Neighbor Problem

[andkratz]

Hey all, I just moved into an apartment with extremely thin walls. On top of that my next door neighbor works at home during the day and my upstairs neighbor doesn't want me to play after 6. Besides telling them off, any idea how to reduce the noise of the instrument while still being able to practice, both pizz and arco, normally. (Its really difficult to practice walking bass lines at pppp)

[TroyK]

I've had this problem before. There are mutes, you can start tacking soundproofing up to your walls and ceiling. There is a guy here in Seattle whole builds like soundproof phone booth things in people's apartments for people to practice in and not get evicted, but...

Are there storage units in your building? I rented one in my apartment basement for something like $50/mo and practiced down there whenever I felt like it. Do you have something like "Active Space" near you where you could rent a little studio space for yourself? Do you know some guys who you could timeshare some practice space with?

Those are really the best solutions for apartment dwellers, in my opinion. I can go to war with neighbors and sometimes will, but I find that even in victory, it brings a caustic cloud into my practice and music that is self-defeating.

[DocBop]

I have gone to a couple music schools and worked in one for years so used to practicing with lots of different music surronding me. I learn to block it out. So I use that to confuse neighbors who complain about practice. Funny how a stereo playing they will be fine with, so I play my stereo in the other room to mask my practice. They just think I have weird taste in music.

I also try to practice in the inner most room of the house, air is a great sound deadener. I would also look for some foam or something to put the endpin on to decouple it from the floor. They make be noticing the vibration more than the sound.

[tZer]

Well, aside from the remodeling or relocating suggestions, it seems to me that a bull fiddle, even at full on sfz should not be too horribly loud - especially after traveling through a couple of walls - and the fact that your neighbor works from home (technically, so do you) or that the one upstairs has some personal "after 6 rule" is really not your problem. So what makes their needs so much more important than yours that you have to change your ways to suit them? It does not seem to me that you are guilty of disturbing the peace, right? Mr. works at home - got to Starbuck's - WiFi is your friend.

You should be free to practice durning reasonable hours of the day without being hassled for it. Now if you were getting up at 3AM to do your thing it would be different.

Sounds to me like it's their problem to deal with - not yours. You could suggest noise canceling headphones for your works at home neighbor. As for Mr. "not after 6" - apartment life is what it is and if he wants silence after 6PM he should join a monastery or something. Walgreen's sells Hearo's earplugs really cheap too.

[winston]

The best way I've found to practice quietly without changing the response of the bass is to wrap the body with a down comforter, securing it with clothespins. This cuts down on a great deal of sound, especially punchy pizz notes and screeching arco tones. I found this much simpler than trying to deal with an unmuted bass in the room. Put the endpin on a pillow and your total volume is reduced by about 3/4. A bridge mute can reduce the sound even further but changes the feel of the instrument.

I doubt your neighbors are completely silent themselves--be sure to mention any annoyances they present to you. I've lived in noisy buildings with inconsiderate neighbors (loud sex, refusing to take off hard-heeled boots on hardwood floors, yelling, etc.) As annoying as that can be starting volume wars doesn't really help. Good luck

[tonequixote]

Unless you signed something in the rental agreement, your neighbors are out of line with thier requests. If the "issue" means so much to them , have them put thier money where thier mouths are and rent a place for you to practice , buy earplugs or live somewhere else. Control freak tenents are a dime a dozen.