubL]

I have the MR meter with a Wein cell. It's been in the meter for over a year now and it's still active and quite accurate. The meter is a bit slow, but in comparison to an auto-everything P&S, M's are slow anyhow. I like the coupling to the camera's speeds setting. OTOH, most of the time when I go out, I take one (incident) reading and further shoot without a mounted meter.

 

[markinlondon]

I have a VCII and am MR (one of the ones Frank mentioned above). I like them both for different reasons. The VC is more accurate and quicker to respond as well as being smaller but I just love the way the MR couples to the speed dial. Mostly, like Tom A, I just pop the VC in my pocket and take occasional readings when I'm not comfortable with "sunny 16".

 

[Andy Aitken]

Funny, my first MR meter arrived today. I think I still prefer the VCII though. I even use it on top of metered cameras for street photography so that I can set the exposure without looking through the finder. It's dead accurate, uses easy to find SR44's, batteries last forever, tiny. The only thing I hate is that the ISO has no lock and often gets moved by mistake.

 

[like2fiddle]

... It's dead accurate, uses easy to find SR44's, batteries last forever, tiny. The only thing I hate is that the ISO has no lock and often gets moved by mistake.

I have the VC II also, and it's usually mounted on the M2. I've been thinking about making some sort of neck strap so that the camera will be a little more pocketable. The only trouble I've had is the occassional bump of the top and the film speed being different from what I want.

I have the Nokton 40 and the hood. I like being able to use the lens cap along with the hood, but as Roland pointed out, it's not that easy putting the cap on and taking it off (and my hands aren't all that big.)

 

[Roel]

OK thank you guys. So most votes go for the VC2. Since my MR isn't out of batteries yet and I have not had any exposure problems I will see how the MR/fast lens combo works. I also have a Minolta lightmeter that I can use but thats quite a 'pocket full'.

Regarding the hood of the VC 40mm SC. I guess I'll get the LH-5 but first want to see some more results of the lens. The first few color pictures (appr 5/6) were not very good but that could have been a drivers error or scanning problem.
Already had 1 framing problem. I'm a bit reluctant to sand down the bayonet to get the 35mm frame in stead of the 50mm. I will use the lens on the M6ttl (.85) and the M4. I think the 35mm/50mm frames of the M6TTL are a bit narrower than the M4. Haven't figured out yet what I will do in that regard. First some test rolls will have to be shot. (I really want to like the lens and not feel bad about not getting the Summaron 35mm..)

Roel

 

[Beemermark]

I use a Leica MR meter on my Leica M4. I'm not sure about the accuracy of the meter and was thinking of trading it and get a modern VC2 meter./quote]

I have both the MR-4 meter (which is newer than the MR meter) and the VCII meter. For the M bodies I wouldn't use anything besides the MR-4. The MR-4 meter uses a rosette bridge in the electronics to compensate for voltage drop. It is easily adjusted for the slightly lower voltage of the silver oxide battery. The adjustment screw is on the bottom of the meter and only requires a jeweler's screw driver to adjust.

I've shot thousands of rolls of slide film over the years and my MR-4 meters have never let me done. The meter couples to speed dial which makes it very easy to use. The metering area is the same as the 90mm frame lines making it easy to determine what you are metering. You can pick a shutter speed before hand, point the meter (read it from your hip if you're shooting fast) and pick the aperture all in seconds. The only downside is that the little needle is getting harder and harder to see with my old eyes.

As far as scratching the top of the camera, simply put a business card between the camera and meter when mounting and dismounting and you will never hurt the camera.

The VCII meter is nice and I shoot it both on my screw mount bodies and Nikon RF. You can move the shoe on the meter to work with both cameras. By main complaint is that the speed and aperture dials move too easily, when I take a meter reading I have too set both dials each and every time, then pick an aperture. I really don't think it is any more convenient than a handheld meter except that it is always on the camera (and thus doesn't get left behind).

 

[MartinP]

I use an MR meter on my M3 quite often. The MR was cleaned up and checked before I bought it and it matches my calibrated Gossen meter. I now use an adapted hearing aid battery which lasts more than six months (only uncover one of the airholes). The integration with the camera is a great help to speed and fluidity - it also works well off camera as a very small handheld.

The VC meter has no advantages over a separate meter and has the disadvantage, compared to most handhelds, that it does not directly measure incident or flash. In use the dials are loose and the meter is more fragile than the MR.

 

[David Charlwood]

I bought a VCII meter from a Leica dealer in London. It turned out to underexpose by around two stops. I took it back but they did not want to know. I then purchased a Sekonic 308S which is accurate and does everything I want. Donated the VCII to the landfill.
Hope that helps.