So What's the Secret to Eliminating Thumping Bass/Hip Hop Noise? (Seattle: cul-de-sac, apartments)

[Polymorphist]

Odd thread, I know, but this is seriously something i'm just plainly damn sick and tired of. I'm a music guy, played the drums in many bands and toured all over the place, however there's a limit to bothering everyone else with the music I enjoy.

In every place i've lived i've had a problem with someone pulling up in a car and sitting there while blasting a thumping low bass. It'll rattle my floors. I've even gone outside to ask them to turn it down, they'll comply, but then next time they'll just pull up and do the same thing. Midday or midnight, doesn't matter, they'll blast it anyway and sit out there forever with it blaring. I just moved out of a condo in Bellevue in which the teenage girl next door would play her thumping hip-hop and it would shake my floors and walls. I'd ask her to turn it down but again the next day it would be right back up again. I resorted to banging on the walls, then to full-on yelling and banging. I don't mind the music, but when it's invasive like that and for long periods it's a problem.

Now I just bought a house and have the same problem. Cars roll through the neighborhood blasting that damn bass and it shakes my floors. They pull over to the curb and get out and have conversations with their buddies while the bass is a-thumpin' away. They do it in the morning, in the afternoon and after midnight. It happens several times a day. Really gets me going. I'm to the point of not being sure as to what I can do about it.

I've discovered that the police don't really like making noise complaint calls. They act as if they are a waste of time and a general bother. I don't always feel comfortable confronting large groups of teenagers or even adult males after midnight and asking them nicely to turn it down. My neighbors in the condo next to mine ended up disliking me because I called the police, but dammit they were blasting that **** at 2am - what did they expect, especially after I'd asked them to keep it down. I'm just supposed to suck it up and deal?

So what's the solution here? The answer can't simply be "you need to move" because i've experienced this everywhere i've lived - Renton, Bellevue and now south Seattle.

Anyone else just as annoyed by this as I am?

[mkarch]

It's fairly neighborhood specific. I don't recall the last time I heard a car with a loud stereo aside from a couple of times stopped at a red light on a main road. I agree about noise complaints being difficult to police. Bass is difficult to block because the sound waves are so long. You need a large barrier with a lot of mass to be effective. Not sure what your HOA allows, but you might be able to put up to a 6' masonry wall which is the max allowed according to seattle regulations.

[Hemlock140]

I have never experienced this in Sammamish, Issaquah, or Redmond. In fact, where we live it's rare for a car to even go by. If you are going to live in a high density area, yes, you just have to put up with it. Many years ago when I was in college and an apartment (in CA), we'd get that in the middle of the night in the unit below us. Turned out it was noise to drown out the sounds of the drug deals.

[Garfunkle524]

Living on a cul-de-sac would probably help. mkarch is right, it's neighborhood specific.

Are you able to practice your drums without anyone hearing?

[BATCAT]

Is this something that's mainly interfering with your sleep, or is it a daytime annoyance primarily? If it's the former, I would suggest sleeping with a noise machine of some type- heavy curtains might help also.

I do think this is neighborhood specific- or even street specific- to some degree. I've lived on Capitol Hill for years and years, and even in this supposedly loud and nightlife-rich area there are plenty of blocks that are downright sleepy most nights.

[revelated]

Originally Posted by Polymorphist

Odd thread, I know, but this is seriously something i'm just plainly damn sick and tired of. I'm a music guy, played the drums in many bands and toured all over the place, however there's a limit to bothering everyone else with the music I enjoy.

In every place i've lived i've had a problem with someone pulling up in a car and sitting there while blasting a thumping low bass. It'll rattle my floors. I've even gone outside to ask them to turn it down, they'll comply, but then next time they'll just pull up and do the same thing. Midday or midnight, doesn't matter, they'll blast it anyway and sit out there forever with it blaring. I just moved out of a condo in Bellevue in which the teenage girl next door would play her thumping hip-hop and it would shake my floors and walls. I'd ask her to turn it down but again the next day it would be right back up again. I resorted to banging on the walls, then to full-on yelling and banging. I don't mind the music, but when it's invasive like that and for long periods it's a problem.

Now I just bought a house and have the same problem. Cars roll through the neighborhood blasting that damn bass and it shakes my floors. They pull over to the curb and get out and have conversations with their buddies while the bass is a-thumpin' away. They do it in the morning, in the afternoon and after midnight. It happens several times a day. Really gets me going. I'm to the point of not being sure as to what I can do about it.

I've discovered that the police don't really like making noise complaint calls. They act as if they are a waste of time and a general bother. I don't always feel comfortable confronting large groups of teenagers or even adult males after midnight and asking them nicely to turn it down. My neighbors in the condo next to mine ended up disliking me because I called the police, but dammit they were blasting that **** at 2am - what did they expect, especially after I'd asked them to keep it down. I'm just supposed to suck it up and deal?

So what's the solution here? The answer can't simply be "you need to move" because i've experienced this everywhere i've lived - Renton, Bellevue and now south Seattle.

Anyone else just as annoyed by this as I am?

The key is to live where others don't really want to. That sounds silly but it's fact. Popular areas will have this issue. I speak as a person who would would have been such a bass thumper approx. 15 years ago.

The whole point at the time was to attract attention. In "rich" areas I wouldn't bother, because I know they wouldn't care. But in the middle class areas, I would definitely do it just because. It's annoying, and I'm much more mature now, but I'm giving you the real scoop for the cars that do it: it's to attract attention.

If it's a HOA complex you can file a complaint, and one of the little old ladies will almost always be on it.

If the cops don't want to take the noise complaint you should ask them why. My understanding is that most cities have a noise ordinance that they have to enforce. Now, if the noise is happening outside of those times, there's not much you can do aside from confronting them about it.

I once lived in a very low-rent apartment, and some guy and his girlfriend moved above me. The guy would blast his rock music as loud as he pleased. I once went up and asked him to turn it down. He said, and I quote in his 'stoner' voice, "It's just music, man..." I proceeded to clarify that I didn't tell him to turn it OFF, I said turn it DOWN. If I can hear it in my apartment, it's too darn loud. It didn't help. I relocated to a more expensive unit - much more contained and less stress as a result.

[eskercurve]

Google thermite. Next time one of those sistas from the white hood decides to be a wannabe hood rat, just drop one of those on their hood. Bam, no more car.

Just make sure you practice your run-fu first, and understand you don't want them to know where you live.

[tickyul]

It is the MORONIC culture of the 21st century, no escaping it. I too hate listening to idiots blasting annoying noise from their cars, homes and everywhere else.

Yes, in theory, you could limit the amount of idiots who blast this cr** by handing out nasty fines and tickets. In reality, there will never be enough enforcement of noise-rules to make a dent in this idiocy.

[Stoke]

Originally Posted by tickyul

It is the MORONIC culture of the 21st century, no escaping it. I too hate listening to idiots blasting annoying noise from their cars, homes and everywhere else.

Yes, in theory, you could limit the amount of idiots who blast this cr** by handing out nasty fines and tickets. In reality, there will never be enough enforcement of noise-rules to make a dent in this idiocy.

[SquirtingBarnacle]

This is why I prefer living in apartments, because you have someone to actually complain to who is required by contract to eliminate the noise. I don't know if you get that with condos and I don't think you do with houses. A few years ago when living in a certain complex in Everett I made noise complaints everyday sometimes twice a day about my neighbor's ranchero "music". Imagine living with 24/7 blaring ranchero music, that's what it was like until I started complaining. Well after like 3 months of that they were evicted. It took awhile but the feeling of evicting a group of ***holes feels extremely gratifying. Even more so when they are crying as they move out.

Preferably if you live in a crowded area then more people are likely to complain with you and the issue will be taken care of faster. Unless you are in an upper class housing neighborhood, not sure you can escape this. If you want to give it a try you can always blast something extremely goofy over their stuff like My Little Pony songs just to annoy them, not sure if you want the attention though. If I was still in my childhood I would simply resort to anonymous bologna on their car, dog poop on their front porch, etc. Not like I'm advocating you do this, just saying.