FA 77 MIJ vs AIV

**Hattifnatt** · 02-09-2015, 04:48 PM

Hello there,

I'm saving up for the legendary FA 77. Is there any noticeable difference between the Assembled in Vietnam and Made in Japan versions?

I was thinking of getting either an used MIJ or a new AIV. I don't suppose there are any new MIJ's around?

br,
hatti

**jrpower10** · 02-09-2015, 04:58 PM

No new MIJ's. There are lots of threads on this but the consensus seems to be no difference. QA might've been stronger in the MIJ's but as long as you test an AIV when you get it and insure it's a good copy, I can't imagine it would be any different.

**geomez** · 02-09-2015, 05:05 PM

I haven't ever tested an AIV FA ltd, but I love the idea that MIJ are better and hope that everybody continues to believe it, so if I ever sell my three MIJ, silver, low SN Princesses, they fetch higher prices.

**boriscleto** · 02-09-2015, 05:10 PM - **3 Likes**

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

**filoxophy** · 02-09-2015, 05:29 PM

Originally posted by boriscleto

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Amen.

DogLover · 02-09-2015, 05:51 PM

Originally posted by jrpower10

No new MIJ's. There are lots of threads on this but the consensus seems to be no difference. QA might've been stronger in the MIJ's but as long as you test an AIV when you get it and insure it's a good copy, I can't imagine it would be any different.

I would add that QC might have been stronger in the MIJ's than the early AIV's, but as soon as they got production settled, which didn't take long, the difference became nil. Incidentally, I've had one of each. The MIJ was actually the less than stellar one. My AIV is killer.

noelpolar · 02-09-2015, 05:54 PM - **4 Likes**

The following is a personal view…...

The only tangible difference I'm inclined to believe with regard to this question and the 3 FA's…31, 43 & 77 is with early production 43's (this was the first of the 3 manufactured)……. which by being early production were some of the MIJ's…… not all….up to the 10,000 ish serial number range….detail escapes me. Theory goes the the glass/coating formulae evolved to meet new EU regs?….. you know … lead free glass maybe…. some reckon they preferred images from the earlier version.

I bought both the 31 and 77 AIV new….. but decided to hunt down an early 43……serial number in the 700's mint…….price is mostly the same on mint over here anyway….

Ok ….. game on….

Of note….I haven't been able to find a high end lens that I can't take a shit photo with yet!

**monochrome** · 02-09-2015, 06:29 PM

Digitalis says there is no practical difference between MIJ and AIV. I have a lowish-serial MIJ and a brand new (Pentax Ricoh Imaging on the box) AIV. I can't tell any difference.

**UncleVanya** · 02-09-2015, 06:32 PM

Originally posted by noelpolar

of note….i haven't been able to find a high end lens that i can't take a shit photo with yet!

best quote ever!!!!

drypenn · 02-09-2015, 07:00 PM

In my case, there's a difference.

77 is my first limited. It's MIJ. It has some play in the aperture ring. It was a bit annoying at first. Fortunately, it renders perfectly, and so I'm not sending it for repair.

My 43 and 31 are AIVs. Perfectly made, no loose aperture rings and renders perfectly as well. So, it's AIV>MIJ. Being MIJ is not a guarantee of perfect workmanship.

tvdtvdtvd · 02-09-2015, 07:08 PM - **2 Likes**

I bought a new FA77 last fall, which means a new AIV version. It came packed with fancy
chocolates and a bottle of champagne. The day it arrived, I found a $20 in the sofa. The
weather has been sunny and 78 every day since. Oh, and it takes excellent images.

**jpzk** · 02-09-2015, 07:28 PM

Originally posted by Hattifnatt

any noticeable difference between the Assembled in Vietnam and Made in Japan versions?

This is another annoyingly repeated question ... the short answer: No !
The long answer ... it is all over the place on this forum.

I have all three amigos ... all great, some MIJ another AIV .... all great lenses.

---------- Post added 02-09-15 at 09:29 PM ----------

Originally posted by boriscleto

Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

Originally posted by filoxophy

Amen.

Yep !!

DSims · 02-09-2015, 10:08 PM

My FA77 was AIV, my FA43 and FA31 MIJ.

The FA77 was my favorite.

(I do believe, however, that my MIJ FA43 was just a little better with the colors than the later ones. But I can't imagine the FA77 being any better, and MIJ FA77s seem prone to mechanical problems, which were fixed in AIV versions.)

LeRolls · 02-10-2015, 09:39 AM

My FA77 is MIJ (purchased from a fellow forum member) and I love it. I have a feeling that if it were AIV I'd love it all the same.

**hjoseph7** · 02-10-2015, 10:01 AM

[On August 6, 2007, Hoya completed a friendly public tender offer for Pentax and acquired 90.59% of the company.[8] On August 14, 2007, the company became a consolidated subsidiary of Hoya. On October 29, 2007, Hoya and Pentax announced that Pentax would merge with and into Hoya effective on March 31, 2008.[9] Hoya closed the Pentax-owned factory in Tokyo, and moved most of their operations to Southeast Asia. All professional (DA*) and consumer (DA, D-FA) lenses are produced in Vietnam, whereas DSLR cameras are produced in Philippines. ]

This article was copy-pasted from he Wikipedia website. Now I'm not sure how much skill it takes to put those lenses together. I'm sure that the technicians who use to put those lenses together did not all pack their bags and move to Vietnam. It must have taken a certain amount of training to get the new workers up to speed. I'm pretty sure some expertise might have been lost during that transfer of operations, but how much did it affect the build quality of certain lenses, probably only Pentax and Hoya know for sure ?

So far, I have not had any issues with lenses made in Vietnam or with my K-5 II which was built in the Philippines.

02-09-2015, 04:48 PM	#1
Hattifnatt Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Bucharest Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,625	FA 77 MIJ vs AIV Hello there, I'm saving up for the legendary FA 77. Is there any noticeable difference between the Assembled in Vietnam and Made in Japan versions? I was thinking of getting either an used MIJ or a new AIV. I don't suppose there are any new MIJ's around? br, hatti

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02-09-2015, 04:58 PM	#2
jrpower10 Site Supporter Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Richland, Washington, USA Posts: 935	No new MIJ's. There are lots of threads on this but the consensus seems to be no difference. QA might've been stronger in the MIJ's but as long as you test an AIV when you get it and insure it's a good copy, I can't imagine it would be any different.

02-09-2015, 05:05 PM	#3
geomez Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2013 Location: Roanoke, Virginia, USA Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,760	I haven't ever tested an AIV FA ltd, but I love the idea that MIJ are better and hope that everybody continues to believe it, so if I ever sell my three MIJ, silver, low SN Princesses, they fetch higher prices.

02-09-2015, 05:10 PM - 3 Likes	#4
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!

02-09-2015, 05:29 PM	#5
filoxophy Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Albuquerque Posts: 1,132	Originally posted by boriscleto Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Amen.

02-09-2015, 05:51 PM	#6
DogLover Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Tennessee Posts: 2,054	Originally posted by jrpower10 No new MIJ's. There are lots of threads on this but the consensus seems to be no difference. QA might've been stronger in the MIJ's but as long as you test an AIV when you get it and insure it's a good copy, I can't imagine it would be any different. I would add that QC might have been stronger in the MIJ's than the early AIV's, but as soon as they got production settled, which didn't take long, the difference became nil. Incidentally, I've had one of each. The MIJ was actually the less than stellar one. My AIV is killer.

02-09-2015, 05:54 PM - 4 Likes	#7
noelpolar Veteran Member Join Date: Oct 2013 Location: Goolwa, SA Photos: Gallery Posts: 4,310	The following is a personal view…... The only tangible difference I'm inclined to believe with regard to this question and the 3 FA's…31, 43 & 77 is with early production 43's (this was the first of the 3 manufactured)……. which by being early production were some of the MIJ's…… not all….up to the 10,000 ish serial number range….detail escapes me. Theory goes the the glass/coating formulae evolved to meet new EU regs?….. you know … lead free glass maybe…. some reckon they preferred images from the earlier version. I bought both the 31 and 77 AIV new….. but decided to hunt down an early 43……serial number in the 700's mint…….price is mostly the same on mint over here anyway…. Ok ….. game on…. Of note….I haven't been able to find a high end lens that I can't take a shit photo with yet!

02-09-2015, 06:29 PM	#8
monochrome Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Working From Home Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 26,276	Digitalis says there is no practical difference between MIJ and AIV. I have a lowish-serial MIJ and a brand new (Pentax Ricoh Imaging on the box) AIV. I can't tell any difference.

02-09-2015, 06:32 PM	#9
UncleVanya Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Jul 2014 Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 28,401	Originally posted by noelpolar of note….i haven't been able to find a high end lens that i can't take a shit photo with yet! best quote ever!!!!

02-09-2015, 07:00 PM	#10
drypenn Veteran Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Photos: Albums Posts: 963	In my case, there's a difference. 77 is my first limited. It's MIJ. It has some play in the aperture ring. It was a bit annoying at first. Fortunately, it renders perfectly, and so I'm not sending it for repair. My 43 and 31 are AIVs. Perfectly made, no loose aperture rings and renders perfectly as well. So, it's AIV>MIJ. Being MIJ is not a guarantee of perfect workmanship.

02-09-2015, 07:08 PM - 2 Likes	#11
tvdtvdtvd Veteran Member Join Date: Jan 2010 Posts: 1,665	I bought a new FA77 last fall, which means a new AIV version. It came packed with fancy chocolates and a bottle of champagne. The day it arrived, I found a $20 in the sofa. The weather has been sunny and 78 every day since. Oh, and it takes excellent images.

02-09-2015, 07:28 PM	#12
jpzk Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: Québec Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 8,251	Originally posted by Hattifnatt any noticeable difference between the Assembled in Vietnam and Made in Japan versions? This is another annoyingly repeated question ... the short answer: No ! The long answer ... it is all over the place on this forum. I have all three amigos ... all great, some MIJ another AIV .... all great lenses. ---------- Post added 02-09-15 at 09:29 PM ---------- Originally posted by boriscleto Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah! Originally posted by filoxophy Amen. Yep !!

02-09-2015, 10:08 PM	#13
DSims Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2009 Location: Southern California Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 3,236	My FA77 was AIV, my FA43 and FA31 MIJ. The FA77 was my favorite. (I do believe, however, that my MIJ FA43 was just a little better with the colors than the later ones. But I can't imagine the FA77 being any better, and MIJ FA77s seem prone to mechanical problems, which were fixed in AIV versions.)

02-10-2015, 09:39 AM	#14
LeRolls Pentaxian Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: PSL, FL Posts: 4,504	My FA77 is MIJ (purchased from a fellow forum member) and I love it. I have a feeling that if it were AIV I'd love it all the same.

02-10-2015, 10:01 AM	#15
hjoseph7 Site Supporter Join Date: May 2014 Location: Minnesota Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,047	[On August 6, 2007, Hoya completed a friendly public tender offer for Pentax and acquired 90.59% of the company.[8] On August 14, 2007, the company became a consolidated subsidiary of Hoya. On October 29, 2007, Hoya and Pentax announced that Pentax would merge with and into Hoya effective on March 31, 2008.[9] Hoya closed the Pentax-owned factory in Tokyo, and moved most of their operations to Southeast Asia. All professional (DA*) and consumer (DA, D-FA) lenses are produced in Vietnam, whereas DSLR cameras are produced in Philippines. ] This article was copy-pasted from he Wikipedia website. Now I'm not sure how much skill it takes to put those lenses together. I'm sure that the technicians who use to put those lenses together did not all pack their bags and move to Vietnam. It must have taken a certain amount of training to get the new workers up to speed. I'm pretty sure some expertise might have been lost during that transfer of operations, but how much did it affect the build quality of certain lenses, probably only Pentax and Hoya know for sure ? So far, I have not had any issues with lenses made in Vietnam or with my K-5 II which was built in the Philippines.