Playing guitar in an apartment (noise level/angry neighbor woes)

[shredguitar7690]

On top of my bed! Brilliant. And yes abandonist you are really painting yourself in a bad light here. Your coming off as inconsiderate and self centered. Maybe thats why you have so much neg rep. I hope you have a baby some day and realize how your being right now.

 

[mcd]

one thing i notice with having the amp on my bed/elevated, is I hear it better at lower volumes. I feel i get to know the ins and outs of my gear better this way. (Im also hard of hearing on low tones and need it angled at my face.)

 

[shredguitar7690]

I may put it on my bed or I may tilt it up until i can find a support for it to get off the ground. My bedroom is really small thats all. and my amp is rather big and a bit dirty probably from being on the floor all the time. I could get a towel and put it underneath it to play on my bed though. Idk but ya Id like avoid confrontation cause right now the situation seems like its a stalemate and Im just going to keep taking flak from this guy whenever he thinks im being loud.

 

[shredguitar7690]

I am inconsiderate and self centered in my personal life.

Well ok as long as we agree

 

[hairychris]

I may put it on my bed or I may tilt it up until i can find a support for it to get off the ground. My bedroom is really small thats all. and my amp is rather big and a bit dirty probably from being on the floor all the time. I could get a towel and put it underneath it to play on my bed though. Idk but ya Id like avoid confrontation cause right now the situation seems like its a stalemate and Im just going to keep taking flak from this guy whenever he thinks im being loud.

Hit an electronics store and see if they have any left over polystyrene packaging, and improvise a stand with some duct tape!

Having spent much of my life in apartments the noise from above is much more intrusive then noise from below... although 1am screaming pr0nz sessions maybe aren't.

Still, it sounds like your neighbour's taking his shit life out on other people. Don't hesitate to get management involved further if necessary (on late night antics as above).

 

[thedonal]

My amp is 45W and still bloody loud. I'm considering a POD HD for late practice with amp sound (rather than just unplugged exercises) and portability (ie I don't have a car and the amp is effing heavy!).

I'm lucky in that I have fairly tolerant neighbours and have made a point of being approachable if noise is a problem, but some people just want it their way...I am also quite conscious of how loud the amp is.

POD solution aside, I would speak directly to the landlord and make sure that you are square with them- they are the first point for deciding if you stay or go. 30 minutes daytime is completely acceptable in my humble, within reasonable volume limits...

 

[thedonal]

Incidentally, egg boxes do pretty much fark all for the frequencies that will be travelling downstairs- you'd need a thicker absorber like rockwool and as your amp will be resting on the floor somehow, low frequencies will still transfer..

 

[BaptizedBurning]

I have one of these in my apartment. As far as I know, it works great so far. The downstairs neighbors haven't complained anyway.

Amazon.com: Auralex GRAMMA: Amp and Monitor Isolation Riser, Charcoal, Single: Musical Instruments

Hello Music recently had them for $30, but maybe they'll get a batch again soon.

 

[Leuchty]

Oh, you're very wrong there. I'm kind of famous - just not for music.

You're Prince aren't you...

 

[troyguitar]

Noise is noise. You don't get a free pass to make noise if you have a kid or a dog or a TV or a tuba. If you're going to make a lot of noise for any reason then you should live somewhere that is better insulated.

For a guitar amp the best way to lower the volume is to pick it up off the ground and play with the speaker at ear level.

 

[DarkWolfXV]

You're Prince aren't you...

So Prince hates djent and kickstarter?

 

[groverj3]

Hello fellow (future) Spartan!

I can sympathize with you. I had never gotten a noise complaint before this winter at my apartment complex here in Kzoo. I had lived in the dorms at MSU and several complexes in EL before moving here following graduation. Never had a problem. I don't play my guitar louder than normal TV-watching volume either.

My upstairs neighbor here must have been having a bad day or something. She was banging on my ceiling for what must have been 20 minutes straight while I was playing one day. However, I stopped playing and it continued, so I assumed it had nothing to do with my playing. I figured she must've either been moving furniture or taking a vigorous banging (it WAS pretty rhythmic!). The next day at work I get a voicemail from the apartment complex stating that she issued a noise complaint . She even went as far as to lie and say that she knocked on my door to ask me to stop.

Issue was resolved when I went to the apartment office and explained that I never play later than 10pm without headphones and the volume is not excessive, hence, why nobody else has ever complained in the complex. I left a note explaining to her that, yes, I do play and I will continue to do so... however, if the volume is too loud please knock on my door instead of banging on my ceiling for 20 minutes. Haven't had an issue since.

This goes along with living in an apartment. Unfortunately, some people have unrealistic expectations.

 

[Overtone]

Seriously not a bad idea to make your own gramma if you can't afford one. Might even be more effective if you are creative about it.

 

[shredguitar7690]

I like all these suggestions about dampening my noise. Unfortunately that wont change for my horn but he seems to have most of his problem with my guitar even though my horn is louder. This furthers my thinking that I should find some cheap type of dampening. So ill look into all these suggestions but at the same time my other goal is not to run from this problem. Im going to talk to management because I know that I am well within my rights (extreme dampening precautions aside).

 

[8last]

If the old man is rude and the apartment hasn't contacted you to stop I would let the issue drop. Making a thing out of it isn't going to help you.

 

[shredguitar7690]

I talked to the people at the office and they seem to be on my side but if he calls again they said they can come over and see for themselves how loud it is. And its not that loud so then it would be problem solved. I plan to not escalate things though.

 

[ArrowHead]

And its not that loud so then it would be problem solved.

Are you sure it's not that loud?

I've lived (and played) in a condo for 14 years. I've been on both ends of these types of noise complaints, and every time it boils down to not realizing how much louder things were in the other guy's apartment.

Most apartments and condos are built like crap, with no insulation between floors. Certain sounds (like conversation) filter out, but others will go through and AMPLIFY into other apartments. So they won't hear any of the talking on your television, for example, but every low end crash and bang is louder in their apartment than it is in yours. If this guy is complaining about the guitar, and not the horn, there's a good chance this is the case.

I use headphones a lot. I gave up on amps. I dismantled my e-drums. I keep the sub off and the bass low on my television/stereo setup.

I really understood how bad it can be from the other guy's perspective when I went to complain about a neighbor whose music was so loud, it was drowning out my television. I went to speak to them, and from in their own apartment it was not even loud. Lower than conversation level. But somehow the sound was greatly amplified by the time it made it into my apartment above them.

So don't judge how loud something is by how loud it is to you in your own apartment. Give the guy the benefit of the doubt, and offer to come over his apartment to see how loud it is and if there's anything that can be done. Remember, you have to live together. And while you may have the association on your side this time, eventually you'll want to bend a rule that he can nail you on. A pet, a party, etc... - it's best to get him on your side. Vice verse - invite him over to hear how quiet it is on your end.

Decouple the amp too, get it off the floor. Seems like the likely source of your problem. Amps, even small ones, tend to be a bit louder than "t.v. volume" as well. I can't even use a 15 watt solid state peavey blazer without it being too loud.

 

[Matt_D_]

you run your amp on 2 and its at an "ok" level? wow, i think you might be going deaf

in my flat I run a pod HD 500 into a marshal 410H and an orange 2x12 cab. I run the pod through green clean channel, and the master volume is on about 0.1, and i use the pod's master to attenuate further when i want to, and its still loud enough for me to switch to headphones at night. basically, its about the same level as my television. on 2, id have most of the unit complex beating on my door ready to kill me. all amps are different, but for a 75watt combo, thats going to be pretty loud, hell, i've got my brothers AC30 in my flat at the moment, and its too loud to run *period*.

anyway, try and match the level of your guitar to that of your tv. crank it once in a while, but if your amp is louder than your tv in your flat. you're probably annoying your neighbors even if you dont think its that loud in your flat, bass travels a long way too, as was suggested, get the cab off the floor, and some foam/basstraps would work well.

If you want a cheap headphone option, the pocket pod is a great little device for silent practice.

good luck, some neighbors are just assholes and you're doing totally the right thing by letting him be "that guy".

if all else fails, try moving to somewhere made out of concrete gl!

 

[HaloHat]

Three things...

1. See if he would be interested in playing bass or drums.
2 & 3 - There are laws. You local city laws and the contract you signed when you rented the place, which is the legal document that should cover issues like you are having [but probably does not. Most landlords are too cheap to pay a professional for a good contract or to manage the place for them until them get sued and lose a bunch of cash or have a professional dead beat take them for several months free rent. Then they see the light. Usually.]

Being in real estate for a long time, it would not surprise me if your landlord has anywhere from a really good contract to absolutely nothing at all but a verbal agreement [pay the rent you stay, don't your gone] with you.

So, first look at your rental agreement [it is a contract] and see if it mentions hours related to noise specifically. Then see if it addresses tenant complaint resolution. If yes, follow the contract stipulations and document everything you do [date, time, persons etc]

Jump on-line to your city/county codes, landlord tenant laws etc. That is pretty much black and white.

Secret weapon aka #4 - Is your girl friend cute? Have her bake the old fart some cookies and deliver them to him with a big smile and have her mention how it would suck if you had to move so you could practice your guitar. 5 minutes kindness from your girlfriend prob get you hours of practice time. And no, I don't mean she acts slutty, you guys thinking that shame! Girl next store [literally?] apple pie and pigtails. Nice girl.

Super last resort emergency aka #5 - Find out of the killer gray downstairs "likes" anything in this world still. Game of checkers or chess, buy him a book, take him down some home cooked dinner once in a while. Basically do something nice for the ol' guy and see if that works. Kill him with kindness and see if he'll give you a break [not that you owe him one, you don't].

 

[will_shred]

if you have the $$ you could always buy one of those load boxes with cab sims and a headphone jack I suppose it depends on if you would prefer that over a POD HD

I can't remember the brand name, I know Keith demmo'd one a while back

I don't really have anything else to add