G-Shock #20: Xaymaca 1998

Since 1994 Casio released frequently music inspired G-Shock models. Quite a lot of them were inspired by Reggae or the Rastafarian culture. In the 90’s these models were often released in or around July. Probably to accentuate the summertime (in the Northern Hemisphere). Between 1996 and 1999 Reggae inspired models were released under the G’Mix label as Xaymaca models.

Original packaging of a mint DW-9550RX-9T. Photo's and G-Shock by Psweeting (WatchUSeek), used with kind permission. 

G’Mix was the Japanese G-Shock sub-label for music related models. Outside Japan these models were released under the Tough Label flag. It’s similar what Casio did with the X-Treme models and the G-Lide models in the 90’s. Probably the first name they came u with was Tough Label, but because the L is hard to pronounce in Japanese, the chose for G’Mix. In my opinion I associate G’Mix more with music, than Tough Label, though I rather like the last name.

Strangely, no Xaymaca model made it to an international release. The only international reggae inspired models that had an big international release was the DW-002BM “Bob Marley” model and the DW-002R “Reggae” models, both not part of any series.

This particular model, the DW-9550RX-9T, was released in July 1998. Two Xaymaca models were released that month. No less than 11 different DW-9550 models were released that month. Besides these Xaymaca models, there were also Brazillian Mix models and Groove Tune Models.

Xaymaca is the old name of the island Jamaica, given by the first original inhabitants, the Taino, the Caribbean branch of the Arawak indians. It means “Land of Wood and Water” or “Land of Springs”. Around 650 these sea going indians habited the island. The Taino were brown skinned slightly build people. The origin of their forefathers lies in Asia. Via Alaska they traveled southwards to Venezuela. The men worked as fisherman and the women grow food like cassave, sweet potatoes, allspice and corn. Also they grow cotton, which was used for clothing.

Around 1400 the bellicose Caribes arrived on the island, which made the peaceful life of the Taino quite difficult. With the arrival of Christoffer Columbus on the island in 1494 it became even more difficult. The indians were used as slaves. Due to overwork, infectious diseases and war sadly killed the native population on Jamaica. Although the Taino have been extinct, we still use Taino words. For instance, the Taino smoked a pipe though their nose. The name of this pipe was tabaco (tobacco). Other words we still use are derived from barbacoa (barbecue), juracán (hurricane) and Kanoa (canoe). Nowadays only about 30000 Arawak indians still live in Suriname, Guyana and French Guiana. The Arawak indians are known for their extreme politeness, respect and hospitality.

Unlike the other Reggae or Rastafarian inspired models, you won’t find the famous red, yellow and green colors back on the Xaymaca models (except for the first model in 1996). Most models have brown or green tones, some silver. A returning theme in this series are native patterns on the strap. This model has light brown diamond line patterns on the chocolate brown upper strap.

Although the native theme, the watch is aimed for DJs, people who want to be one or musicians. It’s main feature is the BPM counter. The second G-Shock I bought back in 2000 also had a such a BPM counter. It became a nice instrument while on a Techno festival in Belgium. As I was an active producer of electronic music at that time, I was curious about the tempi played in different rooms and by different DJ’s (I remember Richie Hawtin, Speedy J and Jeff Mills were playing there). The BPM counter. It’s not a very precise BPM counter, as it shows the BPM in increments of 5, but it gives you an idea. At the moment I am writing this, I’m listening to Aphex Twin with a tempo of 175 BPM. It works pretty simple. When in BPM mode, tap the beat on the G-button, which normally is used as light button, for 5 times on the beat and it shows the BPM. Actually I would rather have seen it 4 times, as most modern pop music is 4/4 (four quarter). The lower right button functions as light button. The upper right button can be used to start and stop the metronome. The metronome sounds at the last measured BPM (shown in the display).

For the BPM counter the Countdown Timer function has been sacrificed. Besides the PBM counter you find an simple daily Alarm function and a 24 h Stopwatch. It’s a little pity there is no Countdown Timer.

Extra functions on this watch are the Auto Illuminator and the Flash Alarm. Pretty unusual to find both these functions on one G-Shock. You activate the Auto Illuminator function in Time Keeping Mode by press and hold the lower right button for about 2 seconds (AUTO and a star like icon appers above the seconds). When you tilt your wrist towards you for about 40º, the display lights up. The Flash Alarm is activated by press and hold the upper right button for about 2 seconds (Flash will appear in the display). A funny thing is that if both functiosn are toggled on, the display will not only light up for about 2 seconds, the display also flashes up 2 times, like the Flash Alarm on alarm sounds.

I got this watch from my friend Neil in Chicago a few years ago. It has been worn probably quite a lot by a previous owner. As Neil get most his watches from Japan, I guess, that previous owner was also Japanese. The watch looks from a small distance actually in good condition. Probably because the strap is still clean. Unfortunately the XAYMACA label on the strap shows quit some wear. Actually you can’t read the series name anymore. Also the pain of the bezel has been worn of at the corners. I also recently notice a scratch in the display, which will probably blow up gigantically in my macro photo’s. Not a real problem to me. It is a nice watch for wearing and I don’t have to mind a little bumping into something. A have no real idea what I paid for this watch. I probably bought it in a small batch of heavy used watches. In this state this watch is probably only worth about $30 - $40. For a good to mint you probably pay around $100. In a second hand shop in Japan you probably pay ¥5000 - ¥7500 for such a model. These watches are not really very sought at, but with such a background, I think it’s still a nice looking watch. The strap is pretty comfortable. I am pretty happy with this nice wearer.

G-Shock # 4: Conspirator

 Today’s G-Shock is the DW-003TL-5V. At first sight it looks like a common DW-003 model from the late 90’s, but this model has a 1898 module, which has a BPM counter implemented.

This model was released in Europe, but I am not sure it was also released in the US. It was not a Japanese release. In Japan you had the DW-003RB (Rock & Native) series, with a similar look, but with another module and the DW-003HH (G’Mix Groove Tune, also released worldwide) with a similar module, but different straps.

This G-Shock was my 2nd G-Shock I bought (note that I wrote it was my 3rd on G-Peopleland, got to change that). It was kind of a coincidence. I was very happy with my first maroon DW-004 and had shown it to a lot of people. One of these people said that he had seen a G-Shock in the “Kijkshop”. This is a kind of department store in The Netherlands, where you can view the products in show cases and you order them by filling in an order form. You deliver this order form at the cash register. The form is given through a hatch and an employee gets your item out of the stock.

I was amazed about the price. While I bought my DW-004 for f250.- (€115.-) I think I paid f120.- (€55.-)for this model.

One thing I liked about this model at first was the fact it was brown and not plain black. The bezel is a nice mix between chocolate brown and anthracite. The straps are mainly made of two parts of leather. I think no real leather is used, but artificial leather, to make the strap more waterproof. The black bears the name “Tough Label” and it also has the a big “G” logo stamped on it. It’s the same G as on the light button. The light button is a metallic silver version, which complements nicely with the unusual metal strap holder loops. It would be nice if Casio would use more of these metal loops on their G-Shock straps, like they also did on some I.C.E.R.C. models.

 “Tough Label” was the name of the series called for models that were inspired by music. This could be Rock, Reggae and Hip Hop. This series name is used for overseas models only. In Japan these models were sold under the name G’Mix.

 The DW-003TL wears pretty comfortable. The watch is kept in place by the two wrist guards, which you often find with the DW-00X models. I think they do not only provide comfort, but also allow a little ventilation under the watch, to prevent irritation and bad smell after you went out for a swim or otherwise had become wet.

The DW-001, DW-002 and DW-003 were in Japan promoted as the “Nexax” models, outside Japan these models were also known as the “Capsule Tough” models. These models all have in common that the watch is totsally covered by the bezel and back protector (like a capsule). Only a G and a small rectangle hole at the back allow us to see the model and module number and the production location.

My DW-003TL shows it was made in China. I think in the late 90’s most models that were made in China were the DW-6600’s. There is often a discussion about the difference in quality between models made in Japan and models made outside Japan. I believe that the quality control in Japan and outside Japan in every Casio assembly line is the same. As digital watches are manufactured in an automatic assembly line, there can’t be much difference between a Japan made model and a model made in other East Asian countries. There is however a big difference between Japan made and overseas made G-Shocks and that is the price. I think Japanese employers are about the most expensive in the world. Since people are needed at the manufacturing and quality control, a Japan made model is more expensive than one produced Malaysia, Thailand or China.

Back to the watch. The functions on the watch are very basic, except for the BPM counter. A 24 hour Stopwatch and a single day alarm with hourly chime, that’s it. Unfortunately no Countdown Timer.

 

The BPM counter on this model is more a gadget than a serious measure tool. In 2001 I went to “I Love Techno” in Flanders EXPO, Ghent (Belgium). I had a lot of fun with this watch by trying to find out the BPMs of the records that were played in the different rooms. The BPM counter worked well, but with an accuracy of +/- 5 BPM, you can’t call your measurement accurate. Later Casio came with the DW-9550 with a BPM counter with an accuracy of +/- 1 BPM. I have used this BPM counter a lot in my studio in the past (I haven’t been producing music since 2005).

A cool feature is the two tone display. The negative display above shows, most of the time, bright green digits, while the background of the normal display is greenish gray. The intensity of the green color of the upper display depends on the looking angle a bit. If you roll the watch so that you will look at the bottom, the color changes from green to amber.

The watch has a very beautiful bright and sharp EL backlight. The eye starts animating, like in BPM Counter mode when the EL is activated.

This model appears sporadically on eBay Germany. It is not a wanted model, so if you find one, you don’t have to dig deep in you r wallet. With a bit of luck, you might own it under €40.- (ex shipping). For that price you get a nice 90s looking G-Shock with very basic functions and a bit inaccurate BPM counter. Because of the good looks and the comfortable fit, I think my DW-003TL-5V is a very nice watch and it was a good choice of me t buy it at that time.