A loud helmet:  Have you seen the ones with heavy metal artwork? I think the 'Kiss' one is for you. - Goes with the black GS.

No I haven't seen any System 5 with artwork. Sounds interesting. However, I do lean more towards a white helmet.

I'd hate to bang up an expensive helmet and on adventure rides this can easily happen.

Interesting that we tend to think like this Alex.  The year I bought my first fabric riding suit (Spidi) with body armour etc I did the Motu ride and nearly wore my old leathers just in case I fell off and damaged my new suit.  Fortunately common sense prevailed and I wore my new suit.  Just as well because I did fall off and the bike came down on my right knee cracking the knee protector right down the centre. 😡  Knee was bruised but OK - I wonder what it would have been like had I been in my old leathers!! 😥  Wear the best stuff you have, that's why we buy it.MalcolmAs I understand it the helmets have to pass the same tests and should provide similar performance on impact. I would expect some degree of variation, but we are looking at a hard shell filled with polystyrene, essentially the same ingredient is in all helmets.The main difference in price seems to come from the extra features the helmets have and possibly from the use of lighter materials. Adventure riding is done at relatively low speeds compared to road riding. I bet most light off-road helmets would perform better than my System 4 in those situations. Current thinking on protector design is that a soft protector is superior to a hardshell one. I am quite happy to wear my streetguard suit during adventure riding. It does not have to be replaced every time I hit the ground. Helmets on the other hand are designed for one off performance, as you probably know yourself. The polystyrene gets compressed during the impact and will not recover, so the helmet should be replaced. I have always bought the best gear I could afford and still do, but helmets are still a gray area. Heck, they can't even agree on a universal testing method. Flip-up helmets like the system 4 are inferior to integral helmets, they are heavy and the chin piece is fragile, so it's all relative and cost is not a reliable indicator of a helmet's performance during an impact.So yes, I don't want to bang up an expensive helmet when a cheaper one would provide the  same or superior safety features.BMW seems to use the same size shell for different helmet sizes, compensating for the difference with the thickness of the polystyrene layer. A smaller head gets a heavier (relative) helmet, but more polystyrene while the larger head gets less polystyrene inside the shell. I wonder who is better off.Best not to test it myself.

Did they say how they cause broken necks?  I can't help but think that a broken neck is more desirable than a missing face. (These are not pleasant thoughts)I suppose at the end of the day you have to make a decision on the degree of safety you are comfortable with, because you will never be safe, regardless of the gear you buy.Coming back to my original question. Are people happy with their choice of having bought a System 5? Is it quiet? Does the mechanism work well? Does the ventilation work? Is it prone to fogging up? How does the liner stand up to daily use? I love the convenience of being able to flip the helmet up so I can talk to people, or leave the helmet on when paying for petrol, or being able to flip it up while stopped at the lights etc. If new cheek pads and liners are reasonably priced I may go down this route. The helmet is about about 3.5 years old, but has had a lot of use so it could do with being freshened up.