Different setting for Canon 7D and 7D2 RAW files?

Question

Help!  I'm trying to decide whether to return my new Canon 7D2.  I shoot RAW and import my images into Lightroom 5.7.  I've done lots of identical test shots with my old 7D and my new 7D2.  The 7D2 shots usually look softer and cooler and generally of lesser image quality.  I can make up much of the difference using sharpening and tonal work in the Develop module, but this is a hassle.  Can anyone explain why this is happening?  Does Lightroom apply different settings when it imports RAW files from the 7D and 7D2?  Or am I seeing some inherent difference in the cameras.
Thanks,
Steve 

Answer 1

The Adobe Standard profile is an attempt by Adobe to make the look of the camera be the same across different models; however, improvements in sensor technology and processing may lead to some differences so maybe you’re very sensitive to any color differences or maybe there is something wrong.  When the 7D Mark II is cooler is this after you’ve neutralized the WB by eyedroppering on a neutral object (gray card) or could it be the camera detecting a cooler WB, itself.
A lot of what you’re wondering about could be cleared up by more careful description of the process you’ve followed to ensure the WB is the same between the two cameras—whether it could be a difference in camera detection of WB or a difference in LR rendering of colors other than neutral due to Adobe Standard profile inter-model differences or just a mistake where neutrals aren’t neutral in your comparison.
If you’d like a separate opinion, post two comparable raw files, one 7D and 7D Mark II, and a screenshot of an X|Y  side-by-side in Lightroom that shows the differences you’re seeing.  Others would be able to say if the differences you’re seeing are within expectations or not.