I had long wanted to own some fabled Yamaha studio monitors and had been carefully vetting reviews of the HS5 active studio monitors over a period of time. I needed a compact design offering accurate reproduction. I am pleased to report that the HS5s meet this criterion very well.Although not offering the bass extension of their larger siblings, these monitors work in a nearfield situation to provide you with the reference information you need to produce good song masters. My units are wearing in, and the 5-inch cone is proving to be very revealing across the frequency spectrum. I am very pleased with this purchase.

Bright, but detailed, a bit light on bass and unshielded

My initial thoughts of these were that they are bright - to the point of bring grating. But really that's arguably a good thing since it's better to have frequencies you need to tame rather than none at all. I run these with the HF cut and that has helped. Compared to my more than decade old Alesis, these have much better clarity but not quite as good of bass.I may buy the subwoofer at some point. I think the HS8 are better for bass but they were out of my pricerange.Speaking of though, while you can spend tons on monitors for sure,the main reason I opted to rate it at 3 stars is because these appear to be poorly shielded. My old monitors had no RF interference problems but these definitely do. It's only on the right side (and swapping the monitors doesn't fix ... MoreMy initial thoughts of these were that they are bright - to the point of bring grating. But really that's arguably a good thing since it's better to have frequencies you need to tame rather than none at all. I run these with the HF cut and that has helped. Compared to my more than decade old Alesis, these have much better clarity but not quite as good of bass.I may buy the subwoofer at some point. I think the HS8 are better for bass but they were out of my pricerange.Speaking of though, while you can spend tons on monitors for sure,the main reason I opted to rate it at 3 stars is because these appear to be poorly shielded. My old monitors had no RF interference problems but these definitely do. It's only on the right side (and swapping the monitors doesn't fix it) so it's certainly interference from somewhere. Wrapping it with aluminum foil helps but looks pretty ugly and may be introducing unwanted harmonics.If you're going to put Studio in the name, it really should have good RF rejection in my opinion.

Clear and crisp, if a bit bright

One of my old Alesis monitors was developing a power issue and while I think it's repairable, I didn't want to sink time into that and opted to try these out instead.The Alesis had better low in but the HS5's are noticeably more clear and crisp on the high end. Almost too much so as they almost border on harsh in places. The low end isn't quite as good but it's there and the overall sound, other than the brightness, sounds well balanced. I expect the HS7's would better round out the low end but getting the sub is something I am pondering as an option.The crisp sound is there even at low volumes which I like as it means I feel like I can hear more detail without having to crank the volume up and in this regard they are quite wonderful!In terms of them being ... MoreOne of my old Alesis monitors was developing a power issue and while I think it's repairable, I didn't want to sink time into that and opted to try these out instead.The Alesis had better low in but the HS5's are noticeably more clear and crisp on the high end. Almost too much so as they almost border on harsh in places. The low end isn't quite as good but it's there and the overall sound, other than the brightness, sounds well balanced. I expect the HS7's would better round out the low end but getting the sub is something I am pondering as an option.The crisp sound is there even at low volumes which I like as it means I feel like I can hear more detail without having to crank the volume up and in this regard they are quite wonderful!In terms of them being harsh they do have a high cut switch to help tame things down. This helps but it still took some getting used to the sound.Overall though I like them quite a bit! Plenty of detail in the highs and mids and sort of expected lows given their smaller size.

Great little powered monitor

I’m using a pair of these as keyboard monitors for a Stage 3 to supplement a pair of AKG reference headphonesAmazed at the bass clarity and excellent stereo imaging. They came with consecutive serial numbers which was very reassuring. Because of my setup I had to buy some 1m stands to get the tweeters at ear height and then the detail is excellent. Compared to the dearer version they don’t have mounting points or phase reverse but I can live without those. I tried both inputs, 6.3mm jack and balanced XLR, probably my imagination but the XLR seemed brighter, but only very marginally, and probably just my imagination.The manual recommends turning them off at the mains even if you have them switched off on the monitor, as they supposedly still draw a little bit of ... MoreI’m using a pair of these as keyboard monitors for a Stage 3 to supplement a pair of AKG reference headphonesAmazed at the bass clarity and excellent stereo imaging. They came with consecutive serial numbers which was very reassuring. Because of my setup I had to buy some 1m stands to get the tweeters at ear height and then the detail is excellent. Compared to the dearer version they don’t have mounting points or phase reverse but I can live without those. I tried both inputs, 6.3mm jack and balanced XLR, probably my imagination but the XLR seemed brighter, but only very marginally, and probably just my imagination.The manual recommends turning them off at the mains even if you have them switched off on the monitor, as they supposedly still draw a little bit of power even when off. The Yamaha logo illuminates when they are on so it’s easy to remember.If I could change anything I would have the bass port out front

HS5 needs a subwoofer for serious mixing use (IMO)

3 stars without sub. 5 stars with. With a sub HS5s are a great solution (even a magic hack) for a very small mixing space (my room is 11-L, 8-W, 7-H) but they need a sub to feel full and to attain the full mixing spectrum. If you're serious about your mixes you'll need to tack on the price of an HS8S sub to the HS5's low-seeming price tag.I tested the HS5 against the HS7 in my tiny mixing room. Both with an HS8S subwoofer, an isolation stand, and sonarworks flat EQ. Without a sub the HS7s were the only viable option. With a sub on both the result was a toss-up. The HS7s felt very subtly fuller in the mids but ever-so-slightly boomy in my tiny room. The HS7s + sub required room treatment while the HS5s + sub required very little treatment if any (my room already ... More3 stars without sub. 5 stars with. With a sub HS5s are a great solution (even a magic hack) for a very small mixing space (my room is 11-L, 8-W, 7-H) but they need a sub to feel full and to attain the full mixing spectrum. If you're serious about your mixes you'll need to tack on the price of an HS8S sub to the HS5's low-seeming price tag.I tested the HS5 against the HS7 in my tiny mixing room. Both with an HS8S subwoofer, an isolation stand, and sonarworks flat EQ. Without a sub the HS7s were the only viable option. With a sub on both the result was a toss-up. The HS7s felt very subtly fuller in the mids but ever-so-slightly boomy in my tiny room. The HS7s + sub required room treatment while the HS5s + sub required very little treatment if any (my room already had a thick rug and "acoustic" ceiling tiles). I chose the HS7s because I was able to tame the bass (oddly, largely by placing my HS8S subwoofer on an ISO200 isolation stand on the rug [the stand had to be upside down in order to accommodate the speaker on the bottom of the sub])

Perfect for the job

Wasn’t sure of size to get for a home studio but the HS5 is perfect.There is plenty volume available but the sound is so precise that loud volume is not required. So easy to mix and evaluate accurately at comfortable volume.Obviously, a Sub unit would be a good addition for those belly shaking Sub vibes but the bass response of the HS5 really is deep and fine for everything else.Bought the matched pair for thoroughness but I’m sure a pair of single units would do a fine job.The Yamaha symbol on the front lights up to indicate that they’re powered.They have Vol and Freq offset adjusters on the rear to match the environment that they’re in but currently I’ve had no need to set away from null.Beautifully sounding monitors.I would be surprised to find any better.

Poor persons best option.

Brilliant budget active studio monitors.It's important to set the switches on the back regarding the placement.Hook them up with balanced XLR cables if you can.Massive difference in sound when they are mounted on proper isolated speaker stands, floor standing or on a desk.Highly recommended !

Yamaha HS5 5" 70W sound system

Well it works sir-mam; thats all I can say for now; I just started using it today 3-20-23; it doesn't come with a TRS Male to XLR cable; so I had to buy one but it had worked, and I used it on my Pyle Mixer PMX44T.5; sounds good sir-mam played some Temptations, Millie Jackson; Whitney Shay; KT Tunstall, Eagles, Stevie Miller Band; Aerosmith; Creedence Clearwater Revival; the Marshall Tucker Band it sounds good; sir-mam; Yamaha HS5 5" 70W; I recommend buy;

Yamaha Hs5 Two-Way 5" Active Studio Monitors (Pair)

I use these to monitor digital recordings of my own original songs and covers of other songs to hear what they actually sound like so that they can be properly mixed. Better than trying to mix solely using headphones. They produce a flat sound that is not colored or boosted by any EQ settings, such as on a stereo system. The sound is good, with no noise on a balanced connection. You will, however, need to buy either two XLR to TRS connectors or two TRS connectors for a balanced connection if you don't already have them. They are not included. The bass is fine for my purpose but some may want to purchase a separate sub-woofer for more umph. It really depends what you are using them for. I haven't tried connecting them to a stereo or anything else. These are at a good ... MoreI use these to monitor digital recordings of my own original songs and covers of other songs to hear what they actually sound like so that they can be properly mixed. Better than trying to mix solely using headphones. They produce a flat sound that is not colored or boosted by any EQ settings, such as on a stereo system. The sound is good, with no noise on a balanced connection. You will, however, need to buy either two XLR to TRS connectors or two TRS connectors for a balanced connection if you don't already have them. They are not included. The bass is fine for my purpose but some may want to purchase a separate sub-woofer for more umph. It really depends what you are using them for. I haven't tried connecting them to a stereo or anything else. These are at a good intermediate investment point for studio monitors. If you are a stickler for great sound and have the budget, there may be others out there that might be better, such as the Genelec 8040BPM Active Studio Monitor (Single) for $1,175, but they will be close to three times the amount. The choice for either balanced or unbalanced sound with different connectors (i.e., XLR, TRS or RCA pin), a room control and a high trim settings control are a plus. Easy to connect to a digital recorder with an audio interface. The speakers don't really need separate acoustic pads and they are plenty loud with the volume up slightly less than halfway. They are also a good size, not too big or heavy and easy to tuck away on a shelf or table out of the way, if not in constant use.Thank you Mark, at Sam Ash in Edison for the help and great price!

cabinet shielding issues

Had these for a few years. Sound quality and appearance is great, but a very annoying buzz drove me absolutely crazy. I'm almost certain the buzz is due to poor shielding from EMI: it occurs when no inputs are connected; occurs in unison in both units; modulates in weird rhythms like a digital signal; occurs more during the day than at night, and stops if i drape tin foil over the speaker (faraday cage). This may not be audible for all users: I live in a dense urban area (tons of radio signals), the buzzing is pretty low-level, but i have these positioned pretty close to my sitting position.