band/music nuisance in the neighborhood (Cedar Park: homes, roofing, exemption)

[sinking]

Originally Posted by briansol

And the tube amps don't distort until they have power running through them.

This is why I sometimes regret the purchase of my Marshall JCM2000 TSL. It sounds sooo good with the volume up but I rarely get to do that. One of these days I am going to build a much lower wattage tube amp where I can saturate the tubes without the whole neighborhood hearing.

[someguyatx]

Wow you guys are nice if you posted here he is already offending you so why worry about offending him. I would just ask them to shut it down once then call cops the next time. Dont call 911 though use the police non emergency line (512) 260-4600

Cedar Park noise ordinance is 11-7, more than likely your HOA can do nothing except send a letter a but the cops will show up fairly quickly and make a point.

[didadi]

HOA are almost useless other than sending a letter. Ya, i think confronting once like an adult also looks good and just walking and telling him should be enough,to start with. After that, mostly non-emergency police is good way. I will observe today and do the needful. Thanks a bunch again, I feel its always good to have another opinion here!

[h886]

And by the way, the guy who said you can't mute drums is wrong. You can do a simple search and find out that you can buy practice pad mutes for a drum set. No, it isn't exactly the same, but if a drummer is part of the problem, they could certainly compromise by practicing "au natural" during the earlier hours, then putting the practice pads on in the later hours when the kids are trying to sleep. I agree the band needs to practice for real at times, but in this day and age there are solutions to many of these issues. This is not the first time a parent/spouse/neighbor has been driven crazy by all the practicing.

[briansol]

Originally Posted by sinking

This is why I sometimes regret the purchase of my Marshall JCM2000 TSL. It sounds sooo good with the volume up but I rarely get to do that. One of these days I am going to build a much lower wattage tube amp where I can saturate the tubes without the whole neighborhood hearing.

I have a mesa recto, so trust me, i know
Invest in a THD hot plate. Let's you crank the amp and it sucks juice out to keep the volume low.

There's a ton of super cool 2 watt amps coming out these days too! Check out the blackstar line

Originally Posted by h886

And by the way, the guy who said you can't mute drums is wrong. You can do a simple search and find out that you can buy practice pad mutes for a drum set. No, it isn't exactly the same, but if a drummer is part of the problem, they could certainly compromise by practicing "au natural" during the earlier hours, then putting the practice pads on in the later hours when the kids are trying to sleep. I agree the band needs to practice for real at times, but in this day and age there are solutions to many of these issues. This is not the first time a parent/spouse/neighbor has been driven crazy by all the practicing.

You can't practice pad at band practice dude, sorry.

That's fine and well for singular practice and rudiments, but not with oither band members.

[h886]

Originally Posted by briansol

You can't practice pad at band practice dude, sorry. That's fine and well for singular practice and rudiments, but not with oither band members.

It's not ideal, but if it's that or having the police called out to your house, anyone with a little sense could figure something out and the others could turn the amps down. Or they could use a little common sense and stop rehearsing at a reasonable hour, knowing they're in a residential neighborhood with lots of kids in the adjacent houses.

While I appreciate that drummers need practice, no one has a right to be such a nuisance that no one in the surrounding houses can sleep in their own homes.

[mark311]

I'm really surprised that so many people wouldn't talk directly to the neighbor. Maybe he doesn't realize how much the sound travels out of the garage? There's no reason to get the police out there if he's willing to shut down his practice earlier. You might actually make a friend in the process. We called a neighbor recently that was using a power tool in his backyard for a project after midnight. They were extremely apologetic and stopped right away. They just didn't think about how loud it was.

[Tycho Brahe]

That's one of the problems with the lack of basements in Austin. Where do you play in a band setting?

Originally Posted by h886

Or they could use a little common sense and stop rehearsing at a reasonable hour, knowing they're in a residential neighborhood with lots of kids in the adjacent houses.

The next question becomes what time is a reasonable hour? 10PM? 9PM? I would bet that those with kids will start saying 7PM.

Austin: Live Music Capital of the World, as long as it is not next door to me.

[h886]

Originally Posted by Tycho Brahe

That's one of the problems with the lack of basements in Austin. Where do you play in a band setting?

The next question becomes what time is a reasonable hour? 10PM? 9PM? I would bet that those with kids will start saying 7PM.

Austin: Live Music Capital of the World, as long as it is not next door to me.

Good question. But the truth is, if you have a hobby or anything else that is potentially annoying to neighbors (in this case perhaps even against the law if it's too loud), you need to take steps not to infringe on their right for a peaceful experience in their own house. It's like if you have dogs--you have to make the effort to care for them properly, not just throw them out in the yard in all weather conditions and leave so that they bark non-stop the entire day and annoy your neighbors when you aren't there.

In this case, there are several options. They could rehearse at full volume during daytime hours on the weekends, or in the early evening on weekdays--turning the volume down after 8 PM. They could trade off between the houses of band members, rehearsing at a different house each time so it's not a constant headache for one set of neighbors. They could take steps to sound-proof the rehearsal space. The garage has to be about the worst place for that in its natural state with cement floors and nothing to absorb sound on the walls. If it's loud enough to annoy the neighbors, they're probably damaging their hearing being in the room. If they're wearing hearing protection and still turning the amps up that loud? Well, that's just darn inconsiderate.

[didadi]

well,actually I thought over a bit yesterday and looks like somebody might have told him already.,but I will observe.. Another thing that annoying is - his backyard faces a big greenbelt. So why can't he do some soundproofing room or something in the backyard and practice there. I care 2 hoots,if its his backyard since the noise is greatly reduced and he is 2 houses away anyway.! I bet he is playing atleast around 90dB.