Well Done, Yamaha

I just recently (as in yesterday) bought a pair of Yamaha HS50M monitors. First off, they are monitors, just like every other monitor in this price range. If you know how your monitors sound compared to everything else, (and if you truely are an engineer...) then you can mix on any of these. Why I chose these monitors was because of all the fun switches and knobs on the back. Doing a reference test, I found that these monitors are pretty freakin' good at giving you a flat response if you use all those cuts and boost switches in the back just right. (They were a couple dB higher with the 10KHz tone, even with the 2dB high cut engaged.)

The main reason I love these monitors is for the 80Hz and 100Hz HPFs. These are supposed to be used as a crossover point in conjunction with the subwoofer, but you can definitely use them to hear how your bass frequencies will translate on an inferior system. That is money in the bank.

Excellent Buy!

I Purchased These Monitor's Because Of The Ole Tales Of "If Your Mix Sound's Good Coming Outta NS-10's Then It Will Sound Good Anywhere"....Maybe My Qoute Is Off, But I Could Never Purchase A Real Pair.
So When These Came Out, I Went And Bought Them Just Cause. And It Was Worth The Money!
I Do All My Mixing On HS50's And I Haven't Recieved Any Feedback From Clients Hardly.....Never!!!!!
Besides How Great They Sound, Their Powered And Compact For Travel.
Flat Response With Control Features On Rear Of Speaker.....Makes It Lovely For The EARS!!!!
JUST KEEP ON MIXING ON!!!!!

The best monitors for mixing. Period!

I did my long research, and the conclusion was to buy these monitors. Why? No phase problems, like similar monitors with 6 or 8 inches, and a flat, flat, flat response. This saves me a lot of time and I don't have to go out and hear my mix in the car, at home, etc. They just translate well. The funny thing is that you can hear immediately how bad recorded and mixed are some commercial CDs and why good mixing engineers have a positive reputation. Maybe they used the HS50Ms. Get a pair, I should have done that loooong time ago!

Stellar Monitors!

I bought a pair after hearing them in a store and have since been pleased with their performance. Don't let the size fool you...these things can crank out some sound. And the mixes are clear at all levels. Their a great replacement for the NS-10's. The mixes I've done on he HS50M's translate well on other systems (ranging from home and car stereo systems to large auditoriums). Definitely pick up a pair!

simply amazing

i own genelec 1030a`s tannoy ams12 and krk v8`s and yamaha ns-10`s and thease new Yamaha HS50M monitos blow away all of them you can mix for longer periods and not get tired and they are as true and flat as they get in the industry i also hear things in my mixes now that i never did before plus they do not compress or color your sound just buy them a.s.a.p if you want to improve your mixes 5 stars for sure

All Dat & Then Some!

was in the market for a new set of near-fields and chose these over the Mackie HR624s. I heard some good reviews about them and wondered if they'd measure up to the NS10's ........................Boy! DO THEY! I mean the clarity
and imaging radiating from these monitors is nothing short of amazing.
I re-mixed some tracks previously done on some Event ASP6's and the difference was like night and day. The top end was crystal clear and the mids were right in your face. the bass was very cool coming from these little things.
Even more cool when I turned on the sub. I do a lot of smooth and funk jazz
where the bass isn't bottom heavy but has to be clean and articulate and these
give me that!.....................big ups to Yamaha for keepin up the tadition!

The Truth For Hip Hop

When I was read to graduate from bookshelf speakers to studio monitors, I spent 2 hours at a store comparing EVERY monitor they had. Of course the high end $1000 plus monitors sounded great, but when it came to the ones in my modest budget, the HS50M's were hands down the best sounding. Alot of the other brands tend to sound muddy and sometimes boomy but these speakers are crystal clear. Even if I could afford more expensive models today, I would still have these monitors right by there side.

PERFECT!

Perfect!
I just have to say this about HS50M...
Clear and awesome sound for a incredible
price!

Wider Than Rosie O'Donnell's Mid Section

These things have amazing stereo imaging. I A/B tested these to Event ALP5s, the KRK series, some Adams and some M-Audio and the Yamahas blew the competion away. It might not have the low end support your looking for but the mid range is fuller and the top end is much briter; a very good flat response for those looking for a "true" speaker.

Amazing clarity

I just received my new pair of Yamaha HS50M's and have to say they sound amazing. The clarity is breathtaking and the mids are perfectly balanced. There is way more bottom end than I would have thought for a five inch woofer. If you have limited space or a tight budget, you will find these monitors a perfect solution.

Very transparent monitors

This year’s Technical GRAMMY Award was presented to Yamaha Corporation in recognition of the company’s long tradition of highly-successful recording products, including the legendary NS-10M studio reference monitors and recently launched HS monitors.

I am mixing rap and hiphop on my HS50Ms. They can handle all the bass you can throw at them and still sound tunefull. In my opinion current CD or Vinyl standards are not good enough for HS50Ms, I think Yamaha designed them to withstand future devolepments in audio reproduction in the next 30 years.

Fantastic Monitors

I was in the market for monitors, and was trying to decide between the M-Audio BX5as and the KRK Rokit 5s. After listening to both sets in the store, and reading online reviews, I decided to go with the KRKs.

I took them home, and was initially pleased, but after a few hours I noticed just how bass heavy (muddy) they were.

I talked to a friend, and he recommended the HS50s. They were a bit more expensive, but definitely worth the extra cash, he said. So, I returned the KRKs and got the Yamahas.

Good lord, am I pleased with my decision. I tell you, these things sound SO clear and flat... I've never heard my mixes in such detail before. I went back and listened to some old mixes I'd done, and laughed at how foolish I'd been. I remixed them, and sure enough, these songs sound SO much better - on every system I listen to them on.

These speakers have actually become my main listening speakers, just because I LOVE the detail and clarity. And, unless you're mixing dance music or hip hop, they have PLENTY of bass.

Just fantastic.

Need better quality control?

Someone here said that "my right one has a rattle in it that makes playing piano sounds annoying". Funny because Yamaha sells them as single speakers so there is no right or left one. I would suggest him to try switching his left speaker with his right one to see if it also rattles. If it does it means there is something wrong elsewhere in the signal chain. But if the right(!) speaker continues to rattle when connected to the left channel, it means that speaker needs to be checked carefully. He should contact Yamaha to get it serviced under waranty.

He also says that "you have to break them in for a while to notice". My pair didn't need any break in, they sounded right out of the box.

"Maybe you other folk don't use the spectrum of frequencies that a piano can give in recordings to really test these out, or I just got a dud."

OK this sentence doesn't make any sense at all. I am playing rock or dance music on them where there is heavy drum beats and bass guitar. Frequency spectrum doesn't get any wider than this. I play the piano as well but I have no complaints regarding the quality of these affordable giant killers. Very dynamic, transparent sound; I am completely satisfied with them.

wicked

there monitors rock ... i've been after a decent pair of fair priced actives for a while ,i a-b'd them against the tannoys / mackie and gelelec and these are the kiddies for thye price ...chrysal tops and subtle bass gave them the edge ...well done yamaha !!

Nice!

What more can I say? I would echo the rest here.They are truly awesome monitors.I am blown away by how sweet and transparent these babies are,and will be ordering three more and the sub for surround mixing.Man!I think I will be getting a pair of the HS80's as well...outstanding job,Yamaha!!!

Yamaha HS50M rocks

I just bought a pair of these little babies. In its price range there was not a big competion, so they were the obvious choice. After hooking them and firing them up first thing I noticed was the tunefulness of its bass instruments reproduction. The tweeters are also very sweet sounding and never tiring. I will use them to mix my music, but recognising its quality I have decided to use them as my main music listening monitors. They are that good! But they are also very revealing so only the best recorded meterials will sound great on them. It's no problem for me because they also sound decent with less then perfect program materials, especially with the volume turned down. But with quality program they just rock, with any kind of music of course. Bravo Yamaha for producing such a great product for a reasonable price. These babies will be classic!

Never mixed better

I was mixing on terrible desktop speakers that came with my old PC. I knew that, while I knew what they sounded like and could compensate, I needed something more reliable. After checking mixes as my uncle's place on a pair of NS-10's, I knew I needed the same. These are 100%, they are flat, clear and all around sound good. They can be a bit harsh but its not too bad.

Lastly, people say not to use them for listening speakers. I have to disagree. Once you are using these for your mixes, the clarity will surpass anything u have at home. I use mine for everything audio, just look out for headaches from the high end.

Get the Sub too!

I find these to be true. I would however recommend also getting the sub if you plan on getting a pair of these as they don't have all the low-end you may need. Very good monitors and you can tune 'em to your room a bit! Nice feature! Best in its Price range.

The new NS10m!

Sorry to whoever says they are the opposite of NS10s, I totally disagree. I think they sound even more similar to NS10s than the previous MSP5. Specially if you switch the Mid EQ (2K switch) to +2! ;) In -2 you get a more hi-fi sound, flatter in response.

Because of that, I just love them! You need to have your ears used to NS10 (if you're spoiled by Genelecs and you hate NS10, forget it, you're a different breed of engineer). And you need to know how to really use them.
These are different speakers in 1 when you learn to use the EQ controls in the back. The mid EQ is genius - Yamaha engineers definitely gave you the control to have a full NS10 sound, a more home hi-fi sound, or something in between.

It's amazing how they show all the harshness in my mix, and the mid/high section with such detail. It's easier to mix with these, no wonder NS10 became a standard. For low frequencies, you need to A/B commercial records a lot, or use headphones (I usually double check the lows on headphones to make sure).

Warning: these are speakers for mixing, and a great NS10 active replacement. They're not Hi-Fi speakers to listen to Jazz with your girlfriend in the living room. Unless it's a REALLY good jazz mix... ;)

Amazing!

I've been using a pair since August 2006. In my experince HS50Ms are very interesting speakers. I can say they have the most realistic sounding bass I've ever heard, period! The timber of the bass instruments are so real there is nothing to touch them in Hi-Fi or pro-audio market in this respect. Bass intruments also sound very tunefull. I had a chance to hear HS80Ms as well. Their bass reproduction even go deeper and they have a bigger sound. But they are also more expensive. I can imagine HS50Ms sounding great on speaker stands such as Atacama with signals fed through a warm sounding pre-amp( maybe a valve pre-amp). My only critism would be that acustic piano (and sometimes vocal)recordings sound bright and thin on HS50s. But for the price one can easily forgive these flaws.

Best performance and value in their price range

I've been shopping for active monitors for my editing system for quite some time, always listening to other people's setups and asking their opinions, with the plan of eventually upgrading my small passive monitors to something with more life, and wow, these puppies sound really good and do not betray their low price even after extended listening. It was very hard to decide between these and competitive offerings from KRK and Event which I've also used in video postproduction settings, but the HS50M speakers slightly edged out the competition in the categories of price, performance, and aesthetics. One minor flaw is that they are not 100% quiet, they do have baseline noise even with nothing connected to them that you can hear in a quiet room. But in the $400/pair price range, something has to give as designers make their trade off decisions.

Flat As A Pancake

Ok, so we all now the NS10m's infamous reputation. When a company claims to have it's replacement, especially Yamaha, you listen. I bought these blind and this is my opinion. They sound almost nothing like NS10s. The high/mids are impressive and definately crystal clear (sometimes harsh, much like NS10s), the bass is improved and not a flabby nonexistent region (like NS10s), and the stereo imaging is comparable. I would venture to say that these might be an improvement over the NS10s, as the dynamic range "seems" much wider.

The proof is always in the pudding, and for our work, the mix. Mixes done on the HS50s translate well but I must say that for whatever "odd" reason, not as well as NS10s. This could be due to the mixer not being as familiar with the HS50s. I found mixes to be a little "shy" on the high-end, perhaps due to the slight "bump" these monitors seem to give those frequencies. A quick adjustment on the back of the unit fixed this problem.

Here's my final take. 4 stars out of 5. These speakers sound PHENOMENAL for the price. You almost forget you're listening to $400 monitors when mixing with these. These things look like toys but sound like $1000 near-fields. I actually prefer them to anything I've heard under $500 and for my taste, like them better than the new-standard HR824s which always sound boomy to me. If you want flat, these speaks are flatter than a pancake. Almost too flat at times, if that makes any sense. It could get fatiguing but cutting the high frequencies with the switches in the back seems to correct that problem.

If you're looking for serious quality, crystal clear flat audio, great imaging on a budget, I would highly recommend the HS50s. When I was researching these speakers, I couldn't find much but I did notice they were selling. I would expect to see these units to become more popular in the next couple years.

Good Reference Monitors

You will always need to do your home work if you want to adjust your reference monitors to your room.
This is a good choice for your studio specially if you can get also the Yamaha HS10W.

Great as alternative monitors

These monitors like any others, can make your mix a little bass-heavy, depending on your setup. They are great to use as a secondary set of monitors, given their response, and their compact size. Just do your normal mixing on your primary pair, then plug these in to see how it sounds from another "system" through different media. If you find a good middle, then you are set. Get a pair!

Good Monitors

I will say that these monitors are PHENOMENAL. They are only $200 each and they sound just beautiful. However, what I have noticed mainly is that they are very bright and a little thin on the lows, so when you make a mix, many times it will sound incredible on the monitors, but be too bass heavy on consumer speakers of various sizes. However, there are many factors that accentuate their "apparent" frequency response (position in the room, height, etc.) So it is very subjective. But I give them a 4 out of 5 because I've tried many other monitors (Event, Genelec, NS10...) and they are VERY comparable. I love my pair.

Reliable, Proven Speakers

I've owned the HS50M's for a couple years now and couldn't be happier with them. They are solid all-around monitors for any type of post-production work. They image beautifully, and can really crank considering the small footprint.

Perfect for a home studio.

Fantastic monitors

I have just bought the HS50s and I have to say the sound is impressive.
Smooth, crystal and cutting edge design. I highly reccommend them to any home studio owner. My rating is 4 out of 5.
Great power monitors for an affordable price.

Nice, Need Better Quality Control

Very Flat Indeed. But my right one has a rattle in it that makes playing piano sounds annoying. I have to set the volume low in order to do that. Thing is, you have to break them in for a while to notice. And by then, yeah, try returning them for replacement, good luck.

I want to like them more, but for 300 a piece, I expect better quality control and steady componants. Maybe you other folk don't use the spectrum of frequencies that a piano can give in recordings to really test these out, or I just got a dud.

Pretty good monitors

The monitors are all around great. Sound fresh, and really do deliver a different sound than regular speakers. At low volumes both pairs still sounds good.

The low volume sensitivity helps because you want to hear your song when its finished, at low volume to see if everything is in the mix. It's not always loud.

I do recommend getting the next size up on these Yamaha Monitors because I sometimes can tell that I'm over using the monitors. And you also always want to have a little "head room" in whatever speaker you buy to be able to hear the full potential of the speaker.So whatever Watts you need, go up to the next size up and buy that one.

Back buttons work well and are handy.

Flat / True Sound

I picked up a pair of these the other day and am quite pleased with what I've heard. These monitors have a very flat/true sound. It was very easy to eq my instruments/vocals and get the sound I wanted. Sure these aren't Genelacs but they get the job done for your small time Project Studio. They also aren't just your beginners monitor. They can get the job done also. The only complaint I have is when not listening to a Mix you can get a nasty little hissy/feedback sound. That isn't too amusing but other than that these puppies are great.

REFERENCE MONITORS

Read the description carefully, folks. These are Reference monitors---not what some of you might call "mains." They aren't that great for mixing because they have a weak low end and a bright top end, as well as a bright midrange.

Even after rolling off the top EQ, they're still too bright. Their purpose is for reference---sort of a "bookshelf speaker" reference. Spend a couple more bucks and get the MSP5's if you're looking for something to mix on.

These will LIE to you---your mix will sound amazing on them and then it will be so boomy everywhere else, it's not even funny. It's because of their weak low end and shrill top end. My room is treated and I've even got MoPads and they still are bright. I don't mix on them anymore, I bought some nicer speakers that would actually translate.

These Monitor Speakers Are Very Nice...

These monitor speakers are very nice for small home studio setups, and the documentation is complete for setup. Used in conjunction with a good, quiet board (mackie, here) these provide a nice clean, flat sound that allows production of a very high quality. For a small monitor, the bass surprisingly packs a nice punch. I will enjoy these for a long time.

great flat response monitors

great flat response monitors! i bought these about two weeks ago; awesome quality! the manual included tells you everything you need to know about these monitors including how to get the best sound out of the area you're working with. great monitors! if you're using flat response monitors for the first time, you will need to listen to them extensivly to actually "tune" your ear to the different freq. response, etc. obviously, these are powered monitors, and they pump out 70w of power. great monitors with very low fatigue while mixing/mastering. highly recommended for small home studio setups; great bass response, great looks, VERY tough! great buy.