Yesterday, MB&F dropped a new piece – the MB&F LMX Paris Edition. This white gold lady was created in collaboration with Laurent Picciotto, one of MB&F’s close friends. The particularity of this watch is the amazing purple dial. Launched in 2021, the LMX pinpoints ten years of Legacy Machines, one more audacious than the other. Created in a random succession of complications and way of displaying time, the LMXs bear the wish of the unexpected. Max always says that the public and the collector must be surprised and any new piece should be different. And indeed, no one can predict the new pieces, regardless if a Legacy Machines, Horological Machines or co-creations. It is always fresh and new, with a twist… The reason why I and others love the brand so much.
I think it is impossible to love high-end horology and not instantly recognise a Legacy Machine. The specific round case with highly domed crystal and exposed mechanics is inimitable. MB&F plays with steel, titanium and gold like these metals are plasticine, and everything inside is just cubes to put one on top of the other. MB&F makes everything look so easy in watchmaking. But only M.B. & Friends know exactly that this recipe is not an easy one. The Paris Edition was manufactured in white gold, an excellent canvas for the inner purple guts. At 44 mm, the case is considered large, and the huge dome adds a lot of volume. But due to the bent lugs, clever ergonomic design, and an excellent strap and white gold folding buckle it is so nice on the wrist. It feels amazing. The feeling of having an MB&F LMX Paris Edition on the wrist is a psychological great experience that could not be possible without the obvious qualities of the watch itself.
As Jimi sings: Whatever it is, that girl put a spell on me… the dial is mesmerising to the point you forget about yourself and the surrounding world – you sink deeper and deeper into the purple sunrayed dial. The way it catches the light, it darkens and lightens with any ray or shadow and metamorphoses into that wide range of unexpected shades and colours. The LMX Paris Edition displays two time zones on two independent dials, each controllable via the corresponding crowns on each side. The power reserve doubles as a weekday indication. The hemispherical complication rotates, adding a new detail to be observed during the day.
As with any MB&F calibre, the LMX offers a grade of complication and finishes that makes any hungry-for-detail eyes satiated. But like with any drug, one cannot stop returning, again and again, to study every mm in search of news details and new feelings of satisfaction – and this you get every time. The top sides split into the independent two times displays with the huge balance wheel governing, like a generous god (taking care that everything runs as… a Swiss clock) above all. The back side splits between the three barrels, winded at once, offering an impressive seven days (168 hours) of energy.
Like any other art, the beauty and interpretation are in the eye of the beholder. “If I were to give a name to the MB&F LMX Paris Edition , I would undoubtedly call it the ‘LMX Deep Purple’ in reference to the famous 1968 rock group – this piece is definitely rock ’n’ roll!”, says Laurent Picciotto, founder of Chronopassion and owner of the MB&F LAB in Paris. But I tend to disagree. While I agree this piece is rock’n’roll, I am more inclined to the Purple Hase of Jimi Hendrix. As someone who experienced the LMX Paris Edition on the wrist, the feeling I get is more about the search for the perfect woman: mysterious but revealing, voluptuous and sensual but with a feel of purity and not vulgarity, sweetness not malicious. The Paris edition is all about that positive feeling without experiencing the negative effects of drugs. Horology at this level is a drug that can be consumed without restrictions and regrets (other than, maybe, the financial: EUR 122,000 before taxes / EUR 146,400 including VAT).
MB&F has released a new variation of its LMX timepiece in celebrating the watchmaker’s long-time partnership and friendship with Laurent Picciotto, founder of the iconic Parisian boutique, Chronopassion.
The new watch, named MB&F LMX Paris Edition , houses a striking purple sunray dial plate, complete with the model’s hallmarked three-dimensional in-house horological movement. Encased in 18k white gold, the 44mm time-teller stars a high-domed sapphire crystal top with a transparent caseback. The timepiece comes with purple-lined gray alligator straps, which are finished with tonal hand-stitching and a white gold folding buckle.
Its manual-winding movement comes with a new bespoke balance wheel in the form of a 13.4mm behemoth with inertia blocks, marking a departure from traditional screwed balances with improved accuracy. In addition, its hemispherical 7-day power reserve indicator also allows the wearer to select between two modes of counting down its remaining running time.