Through the years Magicshine has built a strong reputation with their competitively priced and bright LED bicycle headlight and taillights. More recently, Magicshine has taken that knowledge and expertise to expand their products into the outdoor lighting space with the MOD/MTL series of flashlights and MOH headlamps. As with their bike lights, the flashlights and headlamps utilize the latest LED technology and have highly competitive pricing. In this review, we’ll be looking at the Magicshine MOH 55 headlamp. With a claimed 4000 lumen output from the dual LED design, the MOH 55 is the brightest headlamp in the MOH lineup. Magicshine also offers two variations of the light, the $199.99 MOH 55 or the $299.99 MOH 55 Pro.
The Magicshine MOH 55 is a compact headlamp with a large capacity battery pack and bright 4000 lumen output that outputs a uniform and even beam.
The primary difference between the lights is that the Pro version uses the larger 10.Ah MJ-6118 battery pack (shared with the Monteer 6500S / 8000S) compared to the 7.0Ah MJ-6116C battery pack. While both battery packs are large, the MOH 55 headlight itself is compact with a premium aluminium housing. Even though Magicshine’s marketing photos show people hiking and skiing with the MOH 55 lights, in this review we’ll evaluate the MOH 55 as a cycling light as the large battery capacity and compact headlight size are well suited for road or mountain biking.
| Category | Bicycle Head Light |
| Rating | 9.0/10 |
| Retail Price | $199.99 / $299.99 (MOH 55 Pro) |
| Measured Weight (in g) | 94 (lighthead) / 294 (MJ-6116C) / 410 (MJ-6118) |
| Likes | + Compact headlight + Dual LEDs produce uniform and wide beam + Flash mode is separated from constant modes |
| Dislikes | – No DRLS – Lacks remote for easier helmet mounting – Individual cells in battery pack cannot be replaced |
| Where to Buy (US) | Magicshine 15% OFF coupon code: “TheSweetCyclists” |
UNBOXING
Whether you choose the MOH 55 or MOH 55 Pro, the lights come in a sleek black cardboard box with glossy graphics. The headlight and battery are held securely in place inside custom foam cutouts at the top of the box with the accessories hidden underneath.
Inside the box for the MOH 55 you’ll find:
- MOH 55 headlamp
- Headlamp mount assembly w/ wire clip
- MJ-6116C 7.2V 7.0Ah battery pack w/ Velcro straps
- Micro USB to USB charging cable
- Instruction manual
The main difference between the MOH 55 and MOH 55 Pro version is the use of the higher capacity battery pack (note that Magicshine sells the battery separately for $150) and the inclusion of a helmet mount. Inside the box for the MOH 55 Pro you’ll find:
- MOH 55 headlamp
- Headlamp mount assembly w/ wire clip
- MJ-6118 7.2V 10.0Ah battery pack w/ Velcro straps
- USB-C to USB charging cable
- Helmet mount w/ extension cord
- Instruction manual
The headlamp mount that is included for both make it easy to wear the MOH 55 as a headlamp but with the large size of the battery packs for both MOH 55 variations it’s not very practical as you’ll need to route the battery cables to a pocket or backpack.
MOUNTING
One of our favorite features of Magicshine lights is the use of Garmin compatible mounts. Instead of using a proprietary design with limited mounting options, the MOH 55 can be used with any Garmin style mount. What’s unique about the MOH 55 is that out of the box, it includes a headlamp mount which uses a Garmin style adapter attached to an adjustable GoPro mount. This allows the headlamp angle to be easily adjusted as needed. With the MOH 55 Pro, Magicshine also includes a Garmin style helmet mount allowing the headlight to be mounted on a helmet which works very well with the lightweight design of the light. The compact design also means the MOH 55 can easily be used on any out-front mount and even mounted upside down.
FIT & FINISH
With a sleek black aluminium housing and dual LED design, the MOH 55 look and feels premium. The headlight is compact and surprisingly light thanks to the wired battery design. To improve the thermal design, heat fins are cut directly into the rear of the housing as well as the sides of the housing. Two additional small inlets in the front of the housing also help funnel air through the headlight. The lens is mounted flush into the housing and has a simple design with dimpled reflectors surrounding each LED. On top of the housing is an illuminated rubber power button that serves as the interface and battery status indicator.
USER INTERFACE
The MOH 55 uses a simple one button interface mounted on top of the headlamp. The rubber button is easy to use even with gloves on and is illuminated to display the battery status. The button can illuminate to either green or red to indicate an impressive four different levels: green (100-75%), flashing green (74-50%), red (49-25%) and flashing red (24-1%). The button itself looks nearly identical to that on the updated Monteer headlights and is easy to use and see during the day or night. A long press turns the light on or off, and the integrated mode memory means the light always remembers the last mode it was on.
Thankfully, unlike many of Magicshine’s other recent lights such as the Monteer 8000S or Allty 2000, Magicshine has also shown restraint when it comes to how many modes the light has. There are only five modes which operate both LEDs together. There are four constant modes as well as an SOS flashing mode. A dual level interface allows a single press to cycle through the constant modes and a double press to access SOS. Not only does this design make it simple to navigate the modes, it also means you don’t have to cycle through flash when changing the brightness – a big plus when riding on dark trails.
Also the battery packs themselves have battery status checks integrated on them. That means the battery packs can easily be used as power banks for other devices when you’re not using the headlamp itself. The MOH 55 Pro’s MJ-6118 also has a USB Type-C design which supports fast charging and discharging which is a very nice feature. For either battery pack, there is a three LED indicator and battery test button that can be pressed to illuminate the status. Even though the battery packs don’t offer as many features as the Lupine Smartcore battery, they are well designed and even have a rubber coating to prevent scratching your frame.
LIGHT OUTPUT
The MOH 55’s offers four constant output modes as well as an SOS flashing mode. Note, the MOH 55 Pro offers the same lumen output as the MOH 55 for all the modes but has nearly 50% more run-time thanks to the larger battery capacity. The four constant modes offer claimed lumen and run-times of: low (100 lumen – 65.6 / 89 hr), medium (600 lumen – 12.5 / 20.5 hr), high (1500 lumen – 4.6 / 6.5 hr) and turbo (4000 lumen – 1.8 / 2.4 hr). The SOS mode actually flashes the S.O.S. pattern which could be helpful in emergencies and even though Magicshine doesn’t list a run-time for the mode we expect it to have similar run-time to the low setting. As you can see the jumps in lumen output are large, and unless you’re in a colder climate the turbo mode will ramp down output to prevent the headlight from overheating.
The simple two LED design of the MOH 55 results in a uniform and wide beam. The beam is wide with enough throw that we found the MOH 55 worked well on dark trails or urban commuting even in just the medium or high mode. Note there are no beam cutoffs or special optics here though, so you’ll need to dip the light down when using the MOH 55 on roads to reduce glare. We also mounted the MOH 55 on our helmet and used it in conjunction with a handlebar Magicshine Allty 2000. The lightweight design of the headlight made it ideal for helmet mounting, though we wished there was a remote control as it is awkward to operate the light on top of the helmet.
THE VERDICT
Overall, we found the Magicshine MOH 55 to be a compact and well designed headlight. The small form factor and lightweight makes it ideal for helmet mounting or even handlebar mounting when cycling. We were impressed with the bright 4000 lumen output that produces a uniform and even beam. It puts out more than enough light for even the darkest trails while the 65+ hour (89 hours for MOH 55 Pro) low mode run-time is great for daytime riding. The large battery packs of the MOH 55 and MOH 55 Pro mean it’s less portable than the lower output variations of the MOH headlamps though. That makes it less practical for hiking or general outdoor use in our eyes. Instead, we found that the MOH 55 is a great cycling headlight that is bright enough to be used on its own or as a secondary helmet mounted light for a sleek dual headlight setup.
Disclaimer: The product for this review was provided by Magicshine. The views expressed on this website are solely those of the authors and are here to help people make an informed choice before a purchase. The authors or the blog itself does not get any monetary compensation from the product manufacturer or third-party websites/vendor links that are posted here.