Everything You Need to Know About the Miyota 9015 Movement

In the world of watch movements, Miyota has made a name for themselves as a manufacturer of affordable and reliable calibers. One of their most popular offerings that has taken the watch industry by storm since its 2009 debut is the Miyota 9015.

With its growing adoption by microbrands and watch enthusiasts, the Miyota 9015 has cemented itself as a versatile Japanese alternative to higher-end Swiss options while still offering a premium quality. Let's take an in-depth look at this movement powering modern watches everywhere.

History of the Miyota 9015

Source: Miyota

Miyota is a Japanese movement maker owned by the Citizen Group, one of the largest watch producers globally. With the goal of providing accessible and accurate movements, Miyota launched the 9000 series in 2009 to bring an affordable automatic caliber option to smaller watch brands.

The 9015 was designed as an upgrade to their well-known 8000 series, offering improved features and specifications that watch startups quickly embraced. It became an instrumental force enabling the rise of crowdfunded watch companies like Melbourne and Momentum to name a few.

Specs and Features

So what exactly does this workhorse Japanese caliber offer? For starters, the 9015 contains 24 jewels and operates at 28,800 vibrations per hour, delivering a smooth sweeping seconds hand. It winds bidirectionally via a ball bearing rotor to efficiently power the movement. Of course, hacking seconds enables precise time setting.

One of the 9015's strongest assets is its impressive 42+ hour power reserve off a single wind. This gives it substantial staying power for an automatic watch, especially with its thin 3.9mm profile allowing for slimmer case designs. It also packs a handy date complication and keeps time to an accuracy of -10 to +30 seconds daily. Not bad for an economical movement choice!

When it comes to advantages, cost savings is king. The Miyota 9015 sells for a fraction of what an equivalent Swiss movement like the ETA 2824 commands. This enables smaller brands to offer automatic watches at affordable prices, passing the value to customers. The caliber also boasts proven reliability after over a decade of real-world use.

Compared to Seiko NH Movements

In the modding community, there is of course a huge bias towards the Seiko NH movement, what with this humble little caliber powering the watch modding niche for a few years now. Taking an objective look though, it is evident that the Seiko NH35 or NH36 fall short in some areas when compared to the Miyota 9015.

The 9015 operates at a faster beat rate of 28,800 bph versus the NH35/36's 21,600 bph, giving it a smoother sweep seconds hand and better accuracy. Just how much better? The 9015 runs at -10 to +30 spd vs -20 to +40 spd on the NH movements.

The power reserve is longer at over 42 hours compared to the NH's 41 hours. Granted, it’s not that much of a difference and your average user wouldn’t really notice this gap, but it’s still worth a mention for comparison’s sake.

What is noticeable though, is the 9015's slimmer profile that allows for more versatile case designs; something that we think our dear modfam will be quite excited about. We release a slim case and people demand slimmer, and it wasn’t long before we reached the limits of possible case thinness while still being able to fit NH movements inside. Now, with the introduction of the Miyota 9015 in our store, the limit is reset and the pursuit for even slimmer cases can start again.

There are a few trade-offs, like a basic unfinished aesthetic and the potential for rotor noise. If the launch proves to be successful though, and with enough demand, some custom rotors and accessories for the Miyota 9015 are not entirely out of the question.

The 9015 is a bit more costly than your usual NH, but it delivers ample quality to more than justify the price tag. If you’re ready for something more premium, be sure to keep an eye out for our Miyota 9015 launch along with 2 cases that takes full advantage of its slimness.

Wrap Up

At the end of the day, the Miyota 9015 reshaped the industry by bringing automatic movements into reach for microbrands and watch lovers everywhere. It strikes an excellent balance between price and performance that continues making it a force to be reckoned with. And now, we hope to bring this level of quality to the modding scene. We know that it will never replace the Seiko NH as the crowd favorite, but for those looking for something even more accurate, and even more refined than what the NH35 and NH36 can offer, an option is coming out soon for you.

If you come across a watch with the Miyota 9015 inside, you can be sure it packs reliability and value at an accessible cost. The question is, will you admire Miyota builds from afar, or will you build one yourself?

Happy modding!