Not waking up the neighbours!

[matthewpiano]

Morning all.

I will shortly be moving into a 5th floor flat. There's nobody above and nobody on 3-sides, but I want to do everything I can to avoid issues with the neighbours below.

I will be using either my Wharfedale Linton 85s on their dedicated stands, or stand-mounts on spiked Atacama Mosecco 5 stands. The floor is carpeted, and I have bought a rug to place between the speakers and my listening position. I rarely get above 70-75dB, and I'm not a bass hound. I'm also mindful of hours and wouldn't play music on the hi-fi before 9am or after 10.30pm.

What else can I do to minimise any potential impact on the downstairs neighbours? Is there anything I could put directly underneath the speaker stands that would help?

 

[nads]

The first thing you do is say hello and ask them to contact you if the music is annoying. My neighbours never heard my music.

I would not worry until you are informed.

 

[12th Monkey]

Post above sounds like good advice to me - if people can be kept onside they might not object to occasionally hearing you.

 

[nopiano]

Is there anything I could put directly underneath the speaker stands that would help?

I think that’ll depend on what the floor is. A 5th floor flat I’m guessing is most likely purpose built, and the two flats I’ve owned both had concrete floors that I think are strictly described as ‘sprung’. By that I mean there are concrete beams and a screed, presumably on some load bearing structure, rather than, say, timbers with wooden floorboards.

A nice thick underlay with carpets will presumably give better insulation than trendy hardwood or vinyl flooring. And will be beneficial for the sound too, especially if you’ve got a large glass area.

I knew a (Manchester-based) pianist and teacher whose Steinway grand was on a raised platform in her flat, presumably to insulate it somewhat from others. But it sounded a bit ‘woody’ which isn’t perhaps surprising!

 

[Markmaguire]

Apparently these are very good

Seismic Isolation Podiums for speakers and sub-woofer

The Seismic Podium is designed to brake the acoustic connection between the floor and the speaker, preventing the passage of deleterious vibrations both to and from the speaker cabinets.

www.townshendaudio.com

But they are not cheap! About £1700 for a pair of size 2 (and you'd need bigger ones for those Wharfdales).

I've been working on a way of building my own based on the same principle.

 

[12th Monkey]

I've got some Townshend gear and other forms of vibration absorption. The Townshend stuff is good, but it's significantly overpriced.