I've used hs-80s in 3 different studios, with and without subs, and they suck. There is no midrange meat or presence, the high end is brittle and will fatigue you, and they are certainly not NS-10s.. The only similarity is the white cones, which look pretty sweet. Maybe try them as a home stereo or use them to impress clients.

A friend tells me the hs-50s are actually much better and much more comparable to ns-10s, but I don't believe it until I hear it.

I will add, as much as I hate using hs-80s, you could probably get used to em.

The HS80Ms are a perfectly usable affordable active monitor. They sound plenty good and compare well to everything else in their price bracket. They go rather loud without breaking up too.

They also have plenty of solid and tight bottom end and run rings around other lower-end monitors with 5"-6" drivers, as is to be expected. To the person complaining of lack of bottom end, I'd suggest your monitor(s) were damaged or there was some sort of signal problem. I've compared mine to my subwoofer'd HiFi system and manage 90% of the bass extension and stay much tighter too.

They aren't however immune to setup issues and poor room treatment, nor will they magically turn a crap mix into pure genius. Like any other monitor, they need to be set up, listened to and learnt. Once you do that, translatable mixes are easily achieved.

I can't compare them to NS10s as I've never used them. If you want NS10s, buy NS10s. That said, the white on black looks neat in a classic sorta way, but remember, you're supposed to be listening, not looking ;-)

Cheers, Ben.

I didn't buy them cause i associate them with the NS10, i bought them cause i liked them. I wouldn't have even listened to them if it wasn't for all the stuff about them online.

I'd love to hear some NS10s for comparisons sake.

I also didn't hear anything better in their price range. No complaints about the HS80s

Yeah it was the low end that sold me on them in the end.

Yesterday i was working on some stuff and i really started to dig the hs80s. Initially i bought them to replace my CX5s but then i decided to keep both and use them for mixing and the CX5s for tracking and listening. But the way i have them set up now i don't find them fatiguing at all, i enjoy working with them.

I'm gonna keep saying this, but don't buy monitors unheard unless you can return them. It's clear from this thread that there's no absolute cause opinion is polarised!

Smartest thing said in this tread!!!!

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sonic Sweets ➡️

I've used hs-80s in 3 different studios, with and without subs, and they suck. There is no midrange meat or presence, the high end is brittle and will fatigue you, and they are certainly not NS-10s.. The only similarity is the white cones, which look pretty sweet. Maybe try them as a home stereo or use them to impress clients.
A friend tells me the hs-50s are actually much better and much more comparable to ns-10s, but I don't believe it until I hear it.

Hmm, well sorry, but your friend is wrong - and U are, too.
(on the lack of midrange, meat, fatigue and using a a home stereo or to impress clients criticisms - on the taste part, to each their own, of course)

Quote:

I will add, as much as I hate using hs-80s, you could probably get used to em.

On this U are aboslutely right - one can get used to basically ANYTHING.

Still, it's pretty nice that getting used to this really miracuolous for the price monitor (the HS80) will take a lot less time and yeald greater results a lot more easily and consistently than with a lot, really lot of other montors - many much, much higher priced.

I have used these in two rooms. My first room sucked and they still worked well.

When I put a reference CD on, I can hear everything, top to bottom and what
stands out to me is always the vocals. For whatever reason, they throw the
vocals definitively front and center. That takes getting used to but can be a
strength. I tend to like it.

What I don't like... echo and verb tails aren't what they could be. that is the
one issue that surprises me (sometimes) when checking translation and it isn't
ever a big difference, only slight. They were certainly bright in the beginning
but after a season of use, they seem to have settled a bit.

I double check the bottom in phones and that is more due to my room than
the speakers. Home based rooms seem to have issues in the 80-90 range.

By and large, if I listen at moderate levels, they do a great job and translate.


I WILL buy another, more expensive, better pair but will expect to keep these for reference.

Thanks DR Music.....now you've made me even more unsure about my HS80s! heh

But yeah I hear you....a second set of monitors could only be a benefit. Anyways, I'm trying to get him to call over some day soon with his monitors so I can hear them in my room.

And I agree completely on some room treatment. Myself, I have bass traps in the corner, sound diffusers behind my monitors and at points of first reflection, and I have some more panels positioned at points on my wall that I put up via a means of trial and error, and Room EQ Wizard tests. Sounds good to me at the moment, but its not perfect as it could be I guess. Then again, I dont know if the missus will let me spend more money on "stupid sponge on the wall!" heh

Ahh....that was a fun conversation!

This post is dead on. I've had a pair for 4 years now. Dreadful to work on, but useful to reference on occasionally. I have them setup where I demo out quick ideas. Can't stand to part with them because I got a ridiculous deal and can't pawn them on some ignorant soul.

Question is how well do mixes translate? Be interested to know how the 3031as compare. Read mixed things about them too!

the NS-10s are dreadful also. and they became a defacto industry standard

Had a pair of HS80 for about 5 years. (Sold them for personal reasons...) My big concern about those speakers was the unbalanced mids. lets say the high-mids/low-trebble are +1/+2 dB higher than the average volume and the low-mids are -1/-2dB lower than the average volume. I will not call them bright since the top-high frequencies are a little lower than the low-high frequencies: so it's more harsh than "airy". I didn't find the mids that precise. For sure they are "there" but not with that much precision.
The lows are OK for the price but there is defintely something wrong around 80Hz. It's hard to judge low frequency since they are totaly depending on the room (a lot of people seems to forget it) but I got the bump you guys already talked about at 80Hz in every room I mixed in.
I bought the sub (HS10W) for more precision in the low frequencies: it did help because it gives more controls (you can play with the filters and the extra volume control). It's not night and day but it was definitely an improvement. And it brings an extra 10Hz in the lows.
I wouldn't buy a sub again anymore because for the price of the whole set (2*HS80+1*HS10W) you can upgrade for the higher range and get something with better frequency response (including lows), better transient response, better imaging.. so it's not worth the money to me...

The corrections you can get with the switchs behind really suck to me... the frequencies aren't the smartest choice: the low control start's at 500Hz, so it makes the low-mids even lower and the High freq control starts at 2kHz and makes the High-mids even higher (if you set it at +2dB) or kills the high-trebbles (if you set it at -2dB). So definiely a bad choice to me (I guess the High frequency control is just an extra boost on the tweeter volume).
The Medium control is set to 2kHz (or 2.5 I can't remember) so if you set it to -2dB the 5kHz seems even higher. I would have loved to have it set to 5kHz.
So if you want to soften the high mids/ low highs you can only do it with the high control => but then you loose too much of the top high.

Overal they are good speaker for that price of range, don't take me wrong they definitely are. They are not perfect, they are not flat either, but they also definitely do their job => They translate pretty well for the price (except in the mids for the reason mentioned above).

the NS-10s have no controls (except Kleenax) and they became a defacto standard.


hahahaha! I'm not being a fanboi, I just want to point out that speakers are really different for everyone. And I don't know of one PERFECT speaker that exists. So, everyone's speakers are different, worse and better, yet great music is made on all of them.

Well said wwjd!

this was the exact problem i had with 2 sets of 80's zero bass....and i played songs thru them that i knew had loads of kick......add to that the fact that when i did try to mix in them my mixes came out way bassheavey and very weird inthe mids and then the second i went back to the rokit 8 G2's the same song remixed in them came out superb.

i listened to them for over 8 hrs striaght across varying styles of music...each time it was as if someone turned the bass knob to zero lol. of course i hated them lol

BTW, anyone finding the HS80 "non existant" in bass has either control room issues to deal with, badly set frequency contour switches on the back of the speaker, badly wired speakers, or a defective pair of these, or some combination of all of the above - <----- when i put the rokit 8 G2's on the very same spot as the HS80s were...all the bass came back, and things were wonderful again, and mixes translated....plus my room is treated with bass traps, accoustic panels, and a coud. carpeted room as well

The NS10s have no bass, and they became... Awe, you know.
My 80s have plenty of bass, but not when compared to the sloppy,muddy, over based rocket spkrs

those "sloppy muddy, over bassed roket spkrs" make some wonderfully tight clean and clear translations for me. anything i mix on those will translate awesomely to any consumer rig i try it on so far. when i had the HS80s my mixes sounded like crap in other systems. way too much bass and a hollow sounding mid section due to all the mis reporting of bass that those speakers are notorious for.

Quote:

Originally Posted by daveybasso ➡️

those "sloppy muddy, over bassed roket spkrs" make some wonderfully tight clean and clear translations for me. anything i mix on those will translate awesomely to any consumer rig i try it on so far. when i had the HS80s my mixes sounded like crap in other systems. way too much bass and a hollow sounding mid section due to all the mis reporting of bass that those speakers are notorious for.

Good thing - means U learnt your Rockits well, and were getting results that translated well, and they were probably appealing to your combination of room, mix position, ears, taste.

I know a couple of engineers/studio owners who like Rockits as nearfields & get good results, too.
Speaking of nearfields, I also personally know several more who swear by & get good results from Focal Twins, Focal Solo6, Genelec 1031, Auratones, KH 0300, Mackie HR824, Event 20/20, Barefoot MM, Tannoy Precision, Dynaudio BM5/BM12/BM15, Yamaha NS10, Yamaha HS50, and Yamaha HS80.
For the same reasons stated above - regardless of price & fame.
ALL speakers must be "learned".
ANY speaker can "translate well".
But not all speakers fit our taste & rooms - regardless of price & fame.
And some are tougher to learn than others, some combinations less easy than others.
If U look up the (many) press & online reviews of the HS80, including those on this often very passionate/controversial/paradoxal/quizzical website & forum, U'll certainly fine many statements of how they're doing in use, and anyone can freely run a check & statistic of what seems to be most often reported - "mis reporting of bass" just isn't one of those things that comes up so often that they'd seem to be "notorious for" it.

been living with a pair of HS80M for about six months#, next to my Tannoy DFMs.

I wound up backing off the tweeters all the way and am now starting to get comfortable with them as a second reference.
And they are great when the band wants to rehearse in the sutdio - we just slap everyone direct into the HS80s.
Worst that can happen is I blow a cheap tweeter, right?

Another concept many don't grasp is that the SPEAKERS themselves are not the ones turning the EQ knobs... YOU are. YOU can get the same mix out of any speakers, provided YOU are skilled enough, listen well and know the speakers. Everybody hears different.

Same here, the Rokits 8"s were the best so far even though the bass was a little heavy. I rather have the bass a little heavy then the mids and high screwed up.

Funny how subjective this all is. I demo'd several KRK's (not their best) in the same price range and every one I tried sounded boxy and closed.

If you want a bassy box, try the Mackie 8's. Too much for me.

Nobody said they were perfect, just better to mix with then the yammies.

Well to each their own, i've owned some rp6s and ab'd them all recently against the yammies. They all had the same sort of character which I don't find revealing at all with a tubby low end.

I can hear much more detail in the mids of the hs80s. They also have fantastic stereo imaging and are far from what I would call hollowed out. Sure they have their flaws but we're talking budget monitors here.

The point about the guy/gal behind the desk turning the eq knobs is a good one. But we each have our own preferences, it's funny how some guys here like and prefer the rokits for the reasons I don't.

All I can say is go and listen to them if you can, don't buy them based on stuff you read on the interweb. Clearly they are not everyone's bag! My 2c.

Actually since everyone hears differently, percieves differently and mixes differently, then whats the point of even having a forum where monitors are discussed?..lol seems pointless. i get the feeling that at the end of the day, if everyone can get the mix they want out of ANY speaker, then the m-audios are just as good as the genelacs..shrugs...why pay 3k for genelacs when by the theory presented here in this thread, m-audios can get ya there too..? unless there IS a difference! and if everyones ear hears differently i.e. "john q musiclistner" then that means there really cannot BE any standard for monitors because no matter how flat they claim to be..if everyone in the end is gonna hear things differently, then as a mix/master person the only person your really mixing for....is you....lol

This is why there is an optional sub for the set

I have had my HS80m's for two years (no sub) and only have them sitting on some auralex because I have a flat, hard wood cherry desk. They are the flattest monitoring source I come across. I cross check my mixes with AKG K701's (Open Headphone) as well as some Shure 240's (Closed Headphone) and I've never had any problems getting things where I want them.