Introducing: A Trio Of Chiming Watches From Bulgari – Each More Complicated Than The Next
What We Know
Today, Bulgari announces three new chiming watches. Not new, but re-invented.
The first of the trio, and the least complicated (though by no means simple), is the resurrection of the Octo Finissmimo Minute Repeater in full carbon. Those who have been reading this site long enough will be keen to remember that Bulgari turned heads back in 2018 with its first iteration – breaking records for being the thinnest minute repeater ever made. However, that watch was a limited edition of 50 pieces, so Bulgari has brought back the record-breaking watch in a very similar new edition. To the naked eye, most of the elements are identical to the original watch – a carbon dial with cutouts for the indexes, a full carbon case and bracelet, as well as a small seconds at 6 o’clock.
The changes in the new model are purely aesthetic. The black push button for the minute repeater, as well as the crown, have been swapped from a matte dark titanium to a brushed and polished finish, the crown sporting a black ceramic insert on the side. In addition, the handset has been updated from a matte bead-blasted finish on the original model to a satin-polished finish. What will stay the same, however, is the 40mm multi-layered CTP (Carbon Thin Ply) case with a 6.85mm thickness and the record-holding manufacture BVL362 movement.
Moving up in complexity, the next watch to be announced is an updated version of their Octa Roma Carillon Tourbillon. This year’s release takes the modern and avant-garde design of the watch and brings it back to tradition just a smidge with a case of satin-polished rose gold. For those unfamiliar with what a carillon repeater is, instead of the traditional two-gong and two-hammer system of a classic minute repeater, a carillon sports three. One hammer strikes for hours, all three hammers strike the gongs for quarters, and one hammer strikes for the minutes. It’s a bit more musical.
The case comes in at 44mm and has a thickness of 12.6mm. The dial is very heavily open-worked in a matte sandblasted DLC finish, with cutouts for the hammers and gongs as well as an exposed tourbillon bridge on the dial side. Taking a look at the side of the case, the watch continues to sport the titanium mid-case emblematic of this model. Flip the watch around, and the sapphire reveals even more of the openwork, showing the various racks and snails that allow the chiming complication to mechanically read the time. A power reserve indicator sits on an indented section of the movement plate. With the movement components in brushed and polished metal, the contrast is striking (no pun intended) with the matte textured bridges and plates. The Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon is priced at $340k and limited to 30 pieces.
Last, but certainly not least in any sense of the term, the trio is rounded out with a new Octo Roma Grande Sonnerie Tourbillon. With this watch, one more hammer and gong is brought into the equation, bringing the total to four. In the past few years, we have seen a few Grande Sonneries from the brand released with perpetual calendar complications – this time; it’s slightly pared back (if you can even say that) by “just” keeping it at a four-chime grande and petite sonnerie minute repeater and tourbillon.
What is a grande sonnerie, you may ask? Well, in addition to the minute repeater complication in this watch, the watch has several modes, one of which is the grande sonnerie mode, in which the manually-winding BVV 800 caliber of the watch automatically chimes the hours and quarters as they pass, and repeats the hour every hour. As a grande sonnerie, the quarters are chimed with all four gongs and hammers, giving it a bit of a musical phrasing instead of simple ‘dings’. In petite sonnerie mode, only the hours will sound. Of course, there is also a mode where there are no passive chimes at all, the Price on Request equivalent of silencing your beeping Casio.
In a departure from its previous versions, the dial of this watch now mirrors its little brother a lot closer, with a grey PVD dial done in the same open-work design as the Carillon Tourbillon. The flying tourbillon sits at 10 o’clock, and the four gongs sit at 7 o’clock. Behind the slits of the open-worked dial, two red segments indicate the power reserve of both the movement as well as the power reserve. Holding it all together is a 45mm satin-polished titanium case with a thickness of 11.85mm. The price is “on request,” and the watch is limited to 5 pieces.
Lorenzo Viotti (left) at the Bulgari manufacture in Le Sentier.
What’s most notable about the two Octo Romas here is the new re-imagining of the chiming notes. Bulgari is no stranger to unique tunes on their chiming watches – the 2021 release saw the chimes of the Carillon echo the Chimes Of Westminster. This time around, Bulgari somehow goes even more unconventional by partnering with Italian-Swiss conductor Lorenzo Viotti. In the two Octo Romas (Romii?), the brand and conductor utilize the tritone, otherwise known as the augmented fourth or the diminished fifth, or more spookily, the “Devil’s Interval.”
While a deep dive into this concept would require a whole additional article, Bulgari attributes the idea to wanting to create an aural contrast between the harmony of the design and the tension of the chiming sound. Most chiming watches look to create the most pleasing sound for the customer, but having heard a recording of this watch, I think that this new approach is intriguing. The sound is certainly not unpleasant or jarring but rather unfamiliar in this industry. In the ultra-modern and aggressively-styled design language in these two Octo Romas, perhaps this tone does work more in line with what you see on your wrist.
What We Think
If you asked me to pick one out from the bunch, my favorite would be the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater. Sure, when looking at the three introduced today, it would seem insane to pick the two-gong option, but sometimes, I think we don’t appreciate thinness enough as a complication in and of itself. Out of all three, it would be legitimately one I would love to wear. However, let’s not forget that the Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater is reintroduced at an eye-watering $224k, and that’s the least expensive one out of all three. That’s a whopping 40% price increase compared to the watch back in 2018 when it came in at $160k for the 50-piece edition. I think we’re way past the stratosphere in terms of MSRP to make any defense towards value for money, so all I’ll say is that if Bulgari thinks there’s a market for this at $224k, they certainly know better than I.
At the end of the day, these are not watches targeted at the average customer, nor are there many of them even being made in the first place. So, let’s take a look at these releases in context, as they are pieces of mechanical art. I treat them more as sculptures than as watches. The Octa Roma line has seen quite a bit of attention from the brand recently – over the past year or so, we’ve seen quite a broad refresh of the lineup and a few more tourbillon complications introduced, like the Striking Papillon Tourbillon. To continue the trajectory only makes sense, and I’m glad Bulgari is continuing to demonstrate their watchmaking prowess by keeping the ultra-complicated grande sonnerie and carillon complications alive at their workshop, something not many brands can claim.
The Details
Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater Carbon
Reference 103986. 40mm Carbon Thin-Ply case (6.85mm thick). Polished titanium crown with black ceramic insert, satin-polished titanium push button, transparent case back. Water resistance of 1ATM. Carbon dial, with satin-polished rhodium-finish brass hands. Carbon bracelet with integrated folding buckle.
BVL362 manufacture ultra-thin manual winding mechanical movement with minute repeater and small seconds. Power reserve of 42 hours and frequency of 21600 VpH (3Hz).
Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon
Reference 103933. 44mm rose gold case (12.6mm thick). Satin-polished rose gold crown set with black ceramic insert, satin-polished rose gold push button, transparent case back. Water resistance of 3ATM. Sandblasted open-worked dial in brass with black DLC treatment. Black alligator strap with rose gold folding buckle.
Modified BVL428 manufacture manual winding mechanical movement with openwork bridges, minute repeater, 3-hammer carillon, tourbillon, and power reserve indicator. Power reserve of 75 hours and frequency of 21600 VpH (3Hz).
Octo Roma Grande Sonnerie Tourbillon
Reference 103962. 45mm titanium case (11.85mm thick). Satin-polished titanium crown set with black ceramic insert, satin-polished titanium push button, transparent case back. Water resistance of 3ATM. Sandblasted open-worked dial in brass with grey DLC treatment. Black alligator strap with titanium folding buckle.
BVV800 manufacture manual winding mechanical movement with Grande and Petite sonnerie, minute repeater, 4-hammer chime, power reserve indicators for the movement and chime mechanisms, tourbillon. Power reserve of 72 hours and frequency of 21600 VpH (3Hz).
Pricing & Availability
Price: $164,000 (Octo Finissimo Minute Repeater). $340,000 (Octo Roma Carillon Tourbillon). Price On Request (Octo Roma Grande Sonnerie Tourbillon)
Limited Edition: No (Octo Finissimo), 30 Pieces (Carillon Tourbillon), 5 pieces (Grande Sonnerie Tourbillon)
For more, click here.
Hodinkee
