I have to agree - that is a magnificent watch. It looks like a piece that is "self aware", and professionally proud of delivering the best in accuracy and information to the viewer. It presents an exceedingly efficient visual interface, using enough expanse of black empty space around the center to offset the highly detailed minute and second markings. The Hour and minute hands command immediate attention, which is perfect. They don't get lost in clutter like a whole bunch of top name watches. This watch is perfect from the front. The back is a wee bit industrial, and some elegance to showcase that see-through back would be welcome, and justified by the excellence of this watch. I want one. Looks like one I can hand down to one of my sons.
I think you've explained very clearly why I find spending $5,000 to $8,000 for a diver's watch from the traditional Swiss manufacturers is a lousy value proposition. This Sinn for under $2,000 provides just about everything that I could want -- sapphire crystal with AR coating, beautifully machined case, excellent bracelet attached with screws and not pins, a 28,800 BPH Sellita movement, snick-snick bezel motion, and excellent lume. Sinn and Oris (Aquis, Sixty-Five) provide really high-quality timepieces for about double the price of mid-market Seiko divers like the Transocean, the Shogun, and the 62MAS look-alikes. Only the MM300 can be directly compared to this 104 and I think the Sinn is better on paper due to the sapphire crystal (rather than the MM300's Hardlex). I'm glad that you like it so much and I think I'll have to try one out for myself one day.
Lee K while the actual case, bezel and the movement are worth the price. The biggest disappointment is on the H link bracelet. The design of the bracelet is half way the deciding factor for buying this watch. A 104 with leather is under 2k but i just dont find the H bracelet good enough for this german time machine. I would buy a 103 or a 104 on leather due to the cheap workmanship on the current metal bracelets
rolex builds a watch from the very basic core of a bracelet all the way to the metals that are incorporated into creating a bracelet that is worthy of a bezel,movement and swiss engineering. sinn is up there with the best but i think they strongly need to look at their bracelets as the workmanship does not reflect their watch mechanisms.
Well, since you put a price on the experience of owning a Rolex, i bought mine in april 2006 for 4k. As an investment my watch has doubled in price if bought used. If bought new then for sure it has tripled in value. I hate to tell you that your Sinn watch will not ever achieve that. I agree 200%, Sinn builds a awesome movement and bezel. But look at your watch as a piece of jewelry, investment and of course its uniqueness. I am looking to goto to the NYC watch show this coming weekend and try Sinn watches. I may buy one, as i am looking for a new acquisition.
I like Sinn, but their prices have gotten out of hand. This watch is nearly $1600 now on the H-link bracelet. At that price, might as well spend another $1,000 and get a Seiko MM300. Or if you want to save money, get a Seiko SBDC051 or SBDC061, which are ~$750 and have sapphire crystal and in-house movement. Plus, people collect Seikos... haven't heard of anyone with a Sinn collection yet. I like Sinn, I own a U1 which I'm wearing at this moment... but Seikos have something special about them, like art - Sinn feel more like a trusty tool. So I would say, buy one Sinn... but collect Seiko (and Rolex).
Thank you so much for the kind words! If you decide to mod the clasp, please let me know. The lack of micro adjustments was only grip with the overall watch. At first glance, I didn’t really like the clasp itself but after wearing t for a few days, I liked the clasp but was just wanting those micro adjustments. Cheers and glad you enjoy the watch. Sinn does an amazing job adjusting the movements. I have had three Sinns now and they are always super accurate.
Great review. This watch is a home run. I want one as well. It has it's own style and is not a homage to anything. The watch is very well designed and executed. Thank you for reviewing this fine time piece!
Thanks for the review. I’ve only recently become interested in automatic watches. In the end I went for a Seiko Turtle on rubber as my first, I’m not keen on really heavy watches. I think this might be my next upgrade sometime in the next year, possibly on leather.
Nice one, been eyeing the 104 for a while now too. I like the white dial but it's theme is a bit too close to my C60 COSC Day/Date. I still may pickup a black dial Arabic numeral one eventually. I'll be covering the WatchBuys roadshow tomorrow, so I'll be looking forward to getting some hands on. I'll be wearing my newly purchased Sinn 556 I B there.
The white dial 104 is one of my favorite watches. In summer with the h-link steel bracelet and in autumn/winter like now with a origin Sinn dark brown leather bracelet. Just awesome watch.
Ulf Core How were you able to decide between the white vs black with indicies? I love the enamel white vs the matte black, but the lume seems to be thicker on the black dial because the white has black outline on the hands and markers. I dont have any black or white dial watches that are non dress watches, so "choosing something I dont already own" is not an option. thanks!
@@robertwilliams1286 Hey Robert. For me it was like black on white, the black outline hands looked more filigree, more precise than the white-lume on black. Which I liked a lot. But it was hard. I also looked the EZM3F also a awesome watch. But I felt in love with the precise, razorblade sharp look of the black on white dial.
@@ulfcore6552 thank you! I understand where you're coming from. I wish I could see these in person (which would make this so much easier). I'm wondering which would be more versatile now.... I see a lot of used black dial versions on the forums for sale and I'm curious if that's because they fell out of love, people who buy white just keep it, or there are a lot more black dials being purchased so there are more being sold... Can you tell me how the lume is on yours?
I have a104 in white dial awesome with the Matt finish too -love it 👍 . Make sure you give it a good wind as the power reserve can lose complete power.After I didn't wear it all weekend of not using it . Thanks
Stunner classic design I feel may become a classic. I Had one. Being older I had a very hard time seeing the hour indices. The watch is an amazing build quality however utility limited due to my far sighted eyesight.
How does this compare to the Seiko SBDC051? The Sinn 103/104 lines are homages of the Breguet Type XX... especially the chronographs. I was a big Sinn fan until I did my research and realized a lot of their watches look near-identical to older watches. I was so close to purchasing one, but feel that it would bug me too much. I've also noticed a trend of people buying the Sinn 104, falling in "love" with it, and then selling it in a year. The watches I really like in my collection (Omega Speedmaster, Seiko Monster, Squale 1521(blue), Casio Pathfinder (PAG40-3V).
Shipmate I am not a fan of the sbdc051 size or value, maybe if it cost less? The Sinn is amazing. I just needed the money for other things or would have kept it. My happy place with Watches is $200
Sucks to hear you have to sell a watch for RL issues man; wish you the best. Being a selfish youtube viewer... any chance you can do a comparison between the Sinn 104 and Seiko SBDC051??? I know a little how you feel. I like my Seiko Monster (2nd Gen) almost as much as my Speedmaster.
Shipmate.... I just received my Seiko Sbdc 053 and I really like it a lot, the fit and finish is excellent and the silicon bracelet is very comfortable. I have a 7 inch wrist and it fits perfectly... I had looked at sinn for a while and decided to go with a Steinhart Ocean One 39, which is an outstanding value if you don’t mind homages. The Oris Aquis would be the biggest competitor to sinn at that price point.
put it on a 20mm Staib mesh . Perfect match and made in Germany too . Better deployant clasp with pushers and more adjustments . Love the AR coating on my 104 . Go for this over my explorer...
I have almost bought the 104 multiple times. I can't make the decision between the no date 556 and the 104. I have yet to try either on in person. That is a 2018 watch goal! --Michael
Mine is +11,8 per day , I love it but although the result is within accuracy range I’m kind of upset about it. I got it for only 2 weeks and read from the sinn instruction that it require a 8 weeks period for the watch to settle, hope its true.
daweihk88 I own the 356 SA III Chronograph and it started of with + 17 sec a day and after 3 months it settled , it runs now constantly at + 3 sec a day
Jpman 276 thanks for sharing, mine is better now between +4 / +6 depending on the wearing time , I still love it I go swim with it every week but I’m looking to purchase a oméga seamaster 300
im sorry but once i found out about Raymond Weil and their Freelance diver watch all of these brands look so cheap! i don't know if you've ever seen their diver but its truly breathtaking, they put more work in the clasp alone than Sinn put in that whole watch. Jomashop has them for $1095 and im having to pull back on the rains so damn hard to keep from buying one LMWO! but if i was on the market a Freelancer would be my go to. they even have a dress model that kinda looks like a datejust but only in the right ways for $700
The Damasko DC66 is sweet. If you like Sinn and Damasko (who used to make the cases for Sinn until about 1998), then you should also check out Bell&Ross - who were designers who basically broke off from Sinn... Sinn actually made some of their watches (Bell&Ross watches co-labelled made by Sinn - See B&R's 144 model).
Comment nr. 104! Coincidence? Must I buy the watch now? Man, I can't shake this watch out of my head. I don't need it but I want it. So expensive but... Damn.
It's a bummer the Sinn had to leave your collection. I love mine and have been thinking about getting the H-link bracelet for it. I have the fine link bracelet for it and it's nice but that H-link looks heftier and I like that.
Ha! Funny seeing this . I just re-bought an SKX009 just today. I did have the Sinn 104 white dial but prefer the black dial. This month may be the month of re-buys. Great review once again Rob.
I 'm your newest subscriber, great video, your passion came through, very similar tastes to me, if they change the clasp i will buy one . keep up the good work, regards from Ireland.
Nice watch, but I've got my SBDC051 that's just too similar and half the price. I've become a Seiko/Grand Seiko and Rolex guy lately; only exception to that rule being the Omega Speedmaster ; )
Because most people are familiar with the size, specs, finishing and feel of the skx, as it has probably been the most popular watch on the planet for more than 2 decades. Most of the people watching vids about watches either currently own or have owned an skx at some point so it's just natural to compare other watches to it.
I have to agree - that is a magnificent watch. It looks like a piece that is "self aware", and professionally proud of delivering the best in accuracy and information to the viewer. It presents an exceedingly efficient visual interface, using enough expanse of black empty space around the center to offset the highly detailed minute and second markings. The Hour and minute hands command immediate attention, which is perfect. They don't get lost in clutter like a whole bunch of top name watches. This watch is perfect from the front. The back is a wee bit industrial, and some elegance to showcase that see-through back would be welcome, and justified by the excellence of this watch. I want one. Looks like one I can hand down to one of my sons.
Jerry W Davis
Dang, very well said.
Rob you have made me buy a monster, a sumo, and I'm probably going to pick this up... you sir are a bad influence
I think you've explained very clearly why I find spending $5,000 to $8,000 for a diver's watch from the traditional Swiss manufacturers is a lousy value proposition. This Sinn for under $2,000 provides just about everything that I could want -- sapphire crystal with AR coating, beautifully machined case, excellent bracelet attached with screws and not pins, a 28,800 BPH Sellita movement, snick-snick bezel motion, and excellent lume. Sinn and Oris (Aquis, Sixty-Five) provide really high-quality timepieces for about double the price of mid-market Seiko divers like the Transocean, the Shogun, and the 62MAS look-alikes. Only the MM300 can be directly compared to this 104 and I think the Sinn is better on paper due to the sapphire crystal (rather than the MM300's Hardlex). I'm glad that you like it so much and I think I'll have to try one out for myself one day.
Lee K while the actual case, bezel and the movement are worth the price. The biggest disappointment is on the H link bracelet. The design of the bracelet is half way the deciding factor for buying this watch. A 104 with leather is under 2k but i just dont find the H bracelet good enough for this german time machine. I would buy a 103 or a 104 on leather due to the cheap workmanship on the current metal bracelets
rolex builds a watch from the very basic core of a bracelet all the way to the metals that are incorporated into creating a bracelet that is worthy of a bezel,movement and swiss engineering. sinn is up there with the best but i think they strongly need to look at their bracelets as the workmanship does not reflect their watch mechanisms.
Well, since you put a price on the experience of owning a Rolex, i bought mine in april 2006 for 4k. As an investment my watch has doubled in price if bought used. If bought new then for sure it has tripled in value. I hate to tell you that your Sinn watch will not ever achieve that. I agree 200%, Sinn builds a awesome movement and bezel. But look at your watch as a piece of jewelry, investment and of course its uniqueness. I am looking to goto to the NYC watch show this coming weekend and try Sinn watches. I may buy one, as i am looking for a new acquisition.
I like Sinn, but their prices have gotten out of hand. This watch is nearly $1600 now on the H-link bracelet. At that price, might as well spend another $1,000 and get a Seiko MM300. Or if you want to save money, get a Seiko SBDC051 or SBDC061, which are ~$750 and have sapphire crystal and in-house movement. Plus, people collect Seikos... haven't heard of anyone with a Sinn collection yet. I like Sinn, I own a U1 which I'm wearing at this moment... but Seikos have something special about them, like art - Sinn feel more like a trusty tool. So I would say, buy one Sinn... but collect Seiko (and Rolex).
I picked up a U1 fully tegimented this month, i am excited.
This is my favorite in my collection. Goes with anything. Glad you like it!
I have a 104 on the way with the Arabic numerals. Can't wait. I had a 556 and it was amazing. The accuracy was crazy. Nice vid.
Thank you so much for the kind words! If you decide to mod the clasp, please let me know. The lack of micro adjustments was only grip with the overall watch. At first glance, I didn’t really like the clasp itself but after wearing t for a few days, I liked the clasp but was just wanting those micro adjustments. Cheers and glad you enjoy the watch. Sinn does an amazing job adjusting the movements. I have had three Sinns now and they are always super accurate.
I just bought the 104 red second hand, have any suggestions for strap sizes, i have a 7.75" wrist. Would send some bidirectional your way
Great review. This watch is a home run. I want one as well. It has it's own style and is not a homage to anything. The watch is very well designed and executed. Thank you for reviewing this fine time piece!
E Larson
Well said, it’s very original.
the watch is a stunner , i do prefer this review over others as it is not sponsored by Sinn , thanks Rob. Cheers Mate.
I've had the similar experience with my Sinn 104's accuracy! Bang on👍
Update, bought the Sinn U1- T- SDR. Which is a fully tegimented case and bracelet gray with black bezel.
Classic, love mine - the 104 goes with any strap
Thanks for the review. I’ve only recently become interested in automatic watches. In the end I went for a Seiko Turtle on rubber as my first, I’m not keen on really heavy watches. I think this might be my next upgrade sometime in the next year, possibly on leather.
LozKnutsen
If you are a Seiko fan you will love the Sinn. They are great upgrade for the Seiko fans.
Nice one, been eyeing the 104 for a while now too. I like the white dial but it's theme is a bit too close to my C60 COSC Day/Date. I still may pickup a black dial Arabic numeral one eventually. I'll be covering the WatchBuys roadshow tomorrow, so I'll be looking forward to getting some hands on. I'll be wearing my newly purchased Sinn 556 I B there.
The white dial 104 is one of my favorite watches. In summer with the h-link steel bracelet and in autumn/winter like now with a origin Sinn dark brown leather bracelet. Just awesome watch.
Ulf Core How were you able to decide between the white vs black with indicies? I love the enamel white vs the matte black, but the lume seems to be thicker on the black dial because the white has black outline on the hands and markers.
I dont have any black or white dial watches that are non dress watches, so "choosing something I dont already own" is not an option.
thanks!
@@robertwilliams1286
Hey Robert.
For me it was like black on white, the black outline hands looked more filigree, more precise than the white-lume on black. Which I liked a lot. But it was hard. I also looked the EZM3F also a awesome watch. But I felt in love with the precise, razorblade sharp look of the black on white dial.
@@ulfcore6552 thank you! I understand where you're coming from. I wish I could see these in person (which would make this so much easier). I'm wondering which would be more versatile now.... I see a lot of used black dial versions on the forums for sale and I'm curious if that's because they fell out of love, people who buy white just keep it, or there are a lot more black dials being purchased so there are more being sold...
Can you tell me how the lume is on yours?
I have been eyeing the Sinn U1 LTD Blue. Yup! Sinn is amazing. Great video. Thanks for sharing.
I have a104 in white dial awesome with the Matt finish too -love it 👍 . Make sure you give it a good wind as the power reserve can lose complete power.After I didn't wear it all weekend of not using it . Thanks
I have just come across this superb video , thanks for that . In my earlier comment I meant this watch
Seeing those gshock boxes and the seiko sporttimer in the back makes you sympathic
Awesome watch. I have a Seiko snzf17 sea urchin that is 41mm I'm told. How is the day/date compared to it. Cause my day/date is difficult to see
Stunner classic design I feel may become a classic. I Had one. Being older I had a very hard time seeing the hour indices. The watch is an amazing build quality however utility limited due to my far sighted eyesight.
How does this compare to the Seiko SBDC051? The Sinn 103/104 lines are homages of the Breguet Type XX... especially the chronographs. I was a big Sinn fan until I did my research and realized a lot of their watches look near-identical to older watches. I was so close to purchasing one, but feel that it would bug me too much. I've also noticed a trend of people buying the Sinn 104, falling in "love" with it, and then selling it in a year. The watches I really like in my collection (Omega Speedmaster, Seiko Monster, Squale 1521(blue), Casio Pathfinder (PAG40-3V).
Shipmate
I am not a fan of the sbdc051 size or value, maybe if it cost less? The Sinn is amazing. I just needed the money for other things or would have kept it. My happy place with Watches is $200
Sucks to hear you have to sell a watch for RL issues man; wish you the best. Being a selfish youtube viewer... any chance you can do a comparison between the Sinn 104 and Seiko SBDC051??? I know a little how you feel. I like my Seiko Monster (2nd Gen) almost as much as my Speedmaster.
Shipmate.... I just received my Seiko Sbdc 053 and I really like it a lot, the fit and finish is excellent and the silicon bracelet is very comfortable. I have a 7 inch wrist and it fits perfectly... I had looked at sinn for a while and decided to go with a Steinhart Ocean One 39, which is an outstanding value if you don’t mind homages. The Oris Aquis would be the biggest competitor to sinn at that price point.
Shipmate, you’re saying the sinn104 is homage watch? Can you back that up?
put it on a 20mm Staib mesh . Perfect match and made in Germany too . Better deployant clasp with pushers and more adjustments . Love the AR coating on my 104 . Go for this over my explorer...
Oh man, I've been waiting for this review for a long time as you know ;) Awesome awesome piece!
Great watch!!! No wonder why you fell in love with it Rob!!!
This may be my next Sinn. I currently wear an EZM3F, and it's also amazing accurate, but even way more "tooly".
I have almost bought the 104 multiple times. I can't make the decision between the no date 556 and the 104. I have yet to try either on in person. That is a 2018 watch goal!
--Michael
I couldn't decide between the 103 and 104 but ended up with the 104 red seconds after having it in my shopping cart 3 times.
I have 3x eta autos and 4x seiko autos and I'm gobsmacked at the quality of the sinn selita movement 😮
I just bought one too and it’s an awesome watch, I would even pay 2,000 for it it’s worth the money.
Glad you found THE watch for you. Great watch indeed and Sinn produces some fantastic watches. I own the U1 and love it. Enjoy!
What year is your U1?
I have the white dial 104 and I am jealous of your watches accuracy. I am getting 6 seconds a day. I really rate the design but not its performance.
Lawrence Rogers
Yeah that’s a bummer, maybe time to regulate?
Mine is +11,8 per day , I love it but although the result is within accuracy range I’m kind of upset about it. I got it for only 2 weeks and read from the sinn instruction that it require a 8 weeks period for the watch to settle, hope its true.
daweihk88 I own the 356 SA III Chronograph and it started of with + 17 sec a day and after 3 months it settled , it runs now constantly at + 3 sec a day
Jpman 276 thanks for sharing, mine is better now between +4 / +6 depending on the wearing time , I still love it I go swim with it every week but I’m looking to purchase a oméga seamaster 300
daweihk88 glad to hear that and the 300 is a fantastic watch , can’t make a mistake with a 300:) Hope to get one soon in to my collection
Awesome vid! Makes me want one
Get one and do a comparison with the Seiko SBDC051 ; )
Bruce Williams still waiting to see the 104 on your channel, Bruce!
seriously sir, it is a beautiful timepiece. :)
im sorry but once i found out about Raymond Weil and their Freelance diver watch all of these brands look so cheap! i don't know if you've ever seen their diver but its truly breathtaking, they put more work in the clasp alone than Sinn put in that whole watch. Jomashop has them for $1095 and im having to pull back on the rains so damn hard to keep from buying one LMWO! but if i was on the market a Freelancer would be my go to. they even have a dress model that kinda looks like a datejust but only in the right ways for $700
bold design :(
I'd love to get a Sinn or maybe Damasko.
The Damasko DC66 is sweet. If you like Sinn and Damasko (who used to make the cases for Sinn until about 1998), then you should also check out Bell&Ross - who were designers who basically broke off from Sinn... Sinn actually made some of their watches (Bell&Ross watches co-labelled made by Sinn - See B&R's 144 model).
Congrats with your badass watch.
Very nice watch.
Would you consider upgrading the microphone you use?
Nope. Rode micro is a great choice for how I am doing this.
Comment nr. 104! Coincidence? Must I buy the watch now? Man, I can't shake this watch out of my head. I don't need it but I want it. So expensive but... Damn.
It's a bummer the Sinn had to leave your collection. I love mine and have been thinking about getting the H-link bracelet for it. I have the fine link bracelet for it and it's nice but that H-link looks heftier and I like that.
I agree with everything you said in this video! I love mine and day after day it always seems to be the watch I choose
Ha! Funny seeing this . I just re-bought an SKX009 just today. I did have the Sinn 104 white dial but prefer the black dial. This month may be the month of re-buys. Great review once again Rob.
tony trinidad
Thanks. I will make skx vid tomorrow, it’s a great watch and is Best Buy these days.
Dis you ever make the modification to remove the dive extension? How was the 104 bracelet compared to the skx jubilee?
I 'm your newest subscriber, great video, your passion came through, very similar tastes to me, if they change the clasp i will buy one . keep up the good work, regards from Ireland.
My only complain about the 104 is the too often misaligned insert. Shift to the right very often !
Great looking watch!!
We love it, too!
Aren't you selling this watch now?!?
Shipmate
Just sold it 😢
Sinn 104 owns the 1000-1500 segment in my opinion.
I wonder how it compares to the new Seiko SBDC051, which sells for $850.
Awesome video. I got the one with a white dial.
Nice watch, but I've got my SBDC051 that's just too similar and half the price. I've become a Seiko/Grand Seiko and Rolex guy lately; only exception to that rule being the Omega Speedmaster ; )
Just one watch and you have found it.
Can you please tell me what strap that is on the Alpinist?
Murdoc1984
Prototype BluShark leather. Will do some BluShark vids soon.
Random Rob Thank you. I’m looking forward to see to see the video.
Murdoc1984 9
Where was the website you bought this from?
Whats the strap on your alpinist please?
That's a keeper, i guess
Lug to lug precise measure?
Why does everyone always try to compare to the skx?
Because most people are familiar with the size, specs, finishing and feel of the skx, as it has probably been the most popular watch on the planet for more than 2 decades. Most of the people watching vids about watches either currently own or have owned an skx at some point so it's just natural to compare other watches to it.
I wish it didn't have painted hands though
For that price I had a good laugh
😍
1st
I have been looking at this watch for a while now, this may have been the straw!
Don't like the name.
😍