LS2 FF808 Stream II Helmet – Angry Monkey Black/Red

Angry Monkey is exactly what it sounds like — a snarling primate face worked across the shell in red over matt black. Helmet graphics rarely have a sense of humour; this one does.

Four stars from SHARP

Four stars out of five from SHARP, tested September 2024 in ECE 22.06 form. That deserves unpacking, because it is the reason to read the rest of this page. SHARP buys helmets at retail rather than accepting samples from manufacturers, then destroys thirty-two of each model across five zones at three impact speeds.

The Stream II returned the maximum score at every zone at 6 m/s and 7.5 m/s. At the programme's hardest 8.5 m/s impact the crown and front still scored five; the sides dropped to three, which is what kept it from a fifth star. Very few helmets at this money have been tested at all, let alone come back with this.

Read the full SHARP result for the LS2 Stream 2

About the Angry Monkey Black/Red finish

The design wraps rather than decorates: the face reads across the whole side of the helmet rather than sitting as a badge on it, which is what stops it from looking like a sticker. Matt black underneath keeps the red readable and prevents the busy line-work from turning into visual noise. It is the most conversational helmet in the Stream II range and the one people ask about at fuel stops.

Multi-density EPS — the part you never see

Under the KPA shell sits a multi-density polystyrene liner. That is unusual at this price: most entry-level helmets use one density throughout because it is cheaper to mould. Several densities bonded together means the liner can be soft where a slow crush absorbs best and firm where it must not bottom out.

Twin Visor: two screens, one shell

The Twin Visor System is exactly what the name says: two screens on one shell. The outer visor takes the weather; a tinted inner screen drops down with a slider when the sun does and retracts fully into the shell when it does not. No swapping visors at the roadside, no sunglasses under a helmet.

Laser-cut foam

Laser-cut foam is not something entry-level helmets usually carry. Cutting the padding with a laser rather than stamping it gives precise, sealed edges — the padding sits truer against the head and compresses more evenly over a season than crushed die-cut foam does.

What the ECE 22.06 plaque actually means

The ECE 22.06 plaque riveted to the chin strap is the physical proof of a test regime that changed substantially in 2021. Impact points went from five to as many as eighteen. Testing gained a second, lower speed, because a helmet that performs at 8 m/s does not automatically perform at 6. And an oblique test was added: the shell is dropped onto an angled abrasive anvil while instruments measure rotational acceleration against the Brain Injury Criterion.

Everything fitted to the helmet is tested as fitted — visor, sun visor, vent covers. Since January 2024, no helmet without 22.06 may be sold new in the EU, which is also why 22.05 stock disappeared from shelves so abruptly.

Fit and shell sizes

3 shells, XXS to 3XL. It is the sensible middle ground: not the six-shell extravagance of a race helmet, and a long way from the one-size-fits-all moulding that makes small helmets look inflated and heavy.

Airflow

Two intakes and an exhaust port, with a breath deflector to keep your own breath off the screen. A simpler system than the Storm III's, and one that does what a commuting and back-road helmet needs. Exhaust ports matter more than most riders realise: without an outlet, intakes move very little air.

The Pinlock question

The visor is prepared for a Pinlock 70 MaxVision insert but does not come with one. The insert is part DKS521 — it also fits the FF820 Rapid III — and it is the first thing worth buying for this helmet if you ride in cold or wet weather.

Holding on

The chin strap uses a ratchet fastener rather than double-D rings: for a helmet you take on and off several times a day that is the practical choice, and it adjusts in small increments so the strap ends up genuinely tight. LS2 also fit a reflective safety patch as standard.

1550 grams

The scales say 1550 g (±50), taken on a mid-size shell with nothing added to it. Weight is the specification riders under-rate at the counter and over-rate after a long day — a helmet is a mass on the end of a lever, and the lever is your neck. Wind load at motorway speed compounds it.

Placed against the rest of our LS2 range, only 5 models undercut it, all of them more expensive.

On noise

Wind noise is the specification manufacturers never quote, because it depends more on your bike than on their helmet. What the helmet controls is the seal at the neck roll, the gap under the chin bar and the vents. A chin curtain is fitted as standard, and it is the single most effective piece of quiet in the box — provided it stays in the helmet after you clean it. The Stream II carries a sun-visor housing, which widens the shell slightly at the temples compared with a helmet that does without one.

What it does not control is the airflow leaving your screen. If a helmet is loud on one motorcycle and quiet on another, the screen is usually the reason. Plugs cost a euro and do more than any shell shape.

Where it sits in our LS2 range

Eight LS2 full-face models are listed here. The Stream II is the only one of them carrying an independent safety rating.

When something wears out

A helmet is not a sealed unit and the parts that wear are not the shell. Interiors compress, visors scratch, vent covers snap off in a car park. We stock the Stream II liner in every size, seven replacement visors from clear to iridium, both the clear and the tinted sun visor, plus the ratchet mechanism, nose guard, chin curtain, chin strap cover and vent covers in five finishes.

That matters for how long the helmet lasts you. A liner that has taken a summer of sweat is the usual reason a helmet that once fitted starts to move on your head — and replacing it costs a fraction of replacing the helmet. The full parts list is in the FF808 Stream II Kit.

In the box

• LS2 FF808 Stream II helmet — Angry Monkey Black/Red
• Carrying bag
• Reflective stickers

Specification

• Shell — KPA, three shell sizes (2XS–S / M–L / XL–3XL)
• Weight — 1550 g (±50 g)
• Sizes — XXS to 3XL (eight sizes)
• Homologation — ECE 22.06
• Independent rating — SHARP 4 out of 5 stars (tested September 2024)
• Impact liner — multi-density EPS
• Retention — ratchet buckle, reflective safety patch
• Visor — scratch-resistant, UV-stable, quick-release system
• Anti-fog — prepared for Pinlock® 70 MaxVision™ (insert not supplied, part DKS521)
• Sun visor — Twin Visor System, integrated and tinted
• Ventilation — top intake, chin intake, exhaust port, breath deflector
• Liner — maximum-comfort interior, laser-cut foam, hypoallergenic, removable and washable
• Chin curtain — included
• Intercom — prepared for the current LS2 Bluetooth system
• Finish — Angry Monkey graphic, matt