Results for MB&F

The M.A.D.1 Gets a Slimmer, More Wearable Update

The M.A.D.1 has been a genuine phenomenon since it debuted three years ago. The M.A.D. brand, an offshoot of MB&F;, exists almost by accident. The debut watch was made available to MB&F; friends and family as an affordably priced “thank you” for years of partnership and support, and was eventually made available to the public. Turns out there are a lot of enthusiasts out there who are after a little taste of MB&F; but don’t necessarily have the nearly six figures (or more) for the genuine article. The M.A.D.1, in all of the variants we’ve seen since it launched, has offered fans of independent watchmaking a simulacrum of a much higher end experience, simply by wearing and owning something that originated from the mind of brand founder Max Busser. But, if we’re being honest, there have always been aspects of the M.A.D.1 that could use a little refining to make it more appealing as a watch that you’d actually want to wear day in and day out. The new M.A.D.1S seeks to solve some of those problems.  First and foremost, it’s worth pointing out that isn’t the M.A.D.2, a watch that the brand says has been in the works for some time and will debut next year. Rather, this is an honest to goodness evolution of the original idea, and seems to address some of the common complaints from M.A.D.1 skeptics. The “S” here stands for slimmer, surely the most notable change from the original, which came in at a sometimes comical 18.8mm tall. The new version is just 15mm tall...

MB&F;’s Affordable M.A.D.1 is Now Slimmer and Swiss

Conceived as an affordable sub-brand of MB&F;, M.A.D. Editions has become a runaway success by making an MB&F;-esque design accessible. Now the concept has been further refined with the M.A.D.1S, where the suffix stands for slimmer, Swiss, and single cylinder. The case is thinner by almost 4 mm, and now contains a Swiss-made movement that indicates the time (approximately) on a single cylinder. Initial thoughts The original M.A.D.1 was a fun watch that was affordable but expensive, and extremely thick at almost 19 mm. The slimmed down version has sleeker proportions, and the same price tag, but offers comparatively better value. The M.A.D.1S is priced at CHF2,900, just like the original version. Like the original, the M.A.D.1S is priced well for a watch with a little bit of the MB&F; magic, but expensive for a watch of its build and movement. However, the M.A.D.1S is comparatively less expensive, and conversely offers a bit more value, because it has a slightly more upscale movement inside. Mad but more wearable Two versions of the M.A.D.1S are available, one with a blue dial and the other in purple. The blue is available to the public, while the purple is only for “Friends & Tribe”, namely associates of the brand and owners of MB&F; watches. Both will be sold via an online raffle, as is convention for the M.A.D. watches. Both editions are otherwise identical, with a case that’s substantially slimmer than the original M.A.D.1. While the original was almost 19 mm high, th...

New MAD Editions M.A.D.1S with Slimmer Case: Relatively Affordable and Totally Wild Luxury for the Wrist

MB&F; make fantastic watches but unfortunately, they are expensive. Fortunately for those of us with dreams bigger than out budgets,  Max Büsser launched the M.A.D.1 Editions. And here's the new slimmer M.A.D.1S.

Introducing - Slimmer and Swiss Powered, Meet the New M.A.D.Editions M.A.D.1S

The story behind M.A.D.Editions is pretty simple, yet very cool. It’s all about offering the taste and spirit of MB&F;, without the price tag of an MB&F;. Many have dreamt one day of owning such a watch, but most of our readers and us here at MONOCHROME won’t be able to. For this reason, M.A.D.Editions […]

MB&F; Launches A New Raffle For M.A.D.1S Edition

New M.A.D.1S presents a slimmer version of MB&F;’s accessible design with a Swiss movement

What does the "S" in M.A.D.1S stand for? A 20% slimmer case, Swiss calibre, and single-cylinder time display.The post New M.A.D.1S presents a slimmer version of MB&F;’s accessible design with a Swiss movement appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Announcements: Geneva Watch Days 2024 Starts This Thursday -  Stay Tuned!

The latest releases from 50+ brands, including Breitling, Bulgari, MB&F;, Oris, and more.

Industry News: Chanel Invests in MB&F;

News broke this morning that Chanel has invested a 25% stake in MB&F;, one of our favorite independent brands. The investment comes on the eve of MB&F;’s 20th anniversary year, and is being framed by the brand as future-proofing the company. “It was our responsibility,” according to a statement from founder Max Büsser, “in today’s very favourable context and with our management team in its prime, to take this major step to ensure our long-term future.” MB&F; founder Max Büsser Büsser retains a majority stake in the company (60%) while his partner and Head of R&D; & Production Serge Kriknoff owns 15%. According to the statement released by MB&F;, the brand will continue to be run independently by the current leadership team, which also includes Charris Yadigaroglou (Head of Marketing Communications) and Thibault Verdonckt (Head of Sales). Brands taking on investment is of course nothing new, and the decision of a niche independent that has displayed over multiple decades that it’s capable of not only sustaining itself but growing feels like a smart business decision. It plays directly into a topic that comes up a lot in the world of independent watchmaking: What happens when a founder moves on? While there is no indication that Büsser is stepping aside anytime soon, longevity is something always on the mind of watch collectors. This is an industry, after all, where some brands can trace their roots to the 18th century. We covered this very topic in a Q&A; podcas...

Business News: Chanel Takes A 25% Stake In MB&F;

After nearly 20 years, MB&F; finds a new friend in the famed French fashion brand.

Industry News - Chanel Takes a 25% Stake in Independent Watchmaker MB&F;

Independent and creative high-end watchmaking is more than ever at the centre stage of the watch industry. The interest of collectors in such rare and exclusive watches, produced by small-scale companies and infused with the soul of their creators, has been on the rise for several years now. And as a consequence, large luxury groups […]

Chanel Acquires 25% Stake in MB&F;

Chanel takes 25% ownership stake in MB&F;

The large, French, luxury house has taken a minority ownership stake in MB&F; which turns 20 years old next year. The post Chanel takes 25% ownership stake in MB&F; appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

Business News: Chanel Takes 25% Stake in MB&F;

Proving recent rumours to be true, MB&F; has just announced that Chanel now owns 25% of the company. The terms of the deal were not disclosed but it is likely that the valuation of the independent watchmaker not far from the CHF120 million mark. Though meaningful in the context of independent watchmaker, it is a small investment for Chanel, which had 2023 revenues of almost US$20 billion. MB&F; will continue to be controlled by founder Maximilian Büsser (above left), who pares his stake down to 60% stake, while his longtime deputy, Serge Kriknoff, continues with a 15% share in the brand best known for its sculptural, sci-fi creations. The pair were the only shareholders in the brand prior to the Chanel investment. The MB&F; HM11 A major player behind the scenes With its MB&F; investment, Chanel continues to grow its presence in watchmaking, particularly independent watchmaking. The stake in MB&F; follows on Chanel’s investment in F.P. Journe (believed to be about a quarter), and about a half share in Romain Gauthier. Chanel has also long owned a substantial stake in Bell & Ross, as well as a quarter of movement maker Kenissi. Add to those Chanel’s holdings in the watchmaking supply chain, and the result is a luxury group that has a substantial and growing player in watchmaking. Chanel’s watch and jewellery chief, Frédéric Grangié, said the investment in MB&F; “is part of our long-term strategy to continue to preserve, develop and invest in specialist know-how and...

Zach, Andrew, and Marcus share the watches they cannot justify buying

Today on Time+Tide Tribe, Zach, Andrew, and Marcus share the watches they desperately want but will never ever be able to justify buying. Watch the video above to find out what watches are their “unjustifiables”. *SPOILERS BELOW* *SPOILERS BELOW* *WHAT ARE YOU DOING? GO WATCH THE VIDEO* Zach’s pick – MB&F; LM Sequential EVO “So, … ContinuedThe post Zach, Andrew, and Marcus share the watches they cannot justify buying appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.

MB&F; Legacy Machine Perpetual Reviewed by Tim Mosso

MB&F; movement constructor for LM Perpetual,Stephen McDonnell’s focus was split between ease of use, durability, and packaging. Ease of use comes in the form of an independent corrector for each of the day, date, month, and leap year. Unlike most perpetual calendars, the MB&F; LM Perpetual has a permanent freestanding button for advancing each display; no separate tool is required.

MB&F; HM8 Mark 2: Horological Hypercars!

With the MB&F; HM8 Mark 2, Max Büsser returns to his roots to deliver a watch that deftly captures the automotive spirit. It's a hypercar for the wrist.

MB&F; Now Has A Podcast -  'Tales From The Tribe'

Max Büsser and friends on mic, and the first two episodes are available now.

In-Depth: The MB&F; LM Perpetual and Stephen McDonnell’s Innovation

When it comes to perpetual calendars – perhaps the most objectively useful complication – the MB&F; Legacy Machine Perpetual, or LM QP for short, sits neatly between classical architecture and iconoclastic construction. Now almost a decade old having been launched in 2015, the LM QP is a mechanical marvel coming from the mind of Stephen McDonnell. The LM QP’s beauty lies in Mr McDonnell’s rethinking of the perpetual calendar complication while integrating historical concepts. Rethinking the QP A perpetual calendar, or quantième perpétuel (hence “QP”), is a complex and layered mechanism, which makes it a challenging complication to implement in watches. Naturally, not all perpetual calendars are created equal, some being more innovative and others more classical in their construction. The first-ever serially produced perpetual calendar wristwatch, the Patek Philippe ref. 1526 that debuted in 1940; the basics of the perpetual calendar mechanism would remain largely unchanged for decades after The issue with classical calendar constructions is their vulnerability to wear and tear, shock, or careless operation by the user. Ironically, the most forward-thinking of perpetual calendar mechanisms try to solve these problems, but sometimes suffer from reliability issues rooted in the radical concepts employed. Mr McDonnell’s construction of the LM QP smartly manages to eliminate traditional weaknesses while avoiding new problems. The result is a reliable and innovati...

Introducing: MB&F; Brings Back The LM Sequential Chronograph, Now With Flyback

With a slightly more classic styling, MB&F; and Stephen McDonnell took the GPHG-winning chronograph and made it even better.

New Release: MB&F; Legacy Machine Sequential Flyback Dual Chronograph

In an interesting twist, Stephen McDonnel, the developer of the MB&F; LM Sequential, initially envisaged the left side chronograph as a flyback chronograph, however, due to the number of technical issues to resolved, decided it would be safer to save that for a later version: and here it is. And with two flybacks!

MB&F; Ups the Ante with the New LM Sequential Flyback, a Significant Advancement for a One of a Kind Chronograph

MB&F; has announced its second-ever chronograph, the LM Sequential Flyback, a spiritual and technical follow-up to the LM Sequential EVO that evolves its predecessor’s double chronograph with the addition of a flyback function, all in a platinum version of one of MB&F;’s most wearable cases. When MB&F; released the LM Sequential EVO in 2022, the biggest surprise wasn’t how good the watch was or even that MB&F; would think to release a watch with not one, but two chronograph trains. No, the most surprising thing about that watch was that, up until that point, MB&F; had never produced any sort of chronograph. Considering the wide range of extraordinary and experimental watches MB&F; has released over the years, the omission of a chronograph seemed obvious in retrospect, even if we hadn’t noticed the glaring hole in the moment. But that omission was more than accounted for with the release of the LM Sequential EVO, a watch that I readily count among my favorite releases of the last five or so years, and which, thanks to a pair of chronograph trains and a mechanism MB&F; calls the “Twinverter” presented a new and unique take on what a chronograph could be. But apparently, it wasn’t everything MB&F; and Stephen McDonnell (one of the brand’s earliest friends, who built movements for the HM No.1 and developed the movements for the Legacy Machine Perpetual, the LM Sequential EVO, and, now, the LM Sequential Flyback) wanted it to be. Development constraints and the inherent...

It’s A Complicated MB&F; Kind Of Monday With The New LM Sequential Flyback Platinum

The chronograph that won the GPHG Aiguille d’Or two years ago is now available in platinum. Well, not exactly. The 33 pieces of the LM Sequential Flyback Platinum have an extra function compared to the prize-winning watch - a flyback function. On top of that, the chronograph comes in a different case. The sporty EVO […] Visit It’s A Complicated MB&F; Kind Of Monday With The New LM Sequential Flyback Platinum to read the full article.

First Look - MB&F; Raises the Complication Stakes with the Improved LM Sequential Flyback Platinum

The aphorism “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” is not often used by watchmaker Stephen McDonnell, the mastermind behind MB&F;’s most complex timepieces enhanced with his innovative technological breakthroughs. Responsible for the 2015 LM Perpetual and the LM Sequential EVO, fans of MB&F;’s wonderful watches will be delighted to learn that Stephen McDonnell is […]

New with Hands-on: MB&F; LM Sequential Flyback

MB&F; enhanced their innovative LM Sequential chronograph with a flyback system and an anbled hour minute dial. Presented in a platinum case.

The MB&F; LM Sequential Flyback Platinum gets a tad less sporty, but a lot more decadent

MB&F; and Stephen McDonnell prove that you can always do better, making the LM Sequential even more complicated.The post The MB&F; LM Sequential Flyback Platinum gets a tad less sporty, but a lot more decadent appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.