Accuri Cytometers

C6 Flow Cytometer® Instrument

Accuri C6 Flow Cytometers, CFlow® Software and Workstation PC supply all the capabilities of a full-featured flow cytometer at a fraction of the price of the market leading systems. The C6 system includes blue and red lasers, four color detectors and both forward and side scatter detectors plus software that is so intuitive that you will typically be up and running within an hour of receiving your Accuri system.

Click for a larger image of the Accuri C6 Flow Cytometer.

A simple design for complex research.

Our engineers had a daunting task-build a cytometer that is compact, simple to operate, easy to afford, and matches the performance of the best selling analytical flow cytometers. We started by listening to scientists like you and then designing a flow cytometer from the ground up incorporating your needs. We worked hard to provide the performance for most experiments, while making the C6 easier to use, simple to maintain, and affordable for everyone.

Accuri's innovations in fluidics, optics, electronics and software, coupled with state-of-the-art components, result in a cytometer that is powerful, robust, compact and affordable. We also developed an intuitive user interface that can be mastered in minutes. And we've done all of this so you can focus on one thing: advancing your science, in your lab.

Click here to download the Accuri flow cytometer price list.

Accuri C6 Flow Cytometers Specifications

Accuri's C6 Flow Cytometers are high performance analytical cytometers that match the functionality of the best selling analytical flow cytometers (see comparison link to table below). Features of the C6 include:

"When I first heard about the Accuri C6 it seemed too good to be true. After using it for the past few months I am happy to say that 'good' and 'true' are still very much applicable. The small footprint, low maintenance costs and ease of use make it an excellent choice for any lab which wants to get away from the long queue (at least in our institution) of the Core cytometry facilities. To paraphrase a well known childhood memory, it’s 'the little cytometer that could.'"

— Sabyasachi Biswas, Ph.D.
Core Lab Manager, Dept. of Surgery
The Ohio State University

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1. Two laser excitation:

2. Two scattered light detectors:

3. Four fluorescent emission detectors:

Advanced Features

On this page:

6 Decade dynamic range: The totally digital C6 Flow Cytometer has state-of-the-art electronics that make it possible to simultaneously collect 16 million channels of digital data. This unparalleled dynamic range obviates the need for adjustable gain settings on the detectors. Data is collected and always remains in the data file even when you use the CFlow Zoom function to view specified channels. And eliminating the need to set gain or voltage reduces the consumption of valuable sample and sheath during set-up.

Optical bench needs no alignment: The C6 optical bench is compact and employs components that have evolved to be smaller, more robust, and less expensive. This smaller optical bench needs no alignment so the C6 is ready to use out of the box.

Fluidics control: The C6 uses a unique low-pressure pumping system to drives fluidics as opposed to more expensive pressurized systems. An industry-standard, sheath-focused core facilitates high performance while enabling event rates of up to 10,000 events/second and sample concentration over 5 x 107 cells/ml. The user control the speed of the sample uptake and can chose the optimal core size for their sample.

Absolute counts: Because the C6 Flow Cytometer fluidics system meters the sample fluid uptake, it is simple to obtain absolute counts, or sample concentration per microliter without the need to add beads to samples. In fact the CFlow Plus software will automatically calculate the events per microliter for every run!

Maintenance made simple: The C6 automatically runs Decontamination fluids through the fluidics lines and then replaces it with sheath upon instrument shutdown. Sheath fluid will remain in the fluidics lines until the instrument is turned on again. A cleaning cycle can also be initiated with a mouse click.

Works with current protocols and reagents: Accuri developed the C6 to use the same reagents you currently use on the market-leading cytometers. Since the C6 fluidics system is non-pressurized, any brand of sample tube that is 12 x 75 mm or smaller can be used. This includes microfuge tubes and tubes made of polystyrene and polypropylene.

FCS 3.0 compatible file format: The C6 allows you to export your CFlow files in FCS 3.0 format for seamless importation of your data into most third party flow cytometry software packages including FCS Express and FlowJo. And you can drag and drop plots into MS Office applications, copy and paste statistics into spreadsheets, making data reporting easy.

Compact size: The C6 Flow Cytometer System is designed to fit easily into any lab, even into a laminar flow hood. The bench top cytometer instrument is approximately 2 cubic feet and at less than 30 pounds it is easy to reposition as needs change. No other flow cytometry system packs so much analytical power in so small a package.

Low power usage: The C6 Flow Cytometer operates on a low power, universal power supply (100-240V, 50-60Hz). There are no special electrical requirements for installation, making it easy to place the C6 Flow Cytometer wherever it is needed.

Comparison of Key Specifications of Selected Competitors

None of the competitive products can approach Accuri's combination of price and performance. View the comparison chart for a comparison of Accuri and competitive products. View comparison chart (PDF)

C6 Flow Cytometers: Detailed Specifications

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Excitation : 488nm (rated at 20,000hr life)
640nm (rated at 20,000hr life)
Laser profile : 15 x 75 microns
Scatter detection : Forward (0 degrees, +/-15)
Side (90 degrees, +/-15)
Emission detection : 4 colors, user swappable optical filters
Standard set installed:
  • FL1 530 / 30nm (FITC/GFP)
  • FL2 585 / 40nm (PE/PI)
  • FL3 >670nm (PE-Cy5, PE-Cy5.5, PerCP-Cy5.5,PE-Cy5, PE-Cy7)
  • FL4 675 / 25nm (APC)
Optical alignment : Fixed alignment, no maintenance required
Flow cell : 200 micron ID quartz capillary
Minimum particle size : 1 µm
Minimum sample size : 30 µl
Nominal flow rate - variable : 10 to 100 µl/min ; CFlow Plus only
Fixed Flow Rates & Core Sizes : Slow - (Flow = 14uL/min ; Core = 10 um)
Medium - (Flow = 35uL/mim ; Core = 16 um)
Fast - (Flow = 66 uL/min ; Core = 22 um)
Recommended Sheath Fluid : 0.2 um filtered DI water
Core diameter : User selectable from 5 to 40 microns, CFlow Plus Only
Florescence sensitivity : <750 MESF FITC
Scatter resolution : Resolves human peripheral blood erythrocytes, lymphocytes, monocytes & granulocytes
Fluorescence linearity : 2+/-0.05% for chick erythrocyte nuclei (CEN)
Fluorescence precision : <3% CV for CEN
Speed : 10,000 events/second maximum
Absolute counts : Yes; CFlow Plus only
Warm-up time : Less than 5 minutes
Power : 70 Watts maximum, 100-240 VAC, 50/60 Hz
Heat output : 240 Btu/hour maximum output
Operating ranges : 15-30°C; <80% relative humidity
Instrument size : 11"H x 14.3"W x 16.5"D (27.9 x 36.3 x 41.9 cm)
Foot print with fluid tanks 17.3"W x 16.3"D (43.9 x 41.4 cm)
Weight : 30 lbs (13.6 kg)
Fluid tank capacity : 1L Sheath Fluid, 1L Waste
250mL Cleaner, 250mL Decontamination
Signal processing : 24-bit A/D conversion
Computer : 17" (14.5 cm) flat-panel monitor
2GB memory
Computer interface : USB 2.0

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C6 Flow Cytometers

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