I use the Yamaha HS-50M as main speakers and monitors for professional applications. With all the controls set flat they reproduce sound with excellent realism. The fact that they can move listeners in my family to tears through the accurate portrayal of atmosphere, musicianship, and dynamic delivery of the sound they reproduce, speaks for itself.

Some reviewers have stated that they are too cold and bright, but in my experience they sound very neutral, and will be as warm or cool in sonic temperature as the recording dictates.

Many people do not compare reproduced sound with the live experience, and the fact that a lot of modern music is artificial and not recorded with live musicians, or in a real acoustic, does not help. But playing back vinyl recordings spanning 30 years through my AR Legend turntable, I have found new insights into old recordings. I have never experienced such excellence in vinyl playback as I have now.

Let me elaborate. I listen critically to music for research to gain an insight into the mentality and message of the musicians. Every song that is made by a person is created to deliver a message to the listeners. Therefore the system that can accurately portray these messages has done its job. Now, with these Yamahas (with the AR Legend, Linn Basik LV X, and Grado Prestige Red as a front end) for the first time when listening to music I can gain the real essence of what is being said, not just physically, i.e. from the sound pressure level, but also emotionally as well. It is as if the room is transformed back in time to the venue of the recording, and it has made me realise for the first time that LP recordings are "time capsules" that capture the time, space, and event, in a sound wave on plastic.

I can really “hear into” recordings and can feel the warmth in the air of a studio in sunny Los Angeles, the hard violent atmosphere of a backyard Jamaican studio in the late 70's, the serenity, cool air, and formal professionalism of English style music making, etc. It is simply amazing. One thing that I have learnt is that to listen critically to music you really need to have a calm mind and take each recording on its own merits.

These comments are not my own. They have been seconded by those visiting my home setup. It has been brought to my attention from other family members that the Yamahas are the best speakers that I have ever owned (and I have owned speakers worth more than twice the price).

There is more that can be said, but my only advice would be for one to try these fine pair of speakers for themselves. A very well done to all who have designed and built the Yamaha HS-50M.