Personalising Your Bike with Denali Lights & CANsmart
A Smarter Way to Add Lighting & Accessories
Modern motorcycles are incredibly capable straight out of the crate — but for many riders, the real work begins after getting the bike home and putting some miles on it.
Aftermarket accessories allow you to personalise how your bike works, feels, and responds to you: how visible you are at night, how accessories behave in traffic, and how everything integrates without clutter or compromise. At Machinehead, one of the most popular ways riders are personalising their bikes right now is through intelligent lighting and accessory control, built around Denali Electronics lighting systems, horns and CAN-bus controllers such as CANsmart and HEX ezCAN. This page explains what’s possible — and why more riders are choosing this approach.
What We Mean by “Aftermarket Accessories”
Aftermarket doesn’t mean bolt-on chaos.
Done properly, modern motorcycle accessories integrate with your bike’s electronics rather than fighting against them — keeping installs tidy, reliable, and reversible.
Common upgrades we work with include:
- Auxiliary lighting (spot, flood, fog, selective yellow)
- Horn upgrades
- Heated grips and accessories
- USB power and charging solutions
- Brake light and visibility enhancements
The key isn’t just adding accessories — it’s controlling how they behave, and how they interact with the bike as a whole.
Choosing the Right Denali Lights for How You Ride
Denali lights are designed specifically for motorcycles — not adapted car lighting. What riders tend to value most:
- Compact, purposeful designs
- Different beam patterns for different riding styles
- Strong performance in poor weather and low light
- Options such as selective yellow to improve contrast and depth perception
From discreet auxiliary spots to wider flood lighting, the goal isn’t to turn night into day — it’s to see and be seen in a way that feels natural and confidence-inspiring on the road. Before anything is fitted, we’ll always talk through placement, beam balance, and how the bike is actually used.
CANsmart & HEX ezCAN – Intelligent Control, Your Way
This is where personalisation really comes alive.
CAN-bus controllers such as CANsmart and HEX ezCAN allow multiple aftermarket accessories to connect through one central control unit, communicating directly with your bike’s electronics.
This means you can:
- Control accessories using existing handlebar buttons
- Set different behaviours for day and night riding
- Link lights to indicators, horn, or braking
- Adjust brightness dynamically
- Keep wiring neat and battery draw efficient
Instead of simple on/off switches, everything works as part of the bike — and can be tailored to suit how you ride.
Adventure-Bike Territory
In reality, this is adventure-bike territory. Around 90% of the Denali and CAN-bus builds we install are on adventure bikes — ridden hard, year-round, and often well beyond daylight hours. These systems suit bikes that cover distance, see mixed conditions, and need accessories that work with the bike, not against it.
That same thinking carries over just as well to touring and road-focused bikes where visibility, integration, and clean installs matter just as much.
Why Riders Choose This Setup
Riders tend to choose Denali lighting combined with CAN-bus control because it offers:
- Personalisation — your bike behaves how you want it to
- Integration — a factory-level feel without factory limitations
- Flexibility — easy to add or change accessories later
- Neat installs — no cluttered switchgear or messy wiring
- Confidence — especially for night riding, winter miles, and touring
It’s not about adding more gear — it’s about making the bike yours.
Want to talk through a setup for your bike?
If you’re considering upgrading your lighting or adding CAN-bus control, the best place to start is a conversation. Every bike — and every rider — is different, and getting the setup right matters far more than simply choosing parts.
Use the form below to tell us a bit about your bike and how you ride. We’ll come back to you with honest advice on what’s possible, what makes sense, and how we’d approach the install.
We’ll come back to you with honest advice based on how you ride.
We’ll reply personally and talk things through — not send you a generic quote.
Want to understand us a bit more first?
If you’d prefer to explore our wider workshop services first, you can find an overview of fitting, servicing and how we work here: Explore the Machinehead Moto Workshop.
Real Builds, Real Bikes
We’ve already installed these systems for a growing number of riders across different bikes and riding styles — from adventure and touring machines to everyday road bikes. As more builds roll through the workshop, we’ll be updating our blog with examples, photos, and notes from each install. Keep an eye on the Inside Machinehead Moto blog as new builds go live.
Explore & Fit at Machinehead Moto
You can see Denali lighting and CAN-bus control options in our Guildford store and talk through what would work best for your bike. We offer:
- In-store walkthroughs of the Denali range
- One-to-one fitting appointments
- Full in-house installation
- Honest advice based on how you actually ride
From auxiliary lights to fully integrated CAN-bus systems, aftermarket accessories are one of the most effective ways to personalise your motorcycle — improving visibility, control, and confidence without compromising the bike itself. We’ll continue documenting builds as they happen — so check back as the setups roll out.
