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DJ Tech Reviews

Yamaha HS8S

Yamaha's 8-inch sub for the HS monitors: clean, controlled low end, with little headroom for loud 808s.

Yamaha HS8S at an angle

Photos: Yamaha

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4 of 4 professional reviews recommend it
Best for
Home studio producers adding low end beneath Yamaha HS5, HS7 or HS8 monitors.
Skip it if
You play loud, bass-heavy music, or your sources only have RCA outputs.

The Internet’s Opinion

From 4 professional reviews and 54 owner reviews: a fair amount of evidence.

Four professional reviews and 54 owner reviews agree it fills in the low end beneath Yamaha's HS monitors with clean, controlled bass. The recurring caveats are setup, since it needs careful level and placement to blend, and limited headroom for loud, bass-heavy music.

4 recommend0 mixed0 avoid

What people praise

  • Fills in the low end beneath Yamaha HS5, HS7 and HS8 monitors
  • Clean, tight bass without boom or muddiness
  • More output than a small room needs; owners run it well below half
Show 2 more
  • Solid Yamaha build
  • Low-cut, high-cut and phase controls help match it to the monitors

What to know first

  • Needs careful level, placement and room treatment to blend
  • Isolated faults: hum, a rattling driver, heat at sustained high volume
  • Few adjustments beyond the filters: no DSP or bypass footswitch
Show 2 more
  • Runs out of headroom on loud, bass-heavy material such as 808s
  • Not cheap for an 8-inch sub
See the 4 reviews behind this

4 professional reviews (4 recommend, 0 mixed, 0 avoid); 54 owner reviews read at Thomann (38) and Guitar Center (16)Compiled 2026-10-14How this is compiled

Video reviews

  • 30KillaBeatzJun 2021Recommends

    Why you NEED the Yamaha HS8S Subwoofer with your HS5, HS7, HS8 Best Studio Monitors Setup

Plays from YouTube when you press play. Picked from the reviews counted above, including one that disagrees where there is one.

Prices

Before you buy

Released
April 2013
Status
Current

Works with

  • XLR and 1/4" TRS inputsBalanced, L and R

    Balanced XLR and balanced phone inputs for both L and R, mixed internally; use one connector per channel at a time. There is no RCA input Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

  • HS5, HS7 and HS8 monitorsThrough the sub

    The source feeds the HS8S, and its L and R XLR outputs feed the main monitors; with LOW CUT on, those outputs are high-passed at 80 to 120 Hz Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

  • Response controlsRear panel

    HIGH CUT sets the sub's upper limit between 80 and 120 Hz, PHASE switches between NORM. and REV., and LEVEL sets its output Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

  • Unbalanced sourcesShort cables

    Sources with only unbalanced outputs connect with unbalanced phone-plug cables, which Yamaha says to keep as short as possible Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

You’ll also need

  • Four signal cablesNot in the box

    A pair of monitors plus the sub needs four cables: two from the interface to the HS8S and two from the HS8S to the monitors. The box holds a power cord and the owner's manual Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

  • A pair of monitorsSold separately

    The HS8S handles only the low end; Yamaha's manual describes it beneath a pair of HS8, HS7 or HS5 full-range monitors, which are sold separately Manufacturer spec sheet (Yamaha (HS series owner's manual)), checked 2026-10-14

Key specs

Configuration
Powered subwoofer, bass-reflex
Woofer size
8 in
LF driver
8" cone
Amplifier power
150 W, 4 ohms (dynamic power)
Low-frequency extension
22 Hz (-10 dB)
Frequency response
33 Hz – 124 Hz (-3 dB); 22 Hz – 160 Hz (-10 dB)
All 14 specifications
Inputs
L and R: XLR (balanced) and 1/4" phone (balanced), one connector per channel at a time
Weight
12.5 kg (27.6 lb)
Outputs
2 x XLR (balanced), L and R, to the main monitors
Filters
HIGH CUT 80–120 Hz (sub); LOW CUT 80–120 Hz with on/off switch (outputs)
Controls
LEVEL, PHASE (NORM./REV.), HIGH CUT, LOW CUT, LOW CUT switch
Enclosure
MDF
Power consumption
70 W
Dimensions (W x H x D)
300 x 350 x 389 mm (11.8 x 13.8 x 15.3 in)

14 of 14 figures sourced; hover one for its source

Our take

Rory TassellWritten from the sources on this page, not from a loan unit.

All four professional reviews recommend it, and most of the 54 owners read pair it with Yamaha's HS5, HS7 or HS8 and describe clean, tight bass that fills in what the monitors miss. Nine sources say it needs careful level and placement to blend, and two owners found it runs out of headroom on loud 808s. Buy it to complete an HS system for mixing; for loud, bass-heavy playback, look at a larger sub.

What it is

Status, October 2026: current. Yamaha still lists the HS8S in its HS series.

What it is

The HS8S is a powered studio subwoofer with an 8-inch cone woofer, made by Yamaha to sit beneath its HS series monitors (Yamaha product page). Yamaha introduced it at Musikmesse in April 2013 with the second-generation HS5, HS7 and HS8, which replaced the original HS line from 2006 (Yamaha).

A 150 W amplifier drives the woofer in a bass-reflex MDF cabinet. Yamaha quotes a frequency response of 33 Hz to 124 Hz at -3 dB and 22 Hz to 160 Hz at -10 dB.

It sits between the source and the monitors. The L and R inputs each take a balanced XLR or a balanced 1/4" phone plug, one at a time, and the two channels are mixed for the woofer. There is no RCA input. Two XLR outputs pass the signal on to the main monitors, and a LOW CUT switch and control high-pass those outputs between 80 Hz and 120 Hz. For the sub itself, a HIGH CUT control sets its upper limit over the same range, a PHASE switch flips between normal and reversed, and a LEVEL control sets its output (owner's manual).

Yamaha's manual says a pair of monitors plus the sub needs four cables, none of them included. It measures 300 x 350 x 389 mm (W x H x D) and weighs 12.5 kg. The box holds a power cord and the owner's manual.

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