I can only buy one camera this month - KX or K2?

Which one will you buy if you already have a KM..the KX or the K2?

  • Total voters
    30

altair

Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2009
Messages
392
Location
Kuala Lumpur
Format
Multi Format
Hello all! My wife and my shrinking budget for this month means I can only buy one camera over the next 30 days, haha. So please help me choose between an Asahi Pentax KX or an Asahi Pentax K2. Let me know which one you will go for and why. If possible, also provide a rough estimate of how much one in good working condition should cost.

I already have an Asahi Pentax KM, and I love it. However the temptation of the KX's shutter sound and shutter speed & aperture displayed in the VF is too much for me. However, I wonder if upgrading from a KM to a KX is worth it..does the shutter speed & aperture display in the VF justify purchasing it?

I am more severely tempted by the K2, seems to me that the vertical metal focal plane shutter is more robust than the cloth on the KM & KX, and I read somewhere the shutter sound of the K2 is simply sublime. The K2 is more full featured as well..and mirror lock up ability, full manual or Auto Aperture Priority exposure too! BUT therein lies the rub, all the electronics governing the electronic shutter & the K2's dependence on batteries makes me a bit nervous. How well & how long does the electronics last?

So guys, please help me out, I need to decide in 3 days..thanks in advance!

-A guy who is desperately staving off GAS
 

Excalibur2

Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2008
Messages
423
Location
UK
Format
35mm
erm If you don't mind what make of camera, the world is open to you..........me? I'll use anything as it's the lens that counts (well and the photographer).
 

benjiboy

Subscriber
Joined
Apr 18, 2005
Messages
11,970
Location
U.K.
Format
35mm
I must be really deprived I've only bought two cameras in twenty five years
 

Steve Roberts

Member
Joined
Oct 12, 2004
Messages
1,299
Location
Near Tavisto
Format
35mm

I have all three of these (and often seem to end up saying things about them!)

As you say, the K2 has MLU, but so does the KX. The shutter sound of the K2 is ...errrr.... distinctive. It's an early electronic/metal shutter and isn't something you'd want to use in a quiet environment such as a theatre. The K2 is a great camera, a bit quirky with its fiddly ASA setting dial (that can't be altered if you're using exposure compensation) and shutter speeds to 8 secs. I'm sure I've said this before, but if I was going on a once in a lifetime trip I'd be wary of the K2's dependence on batteries and electronics and would undoubtedly opt to take the KX. In short - K2, interesting and quirky, KX conventional and dependable.

Now, then, what about the K2DMD ??????

Good luck with whichever you decide on!

Steve
 

Steve Smith

Member
Joined
May 3, 2006
Messages
9,109
Location
Ryde, Isle o
Format
Medium Format
altair said:
My wife and my shrinking budget for this month means I can only buy one camera over the next 30 days
Click to expand...

What a dilemna!

I would stick with the KM. I bought one for a friend last year. It's basically a K1000 with a DOF preview but at half the price as it doesn't have the K1000's cult status.

If funds are low, you should concentrate on collecting the lenses you need rather than duplicating the body.


Steve.
 
Last edited by a moderator:

Steve Smith

Member
Joined
May 3, 2006
Messages
9,109
Location
Ryde, Isle o
Format
Medium Format

Steve Roberts

Member
Joined
Oct 12, 2004
Messages
1,299
Location
Near Tavisto
Format
35mm
Steve Smith said:
What a dilemna!
If funds are low, you should concentrate on collecting the lenses you need rather than duplicating the body.


Steve.
Click to expand...

That's pretty sensible as well!
Both the KM and K1000 infuriate me (well, annoy me a bit, I suppose) with their daft system of having to replace the lens cap or close the case to switch off the meter. (The KX has a "proper" switch activated by the film advance lever and shutter release). The only time I ever want to put a lens cap on a lens is when I sling it back into the gadget bag along with the sandwich crumbs, fluff and other detritis!

Steve
 

Andy K

Member
Joined
Jul 3, 2004
Messages
9,420
Location
Sunny Southe
Format
Multi Format
I'm happy with the cameras I have and use. I am a photographer, not a camera collector.
 

Steve Smith

Member
Joined
May 3, 2006
Messages
9,109
Location
Ryde, Isle o
Format
Medium Format

Excalibur2

Member
Joined
Sep 15, 2008
Messages
423
Location
UK
Format
35mm
Andy K said:
I'm happy with the cameras I have and use. I am a photographer, not a camera collector.
Click to expand...

Well I select the lens and get the camera body to fit it e.g. An excellent viv macro was going very cheaply for Minolta and I didn't have a Minolta camera, no prob bought a X-700 and glad I did as it is a very nice camera.....once you have the common makes no more waiting for a lens to fit your camera, more choice and a chance of getting it cheaper.

OH and I always carry at least two cameras around, could be same makes or different.

All above works for me.
 

John Koehrer

Subscriber
Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
8,276
Location
Aurora, Il
Format
Multi Format
KX for the stop down & MLU, Not battery dependent & a nice solid body.
 

Rol_Lei Nut

Member
Joined
Jul 2, 2006
Messages
1,108
Location
Hamburg
Format
Multi Format
Does the K2 have AE lock?
(Not having it would exclude it, or at least using it in auto mode).

No meter switch on the KM would also be a problem for me.
 
OP
OP

altair

Member
Joined
Mar 5, 2009
Messages
392
Location
Kuala Lumpur
Format
Multi Format
As far as I know, I can find no AE lock on the K2, it does however have a very fiddly exposure compensation dial.

As for me, the absence of a on-off meter switch on the KM is no problem. Just keep the lens cap off while you're out shooting and keep it back on when you store it away.
 

lxdude

Member
Joined
Apr 8, 2009
Messages
7,094
Location
Redlands, So
Format
Multi Format
Rol_Lei Nut said:
Does the K2 have AE lock?
(Not having it would exclude it, or at least using it in auto mode).

No meter switch on the KM would also be a problem for me.
Click to expand...

For some reason, Pentaxes for a long time did not have AE lock on their cameras. I guess their design philosophy was that with the compensation dial it wasn't necessary. The ME series did not have it. Neither did the LX. I always shoot manual exposure, but for me AE with lock is a quick way to establish the desired exposure without fiddling around. I have an ME Super and would much prefer it to the little buttons. It would be handy sometimes on the LX, but no big deal either.
My MX's also lack AE lock but with them I don't miss it at all. ;^)
 

ricksplace

Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2006
Messages
1,561
Location
Thunder Bay,
Format
Multi Format
The horizontal cloth shutters in Pentax cameras are pretty much bulletproof. I'd probably go with the KX for all the reasons already mentioned.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…