Pentax KX, MX & LX Review from "Analog Insights" (Germany)

Time Traveller · 08-13-2022, 08:17 AM - **2 Likes**

Very nice reviews from "Analog Insights" of three Pentax film cameras: Pentax KX, MX and LX.

You Tube

**gofour3** · 08-13-2022, 09:59 AM

High quality but not prestigious cameras......

Phil.

Time Traveller · 08-13-2022, 11:16 AM

Originally posted by gofour3

High quality but not prestigious cameras......

Phil.

There was a hierarchy in the 1970s and 1980s among the Japanese camera manufacturers with Nikon and Canon at the top. Closely followed by Pentax and Olympus. It's undeniable.

**Sam_I_am** · 08-13-2022, 11:51 AM

I am sure that the redheaded step child named Minolta followed behind.

LesDMess · 08-13-2022, 12:59 PM

In general, I like the production quality, spacing and background music of their videos although Max tends to say "um" a bit much. Maybe they can write out the dialog and review it better? For instance at the 5:29 mark he states the MX probably doesn't have MLU because of it's size when he just said they just reviewed the Olympus OM-1 which is practically the same as the MX but does has MLU. Looking at Pentax lineup, clearly they didn't think MLU was a big deal. OTOH I think he nails it on the head when he stated Pentax follows the form follows function principle and couldn't be more evident when you look at the LX compared to it's peers - Canon New F-1 and Nikon F3. Although all three were released about the same time, the LX was not anticipated while the other two were the third generation from each brand. As such one would expect the Canon and Nikon offerings should have benefited more from years of development but it was the LX that exhibited these innovations.

Anyway, given their views and subscribers I am sure I wouldn't qualify to give them advice . . .

rpjallan · 08-13-2022, 07:52 PM - **1 Like**

Originally posted by Time Traveller

There was a hierarchy in the 1970s and 1980s among the Japanese camera manufacturers with Nikon and Canon at the top. Closely followed by Pentax and Olympus. It's undeniable.

Really?!? I have never owned an SLR other than Pentax but back in the day, if I was ever going to consider changing brands I would be looking at Olympus & Minolta (actually seriously thought about changing to Minolta) before Canon or Nikon.

house · 08-13-2022, 11:11 PM

They do a lot of Leica stuff so calling Pentax non prestigious makes sense.

andrewd · 08-14-2022, 12:17 AM

This was the video that inspired me to buy all three of these cameras

.

I like how the Pentax brand flies under the radar.
Of the three my favourite is the MX.
The KX has many fans and I love the build of this camera. The shutter sound is beautifully damped.
The big let down on the KX for me is the viewfinder - I find it dim and hard to focus, and the meter hard to read.
A perfect hybrid would be a KX body with the MX viewfinder and metering display.

The LX is a jewell, but is expensive to buy and service. For me it doesn’t inspire the same confidence as the mechanical KX and MX because of the ticking time bomb of the circuits (a problem shard by almost all 40 year old electronic cameras).

Time Traveller · 08-14-2022, 01:29 AM

Originally posted by house

They do a lot of Leica stuff so calling Pentax non prestigious makes sense.

It's a silly remark that Pentax cameras should lack 'prestige'. In the 1970s and 1980s, Pentax SLR cameras were as high quality as any other high-quality brand. And at least of as high quality as SLR cameras (and lenses) from Leica, of which not all lived up to the name. On the contrary! The Pentax brand survived - not all did! High-quality camera brands succumbed to the competition: Topcon, Konica, Minolta, Contax/Yashica, Rollei, (Olympus). All top quality/'prestige' brands. In 1970 the Earth's population was 3.6 billion - today 8 billion. The market for cameras should therefore be more than twice as large but has instead shrunk. What happened? Lack of interest in photography? No, it's as big as it was then. Mobile phones have unfortunately contributed to the shrinking of the camera market. They came in a time in the 1990s, when extensive use of plastic, unfortunately, marked the quality of the cameras! However, there is nothing that can replace the joy of shooting with a real camera. Just for information!

And Pentax cameras and especially Pentax lenses were then one of the finest ('prestigious') brands and among the best.

house · 08-14-2022, 01:36 AM

Leica is a prestigious brand Pentax is not. It's quite simple. Brand prestige is quite separate from quality or anything material. From what I understand from older people Pentax was a quality brand but didn't even have the prestige of Nikon or Canon never mind Hasselblad or Leica. This is going back to the seventies. So again for someone used to talking about extremely brutally expensive gear Pentax is a non prestigious quality camera.

rpjallan · 08-14-2022, 08:47 PM

Originally posted by house

Brand prestige is quite separate from quality or anything material.

The term is a lot of crap, basically. After over 40 years in the auto industry, I wouldn't touch most prestigious brands with a 40 ft barge pole. And the ones I may consider purchasing, it would probably be only one or two of their models.

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08-13-2022, 09:59 AM	#2
gofour3 Site Supporter Join Date: Oct 2008 Location: Vancouver, Canada Posts: 8,091	High quality but not prestigious cameras...... Phil.

08-13-2022, 11:16 AM	#3
Time Traveller Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Photos: Albums Posts: 105 Original Poster	Originally posted by gofour3 High quality but not prestigious cameras...... Phil. There was a hierarchy in the 1970s and 1980s among the Japanese camera manufacturers with Nikon and Canon at the top. Closely followed by Pentax and Olympus. It's undeniable.

08-13-2022, 11:51 AM	#4
Sam_I_am Site Supporter Join Date: Mar 2020 Location: Toledo, OR Posts: 851	I am sure that the redheaded step child named Minolta followed behind.

08-13-2022, 12:59 PM	#5
LesDMess Pentaxian Join Date: May 2011 Location: Santa Cruz, CA Photos: Albums Posts: 3,235	In general, I like the production quality, spacing and background music of their videos although Max tends to say "um" a bit much. Maybe they can write out the dialog and review it better? For instance at the 5:29 mark he states the MX probably doesn't have MLU because of it's size when he just said they just reviewed the Olympus OM-1 which is practically the same as the MX but does has MLU. Looking at Pentax lineup, clearly they didn't think MLU was a big deal. OTOH I think he nails it on the head when he stated Pentax follows the form follows function principle and couldn't be more evident when you look at the LX compared to it's peers - Canon New F-1 and Nikon F3. Although all three were released about the same time, the LX was not anticipated while the other two were the third generation from each brand. As such one would expect the Canon and Nikon offerings should have benefited more from years of development but it was the LX that exhibited these innovations. Anyway, given their views and subscribers I am sure I wouldn't qualify to give them advice . . .

08-13-2022, 07:52 PM - 1 Like	#6
rpjallan Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 999	Originally posted by Time Traveller There was a hierarchy in the 1970s and 1980s among the Japanese camera manufacturers with Nikon and Canon at the top. Closely followed by Pentax and Olympus. It's undeniable. Really?!? I have never owned an SLR other than Pentax but back in the day, if I was ever going to consider changing brands I would be looking at Olympus & Minolta (actually seriously thought about changing to Minolta) before Canon or Nikon.

08-13-2022, 11:11 PM	#7
house Pentaxian Join Date: May 2015 Photos: Albums Posts: 3,306	They do a lot of Leica stuff so calling Pentax non prestigious makes sense.

08-14-2022, 12:17 AM	#8
andrewd Senior Member Join Date: May 2021 Posts: 238	This was the video that inspired me to buy all three of these cameras . I like how the Pentax brand flies under the radar. Of the three my favourite is the MX. The KX has many fans and I love the build of this camera. The shutter sound is beautifully damped. The big let down on the KX for me is the viewfinder - I find it dim and hard to focus, and the meter hard to read. A perfect hybrid would be a KX body with the MX viewfinder and metering display. The LX is a jewell, but is expensive to buy and service. For me it doesn’t inspire the same confidence as the mechanical KX and MX because of the ticking time bomb of the circuits (a problem shard by almost all 40 year old electronic cameras).

08-14-2022, 01:29 AM	#9
Time Traveller Senior Member Join Date: Nov 2012 Location: Copenhagen, Denmark Photos: Albums Posts: 105 Original Poster	Originally posted by house They do a lot of Leica stuff so calling Pentax non prestigious makes sense. It's a silly remark that Pentax cameras should lack 'prestige'. In the 1970s and 1980s, Pentax SLR cameras were as high quality as any other high-quality brand. And at least of as high quality as SLR cameras (and lenses) from Leica, of which not all lived up to the name. On the contrary! The Pentax brand survived - not all did! High-quality camera brands succumbed to the competition: Topcon, Konica, Minolta, Contax/Yashica, Rollei, (Olympus). All top quality/'prestige' brands. In 1970 the Earth's population was 3.6 billion - today 8 billion. The market for cameras should therefore be more than twice as large but has instead shrunk. What happened? Lack of interest in photography? No, it's as big as it was then. Mobile phones have unfortunately contributed to the shrinking of the camera market. They came in a time in the 1990s, when extensive use of plastic, unfortunately, marked the quality of the cameras! However, there is nothing that can replace the joy of shooting with a real camera. Just for information! And Pentax cameras and especially Pentax lenses were then one of the finest ('prestigious') brands and among the best.

08-14-2022, 01:36 AM	#10
house Pentaxian Join Date: May 2015 Photos: Albums Posts: 3,306	Leica is a prestigious brand Pentax is not. It's quite simple. Brand prestige is quite separate from quality or anything material. From what I understand from older people Pentax was a quality brand but didn't even have the prestige of Nikon or Canon never mind Hasselblad or Leica. This is going back to the seventies. So again for someone used to talking about extremely brutally expensive gear Pentax is a non prestigious quality camera.

08-14-2022, 08:47 PM	#11
rpjallan Pentaxian Join Date: Aug 2010 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Photos: Albums Posts: 999	Originally posted by house Brand prestige is quite separate from quality or anything material. The term is a lot of crap, basically. After over 40 years in the auto industry, I wouldn't touch most prestigious brands with a 40 ft barge pole. And the ones I may consider purchasing, it would probably be only one or two of their models.