advertisement


How loud before the neighbours complain?

I think we have the answer...

AqiqQUU.png


Joe
Yes , I saw that too!
 
As mentioned, they are active speakers, and the 16kW is spread across 26 drive units, to be fair!
Lots of headroom there then, impossible to use it all... nice to never run out. I’d love to see that though!

As an aside, some high end PA amps do work really nicely in HIFI applications, some of the MC2 models are excellent, same for Crown.
 
A long time ago, I decided that detached living was essential if I was to enjoy music without worries. We must be approaching 100m from our nearest neighbours. I can’t imagine living in an apartment: for me, it would be a nightmare.

Chris
 
Depends on the neighbour. About 30 years ago I moved into my second flat, a first floor flat, the first weekend before I had even unpacked I was listening to a new CD by Blind melon on a ghetto blaster at a moderate volume when a very loud knock came to the door. It was person who lived below me complaining bitterly and threatening violence to both me and my wife, this continued, for nearly a year, threats of burning us alive, he threatened me a knife point down the street. He was well known as a bit of a psychopath or sociopath perhaps, he had broke both his ex -girlfriends legs, beat up his own father, took two car loads of police to hold him down until they got a straight jacket on him. The police and the council were absolutely hopeless and would do nothing until he actually did something! The firm I worked for was doing a job re-paving Royal Avenue in Belfast and as usual we had five days to do a job which should have taken about 2 weeks so we were starting early and finishing late. Around 5 am the van would pull up for me, the driver would normally wait a minute and I'd be down and off we would go, on the Thursday morning my neighbour came running out in his boxers with a hurling bat and threatened the driver. The driver looked at him, laughed and drove off, he told me not to worry, he'd have a word with his uncle and it would be sorted out. The next week my neighbour was sent to America. That's the last time I had a neighbour, I chosen to live in detached properties since.

Sent to America is obviously Irish mob code for 'e's un'er Royal Av', in'e mate'.
 
Not sure how accurate these apps are but an average of 65dB seems perfectly adequate for normal listening. Shame I never measured the workshop system. That was played quite loud.

BTW the room measures 30dB when ‘silent’.
 
A long time ago, I decided that detached living was essential if I was to enjoy music without worries. We must be approaching 100m from our nearest neighbours. I can’t imagine living in an apartment: for me, it would be a nightmare.

Chris
Can’t agree more. Listening to Jeff Beck at 10pm last night so loud I nearly reached for a pair of ear defenders. Lived in an apartment a few years ago where luckily the couple upstairs had vacated so I had the freedom to turn the wick up as I desired.
 
It is an issue for most of us. A few years ago, I installed what I laughingly call the office system, in a spare room upstairs. I live in a semi, but the room is on an outside corner and not on an adjoining wall, so I can play music up there reasonably loud quite late into the evening (the missus keeps me in check). The main system downstairs, is under used at the moment. The neighbours hardly ever go out. The iPhone App is a great way on keeping tabs on yourself, for example, I hadn’t realised how much louder the streamer was for the same volume setting as the other equipment until I got a knock on the door (this was in the daytime btw). A change of circumstances (for the better), means that soon, I’ll be at home a lot more, so we’ll have to see how it pans out!
 
End Terrace with adjoining hallways-great for mutual isolation.
Never had a complaint in 30 years and I've hammered it occasionally-encouraged by some mental PFMer's who seem to listen way too loud.
Late night sessions are less frequent these days but even then 80dB is more than plenty given the drop in ambient noise.
 
I have been a victim of an inconsiderate arsehole who thought it alright to play his music in every room in my house ,which is absolutely soul and health destroying. Why do you want to play your music loud enough for other people to hear it in their own property? Do not impose your taste in music and lack of courtesy and manners on other people.
 
When Rocketman was being recorded up our lane, they had 'Saturday nights' all right for fighting' at near ear splitting levels from 1/2 mile away whilst we were having a barbecue. I loved it!
Can't compete with Beobloke but we did have a dedicated home cinema room. 7.2 ch, all Tannoy Definition DC's, 2kw of amplification and 2 x 15 in active subs. Loud enough.
 
By regular music listener standards I listen quite low, but I'm still super paranoid about upsetting the guy in the flat below even though we are quite well insulated. When my next speakers arrive I think I'll pop down and see him to make sure all is ok.
 
I have been a victim of an inconsiderate arsehole who thought it alright to play his music in every room in my house ,which is absolutely soul and health destroying. Why do you want to play your music loud enough for other people to hear it in their own property? Do not impose your taste in music and lack of courtesy and manners on other people.
The OP, and most contributors to the thread, are clearly taking great care to consider their neighbours. So I’m not sure where your ‘lack of courtesy and manners’ came from?
 
I agree, Sue. The bit I ‘liked’ was how awful it can be when someone next door is not as considerate.
 
I agree, Sue. The bit I ‘liked’ was how awful it can be when someone next door is not as considerate.
Yes, absolutely and my sympathies to palacefan because that must be intolerable, and perhaps his own experiences coloured his response in that regard.
 
I have been a victim of an inconsiderate arsehole who thought it alright to play his music in every room in my house ,which is absolutely soul and health destroying. Why do you want to play your music loud enough for other people to hear it in their own property? Do not impose your taste in music and lack of courtesy and manners on other people.

Back when we lived in a middle floor flat, one downstairs neighbour played Tina Turner's Simply The Best, I kid you not, twenty times in a row at ridiculous volume (so loud they didn't hear me hammering on their door). When I'd finally had enough, I dug out the nastiest, bassiest, most brutal slab of techno I could find; cranked it up to a frankly painful volume, and left it looping for about half an hour. The next day I had a sheepish apology, and it never happened again.
 
So you can hit 288db, awesome.

:)

As I'm sure you're aware, it don't quite werk like that, but an amusing back-of-envelope calc thus based on humouring the raw numbers:
  • 288dB SPL would be a peak positive pressure of about 63megabar, or 63000* atmospheric pressure... this would be enough to do some seriously interesting work on high pressure physics, and 2/3rds of the way to turning oxygen into a metallic substance.
  • But peak negative pressure would still only be 0; so you'd have the world's worst distortion profile for even harmonics (2,4,6,8ths...)
  • For a floorstander of around 88dB/w, you'd need 10^10w output/channel, min - that's just over 1/10th the world's total electrical supply; oh, you might need 2 or 3x that for power compression in the drivers, obvs. ...
tl;dr - your ears would smart a bit, and the neighbours would definitely complain, if the neighbourhood didn't already resemble Bikini Atoll the morning after. HTH.

ETA above assumes peak output, not average; if you assume the 288dB is average SPL, for say fairly well-recorded jazz on BlueNote/Verve/Riverside, the power amp requirements go up by roughly a factor of ten. Good luck with that, and I wouldn't worry abut needing Class D for cool running.
 
....and the neighbours who don’t complain? Just endure the noise. Who’s the good neighbours then, you or them?
 


advertisement


Back
Top