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Thinking of buying an M8


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  • 2 weeks later...

How many of you guys had problems with the shutter with the M8?

Im doing my best to get a M8.2 since I read is more reliable but it's so hard to find a used one in good nick! :(

 

I bought a Voigtlander 35mm F1.4 few days ago...so the lens I got the lens for now I need to get the body!

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I had my M8 for 5 years without shutter failure. The M8 has a top shutter speed of 1/8000th compared to the M8.2's maximum shutter speed of 1/4000. If you're planning to use a very fast lens wide open on a bright day then 1/8000th will be very useful because it will save you having to fit a ND filter or stop down and enlarge your depth of field.

 

Pete.

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How many of you guys had problems with the shutter with the M8?

Im doing my best to get a M8.2 since I read is more reliable but it's so hard to find a used one in good nick! :(

 

I bought a Voigtlander 35mm F1.4 few days ago...so the lens I got the lens for now I need to get the body!

 

My M8 has 33,340 activations. I know of no problems.

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It was definitely not psychological in my case. It was clearly audible. For instance, I like photographing the interiors of cathedrals and churches because often the light can be very special and the peace and calmness (I'm not at all religious) helps with visualisation etc. When I had 1/8000th I was regularly noticed even using discreet shutter rewind mode but on getting a replacement M8 with 1/4000th I very rarely have been noticed even in the same churches and cathedrals.

 

Pete.

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The change from 8000 max to 4000 was made to quieten the shuttersound a bit, there is no evidence for a difference in reliability.

 

Hi everyone. I'm new to this forum and still searching for my first M8. I'm not new to Leica though; I have a R6.2 with 35, 50 Summicron, and 100 APO-Macro-Elmarit. I haven't used R6.2 that much but have adapted all my R lenses for Fuji and Olympus mirrorless systems.

 

I recently dropped off my 35 Summicron lens for a minor service at Leica North America and had an opportunity to speak with the Customer Care Manager in great length regarding M8. He pretty much confirmed above statement that the change from 1/8000 to 1/4000 shutter speed was not due to reliability issue. In fact, shutter repair represents only a small portion of M8 service requests.

 

Sadily, due to the fact that Leica no longer stocks M8's LCD parts, he advised against purchasing an used M8... Other M8 parts, such as shutter, sensor, and etc, are still readily available.

 

I realized 2 things after our conversation: 1) I'm still going to get an M8 :) ; and 2) I'm truly impressed with Leica's customer service. The manager certainly went above and beyond; took his time to address all of my concerns on, not just my 35mm Summicron, but to educate me on a Leica product that I don't even own at the moment. I am very impressed.

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Welcome to the forum, Phatning, I hope you'll find the wealth of excellent knowledge here useful.

 

I think reliability with the 1/8000th shutter is a red herring because after all this time no failure history has shown up What is clear though is that twice the energy is required at 1/8000th so it's reasonable to expect that the stresses involved will be twice as large. But as long as Leica has designed and engineered the shutter and its component parts properly there's no reason to doubt that it would be as reliable as a 1/4000th shutter.

 

Pete.

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What is clear though is that twice the energy is required at 1/8000th so it's reasonable to expect that the stresses involved will be twice as large.

 

Doesn't 1/8000 just use a narrower slit than 1/4000, the speed of the blades (and energy requirement) remaining constant?

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Doesn't 1/8000 just use a narrower slit than 1/4000, the speed of the blades (and energy requirement) remaining constant?

True, but the blades move faster for the original (1/8000 capable) shutter than the later (1/4000 unit) at all speeds. A clue to that is the higher flash sync speed.

 

Doug

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Welcome to the forum, Phatning, I hope you'll find the wealth of excellent knowledge here useful.

 

Thanks Pete. This site was definitely a plus in my decision making process. And, YES, I picked up my M8 this afternoon. :) I will be dropping it off at Leica NA tomorrow for inspection and cleaning service before putting the camera to a good use.

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Thanks Pete. This site was definitely a plus in my decision making process. And, YES, I picked up my M8 this afternoon. :) I will be dropping it off at Leica NA tomorrow for inspection and cleaning service before putting the camera to a good use.

 

Whoa! Congratulations!!!

 

I also bought a second M8 for my Fiancée as a surprise gift. Great camera.

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Mine arrives Monday. Very excited! Been through a 20D, 5D II, X100, X Pro1 and now an A7. I recently purchased a Ricoh GR which i am very impressed with.

 

I just want a small, high quality camera and image with an optical viewfinder.

 

Still love my Dad's old OM-1 which is now mine and a Contax T2.

 

I knew I would own a Leica at some point, but won't spend $4000+ for a body. I've been very impressed with what I have seen out of the M8!

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It's so cool to see so many people getting M8/8.2 cameras.

 

It does seem to keep the prices high, but that just reflects the perceived quality in the camera.

 

It's amazing after all these years that the M8 can be so relevant amongst the field of so many more modern cameras and thankfully it is.

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