Fwiw, I bought my D5s used on eBay from a guy with no prior sales. Kind of a gamble, but PayPal universally favors the buyer and they arrived in perfect condition. I would try used before new if you're on any sort of budget.
For some reason the 2 times I've bought speakers used before, they started having issues within the year...so I'm very skeptical I emailed Equator and they replied "Were currently out of stock on the D5 and D8 and have been in the process of updating their design. Unfortunately its taken longer than we planned but we expect them to become available by the end of this quarter. Rest assured. Theyll still remain a coaxial design with DSP to match the left and right output. Theyll still have the same mid-range clarity theyve become famous for and theyll maintain professionally voiced frequency response curves. Weve redesigned their port tube assemblies to improve low-end performance and have made minor mechanical and production changes to improve their overall performance and serviceability. And were doing our best to keep the pricing the same." Sounds awesome but end of quarter...I don't think I'm gonna be waiting that long..... Samash doesnt have it in stock I cant find it on altomusic's website so gonna try calling them... If not I'm back to the others
Former D5 owner here: Bought them when they were first announced, used the for a year in a few different rooms and tried REALLY hard to convince myself they were good and to justify the purchase. They're not great - the stereo imaging is the sole good thing about them. They're super mid rangey (good sometimes) but the high and low end do NOT translate well. Low end is typical ported flub. Try them out in person before you buy.
I have the Yamaha HS-50M and matching sub in a treated room and it does me well. I'm sure the newer HS series would work in your situation/budget.
I've never been a fan of the yamaha's in any way. In my home studio I use JBL LSR's, and I LOVE them. I think they updated to a new line but I'd check that brand out. I have the Adam F7's at another studio, and they're fantastic. That'd be my best recommendation. I A/B'd them with a bunch of others (KRK, Yamaha, etc.) at guitar center and the Adams won easily. Really balanced, not super mid-forward, not too bright, tight low end, and they seem to translate well. For me at least!
Thanks man, I wonder if the treated room makes a difference to how the Yamaha's sound I heard the Adams and I really liked them. They would serve me well for a long time I'm sure. They are currently at the top of my list in terms of the ones I like acc to my ears
A treated room usually makes any monitors sound better. However, no treatment can make the best monitors in the world sound like crap.
I spent a few hours at the guitar center, tested out the Adam F7, Yamaha HS8, Rokit 8, Focal alpha 80 Honestly I liked the HS8 the best of the lot. It just sounded like what I'd imagine the mix of the songs to sound like. I enjoyed the Focal alpha 80 a lot too but they are just so much pricier. The Adams were also good but I just liked the Yamaha's better. The Rokits were my least favourite of the 4. Earlier I thought my room is too small for 8 inch speakers but the additional bass reproduction is really nice
