pp-philippe-thierry-stern-minute-repeater

Quality and Fine Workmanship

The Patek Philippe Sound

In the Stern Family, the passion for chiming watches has been transmitted without interruption for four generations.

The Quest for the Perfect Sound

At Patek Philippe, no minute repeater can be delivered to its future owner without first being carefully vetted by our President. This is why today, Thierry Stern listens to every single one that comes out of our workshops to approve its sound. A ritual of the utmost importance that was inherited from his father, and his grandfather before him, to ensure that our minute repeaters will never sound like any others.

Every single minute repeater timepiece produced goes through a final sound test by Thierry Stern himself.

All of our chiming watches have a sound of their own – a unique interpretation of the Patek Philippe sound.

Striking a Sound

The highest number of strikes within a minute repeater watch happens at 12:59: 12 strikes for the 12 hours, six strikes for the three quarters (two strikes per quarter), and 14 strikes for the 14 minutes elapsed since the last quarter of the hour.

Hammers and Gongs

The sound of a chiming watch is produced by small steel hammers striking “gongs” – steel wires wrapped around the movement inside the case. In 2000, Patek Philippe presented “cathedral” gongs. Twice as long as the traditional ones, they produce a rich sound with a particularly long resonance. Today, we offer the largest collection of chiming watches, focusing on two exceptional models.

Minute Repeaters

A minute repeater watch chimes on demand by activating its two gongs. One gong is low-pitched, while the other is high-pitched, using a bolt located at 9 o'clock. The time is thus indicated as follows: a lower tone for each hour, a double high-low tone for each quarter, and a higher tone for each minute that has elapsed since the last quarter.

Grande and Petite Sonneries

While minute repeaters can be manually activated at any time, Grande and Petite Sonneries automatically chime hours and quarters. The Grande Sonnerie chimes both hours and quarters, while the Petite Sonnerie only chimes the quarters. At Patek Philippe, all Grande and Petite Sonneries are also equipped with a minute repeater mechanism and a silent mode.

At the Heart of Ref. 6301P-001

Featuring 703 components and 95 jewels, the manually-wound GS 36-750 PS IRM movement is an adaptation of the caliber 300 beating inside the world-renowned Grandmaster Chime. It features six complications, a strikework with three classic gongs and was granted three patents.

Caliber GS 36-750 PS IRM consists of 703 parts and 95 jewels, and is remarkably compact for such a complex mechanism.

Pushing Boundaries

In our pursuit of the perfect sound and faithful to our life-long tradition of innovation, we released a 15-pieces limited edition, Ref. 5750P “Advanced Research” Fortissimo, in 2021. Rewarded with four patents, this extraordinary feat of engineering delivers an amplified sound of excellent acoustic quality in comparison with conventional minute repeaters, regardless of the case material.

Our Advanced Research

The "Duc de Regla" minute repeating pocket watch with petite sonnerie, circa 1908, is on display at the Patek Philippe Museum.

The first wristwatch with a minute repeater was owned by the inventor of cruise control, Ralph Teetor, in the 1920s.

The rebirth of Patek Philippe’s chiming watches came in 1989 with the launch of Caliber 89 with 33 complications.

And to mark the new millennium, Star Caliber 2000 with 1,118 parts and 21 complications joined the Supercomplications collection.

Launched in 2001, Sky Moon Tourbillon is a double-face wristwatch with a minute repeater featuring two “cathedral” gongs.

The Grandmaster Chime, launched in 2014, is the most complicated Patek Philippe wristwatch and includes five chiming modes.

A Rich Heritage

Chiming watches have always held a special place in our story. Our first minute repeater watch on record was purchased by a customer in 1839, less than six months after the company’s creation. Our illustrious heritage in relation to chiming watches is perhaps most apparent when viewing the historical timepieces on display at the Patek Philippe Museum, which showcases our vast collection through the years.