Feature Product - The Noblex 12.5mm 84-Degree UWA Eyepiece
Nearly every visual observer needs a good medium-power eyepiece in their toolkit. Such an eyepiece, one with a focal length of 10mm to 15mm, is ideal for observing the moon and many star clusters, galaxies, and nebulae. If it has a large enough field of view, the eyepiece can also accommodate larger deep-sky objects or multiple objects at a sufficient magnification to show fine detail and structure.
There’s plenty of choice in this range of focal length, from affordable Asian-made eyepieces of good quality to higher end eyepieces from Explore Scientific and Tele Vue Optics, for example. At the premium end of the price scale lies the 12.5mm ultra-wide-angle (UWA) eyepiece from Noblex Sport Optics (formerly Docter Optics) with an 84° apparent degree field of view. It's an eyepiece with an enthusiastic following among serious visual observers. Many observers have suggested it’s one of the finest eyepieces available in this range of focal length.
The Noblex/Docter 12.5mm UWA eyepiece has its roots in the precision optics industry in eastern Germany in the mid 20th century. Docter Optics grew out of a Carl Zeiss facility in Eisfeld, Germany in the 1950s, and made a name for itself manufacturing optical consumer goods and industrial products. The plant was taken over by Bernhard Docter in the early 1990s and it continued production of binoculars, small telescopes, and other optical equipment. Part of the business was purchased by Analytik Jena in 1997, which sold it again to Noblex GmBH in 2017. Noblex continues to manufacture this premium eyepiece along with many other products at the same facility and to the same standards as before. Noblex branded these eyepieces as 'Docter' through most of 2018. However, starting in December 2018, these eyepieces are now branded and sold as 'Noblex' and not as 'Docter'.
The Noblex 12.5mm 84-degree eyepiece is a niche product, to be sure, but one that is precisely engineered for serious visual observing and which extracts the best possible image out of a good telescope. It’s main features and specifications:
- 8 lenses arranged in 5 groups, and all optical surfaces are anti-reflection coated for high transmission and the brightest possible images
- 18mm eye relief, sufficient for comfortable viewing even when wearing eyeglasses
- Anastigmatic optical design to effectively eliminate spherical aberration, coma, and astigmatism to the edge of field
- 1.25” and 2” barrels, eliminating the need to switch adapters or star diagonals
- A soft, foldable, and removable eyecup to block ambient light to ensure maximum image contrast and brightness
The Noblex 12.5mm eyepiece is also engineered with a relatively narrow barrel width of 55mm to allow a pair to fit in most binoviewers to match a wide range of interpupillary distance. At a weight of 525g, it is still relatively light.
The eyepiece is at the high end of the price range for amateur astronomical eyepieces. Is it worth it? That’s a personal choice, of course, but in very dark sky, with a well collimated telescope of good quality, and at the hands and eyes of an experienced visual observer, this eyepiece provides high-contrast, wide-field views that are difficult to reproduce with other oculars.
In his 2013 book Choosing and Using Astronomical Eyepieces, author William Paolini wrote of the Noblex/Docter UWA: "This eyepiece maintains an outstanding reputation. Considered by some experienced observers as the best 12.5mm eyepiece made and without peer."
An Agena customer who purchased and extensively used this eyepiece compared it to other premium eyepieces including the 12mm TeleVue Nagler Type 2, 12.5mm Fujiyama Orthoscopic, 11mm TeleVue Plossl, and 10mm TeleVue Delos in an f/5 Newtonian while observing various deep-sky objects. In nearly all areas, the Noblex exceeded the performance of these eyepieces, even with its large 84° apparent field of view. He writes:
[The Noblex] totally clobbers the Nagler. The field is noticeably wider, easier to take in, and perfectly corrected right to the edge. The Nagler doesn't have anywhere near as good edge correction. I couldn't even see coma at the edges of the Docter. On-axis sharpness is a smidge better as well.
For transmission, sharpness, star size, scatter control, and general clarity, it meets or beats the Fujiyama ortho, but with an 84 degree apparent field and enough eye relief use to use glasses.
The 11mm Plossl beat it for transmission - was able to see the superimposed stars of M108 intermittently with the Plossl, but not the Docter or any other of the eyepieces I tried. This is not surprising though, since few eyepieces will best the transmission of a TV Plossl.
The 10mm Delos wasn't really a head-to-head comparison since it's a different focal length, but Delos in general offers tight stars right to the edge and superb clarity. The Docter matched this impression in every way, but with an 84 degree apparent field.
In general, the field of view is just about the easiest to take in of any eyepiece I've ever used. No blackouts, no finicky eye positioning, no need to mess with an adjustable eye guard. The view "just works".”
You can read more reviews of the Noblex/Docter eyepiece and learn more about its features and specifications at the product page on the Agena Astro site, and decide for yourself if it will earn a place in your eyepiece bag.
Learn more about choosing eyepieces in this product guide.
