Anybody regret their Yamaha HS 50M monitor purchase?

[gjm]

Been testing these at home for a couple of days now. Honestly... I am feeling about them (testing without the sub). Tested some KRK's a while back and was also left unimpressed. Everything sounds shitty through them (which I admit could be the point) but next level monitors ie Genelec, Adams etc are a no-go. Just wondered if anyone has really got to know these in comparison to other gear and could share your experience. Thanks.

[jer_mcclain]

yes, i was a real novice and did not do my homework, and now i am stuck with mine. truth be told i hardly ever use them, i do everything on my grado sr325i. the yamahas are in a closet right now.

[fishmonkey]

i've never heard them but they have a reputation as being good for mixing because they are a bit brutally honest in the mids & high mids, and therefore help your mixes translate to shitty consumer systems.

given that, one wouldn't expect them to sound 'pretty'. is your room treated?

[login]

They are not hi fi speakers, make shit sound good on it and it must translate well to other systems.

[Forge.]

They are not hi fi speakers, make shit sound good on it and it must translate well to other systems.

+1

they are not flattering, and that is a good thing. Although I don't have them, I have the NS10s but what I've read seems to suggest they still keep to that same ethos, but also provided a mid range switch to give you the choice: "if it sounds good on NS10s it will sound good on anything"

but without a sub the bottom end is not great - I think they start to roll off around 200Hz, at least the NS10s do I think... something really high anyway...

[southsounder]

Good friend has both the NS10's and now the HS-80m's. They are similar in some ways, but overall I find the HS-80m's soundstage to be a bit two dimensional and boxy. More so even than the NS-10's, which surprised me.

That being said for rock & pop stuff they actually translate pretty well, but I definitely have a hard time with the lack of depth and detail when working on ambient and more dynamic material. To be fair I mix on old KRK 9000B's though, which are super detailed.

The HS-80m's are definitely less colored than the KRK Rokit 5's and 8's I've had in the past (both 1st gen), but I still liked the soundstage on the Rokit's better. I noticed the Rokit 5's were way more hyped in the low mids than the Rokit 8's, so maybe the HS-50's are similarly different than the HS-80's?

Overall the HS-80's just seem a bit bland to me, but my friend really likes them. So I guess it really does boil down to personal preference in the end - and maybe the kind of music you're working with. In that price range I'd take the Yamaha's over the Rokit's for rock, but favor the KRK's for electronica and ambient work.

One thing I've heard multiple times is that the HS-50's really like to be paired with a sub, but I cannot speak on this from personal experience.

[gjm]

yes, i was a real novice and did not do my homework, and now i am stuck with mine. truth be told i hardly ever use them, i do everything on my grado sr325i. the yamahas are in a closet right now.

Thanks for that. Trying to do my homework but have no reference. Been doing all my attempts at mixing on headphones Beyerdynamics DT990 Pro's.

i've never heard them but they have a reputation as being good for mixing because they are a bit brutally honest in the mids & high mids, and therefore help your mixes translate to shitty consumer systems.

given that, one wouldn't expect them to sound 'pretty'. is your room treated?

Yeah, those mids and high mids are very pronounced. Had me flinching at times. Just come in from listening to some classical heavy in violin, flute and recorders... wow! One BIG thing I noticed between my DT990's and the HS50's is I was loosing a lot of reverb. I can clearly place it in the headphones but not in the monitors.

My room is haphazardly treated. I have not attempted to optimize it. Someone walked in today and said whoa, lots of bass, which surprised me because I thought they were weak

They are not hi fi speakers, make shit sound good on it and it must translate well to other systems.

I see this now. Shuffled through my iTunes and just shook my head at what seemed like awful sound. Wanted to reach for my headphones...

they are not flattering, and that is a good thing. Although I don't have them, I have the NS10s but what I've read seems to suggest they still keep to that same ethos, but also provided a mid range switch to give you the choice: "if it sounds good on NS10s it will sound good on anything"

but without a sub the bottom end is not great - I think they start to roll off around 200Hz, at least the NS10s do I think... something really high anyway...

I will look into this tomorrow. Have to make my mind up tomorrow anyway. The store needs them back. I read a lot about the NS10 comparisons as well. But again, I have no other first hand comparative experience. The reviews were so glowing that I started to feel suspicious.

Good friend has both the NS10's and now the HS-80m's. They are similar in some ways, but overall I find the HS-80m's soundstage to be a bit two dimensional and boxy. More so even than the NS-10's, which surprised me.

That being said for rock & pop stuff they actually translate pretty well, but I definitely have a hard time with the lack of depth and detail when working on ambient and more dynamic material. To be fair I mix on old KRK 9000B's though, which are super detailed.

The HS-80m's are definitely less colored than the KRK Rokit 5's and 8's I've had in the past (both 1st gen), but I still liked the soundstage on the Rokit's better. I noticed the Rokit 5's were way more hyped in the low mids than the Rokit 8's, so maybe the HS-50's are similarly different than the HS-80's?

Overall the HS-80's just seem a bit bland to me, but my friend really likes them. So I guess it really does boil down to personal preference in the end - and maybe the kind of music you're working with. In that price range I'd take the Yamaha's over the Rokit's for rock, but favor the KRK's for electronica and ambient work.

One thing I've heard multiple times is that the HS-50's really like to be paired with a sub, but I cannot speak on this from personal experience.

Thanks for the detailed input. Boxy and bland are words that I could use to describe what I hear. Having said that, its pretty obvious to me that I will have to re learn my listening skills. My references will all change regardless of what I get.

I will have another go tomorrow when I am feeling fresh. Thanks everyone for your input.

Cheers.G.

[The Carpet Cleaner]

I have them. I like them because I'm used to them.
On the long run they were too bright for my sensitive ears, so I reduced the highs and mids. Maybe it defits the point. But I like them like that. I might add a sub because the hardest part on my mixes is to set a hpf correctly.

Beside that, I trust them a lot and my mixes usually translate correctly.

Ive heard a lots of krks, I don't like them as much as my hs50, I have the feeling they are too much like hifi speakers.

So in the end, use the buttons on the back to set them the way you want. And listen to a lots of reference tracks.

[gjm]

Thanks.

I decided to pull the trigger and get them. lots of learning ahead

[simpli.cissimus]

I recommend you the bigger ones, the HS80's.

I have the 80's and like 'em a lot.
Very honest but with more power in the low end, because of the 8inch cones.

Would never use less then 8inch cones.
Needed for some good bass response.

If you stay with the 50's go and add the sub-woofer to them.

And finally, listen long time to your monitrors before you make critical work.
You have to know them well before you can make really good mixes on them.

Listen to your best CD's, get used to the sounds.
You'll automatically will make good sound when you get used to them.


Have Fun

[Forge.]

If you stay with the 50's go and add the sub-woofer to them.

I think it's good to have a sub anyway - apart from anything so that you can occasionally turn the monitors off and ONLY listen to the sub, and vice versa

[fishmonkey]

room treatment becomes even more important if you add a sub.

[reso19khz]

I have a pair of the 80Ms. Much more extended low end than the 50Ms. The thing with the HS series is that they translate very well, are a joy to produce on and can hear effects, especially reverb tails very well, so there's never reverb overload!

I also have a pair of Focal Twins. Even though I bought and sold many different brands of monitors, I wouldn't sell the Yamahas. However, the HS50ms is a different story. I tried them and its a totally different experience.

[Earwax69]

HS50m are blend, honest and displeasant to ear but thats' exactly the point. I too however reduced the high and mid on the back settings. They reveal everything and the stereo image is outstanding. I however use other speakers and headphones to track and use the HS50m for final mixing, delicate equalizing or mastering.

If you are in a small room, forget the sub or 8inch monitors unless you got bass traps all around.

[2be]

I really don't see the point in using studio monitors that sound awful.
Maybe your mixes will turn out slightly better, but if the whole process of making the track is a pain in the ears you'll probably get a worse end result.
Also, don't you like to listen to music? I don't have the space for another pair of speakers, and the KRK Rokit 6" have a very pleasing sound to my ears. Maybe not a 100 % neutral, but my room acoustics are pretty fucked up anyway...