Seiko Just Brought a Classic Dive Watch Back to Its Roots

If you didn’t love Seiko’s new Marinemaster last year, this is for you.

Published September 3, 2024

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Last year, Seiko brought back one of its most beloved dive watch nameplates — the Marinemaster — for a whole new line of divers after a half-decade away.

The 2023 Marinemaster was unlike anything we’d seen before from the brand. It was the thinnest automatic dive watch from Seiko and the first Seiko diver to feature an exhibition caseback. It was more compact than most Seiko divers at 39.5mm, and it had a more premium bracelet and a level of finishing that put it head and shoulders above the rest of Seiko’s dive watch lineup.

Although practically everyone appreciated the general specs of the watch, some took umbrage with the name. The classic Marinemaster that was first introduced in the year 2000, reference SBDX001, was a beast of a tool watch at 44mm across with a depth rating of 300m. The new Marinemaster was fancy, but it was decidedly less rugged than the OG.

Now, Seiko is launching yet another new Marinemaster, and this one is far more likely to appeal to fans of the original who weren’t too keen on last year’s version.

Seiko Marinemaster SLA079

$2,900 at Seiko

The Big n’ Beefy Marinemaster Is Back

For last year’s Marinemaster, Seiko drew stylistic inspiration from the 62MAS, the 1965 diver that was Seiko’s first-ever dive watch. The 62MAS is a looker, for sure, but it’s practically a skin diver.

Historically, the Marinemaster had drawn its lineage back to the ref. 6159-7001 from 1968. That watch was the first Seiko diver to say “Professional” on the dial, and it was nearly the first to feature a 4 o’clock crown and 300m of water resistance (the short-lived ref. 6215-7000 was the first to reach those milestones the year prior before being replaced by the 6159-7001).

Seiko’s new Marinemaster for 2024 once again takes its cues from the 1968 model, just as it did in 2000, with the same basic index, handset and bezel design. The watch is also water resistant to 300m, restoring the Marinemaster’s classic rating after last year’s model topped out at just 200m.

seiko dive watch against a blue gradient background — Seiko’s 2023 Marinemaster release was certainly a slick and appealing diver, but is it a Marinemaster?

The new Marinemaster is also once again an oversized watch, eschewing the smaller form factor that was the most touted feature of last year’s release. While not quite reaching the SBDX001’s massive 44mm case size, Seiko’s latest diver is still quite sizable at 42.6mm across and 13.4mm thick. Looks like big dive watches are back on the menu at Seiko, boys.

The finishing on the new model appears to be well above your standard Seiko diver, but perhaps a step below last year’s model — especially on the bracelet. But both the case and bracelet are in stainless steel with a hardened coating for added scratch resistance, and the crystal is sapphire.

seiko dive watch crown closeup — Seiko says it’s refined the knurling on the new Marinemaster’s bezel and crown to make it easier to grip, showing a preference for function over flash.

The new Marinemaster also gets a new movement, and no, it’s not a high-beat engine like back in ’68. It is, however, arguably a step up from the Cal. 6L37 in last year’s Marinemaster. While not as thin as that movement, the Cal. 8L35 in this year’s Marinemaster has a longer power reserve (50 vs 45 hours) while all other major specs (jewels, beat rate, accuracy) remain the same.

A Marinemaster for the Rest of Us

If you’ve been waiting for the return of the Marinemaster and felt last year’s release missed the mark, then this new one may be for you. With its bigger size, more toolish aesthetic and 300m water resistance, it’s certainly closer to the iconic diver of the 2000s.

Still, there are enough differences that purists will perhaps remain unsatisfied. While bigger, the new watch is still about 1.5mm smaller and thinner than the original Marinemaster. The case of the new version also isn’t a helium-proof monobloc design like on the original, which was one of its calling cards.

The case finishing is inspired by the classic 1968 ref. 6159-7001 Seiko diver.

Seiko

Finally, the new Marinemaster suffers from the same affliction as last year’s release in that the date window has been moved to 4:30 — a detail that almost universally irks watch enthusiasts.

If you can get past all that, though, this new release is one helluva rugged tool watch that does an amiable job of bringing the Marinemaster name closer to what it has always stood for: Big, unapologetic professional dive watches.

Seiko’s new Marinemaster diver is available in two references: SLA079 with a black dial and SLA077 with a white dial. Both are available now for $2,900, which is less than the launch price of last year’s mini Marinemaster release but $100 less than its current price.