How Do I Keep My Apartment Neighbor From Hearing My Subwoofer?

[intothedragon]

I just bought a new pair of speakers and today was the second time I got the downstairs neighbor on my door complaining from the bass shaking his apartment.

I swear it wasn’t too loud ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡° ) but I mean,

What can I do to try to isolate the bass from the floor? Is there any DIY solution? Bass traps?

Do isolators pads as these ones work??

Please advice

[GregWormald]

As you know from the rumble of outside noises, bass can travel through structures. 

The isolation pads may work if the vibrations are coming from the sub cabinet, otherwise thick carpet on the floor might help.

The only real options that I know of are: a complete sound absorbing false floor (and possibly walls), turn it down, wait 'till neighbour isn't home, or get a new neighbour.

Sorry.

[intothedragon]

9 minutes ago, GregWormald said:

As you know from the rumble of outside noises, bass can travel through structures. 

The isolation pads may work if the vibrations are coming from the sub cabinet, otherwise thick carpet on the floor might help.

The only real options that I know of are: a complete sound absorbing false floor (and possibly walls), turn it down, wait 'till neighbour isn't home, or get a new neighbour.

Sorry.

I'll check on these. It's the sub from my floor standing speakers that I just bought and cost me the liver. 

[GregWormald]

1 minute ago, intothedragon said:

cost me a liver

Oh dear, I can understand a kidney, we have two, but only one liver.

[intothedragon]

3 minutes ago, GregWormald said:

Oh dear, I can understand a kidney, we have two, but only one liver.

I only cut 80%, it will grow again, they said...

[sphinxsix]

36 minutes ago, intothedragon said:

How Do I Keep My Apartment Neighbor From Hearing My Subwoofer?

 

It's very simple - you definitely need one of these (you can choose): 

Next you will have to choose once again - either your subwoofer or your neighbor. 

 

[John Dyson]

3 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

 

It's very simple - you definitely need one of these (you can choose): 

Next you will have to choose once again - either your subwoofer or your neighbor. 

 

No need to be violent -- an exacto-knife on the subwoofer if applicable, otherwise a set of pliers, and snip snip.

 

I might be lucky, I don't like strong bass, esp < 30-40Hz.   My headphones are somewhat irritating to me, and one reason why I have tended to be 'bass-light' on my project.  Each of us has our own perceptions, I guess.

 

I am pretty sure that the neighbor will NOT have a positive impression!!!

 

 

[jiminlogansquare]

I would give a try to the IsoAcoustics stands in that Amazon link you shared, especially if the concern is vibration of the subwoofer cabinet being transmitted through the floor. I have used another similar product from IsoAcoustics (Gaia footers) that helped tame this problem for my subs that rest on a hollow wood plank floor. It is not a panacea, though in general IsoAcoustics sells solid engineering rather than "woo magic," is used by studio pros as much or more so than by home audiophiles, and is very reasonably priced (you cite cost concerns).

 

[kelvinwsy]

Use the Auralex Sub woofer Sub-Dude II PLAYFORM - Amzn or B&H !! Decoupling and support is v good

[ARQuint]

Are you a renter? If so, ignore the following. But if you're a condominium owner, you should consider this kind of approach.

 

When we moved from the suburbs to a condo in the city, I despaired of ever again being able to listen to music loudly, at any hour. But I can and I do. My listening room has one surface that's contiguous with a neighbor—the floor. (We have a 2-level unit, so all the walls and ceiling are adjacent to our own space.) I took up the carpet and replaced the carpet pad that sits on the concrete slab with something like this

 

https://www.acoustimac.com/soundproofing/acoustimac-soundproofing-performance-carpet-underlay-roll-4-5-x-20-3-9

 

I put the material down over the entire 15' x 15' expanse of the room, as well as in the two large walk-in closets that are part of the space and a small hallway that leads to a bathroom. It cost me roughly $1000. I've had several downstairs neighbors during the 11 years we've lived here and play all kinds of orchestral Power Music and rock/pop with substantial bass at all kinds of hours—my system has always had a subwoofer—and have had no complaints. And, believe me, I solicit comments from my neighbors because in a 17-unit building, remaining on good terms with your co-inhabitants is pretty critical.

 

There are numerous products of this kind. Look around and ask questions of the manufacturers.

[rando]

As always, search is your friend.

 

 

 

[sphinxsix]

There is one more option which I used to practice when I was much(!) younger and listened to metal more often and a little  louder than nowadays. You turn up your music step by step with each day, beginning with quite low volume and ending with your maximum volume for about two weeks after moving into a new apartment. At some point you usually can hear you neighbor banging with some heavy tool at a radiator (most popular method, not the only one though). This is the crucial moment.. (you obviously shouldn't listen to the music loud late at night according to the law of most countries which usually doesn't say anything about a day time reproduction). Well.. you know - I actually could never be really sure what the banging meant - they don't like the music, they think it's too loud or ...maybe they simply love it and e.g.  want more of it or want it louder. All of this can obviously be explained in a normal conversation, as for banging the radiators - you simply can't know the meaning of such uncivilized behavior  And like I said - this is the crucial moment - what you do is very simple - you don't react - you don't change the music, you don't turn it down. It requires some  self-control and iron discipline if the banging takes again place some time in the future.. You allow the music to play for about 10-15 min longer and then you turn it off - very important - off, not down!

This method not only always worked but also allowed me pass some neighbors without so in  fact repetitive and boring 'good mornings' 'good evenings' etc.. 

 

[Allan F]

I had a similar situation with my downstairs neighbour and my previous set of speakers, the frequency response of which went down to 20Hz. The speakers were on sharp spikes, which went through a thin carpet to rest on a concrete slab. I purchased granite slabs, 3/4 inch thick, cut to the same size as the base of the speakers. I placed these on the carpet, with the speakers and their spikes resting on top of the granite.

 

My neighbour stopped complaining and I gained the added benefit of tighter bass. I bought the slabs from a Marble & Granite supplier, who cut them to size and bevelled the top edges. If I recall correctly, the cost was less than $100.

[intothedragon]

40 minutes ago, Allan F said:

I had a similar situation with my downstairs neighbour and my previous set of speakers, the frequency response of which went down to 20Hz. The speakers were on sharp spikes, which went through a thin carpet to rest on a concrete slab. I purchased granite slabs, 3/4 inch thick, cut to the same size as the base of the speakers. I placed these on the carpet, with the speakers and their spikes resting on top of the granite.

 

My neighbour stopped complaining and I gained the added benefit of tighter bass. I bought the slabs from a Marble & Granite supplier, who cut them to size and bevelled the top edges. If I recall correctly, the cost was less than $100.

Do you have a picture of the slabs by any chance? Do you think it will work on laminated hardwood floor? 

[fas42]

36 minutes ago, Allan F said:

I had a similar situation with my downstairs neighbour and my previous set of speakers, the frequency response of which went down to 20Hz. The speakers were on sharp spikes, which went through a thin carpet to rest on a concrete slab. I purchased granite slabs, 3/4 inch thick, cut to the same size as the base of the speakers. I placed these on the carpet, with the speakers and their spikes resting on top of the granite.

 

My neighbour stopped complaining and I gained the added benefit of tighter bass. I bought the slabs from a Marble & Granite supplier, who cut them to size and bevelled the top edges. If I recall correctly, the cost was less than $100.

 

Yep. I was going to mention something like this, if no-one else did - but you saved me ... 😀.

 

What you are doing is adding an energy sink which is not part of the house structure - the vibration of the subwoofer coupled to the floor is what is carrying those frequencies to the neighbour ... so you instead make some very heavy base material vibrate - the granite - and thereby lowering the frequency; and the carpet then decouples that from the floor structure ... a rule of thumb is, the lower the frequency, the more raw mass, lots of it(!), has to be thrown at the problem to really fix things.

[fas42]

8 minutes ago, intothedragon said:

Do you have a picture of the slabs by any chance? Do you think it will work on laminated hardwood floor? 

 

An easy, cheap - but far less aesthetically pleasing method - is to use concrete slabs that you can get from a gardening and landscaping place. Get a couple just to see if it fixes the issue - and if it does, then splash out for a blingy, long term replacement, 🙂.

 

I've used these things for years - they support my current active speakers.

[sphinxsix]

50 minutes ago, Allan F said:

I gained the added benefit of tighter bass.

 

You've decreased the stability of the speakers and gained tighter bass.?

Seems strange to me. IME the optimum is - spikes going through a carpet and resting on solid floor surface (if it's wood - on some metal elements resting on the wooden floor).

Talking optimal placement, not sound isolation form neighbors here, of course.

 

[Allan F]

50 minutes ago, sphinxsix said:

 

You've decreased the stability of the speakers and gained tighter bass.?

Seems strange to me. IME the optimum is - spikes going through a carpet and resting on solid floor surface (if it's wood - on some metal elements resting on the wooden floor).

Talking optimal placement, not sound isolation form neighbors here, of course.

 

 

The slabs on the thin carpet were very stable. With the considerable weight of the speakers, the slabs (9" x 18") sunk into the carpet and there was absolutely no wobble or other movement. I assume that the granite absorbed or dissipated the vibration that would otherwise have been transferred to the concrete slab. I really don't know how this approach would work on a laminated hardwood floor. You might want to put some material between the slab and the floor.

 

[fas42]

The coupling of the support tower of the speakers to the floor structure is what gives very tight bass - IME. But the floor structure needs mass, lots of it - failing that, add it to the speaker tower - I use paper, 😛.

 

Yes, something between the slab and a wooden floor, to mate the different materials - I would try, some viscoelastic, Sorbothane type pads, or lots of balls of Blu-Tack over the whole mating area; or perhaps some carpet or underlay might be good enough ... experiment is the answer ...

[jiminlogansquare]

Now that I know that you, like I, have a wooden floor, I'm going to double down on recommending you try an IsoAcoustics product. To reduce risk to your wallet, you could try to purchase from a vendor that will let you return them if they don't work out.

 

As the name "IsoAcoustics" implies, they isolate - or decouple - the speaker from the floor. Why this doesn't ruin the tightness of the bass is documented pretty effectively  at the manufacturer's website and in numerous product reviews around the internet; they have a novel internal structure/engineering solution and are not simply rubber stops or feet.

 

Their value for me and possibly you is that they greatly reduce how much speaker vibration is transmitted into the floorboards of a wooden floor, which in my case was creating annoying resonance in my listening room.

 

Of more direct value to you, I found the IsoAcoustics product also reduced the amount of bass disturbance in the rooms directly below my listening room (which is in an attic).

 

I don't have any experience with heavy absorption materials like the stone and concrete slabs discussed above; they might work as well or better. Experimentation can be fun, though!

[cjf]

6 minutes ago, jiminlogansquare said:

Now that I know that you, like I, have a wooden floor, I'm going to double down on recommending you try an IsoAcoustics product. To reduce risk to your wallet, you could try to purchase from a vendor that will let you return them if they don't work out.

 

As the name "IsoAcoustics" implies, they isolate - or decouple - the speaker from the floor. Why this doesn't ruin the tightness of the bass is documented pretty effectively at the manufacturer's website and in numerous product reviews around the internet; they have a novel internal structure/engineering solution and are not simply rubber stops or feet. Their value for me and possibly you is that they greatly reduce how much speaker vibration is transmitted into the floorboards of a wooden floor, which in my case was creating annoying resonance in my listening room.

 

Of more direct value to you, I found the IsoAcoustics product also reduced the amount of bass disturbance in the rooms directly below my listening room (which is in an attic).

 

I don't have any experience with heavy absorption materials like the stone and concrete slabs discussed above; they might work as well or better. Experimentation can be fun, though!

The IsoAcoustics units you mention are pretty nice but its a damn shame they don't make bigger ones. If your sub or subs are on the smaller size (say 12" or under) they would be fine but I would need four of them under each of my 15" Rythmiks and possibly 6 of them under the 18" Rythmik I just bought. This is when size and weight are considered. They aren't as inexpensive anymore in that scenario.

 

But I agree for a smaller sub they would probably be the ideal solution, over and beyond what a heavy slab of stone could absorb unless you are talking about a slab at least twice as heavy as the object you place on top of it....IMO of course

[jiminlogansquare]

5 minutes ago, cjf said:

The IsoAcoustics units you mention are pretty nice but its a damn shame they don't make bigger ones. If your sub or subs are on the smaller size (say 12" or under) they would be fine but I would need four of them under each of my 15" Rythmiks and possibly 6 of them under the 18" Rythmik I just bought. This is when size and weight are considered. They aren't as inexpensive anymore in that scenario.

 

But I agree for a smaller sub they would probably be the ideal solution, over and beyond what a heavy slab of stone could absorb unless you are talking about a slab at least twice as heavy as the object you place on top of it....IMO of course

Yeah, the IsoAcoustics website has a product matching calculator that recommends a set of four Gaia I footers for an 18-inch Rythmik, which is $599. So pricey at that scale. Not sure how heavy the OP's subs are, but the smaller IsoAcoustics products are much less expensive.

[GregWormald]

I'd be starting with some concrete pavers from the sand and gravel/gardening shop on top of some carpet from the scraps bin of a carpet place. Get some tightly woven thick wool carpet.

 

If that works then you can go for the granite or just paint the pavers.

[R1200CL]

Will rom correction SW help ?

https://www.homeaudiofidelity.com/

[MarkusBarkus]

Sorry I didn't chime in sooner, but I use the EVP "footers" under one of my REL subs, to good effect:

https://avroomservice.com/evp-2/
 

I don't use them for neighborly relations, but to help with sound/vibration within the room. 

 

There is a white paper and other info (link above), if you're interested.
 

I used the "Morph the Cat" (Donald Fagan) and the "Xanny" (Billy Eilish) test for base handling. Prior to the EVPs, my subs would "walk" with these tracks and a little volume! It's not the music I typically listen to, but it has poop-your-pants bass for testing "gross" output.

 

One other thing, which many may/will disagree with, but has been successful for me. I have two subs: one on the floor, on the EVPs, and the other on a platform I built. The platform mimics a couple of things in the marketplace already. 
 

In my room (well treated), in my listening evals, mixing up the bass works wonders. No subs equals terrible bass response. Subs in re-enforcing corners, is too much pressure and causes standing wave effects (to me).

 

Here: One sub is on a wall perpendicular to the front/speaker plane, the other sub is on a platform adjacent to the left speaker. 
 

I find the bass is more coherent and even with this placement...and I tried all manner of placements, volumes and cross-over settings.

 

The platform footprint is 16x16 inches, and it is 22 inches tall. I wanted the height well away from the midpoint of the total height of the room, and not too tall. 

This platform has a frame made of 2x2 inch lumber (not critical dimension). The top and bottom "plates" are 1/2 inch MDF (not critical). Inside the frame structure, I have a piece of Sono-tube, vertically oriented, with six 1 inch (size "probably" not critical) holes drilled into the sides. Loose-bat fiberglass (un-faced) is inserted inside the tube.

 

Note: Sono-tube is available from home stores. It is widely used as a form for pouring concrete footers. Light, bit rigid.

 

Everything is glued, screwed where appropriate, and calked. The concept is to avoid any rattling type of vibration from the platform itself. 

I then placed 2 inch rigid fiberglass board between the vertical frame legs, and wrapped the assembly with "acoustically transparent" polyester material.

 

Note: polyester fabric is of the type used for the backs and bottoms of furniture. I paid about one dollar per yard. It is widely available/commonly used.

 

I have and have used industry standard acoustic fabrics on other builds, but that is much more expensive and the shipping is expensive due to "dimensional weight." 
 

The concept is to use something that easily allows air to pass. Sorry I did not take pics of the build. I intended this platform as a proof of concept, and intended to rebuild with better finish detail, but...

 

Note: maybe better to use the larger EVP platforms, but these are fine and cheaper.