The Vortex Venom and Holosun 507c are the pinnacles for affordable yet high-value pistol red dot sights. With only a slight price difference, the main variable attributes and features distinguish these two sights from each other. What are those features, and how do they enhance the red dots’ capabilities to decide which red dot is better?
In this post, I’ll dive into my detailed testing of the Vortex Venom vs Holosun 507c so that you can pick the best optic for your needs. After testing both optics, I found the Holosun 507c to the best for me!
Which Is Best: Vortex Venom vs Holosun 507c?
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HuntersHalt: #1 Choice
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Pros:
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Pros:
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- Super Fast Target Acquisition
- Superior From Close Range
- Crystal Clear Sight Lens
- Most Popular Red Dot Sight
- High Adjustability - 10 Brightness Settings
- Top Loaded Battery - Replace W/out Removing Sight
The short answer: In my opinion, the Holosun 507c is better. It has more features to offer than the Vortex Venom. Having the clearest glass and being the only optic with a built-in solar panel and multiple reticle system makes for a reliable and highly versatile red dot sight. But if you’re looking for the newest Holosun model, check out my comparison of the Holosun 508t vs 507c!
What Is The Vortex Venom?
- Most Popular Red Dot Sight
- High Adjustability - 10 Brightness Settings
- Top Loaded Battery - Replace W/out Removing Sight
- Less Durable Compared To 507c
The Vortex Venom is one of the most popular red dot sights for shotguns, rifles, or handguns. It offers a 3 MOA red dot, 10 brightness settings, and a clear, wide field of view. The Venom is also waterproof and shockproof and has a low-profile design that allows it to be used on any firearm. In fact, I previously rated Venom as the best pistol red dot for the money.
What Is The Holosun 507c?
- Super Fast Target Acquisition
- Superior From Close Range
- Crystal Clear Sight Lens
- Less Adjustability Than 508t
The Holosun 507c is a great red dot sight for a pistol, rifle, or shotgun. This spin off of the Holosun 507k features a 2 MOA reticle, up to 50,000 hours of battery life, and has 12 brightness settings. The sight is also parallax-free and shock resistant, making it suitable for shooting in a variety of conditions.
Main Differences: Holosun vs Vortex
1) Adjustability Comparison
Holosun 507c
The Holosun 507c has an impressive 12 brightness settings to choose from, of which ten are for daylight brightness settings, and two are night vision settings. I found this level of adjustability to be quite impressive for a small pistol red dot.
The daylight settings are versatile and effective in brightly lit areas and ambient lighting conditions. The night vision settings aid with night vision compatibility, which I found to be nice to have yet not ideal for use at night.
The Holosun 507c also has a brightness lock mode feature, meaning you can lock the preferred brightness setting on your optic. This is great for a lazy person like me who doesn’t want to continuously adjust settings.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom has ten brightness settings making this pistol red dot effective for both extremes of lighting conditions. This great adjustabilty is why I also rated the Venom one of the Best Shotgun Reflex sights that I’ve tested in the field. However, the Vortex Venom does not have night vision settings, which is insignificant considering its use case.
A great feature the Vortex Venom has is the auto-brightness mode. The feature automatically adjusts the brightness of the red dot based on the ambient brightness by using a sensor. I found this effective if you are constantly moving between different lighting conditions, such as moving from outdoors to indoors and vice versa. We also saw in our Burris Fastfire 3 review that it has a very similar performance to the Venom!
Both these sights have excellent adjustability attributes. The Holosun 507c has the lock mode, and the Vortex Venom has auto-brightness mode. However, the auto-brightness mode makes the Vortex Venom the winner for me. Many shooters ask, are vortex scopes good? The short answer is…yes!
2) Durability Comparison
Holosun 507c
The Holosun 507 is a red dot sight built to handle extreme conditions. This red dot sight has a thick housing manufactured out of high-quality 7075 T6 Aluminum. I can honestly say it endured some of the most intense adventures I embarked on, ranging from rocky mountain hiking to sandstorms and more.
The Holosun 507c has an anodized finish, ensuring that the optic is well-protected from the elements. This is great for clumsy people like me who is bound to drop my gun more than a few times haha. The windage and elevation adjustments are sunken into the housing to prevent possible collision damage.
The Holosun 507c is waterproof for up to 1 meter and 30 minutes. The Holosun 507c is shockproof, preventing recoil damage.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom is very similar to the Holosun 507c in terms of durability features.The housing is also made out of high-quality aluminum material. The windage and elevation adjustments are also sunken into the housing. The Vortex Venom is also shockproof as well as waterproof. However, the lens has a scratch-resistant coating termed ArmorTek.
Although the Vortex Venom has ArmorTek protection on its optic lens, I found it lagging in the durability test, making the Holosun 507c the winner for durability.
3) MOA & Reticle Comparison
Holosun 507c
The Holosun 507c has a multi-coated lens resulting in a clear picture. The Holosun does not have such a blue hue as the Trijicon RMR, which I find favorable in terms of lens clarity.
The Holosun 507c has parallax-free views, allowing to have both eyes open when aiming and unlimited eye relief.
This red dot sight has a unique feature, the Multiple Reticle System or MRS. Allowing you to choose between 3 different reticles on your Holosun 507c. These three reticles are:
- Circle Dot Reticle – 2 MOA dot surrounded by a 32 MOA ring
- 2 MOA dot
- 32 MOA Ring Reticle – 32 MOA ring with no center dot
The Circle dot reticle is my favorite reticle, it allows for both speed and accuracy. The large 32 MOA circle enables your eye to locate the dot faster, while the 2 MOA dot will allow for pinpoint accuracy.
The two other options isolate the circle dot reticle’s 32 MOA and 2 MOA features. The 2 MOA dot for accuracy and the 32 MOA ring reticle for speed.
If you are a fan of green dots, a green reticle version (HE507C-GR) of the Holosun is also available. Although it is the same optic with just a different reticle color, it is $30 more expensive.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom also has an exceptionally clear sight picture. However, it does not have a toggleable reticle system like the Holosun 507c.
There are two models available, one with a 3 MOA dot size and the other with a 6 MOA dot size. The 3 MOA dot allows for accuracy and precision, while the 6 MOA dot allows for faster target acquisition. The Vortex Venom also has parallax-free views, allowing both eyes to be open when aiming. It also offers unlimited eye relief, so you won’t need to adjust your head’s distance relative to the pistol red dot to get a better view.
The Holosun 507c is the winner in the category of MOA and reticle. The Multiple reticle system features variable dot sizes, and the fact that you can toggle between reticles is a significant bonus. Unlike the Vortex Venom, the Holosun 507c is also available as a green dot sight.
4) Accuracy Comparison
Holosun 507c
The adjustable reticle size makes the Holosun 507c a highly accurate red dot sight, combined with the 2 MOA dot, and is sure to help you hit your mark. This sight just has a very clear sight picture that reminded me of the Trijicon SRO or RMR red dots that I’ve also tested.
Vortex Venom
As already mentioned, the Vortex Venom has two MOA options unavailable on the same model.
The 6 MOA dot reticle allows for easier eye pick-up of the red reticle, although higher accuracy will be hard to achieve. The 3 MOA dot reticle is better for accuracy, as it helps for smaller targets and shooting at further distances.
The auto-brightness settings on the Vortex Venom help to enhance the reticle brightness, which you would have to do manually with the Holosun 507c. However, the Holosun 507c has the brightness lock mode, which you can use to save the best brightness setting that works best with your reticle and eyes.
Although both are highly accurate and constitute a significant improvement from a front and rear iron sight, the MRS and the smaller MOA reticle of the Holosun 507c make it the winner in accuracy.
5) Red Dot Size Comparison
Holosun 507c
The Holosun 507c has a fairly standard size for a red dot optic. It has a width of 1.24 inches and a height of 1.54 inches, with an overall length of 1.78 inches.
The aluminum housing allows for a lightweight sight with an overall weight of 1.5 ounces.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom is a tiny bit smaller than the Holosun 507c. The compact size of the Vortex sight is also why I rated it one of the best AR-15 red dots during my testing. It measures 1.11 inches in width, 1.02 inches in height, and 1.9 inches in length.
Only weighing 1.1 ounces, it weighs 27% less than the Holosun 507c.
In terms of size, the Vortex Venom is the overall winner. It weighs 27% less and has a favorable lower profile, with the Holosun 507c being a bit taller. However, the Holosun K model is a smaller version of the 507c if you are set on acquiring a Holosun but want a smaller version of the 507c.
6) Battery life
Holosun 507c
Holosun optics are renowned for creating red dot sights with longer battery life compared to other optics in the same category. The Holosun 507c can last up to 50,000 hours on brightness setting six. Holosun designed this optic to be one of the most reliable red dot sights in terms of long battery life. One of the main reasons I rated Holosun one of the Top AK red dots sights was because of the battery life! I found that they incorporate different features to help prolong the battery life, including:
- Use of one CR1632 lithium battery – Can be quickly replaced from the side battery compartment.
- Shake Awake Feature – The sight will switch off after a period of not being used and will automatically switch back on when motion is detected.
- Built-in Solar Panel – The solar panel aims to save battery life and allows use without a battery in sunlight conditions if your battery dies – acting as a solar backup.
Note: Similar to the Trijicon RMR, older versions of the 507c have a battery compartment that sits underneath the optic. Replacing the lithium battery meant you would need to detach the red dot sight and would need to re-zero it when attaching it again. Luckily, Holosun improved the original design.
Look for the newer V2 and X2 versions, as the battery compartment is located on the side.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom’s battery life can last between 30,000 hours on the lower settings and an impressive 150,000 hours on the higher settings. Plus, it’s easy to turn off your Vortex Venom manually. It also uses one CR1632 lithium battery, similar to the Holosun 507c.
However, replacing the battery is done from the top, which is much more user-friendly than from the bottom, as you do not need to detach the red dot sight.
Despite the better battery life on higher settings and the ideal top battery loading of the Vortex Venom, the Holosun 507c offers more features to extend battery life. It also has a built-in solar panel which acts as a fail-safe when your battery dies. The Holosun is the winner in battery life.
7) Mounting footprint
Holosun 507c
The Holosun 507c has the widely used Trijicon RMR footprint. Meaning the 507c red dot can be mounted on a vast selection of handguns with the matching pre-cut slide or an included mounting plate. The footprint extends beyond handguns, with several aftermarket mounts available for a pistol caliber carbine, shotgun, and rifle. I also rated Holosun one of the best 300 Blackout red dots because they are so easy to mount on a firearm.
Vortex Venom
The Vortex Venom has its own footprint, the low Picatinny rail mount, which is less widely used than the RMR footprint. Reducing the number of handguns available with an already pre-cut slide or included adapter plate compatible with the Vortex Venom footprint.
However, Vortex is a very popular optic, thus, you can find several aftermarket adapter plates or mounts available for your Vortex optic body. So, in terms of mounting footprint, the Holosun 570c wins.
8) Price
Both of these optics are priced fairly and in the same price range. Most retailers will have the Vortex Venom priced slightly cheaper than the Holosun 507c. However, if you’re asking me the price difference is not enough to sway my decision one way or another.
When it comes to pricing, I’ll call it a draw considering you get more for your money with the 507c!
Which Red Dot Is Best?
Both are excellent pistol red dot sights, however, I found the Vortex Venom has some problems does not meet the same standard set by the Holosun in certain categories.
The Holosun also offers great extra features not present in the Vortex, such as the solar panel. You can also opt for a green version of the Holosun.
Also, only costing $15 more, it is safe to say that the Holosun is the better red dot sight.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Holosun better than Vortex?
What has the same footprint as a Holosun 507c?
Does vortex venom have Shake Awake?
Is Vortex better than Trijicon?
The Bottom Line
After comparing the Vortex Venom vs Holosun 507c, it is obvious that these two sights are very similar in many aspects, and they both set the gold standard for being affordable yet high-quality red dot sights. Ultimately, it comes down to personal preference, even though the Holosun offers more features and is only slightly more expensive.
- Super Fast Target Acquisition
- Superior From Close Range
- Crystal Clear Sight Lens
- Less Adjustability Than 508t
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