Shutter sound - FM2n / aluminum vs. FE2 / titanium

franknstuff · Jan 8, 2010

I've had a FM2n / aluminum shutter for quite a while; a while back I also purchased an FE2 / titanium shutter - both work fine and take great pictures with all my lenses. The difference between the sound of the shutters is huge - the FM2n is louder and rings a bit ("click - clang"), whereas the FE2 has a softer and more "pleasing" sound ("click - snick"), at least to my ears. Both mirrors are well damped - I was just wondering if this difference in sound is related to the shutter materials (aluminum vs titanium), or just the general properties of the cameras themselves. I've not found much on the net about this specifically (maybe I'm not looking in the right place...).

Nicholas Lindan · Jan 8, 2010

The FM2n's shutter travels a bit faster to give the camera a 1/250 X-sync speed. Neither Al or Ti are known for their musical properties, though I have a cast aluminum pot lid that makes a great dinner gong. The aluminum used in the FM2n's shutter is a very stiff alloy and it may have some resonance to it, the honeycomb pattern on the FE2's Ti shutter would tend to break up any ringing. However, my guess is the ringing is in another part of the shutter mechanism.

mablo · Jan 8, 2010

If you look close enough into the open lens mount of the FM2n and trigger the shutter mechanism you can see that most of the 'clang' noise comes from when the mirror slaps back down. At least this is the case with my aluminium shutter FM2n. I recently shot my friends titanium shutter FE2 for a few rolls but I didn't find noticeably softer shutter/mirror noise. Naturally, as these cameras have been in use for a long time, your mileage may vary.

If you happen to see a FA somewhere you should try that for much much nicer sounds IMO.

dfoo · Jan 8, 2010

I have both the FM2 and FE2... I find both sound remarkably like a shotgun after shooting with my Leicas for a while

fotch · Jan 8, 2010

dfoo said:
I have both the FM2 and FE2... I find both sound remarkably like a shotgun after shooting with my Leicas for a while

Wow, that is a brutal description. However, the Leica is definitely more stealthy.

franknstuff · Jan 8, 2010

mablo said:
If you look close enough into the open lens mount of the FM2n and trigger the shutter mechanism you can see that most of the 'clang' noise comes from when the mirror slaps back down. At least this is the case with my aluminium shutter FM2n. I recently shot my friends titanium shutter FE2 for a few rolls but I didn't find noticeably softer shutter/mirror noise. Naturally, as these cameras have been in use for a long time, your mileage may vary.

If you happen to see a FA somewhere you should try that for much much nicer sounds IMO.

...thanks for all the quick and polite replies - from everyone. The "clang" sound from my FM2n is definitely during the end of the shutter cycle - I can tell just by setting the speed to "1" (second) or bulb and listening for it. I guess I just assumed that the mirror return mechanism of the FE2 and FM2n would be pretty much the same and that the different sounds were the result of the different shutter materials (maybe someone with a FM2n with titanium shutter could chime in). In any event they both work fine and expose fine - they just sound "different".

dfoo · Jan 8, 2010

fotch said:
Wow, that is a brutal description. However, the Leica is definitely more stealthy.

Heh. Until you use them back to back you don't really notice. I was doing some street shooting last summer with an M3 and a 50mm lens and my FE2 with a 24mm lens. I was actually in quite a loud environment in a park full of noisy people, and singers. The FE2 was very distracting and loud in comparison. When shooting the Leica I never got a second look, in comparison the FE2 definitely turned heads.

nolanr66 · Jan 8, 2010

I used to have a FE2 up until about 2 years ago. I do not remember it being particularly loud but I cannot say I ever worried about it either. Currently I have aNikon N80 and I think it is a very quiet camera. It even has a quiet rewind function. Recently there was a dealer show at Keeble and Schucatt, Palo Alto, Ca and I had the opportunity to handle a Leica MP. I did not find the shutter sound to be stealth like at all. Certainly was not a noisey camera but it was louder then I had expected.

John_Nikon_F · Jan 9, 2010

All of my FM2n and FE2 bodies sounded exactly the same. A loud "CLACK" from the mirror box. My early FM2's, however, had more of a clang to them, mainly because they used the FM mirror box instead. If you manually operate the mirror on an FM2n or an FE2, you'll see that there's an extra flap that moves downward as the mirror goes up. It's the secondary light trap that Nikon added to help keep the shutter light-tight.

-J

DamenS · Jan 9, 2010

I thought both the FM2 and FE2 had honeycombed Titanium shutters ? Could the sound you are hearing be caused by the mechanical internals of the FM2 as opposed to the FE2's electrical internals instead ?

franknstuff · Jan 9, 2010

John_Nikon_F said:
All of my FM2n and FE2 bodies sounded exactly the same. A loud "CLACK" from the mirror box. My early FM2's, however, had more of a clang to them, mainly because they used the FM mirror box instead. If you manually operate the mirror on an FM2n or an FE2, you'll see that there's an extra flap that moves downward as the mirror goes up. It's the secondary light trap that Nikon added to help keep the shutter light-tight.

-J

...hmmm - I don't see any sort of "extra flap" in the mirror box of either my FM2n or FE2 - I guess though that the sound from the FE2's mirror box could be described as a "CLACK". I'm not sure how early my FM2n is (Serial # N754xxxx), but the mirror return sound is definitely a "CLANG".

franknstuff · Jan 9, 2010

DamenS said:
I thought both the FM2 and FE2 had honeycombed Titanium shutters ? Could the sound you are hearing be caused by the mechanical internals of the FM2 as opposed to the FE2's electrical internals instead ?

All FE2 shutters are titanium - some FM2(n) shutters are aluminum and some are titanium.

John_Nikon_F · Jan 9, 2010

The flap is at the bottom, and isn't visible if the mirror is all the way up. You'll see it if you work the mirror up and down while watching closely. It's possible that your FM2n received a replacement mirror box at one time, too, especially if you bought it used. Sounds like it's one of the first of the alu shutter black bodies from the serial #.

With respect to the FM2n/FE2 having titanium shutters, that is true, until 1989, when the FM2n began receiving the N8008 shutter curtains. I've tended to prefer the titanium shutter bodies, after I noticed my black early FM2n was more accurate in comparison to my later model black FM2n. Wasn't much of a difference, but the early body was spot on when tested on a shutter tester. I've also noticed that the early FM2n's seem not to develop the twitchy meter LED's, whereas the later bodies do. Something changed right around the 747xxxx serial range for the chrome bodies, and 752xxxx for the black bodies. Had beaters in the lower numbers with perfectly smooth meters, and nice later bodies that were twitchy.

-J

franknstuff · Jan 9, 2010

John_Nikon_F said:
The flap is at the bottom, and isn't visible if the mirror is all the way up. You'll see it if you work the mirror up and down while watching closely. It's possible that your FM2n received a replacement mirror box at one time, too, especially if you bought it used. Sounds like it's one of the first of the alu shutter black bodies from the serial #.

With respect to the FM2n/FE2 having titanium shutters, that is true, until 1989, when the FM2n began receiving the N8008 shutter curtains. I've tended to prefer the titanium shutter bodies, after I noticed my black early FM2n was more accurate in comparison to my later model black FM2n. Wasn't much of a difference, but the early body was spot on when tested on a shutter tester. I've also noticed that the early FM2n's seem not to develop the twitchy meter LED's, whereas the later bodies do. Something changed right around the 747xxxx serial range for the chrome bodies, and 752xxxx for the black bodies. Had beaters in the lower numbers with perfectly smooth meters, and nice later bodies that were twitchy.

-J

...ah - now I see 'em (the flaps) - on both my FM2n and FE2 - thanks!

nyoung · Jan 9, 2010

as a long time user of both, I'll vote for the difference in sound benig due to the fact that the FM2(n) is a wind-up mechanical clock while the FE2 shutter is electronically controlled and dampened.

dynachrome · Jan 9, 2010

FM2n vs. FE2

I thought that after a certain point FE2s which needed shutter repairs also got aluminum blades. I have only had an FE2 for a short time but its shutter doesn't seem much louder than those of my other SLRs which have metal bladed shutters.

John_Nikon_F · Jan 10, 2010

As someone who's owned pretty much everything but the FA and owned at least one FM2n body since 1991, I've only noticed the different sound on the early FM2's. Maybe on a very early FM2n that I owned in 2007-08, but, otherwise, the FM2n's that I've owned, have sounded exactly like the FE2's. The only time the mechanical clock comes into effect is below 1/15th, when the camera is essentially using the self-timer to time the slower speeds. On the FE2/FA, the spring clock sond isn't there, obviously, because those bodies are electronically timed. The reason why the FM2 sounds different than the FM2n/FE2 bodies is due to the early mirror box, which was a carryover from the FM. If you fire an FM, FM2, and an FM2n in succession, you'll hear the clang that the FM and the FM2 produce. Happens to be the same sound that the Nikkormat EL makes as well. The FM2n, however, is quite loud with its clack (or, as some people have described it, the "THWACK"). Nikon tried to slience the mirror box a bit on the FA. Unfortunately, it sounds like they used the silencer from a pistol, instead of redesigning the mirror box to be quieter.

With respect to the shutter curtain replacements on the FE2's, that is true, as stock of the titanium curtains dried up. I've seen a couple on the 'bait that have been retrofitted with N8008 curtains.

-J

Shutter sound - FM2n / aluminum vs. FE2 / titanium

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