{"id":27418,"date":"2021-06-28T20:27:26","date_gmt":"2021-06-28T20:27:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/the-monochrome-montre-de-souscription-1-watch\/"},"modified":"2021-12-12T21:03:55","modified_gmt":"2021-12-12T21:03:55","slug":"monochrome-montre-de-souscription-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.horbiter.com\/en\/monochrome-montre-de-souscription-1\/","title":{"rendered":"The MONOCHROME Montre de Souscription 1 watch"},"content":{"rendered":"

If we had to pick one class of timepieces that are hitting the spot and have somehow overperformed during the pandemic, I\u2019ll, without a doubt, list the majority of independent watch brands. The boutique brands aforementioned keep growing their fan base among collectors and connoisseurs, outperforming their mainstream siblings. Case in point, the waiting list is here the outcome of stand-out craftsmanship along with small production batches.\u00a0Habring2<\/strong>\u00a0belongs to this elite and offers top-notch timepieces at an affordable price point, featuring chronographs and split-seconds that Richard Habring<\/strong> masters like few others.\u00a0Habring2<\/strong>\u00a0and our friends at\u00a0MONOCHROME<\/strong>, a long-standing luxury media\u00a0\u201cdedicated to fine watches\u201d<\/em>\u00a0since\u00a02006<\/strong>, have joined their forces to commemorate the magazine\u2019s\u00a015<\/strong>th<\/sup>\u00a0anniversary<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

\"monochrome-montre-de-souscription-1\"Frank Geleen<\/strong>\u2018s media and the Austrian-founded brand partnered to craft a distinctive\u00a0Chrono-Felix<\/strong>, which stands apart from the ordinary collection from an aesthetic standpoint and nostalgia\u00a0\u201ctouch and feel\u201d<\/em>. What can we take out from the watch\u2019s full name:\u00a0MONOCHROME Montre de Souscription 1<\/strong>? Let\u2019s hope that the team at\u00a0Monochrome<\/strong>\u00a0will follow up with other collaboration pieces along the way; also, the watch pays homage to the once-called subscription watches. From a technical standpoint, you\u2019ll find all the traits and specs which are standard equipment of a\u00a0Chrono-Felix<\/strong>, while packed in a more effective formula to the vintage die hard-fan.<\/p>\n

\"monochrome-montre-de-souscription-2\"The\u00a0MONOCHROME Montre de Souscription 1<\/strong>\u00a0aims at being a super collector\u2019s vintage-inspired chronograph drawing inspiration from\u00a0vintage 1940s chronographs. Unlike other similar projects,\u00a0Monochrome<\/strong>\u00a0adopted, in my opinion, a winning approach geared towards the most demanding watch connoisseur. At\u00a038 mm<\/strong> across and 12 mm<\/strong> in thickness, it is a mono-pusher chronograph whose start, stop and reset button is located at two o\u2019clock. The icing on the cake is that the\u00a0MONOCHROME Montre de Souscription 1<\/strong>\u00a0welcomes a warm and eye-catching salmon dial which is becoming much wanted in this class of products; I won\u2019t be surprised if the team took their inspiration from lovely pieces like some\u00a0Minerva-based<\/strong>\u00a0Montblanc<\/strong>, for instance. All in all, the new\u00a0Montre de Souscription 1<\/strong>\u00a0is a three-tone watch: salmon-coloured sector dial pairs with mirror-polished hands in steel, with the central and thirty-minute Chrono hands sport\u00a0a vivid blue. Also, the case is extensively brushed front to back.<\/p>\n

\"monochrome-montre-de-souscription-4\"As you flip the watch over, you\u2019ll get a glimpse of the hand-wound movement (visible through a sapphire crystal), whose engineering and finishing prove\u00a0Habring2<\/strong>\u2018s expertise.\u00a0Richard Habring<\/strong>\u00a0is an expert watchmaker who has extensively worked on\u00a07750-powered\u00a0Chronos<\/strong>. The\u00a07750<\/strong>\u00a0is a\u00a0\u201cworkhorse\u201d\u00a0like no other, but please don\u2019t compare a standard calibre with such a beauty. Richard<\/strong> himself fully re-engineered the calibre, which proves to be a class of its own in performance, finishing and appeal. It\u2019s like asking\u00a0Rob\u00a0Dickinson\u00a0of\u00a0Singer Vehicle Design<\/strong>\u00a0to pimp your old-fashioned\u00a0911<\/strong>, like for like.<\/p>\n

\"monochrome-montre-de-souscription\"The outcome is the\u00a0calibre A11C-H1<\/strong>\u00a0which takes a\u00a07750<\/strong>\u2018s base qualities (robustness, low service costs) to new heights, both technically and esthetically. All the parts come from laser cutting or milling, not by mass-produced processes any longer, while an extensive hand-decoration extends to bridges and bevelled edges. Additionally, the escapement houses a\u00a0Carl Haas<\/strong> anti-magnetic hairspring\u00a0equipped with a\u00a0KIF anti-shock device.<\/strong> It is worth mentioning that\u00a0Richard<\/strong>\u00a0is the father of\u00a0IWC<\/strong>\u2018s\u00a0Doppelchronograph<\/strong>\u00a0and is one of the most recognized chronograph experts, who trained himself with\u00a0Kurt Klaus<\/strong>\u00a0under\u00a0G\u00fcnter Blumlein<\/strong>\u2018s visionary leadership.<\/p>\n

\"monochrome-montre-de-souscription-6\"The\u00a0MONOCHROME Montre de Souscription 1<\/strong>\u00a0comes with a nubuck strap or a 7-row\u00a0\u201cbead of rice\u201d<\/em>\u00a0bracelet as an option. I\u2019ll opt for the first one, which I believe is the first choice for a watch this lovely, although I think the bracelet is a must-have while at the beach, for instance. As far as its retail price is concerned, the watch costs\u00a05950 Euros<\/strong>\u00a0(VAT not included), and with just\u00a033 pieces\u00a0on the shelf<\/strong>, it\u2019s a true collector\u2019s piece. If you\u2019re eager to make one of them yours, get ready to deposit\u00a02000 Euro<\/strong>\u00a0upfront to reserve yours by heading to\u00a0shop.monochrome-watches.com<\/strong><\/span><\/a>. Sales are open\u00a0from 24 June through 8 July<\/strong>.\u00a0Congratulations to\u00a0Monochrome<\/strong>\u00a0on such a cool project; we look forward to the next one, guys.<\/p>\n