Introducing The RESERVOIR Watches Sonomaster Chronograph

One of the most appealing parts of a mechanical watch is getting to see the movement in action, feeling the tactile sensation when winding the crown or the satisfying click of a chronograph pusher when activated. Nowadays, you’re more likely to interact with a phone, computer, or something with a screen. RESERVOIR Watch’s new Sonomaster Chronograph calls back to the days of analog audio, specifically voltmeters seen on vintage amplifiers. The watch is certainly unique, and looks more like it would measure sound than it would measure time. Let’s take a closer look at RESERVOIR’s take on the chronograph.

Measuring in at 43mm, the watch is housed in a 316L stainless steel case. You’ll find a simple brushed finishing throughout. Surrounding the dial is a steel bezel that’s imprinted with a tachymeter scale rendered in black. The dial is where things really start to get interesting. It’s split into two halves — on the left you’ll find the running seconds and on the right you’ll find the date display.

The running seconds counts up to from zero to 60, and then bounces back down to its starting point. The constant motion of the seconds hand is a really nice touch that expertly mimics the bouncing VU meters that it was inspired by. Similar to the seconds hand, the date display also features retrograde movement, snapping back down to zero when the month is up. 

Also present on the dial are two small sub-dials at 12 and 6. At 12, the sub dial counts up to 30 minutes, while the one at 6 counts up to 12 hours. There’s a central set of hands that includes an hour, minute, and chronograph seconds with a red tip and RESERVOIR logo counterbalance. 

Inside, a Le Joux Perret base movement (LJP-L1C0) is modified by RESERVOIR with the bi-retrograde functionality. When fully wound, this automatic movement will run for an impressive 60 hours. The movement beats at 28,800vph and is entirely Swiss-made. 

If vintage audio is your thing (I have a feeling there are more than a few of you out there that appreciate both mechanical timepieces and vintage audio), then this offering from RESERVOIR is hard to resist. The two retrograde features on the dial and vintage-inspired design make it stand out from the rest of your standard chronographs. The Sonomaster Chronograph is available this month for ~$6100. RESERVOIR