well... the OP said ad nauseam, so here goes my take on this subject : I faced the dillema thankfully a few years ago ( 4 I believe ), way before the M9 sees the light and the M8 was just the new thing in town.
I've had the 50 1.4 lux pre asph, known by having a delicate and exquiste bokeh, vs the more sharp and clynical 50 1.4 asph, known as one if the not the best 50mm in the world.
why I choose the pre asph vs the asph version ? tested both extensively and just found the asph version a bit too "cool" , as in cold not as in groovyness.
Leica lens are not cheap and myself when I buy them, I like to keep them for years to come. for me they have two categories that they fall into : lens with character, distinctive signatures that tell them apart - even if they are a bit flawed in the flare, sharpness or other "techical" department, and other lens that are techincal milestones.
that is for me, the huge difference from a 50 1.4 asph and a 50 1.4 pre asph : pre asph has bags of character and the asph is a more cynical , objective focused , sharper lens.
my OWN problem with lens like this is that they rely much on technical stuff ( sharpness, flare resistance, etc etc ) that can easily be comparable and surpassed by the next lens.
Lens with character , on the other hand, are timeless - again, even if a bit flawed on the sharpness department - they do not rely entirely on objective measurement of their qualities.
So... with these forewords ( well text actually
) in mind, I happily owned a 50mm 1.4 pre asph until the day that a few ba&*$! went to my home and took my photographic stufff and the tv.
After insurance payout, I was doing the best thing related to Leica besides taking pictures : buying Leica stuff.
I always heard about the "unicorn lens" ,as I call it : the noctilux and those who didnt had one, lets face it, its because the thing its bloody expensive.
At the time, my decision was much easier, because there was several iterations of the 1.0 lens ( no 0.95 was born or even thought about ) to choose from, which have the same image quality and differs on the hood design.
Was also my birthday and I saw a used but mint noctiliux at my prefered dealer for a spanking good price so I thought - what the heck, its my bday, going to use it and if I dont like it, I can resell it and do not loose money.
This was 4-5 years ago.
Still have her today and you cannot take it away from me AT ALL.
Its used everyday ? No
It is heavy ? for a M lens, you nuts ? its like handholding a Canon 600 F4 every day - hell yes
Has a quirky throw for focus ? yup
Hard to focus ? at 1.0 ? oh yes
but when everything comes down together, when everything is right, it produces THOSE kinda images that only a Leica and a Noctilux can. and that is priceless.
Can the 50 1.4 asph produce the same images? no. very close ? yes. for hell lot less money ? yes.
I used the 0.95 lens for a while ( my new local dealer lend me one ) and its a gorgeous lens - the flaws are corrected, its sharper, flare is controlled. they improve the technical side of it - but at some expense - its soul.
Being a silly imperfect lens its wake makes the fun out of use them. Because when you get everything right, you get a nice self tap on the back, knowing that it was hard but you did it.
0.95 nocti the best of them all ? yes, but i wouldnt trade my 1.0 for it. well I dont.
Noctiluxes are very specialized lens - problably one of the very few in the M lens.
you can argue that you can replace it with a 50mm cron - and you can and you SHOULD if you shoot it F2 all the time. Noctiluxes are Noctiluxes when used wide open. At 1.4 any Summilux beats it down in sharpness.
If you can afford a 1.0 lens, buy it and you wont regret it - plus specially now with this M9 hysteria, prices are soaring again.
If money is really a concern, if you want the poor man noctilux - try to search for a 50mm 1.4 PRE ASPH - gorgeous lens as well
But go for the Nocti if you can - fantastic lens and a joy to use ;
Pai by
Goncalo Proenca, on Flickr
Raquel nas escadarias da Peneda by
Goncalo Proenca, on Flickr
L1003395 by
Goncalo Proenca, on Flickr
Raquel @ Funchal by
Goncalo Proenca, on Flickr
one word of warning though : Noctiluxes are the Porsche and the Ferraris of the Leica lens lineup. Like I usually say a Porsche is a fantastic car and does more than you average A-to-B car for a LOT more money. But when you start comparing them and justifying them, then you know - you dont need one and dont buy one, because a A-to-B car will suffice.
you can only justify their prices ( Noctilux and Porsches ) with your need for that passion that they can provide.
because reallistically you can find same things ( other lens and other cars ) that do almost as good for 1/5 or 1/10 of the price.
thank God that sometimes we can have a splash of insanity in our rational lives
that's how I justify my Noctilux and the Porsche.
Thankfully, she thinks that the Noctilux was bought by Voigtlander prices....