Cyansky HS6R Headlamp Review
The Cyansky HS6R “triple output” headlamp has two white and a set of red emitters for many output variations. It even has USB-C charging!
Cyansky HS6R Headlamp Official Specs and Features
Here’s a link to the Cyansky HS6R Headlamp product page.
Versions
There is just one version of the Cyansky HS6R headlamp.
Price
Looks like these are selling for $74.95 at the moment, and I believe the package does include the 18650 cell seen in this review.
Short Review
Aside from the target output numbers not being reached, this is a nice headlamp. The spot and flood are individually useful, and the combination has good output too. Red is a nice bonus, but I could use a lower red, too.
Long Review of the Cyansky HS6R Headlamp
The Big Table
Three big tables, actually!
| Cyansky HS6R Headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Luminus SST-20 (Both) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $74.95 |
| Cell: | 1×18650 |
| Turbo Runtime Graph | |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | 17uA |
| On-Board Charging? | No |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 1400 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 956 (68.3% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | 5.1 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 170 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 786lux @ 3.304m = 8580cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 185.3 (109% of claim)^ |
| All my Cyansky reviews! | |
| Cyansky HS6R Headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Luminus SST-40 (Spot) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $74.95 |
| Cell: | 1×18650 |
| Turbo Runtime Graph | High Runtime Graph |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | 17uA |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Charge Port Type: | USB-C |
| Charge Graph | |
| Power off Charge Port | With or without cell: No |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 1200 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 776 (64.7% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | 8.1 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 170 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 562lux @ 3.798m = 8107cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 180.1 (105.9% of claim)^ |
| All my Cyansky reviews! | |
| Cyansky HS6R Headlamp | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Luminus SST-20 (Flood) |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $74.95 |
| Cell: | 1×18650 |
| High Runtime Graph | |
| LVP? | Yes |
| Switch Type: | E-Switch |
| Quiescent Current (mA): | 17uA |
| On-Board Charging? | Yes |
| Charge Port Type: | USB-C |
| Charge Graph | |
| Power off Charge Port | With or without cell: No |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 500 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 390 (78% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | 2.1 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 63 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 64lux @ 3.517m = 792cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 56.3 (89.4% of claim)^ |
| All my Cyansky reviews! | |
^ Measurement disclaimer: Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.
What’s Included
- Cyansky HS6R Headlamp
- Cyansky 2600mAh 18650
- Charge cable (USB to USB-C)
- Spare o-ring
- Spare switch cover
Package and Manual
Build Quality and Disassembly
As far as I am aware, this is Cyansky’s first venture into headlamps. There are a few interesting aspects, for sure, but overall it’s a solid build.
Interestingly the piece connecting the HS6R to the headband is metal. Most of the time, that’s a plastic piece.
This metal piece, however, has a nice curl along all edges, which keeps the metal edge away from your forehead. It’s a good design!
The tailcap has very short threads, which is great for cell swaps.
Inside the cell tube is just a button for positive contact on the cell. The tailcap gets a spring.
Size and Comps
Dimension: 80mm (length) × 40mm (height) × 36mm (width)
160 grams (battery & headlamp band included)
If the flashlight will headstand, I’ll show it here (usually the third photo). If the flashlight will tailstand, I’ll show that here, too (usually the fourth photo).
Here’s the test light with the venerable Convoy S2+. Mine’s a custom “baked” edition Nichia 219b triple. A very nice 18650 light.
And here’s the light beside my custom-engraved TorchLAB BOSS 35, an 18350 light. I reviewed the aluminum version of that light in both 35 and 70 formats.
Retention and Carry
As stated above, the connector is metal. It’s a nice metal though and has a design that allows it to be comfortable when worn. So don’t let the fact that its metal makes you think it’s also going to be uncomfortable.
It’s a simple task to remove the headband from this connector, too.
There’s probably enough give in that thin metal bar to remove the back plate, but I didn’t force mine. Even if you remove that, though, you’re still left with the thin metal bar being attached to the light itself. I believe it can all come off, but as I’m not sure how (or really… why…), I did not pursue it.
The headband is simple and has Cyansky branding. There is no over-the-top option.
The one band is adjustable.
Power and Runtime
The Cyansky HS6R headlamp is powered by a single lithium-ion cell. Cyansky includes an appropriate cell – a 2600mAh 18650.
As far as usage goes, this is a standard button top 18650.
The cell fits into the Cyansky HS6R headlamp in the usual way – positive terminal toward the “head.”
Here are a few runtimes – five actually. It’s possible to run the main (Spot) emitter with either red or Flood, but I tested the highest possible settings as my only “Both” mode. I believe the Flood output is limited to “Medium” when the Spot emitter is on Turbo (but only Turbo – the Flood emitter retains all 3 settings if the Spot is off or on any of the lower 3 output levels.)
Next is a few output tests for the Spot emitter.
And finally, one output test for the Flood emitter.
In this and some other tests, you may note (as on the last runtime graph above) that the blue output line is “thick” – that’s not evidence of the output jumping around… just essentially just some sensor noise. I’m unable to account for it in my graphing, but the output is flat at around 65 lumens. It’s nothing to worry about.
The manual states that there’s a low voltage warning – the light will flash 3x every 5 minutes – but I didn’t experience this. The output just went very low, and sometimes the light would shut off.
Charging
Unlike other Cyansky lights I’ve tested, the Cyansky HS6R headlamp actually has the charge port built into the flashlight. It’s a USB-C port, and it’s on the side opposite the switch.
I tested with both USB to USB-C (as that’s what cable is provided) and with C to C. Both worked fine, and have similar profiles and charge time.
In both cases, charging terminated under 4.15V. The remaining energy to get the cell to 4.20V was marginal though. Essentially, when the switch goes from red (“charging”) to green (“complete”), it’s “complete enough” to not worry about.
Modes and Currents
| Mode | Mode Claimed Output (lm) | Claimed Runtime | Measured Lumens | Tailcap Amps |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Turbo (Both) | 1400 | 2h | 956 | 3.63 |
| Turbo (Main) | 1200 | 2h | 776 | 3.21 |
| High (Main) | 500 | 3h | 339 | 0.85 |
| Med (Main) | 150 | 14h | 66 | 0.19 |
| Low (Main) | 30 | 60h | 8 | 0.07 |
| High (Secondary, White) | 500 | 3h | 390 | 1.60 |
| Med (Secondary, White) | 150 | 14h | 111 | 0.27 |
| Low (Secondary, White) | 30 | 60h | 12 | 0.03 |
| Red | 10 | 60h | 6 | 0.09 |
Pulse Width Modulation
None of the 8 modes are really displaying PWM.
Spot:
Flood (3) then Red (1):
Here you can see a “baseline” – a chart with almost no light hitting the sensor.
Then there’s the Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight, which has some of the worst PWM I’ve seen. It’s so bad that I used a post about it to explain PWM! Here are multiple timescales (10ms, 5ms, 2ms, 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.2ms) to make comparing this “worst” PWM light to the test light easier. That post also explains why I didn’t test the WF-602C at the usual 50us scale.
User Interface and Operation
There are two switches on the Cyansky HS6R headlamp. Both of these switches are e-switches, but they feel quite different. The “Spot” emitter is considered the main emitter, so the switch seen below should be considered the main switch, too. It’s a “tail switch” and has a nice big pad.
I wouldn’t call this tailcap (with the switch) to be “removable” but Cyansky does provide a spare switch cover. So there must be a way!
This is an indicating switch, too! It can be red or green, as seen below.
Next is this hard cover switch on the body of the Cyansky HS6R headlamp. This is a familiar switch to Cyansky, used on other lights like the Cyansky H3.
It’s a nice large e-switch with a very solid click, and low action.
These switches essentially do the same thing for their respective output. The main (tail, indicating) switch controls the Spot light. The secondary (side/body) switch controls the Flood and Red light. They can be used independently. Here’s a user interface table!
| State | Action | Result |
|---|---|---|
| Off | Click Either | Battery check ^ |
| Off | Hold Tail Switch | Spot On (Mode Memory) |
| Spot On | Click Tail Switch | Mode advance (LMHT) |
| Spot On | Hold Tail Switch | Spot Off |
| Off | Hold Side Switch | Flood On (Mode Memory) |
| Flood On | Click Side Switch | Mode advance (LMH, Red, Red Blink) |
| Flood On | Hold Side Switch | Flood (or Red) off |
^ Battery check indicates as follows:
Green: >80%
Green Blinking: 50-80%
Red: 20-50%
Red Blinking: <20%
There does not seem to be an electronic lockout feature.
There are no strobes. There’s red blinking, but it’s slow, maybe 1Hz.
LED and Beam
Three emitters are on the Cyansky HS6R headlamp. The Spot is a Luminus SST-40, and has a larger opening TIR. There’s another Luminus for the flood – a SST-20. And finally, the two smaller openings are red emitters that always act together (and count as “one”).
All of these are behind their own TIR, but it’s actually one long TIR!
People sometimes ask why I put a magnet in my Bic Clic Stic (custom) pen. Here’s one good reason!!
LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)
The Spot emitter actually comes in at around 4500K, which is altogether respectable!
Spot:
Flood is even warmer, at around 3800-4000K, but notably is a very high CRI version of the Luminus SST-20.
Flood (3) then Red (1):
Beamshots
These beamshots always have the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure. These photos are taken at floor level, and the beam hits the ceiling around 9 feet away.
Spot:
Flood (3) then Red (1):
Both:
Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)
I keep the test flashlight on the left and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right.
Spot:
Flood (3) then Red (1):
Both:
I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Conclusion on the Cyansky HS6R Headlamp
What I like
- Good build quality
- Comfortable when being worn (don’t let that metal bracket fool you)
- Warm (ish?) Spot light
- Even warmer Flood light
- Flood light is very high CRI
- Red emitters are a great option
- C to C charging works
- Charging is plenty fast
- Throw numbers look good
What I don’t like
- $75 seems a little pricey for this headlamp
- Red should have low and high, and probably drop the blink
- Output numbers were not hit on any level
Notes
- This light was provided by Cyansky for review. I was not paid to write this review.
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Thanks for sharing this