I prefer Salvo to Halcyon.
I use an older model, 18W Salvo. Prior to that light, I owned a Halcyon Helios 18W light. There's no comparison. Salvo performs better (brighter, more focusable), has a more durable bulb (replacement bulbs are very expensive), provides superior customer service (one-day turnaround on repairs is common, vs Halcyon's typically two to three weeks), and costs less.
That's just my experience, having owned both products ... yours may vary.
My usual dive partner uses the
Salvo 10W fixed focus light. In typical Puget Sound conditions, it provides a very bright, focused beam that I don't have any problem seeing for signalling in daytime ambient light. The only real difference between her beam and mine is that the 18W provides a much larger spot. But for someone who's not going to be getting into tech diving, and is budget conscious, this is without question the brightest, most focused 10W light I've seen yet ... a LOT of light for the money. I believe that you can get the light with a goodman handle if you want it that way.
A lot of people put emphasis on a focusable light ... nice theory, but in practice most of the people I know who purchase focusable lights put them on the tightest spot they can get and leave it that way. So what's the point in paying extra for a feature that you're not likely to ever use? Now, I can see the point if you're also using the light for photography or video, where you'll want a flood from time to time ... but DIR folks use their lights for communication and that means a tight spot. So once again, for the budget-minded, nothing wrong with purchasing a light that comes with a nice, tight spot and not paying extra money for a focusable feature you'll never use anyway.
... Bob (Grateful Diver)