Leica IIIF
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I only have a II and a IIIa so I couldn't say. EDIT -They are decently quiet though so I would expect the IIIF to be similar.
I gave up on modern Leicas. They cost too much to repair for insufficient benefit over the older ones.
I gave up on modern Leicas. They cost too much to repair for insufficient benefit over the older ones.
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I have a Leica III (model D) and it is certainly quieter than an M3 or even the small Leica CL from the mid-1970s. I haven't run proper sound tests though, so it's hard to tell if the difference is significant or not in terms of numbers. But in my experience all Leica rangefinders are more or less similar when it comes to shutter sound, and they are certainly much quieter than any SLR or even the Canon rangefinders with metal curtains. I'm not sure how they compare to the Contax I, II or IIa (which have metal curtain slats, but vertically travelling shutters).
My MDa (not a Barnack, obviously) is quieter than my IIIf. Not sure whether my II is louder or not; but I don't want to wake up my wife comparing them.
My IIIf is a conversion from If: generalising would therefore be suspect without checking serial numbers.
My IIIf is a conversion from If: generalising would therefore be suspect without checking serial numbers.
I had a IIIG and Canon 7s, I thought the IIIG to be a bit more quite than the Canon.
It will have the ball bearing shutter that later IIIc cameras had. Whether or not that is "quieter" than the earlier ones, depends on the specific camera and how smooth everything is operating inside it.
In my opinion (and I have all of the Leica IIII line), they are all about the same volume. They sound the same as the M3.
The Canonet III G is very, very quite, as is the Minolta Hi-Matic 9 and other leaf shutter rangefinders.
The Olympic XA is a outright Trombone compared to those other rangefinders!
My Model 7 is quietest camera I have, cant even tell if it has fired if there is any noise.
I think a lot depends on how used they are, but my iiif is a little quieter compared to my M cameras. My "if" is a little quieter than the "iiif" probably because its a little later and hardly used.
The little iiib is noisy as hell and heavily used.
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I got both the IIIG and 7S well used, the IIIG was what 20 years old, the 7S a bit newer, not sure if IIIG was quieter when it was new.
And the point of this discussion is.....?
To annoy the curmudgeons?
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I don't know if you have used a Barnack, but if not, you should know that it is constructed in a way so that the shutter dial rotates swiftly with the speed of the shutter at the moment the shutter button is pressed.
The turn of the dial comes to an abrupt halt and adds to the sound as well as the feel of shooting with the camera.
This results is a more complex and less elegant sound and feel of the exposure moment on a Barnack when comparing to a Leica M - it is also louder to my ear.
Comparing my IID, 2x IIIF and IIIG, the IIIG is probably a tiny bit quieter than the two IIIFs but only noticeable when compared next to each other. The sound of the IID is slightly louder, perhaps because it doesn't have ball bearings? All cameras have been CLA'd within the last 4 years.
IMO side by side, the M shutter has a more pleasant and more quiet sound as well as a much nicer tacit feel following the press of the shutter button.
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Academic interest only, I imagine. And those thread mount Leicas are mechanical beauties, so why not revel in their finer points?
But shutter noise is also a valid concern if it draws attention when you don’t want it. It was the biggest reason for me to abandon my Nikon SLR with its mirror clatter. Cloth shutters make a soft, low-pitched ‘thuck’. Actually I like even better the sharp but minute ‘click’ of my Rollei 35. No-one ever hears that.
Is shutter noise over-played? My experience is that raising an object that obscures your face often attracts attention even before you demonstrate the shutter noise. So does being tall. Or the two in combination. Or simply turning towards the subject. Sometimes it’s best just to be smiley, but you don’t get the same picture.
I mentioned this in another thread, about the Hasselblad's shutter/mirror sound the other day and the professional approach from long ago is still valid; use a well made baffle bag made for your camera's model.
Otherwise, you can always add a "portable" white noise machine to your camera and lenses.
Otherwise, you can always add a "portable" white noise machine to your camera and lenses.
Not quite relevant but interesting nonetheless, I stumbled across a video comparing the sound of a Barnack Leica with a Nikon F (not sure which model exactly). Both had essentially the same sound measurement, but the Nikon's shutter sound was longer in duration, contributing to the idea it is "louder".
Chris
Chris
Hmmm.... They should all go "phoop" - unless it's slow speeds, then they should go "hhsh-phoop"
You two seem to have foreign Leicas. My Leica II, being German, goes "tsukk" at 1/60" and "chtsuk" at 1/20". Sie ist aber außerordentlich leise.
No, yours must be a Fed or Zorki. I'm afraid you've been pedalled a fraud. Is it gold? Does it have an eagle or Luftwaffe scrawled on it? You see, "tsukk" is Russian for "phoop".
My little Retina IIIC is quieter then all of them. I can't even type the sound it is so quiet. 
To quote a man I loathe (bit of concealed politics here), "they're round and they bounce". Apart from not uttering fricatives, it is a most modest and ordinary beast. It answered me in Irish when I said "phoop" to it just now. Otherwise it's happy just to say "Eh".
Sooner or later all discussions of Leica cameras or lenses devolve to the level of "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin."
Sooner or later all discussions of Leica cameras or lenses devolve to the level of "how many angels can dance on the head of a pin."
Not his one.
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