Audiophile Unfriendly New Neighbor Moved In Last Month, Calls the Cops on Me

[Mark (Basspig) Weiss]

It is a terrible day in American history: The Great Bass Pig has had nasty neighbors move in within close proximity to his Lair. For fifty years, this desolate mountaintop spot was home to the Bass Pig's Lair. But this past summer, someone bought the forest across the road and started clearing land.


They built "McMansions", the first one sold in late September. The new neighbors are not friendly at all. And when I listen to music at the levels I have enjoyed for at least forty years, they call the cops. Mind you, this was at 5:30PM on a Friday afternoon. Another neighbor was operating a big backhoe and moving logs and rocks around at the time, so there was already noise going on in the neighborhood.


Fortunately, the officer was very nice and he even liked the Jazz that I was playing at the time, but the request to 'turn it down a bit' really raises my ire. One doesn't drive a Ferrari to drive at 55mph. I have no intention of curtailing my once or twice a month hour or two of selected music listening for the sake of a haughty former New Yorker who thinks he can move into my forest and dictate how I listen to music. It's not like I do it to the wee hours of the morning every night. It's a rare occurance when I have the house alone and the rest of the family is out shopping at the mall.


This is a redneck area. A few cabins in the woods, a lot of self sufficient types. And then a builder comes in and puts in these out of place upscale houses, which attract the wrong type of people. Yeah, THOSE kinds.. the stuck up, class-divided types, who expect everything and everyone to conform to them. The new neighbors obvious hate us and don't like the 'tarpaper shack' that I live in across the road from where they built. But hey, if they don't like the smell, why move next to a hog farm? They don't even wave to us when they come and go. And they bring a lot of traffic and noise that we never had before.. garbage trucks, gas trucks, frequent deliveries, etc. My peace and quiet is also ruined by them.


So now, every time I listen to music, I will have to be interrupted by a visit from the police. Oh, and they're not my town, either, for the road is a county line and a town line. Our town has no noise ordinance. Maybe that's why the officer was so friendly. I reminded him that it was a Friday and before well 10pm (about 5:40PM actually) and that I have listened to music at these levels for forty of the fifty years that I've owned this property.


It is very disappointing that I have this, er.. neighbor, across the road now. Not only do I have to put up with his traffic and the sight of that house that mars the natural view of the forest (I hate McMansions with the phony porticos and pretend neo colonial look), but that person hasn't the decency to be a proper neighbor and at least approach me in a friendly way about it and possibly come to some agreement. No.. instead his first action is to call the police and complain. I'm very tempted to put on some of the worst RAP at 9PM just to spite them.


My investment in a 17,000 watt sound system is so that I can enjoy BASS. That interlopers move into my territory and expect me to change my ways is, unrealistic. A war is coming. I reckon next weekend they'll call the cops again, and it will escalate. I have no intention of curtailing my enjoyment. Their very presence offends my senses, and their fancy real estate will increase my taxes as well.


So what do you 'Bass Pigs' do about new neighbors that don't conform to your way of life?

 

[RogerD]

It is a terrible day in American history: The Great Bass Pig has had nasty neighbors move in within close proximity to his Lair. For fifty years, this desolate mountaintop spot was home to the Bass Pig's Lair. But this past summer, someone bought the forest across the road and started clearing land.


They built "McMansions", the first one sold in late September. The new neighbors are not friendly at all. And when I listen to music at the levels I have enjoyed for at least forty years, they call the cops. Mind you, this was at 5:30PM on a Friday afternoon. Another neighbor was operating a big backhoe and moving logs and rocks around at the time, so there was already noise going on in the neighborhood.


Fortunately, the officer was very nice and he even liked the Jazz that I was playing at the time, but the request to 'turn it down a bit' really raises my ire. One doesn't drive a Ferrari to drive at 55mph. I have no intention of curtailing my once or twice a month hour or two of selected music listening for the sake of a haughty former New Yorker who thinks he can move into my forest and dictate how I listen to music. It's not like I do it to the wee hours of the morning every night. It's a rare occurance when I have the house alone and the rest of the family is out shopping at the mall.


This is a redneck area. A few cabins in the woods, a lot of self sufficient types. And then a builder comes in and puts in these out of place upscale houses, which attract the wrong type of people. Yeah, THOSE kinds.. the stuck up, class-divided types, who expect everything and everyone to conform to them. The new neighbors obvious hate us and don't like the 'tarpaper shack' that I live in across the road from where they built. But hey, if they don't like the smell, why move next to a hog farm? They don't even wave to us when they come and go. And they bring a lot of traffic and noise that we never had before.. garbage trucks, gas trucks, frequent deliveries, etc. My peace and quiet is also ruined by them.


So now, every time I listen to music, I will have to be interrupted by a visit from the police. Oh, and they're not my town, either, for the road is a county line and a town line. Our town has no noise ordinance. Maybe that's why the officer was so friendly. I reminded him that it was a Friday and before well 10pm (about 5:40PM actually) and that I have listened to music at these levels for forty of the fifty years that I've owned this property.


It is very disappointing that I have this, er.. neighbor, across the road now. Not only do I have to put up with his traffic and the sight of that house that mars the natural view of the forest (I hate McMansions with the phony porticos and pretend neo colonial look), but that person hasn't the decency to be a proper neighbor and at least approach me in a friendly way about it and possibly come to some agreement. No.. instead his first action is to call the police and complain. I'm very tempted to put on some of the worst RAP at 9PM just to spite them.


My investment in a 17,000 watt sound system is so that I can enjoy BASS. That interlopers move into my territory and expect me to change my ways is, unrealistic. A war is coming. I reckon next weekend they'll call the cops again, and it will escalate. I have no intention of curtailing my enjoyment. Their very presence offends my senses, and their fancy real estate will increase my taxes as well.


So what do you 'Bass Pigs' do about new neighbors that don't conform to your way of life?

Thank God my neighbor is a great guy and even helped me set up my new audio room.....my heaven. All I can say is that if your jurisdiction has no nuisance law related to noise levels....let them eat cake. Trouble is the world is getting smaller...even in Nevada we are being Kalifornicated...no offense,but it pisses me off. Are the police that pay the visit to you from your town? Call your Sheriff or JOTP and talk to him. I don't see how the complainer can force you to comply if your not breaking some law. Good luck from a fellow big bass lover

 

[Mark (Basspig) Weiss]

Yeah the cop was from the town across the road, not my town. He probably knew it and was 'treading lightly' when he asked me to turn it down a notch.

I have another neighbor 1/4 mile down the road who actually says he enjoys hearing my bass. They're very nice people and when they moved in back in '81, they invited every neighbor on the road. We were the only family to show up. We've been good friends ever since. One other neighbor on the other side of me used to have a rock band back around '73 or so and used to practice every weekend. They don't have a problem with me either.

I am sure it's the preppy folks from NY that just moved into the new house that was built in September. Bastards never wave to us when they drive by. Never came over to say 'hi'.. they just drive into their garage and disappear. I looked up the tax records and found out their names. I also found the wife on Facebook and the photos look like them, so I think I know who they are. Typical preppy college grad upper crust folks who turn their nose up at us farmer types. I'm one of the last of the 'rednecks' in this town. We're gradually being pushed out by confiscatory taxes. And to make matters worse, they had a Hillary sign in their yard last month, so I know exactly the kind of miserable folks they are.

I had another neighbor like them that lived on the other side of the end of the road where it meets the main road. I had some friction with them in 1992, but it was over the appearance of my house. They sent an anonymous complaint to the town, which was so bogus that when the building inspector showed up, he quickly realized it was a case of a feud between neighbors. He was just pissed that after his boys fired two rifle rounds through my picture window that they were hauled before juvenile court. Six months later, he writes a letter that looks like a ten year old wrote it, describing broken windows (my clue that it was him who wrote it). He's dead now. Died a premature death from a sudden and unusual illness, perhaps brought on by microwave radiation.

But these new neighbors are right across the road from me. I'm concerned about doing my target practice with large caliber rifles now, because they will probably complain too. But I'm not going to change a thing about my listening habits. If they are so hateful that they can't be neighborly and talk to me in person, but rather use the police, then screw em. They're a-holes and they can go pound sand.

 

[Fiddle Faddle]

I actually empathise with people who suffer from noise generated by neighbours. I think people who listen to their sound / audiovisual systems loudly enough to the point where it is a significant distraction to neighbouring properties (even when all windows and doors are closed) are selfish and self-centred individuals. I don't sympathise with you one little bit. I don't blame the neighbours one bit either, since if you simply turned the volume down, they wouldn't be calling the police. The chances are pretty high that you've already suffered significant hearing damage to this point and it will continue to worsen in the future (I am sure you will be at pains to deny this but it is the simple biological consequence of prolonged excessive noise exposure). No wonder the neighbours are complaining. Your signature at the bottom "16,500 watts", the fact that you feel compelled to advertise the fact and indeed your username tells me pretty much everything I need to know about this whole situation...

 

[andromedaaudio]

And to make matters worse, they had a Hillary sign in their yard last month, so I know exactly the kind of miserable folks they are.


i m with you man , but the guy 1/4 mile down the road hearing your bass ??

 

[PeterA]

A neighbor can hear your bass from 1/4 mile down the road? That must be pretty loud in your listening room. I would try to work something out with the new neighbors. Life is too short for these kinds of feuds, IMO. If your efforts fail, perhaps you can see when they leave the house and then blast away.

For some strange reason, there were almost no political signs in yards in my town this year. People simply did not discuss the subject, nor did they seem to want their neighbors to know what side of the divide they are on.

 

[Mark (Basspig) Weiss]

A neighbor can hear your bass from 1/4 mile down the road? That must be pretty loud in your listening room. I would try to work something out with the new neighbors. Life is too short for these kinds of feuds, IMO. If your efforts fail, perhaps you can see when they leave the house and then blast away.

For some strange reason, there were almost no political signs in yards in my town this year. People simply did not discuss the subject, nor did they seem to want their neighbors to know what side of the divide they are on.

Geez, I had to type this in Word and paste it in here.. this editor doesn’t regognize the spacebar character tonight. Allmywordsarecomingoutlikethis.
A few months ago, my inlaws walked the 1/3 mile or so to the end of the road to wait for my daughter’s bus. So I took the opportunity to crank up nice and loud. When she got home, she told me she could hear it while she was on the bus! So yeah, it CAN go pretty darned loud. Probably over 150 decibels in the room. I wear hearing protection and my SPL meter’s top scale is 140dB, but slams the pin when I try to measure. My normal listening level is about 133dB for bass, 117-119dB A-weighted.
For those that accuse me of being selfish, I moved out here to the middle of nowhere 50 years ago, so that I would not have to deal with neighbors again. I’m here, I’m established, I can’t afford to move again. During the election, fearing the possibility of a Hillary presidency, I did look into moving to Japan. I found that my property would be nearly impossible to sell, except for demolition. However, being on a wetland, the lot is not buildable. It’s only ½ acre, surrounded by wetlands to the north and east. I was shocked that the land south of me sold though. It seemed that he was going to keep it forever, but when some teenagers burned down his cabin a few years ago, and the developer built on land adjacent to him, they had a kerfuffle about the burned out cabin. I guess the owner caved and sold to the developer after that. My one good neighbor was going to buy more of that land to preserve it, but he ran out of money. So I got these clowns moving in all on the other side of the county line. The new houses have Hillary signs in the yards.. old houses and working stiffs had Trump signs. Clearly, these people don’t fit in with our working class neighborhood.
Over on the Vintage Audio page on Facebook, folks are giving me lots of suggestions for getting rid of them. Everything from biker gangs to shooting target practice with big caliber rifles, to illegal stuff I won’t mention. If we were in the south, someone could call in an anonymous tip about drug parties and a SWAT team would break down their door in short order. Of course, I will be watching them carefully to see any holes in their legal existence.

 

[Joe Whip]

If I could hear a neighbor's stereo from 1/4 mile away, I would bitch as well. How loud is too loud for you Mark? As more people move in across the street for you expect the complaints to increase and expect some legal hassles as well.

 

[BlueFox]

Insulate your house, and keep the doors and windows closed. I did that, and I also go outside at night to make sure the sound isn't leaking, and can be heard past my property line. Once your sound crosses the property line it becomes a public nuisance.

 

[Joe Whip]

150 decibels can't be good for one's health either.

 

[NorthStar]

Build an underground concrete bunker with two-foot thick walls.

* By the way, if you live in a rancher house, in a valley, with trees, in a forest, without many neighbors (I used to); the sound will travel long distances...miles. ...The same across a lake. And the music doesn't have to play loud...like 95-105dB.
Some places in the countryside are like echo chambers, and trees and water and mountains will have the sound travel far far away indeed.
I know this for a fact, from many many years ago, and still today @ my latest location. Many moons ago I was the one with the music playing loud enough for the neighbors living half mile away. Today it's the neighbors living miles away from me that I can hear easily across the lake and valley.
A house with many windows in the listening room and made of wood walls, in & out, regular insulation; will resonate when you put your hands on the exterior walls, and will be heard from far away if you are in the right sound path. This is simple acoustic physics.

So I can totally relate to what Mark is saying. Except for roughly forty or so decibels less. :b

Yeah Mark, you need a concrete bunker, underground. ...Or a very well isolated soundproof room.

 

[RayDunzl]

An intricate decibel equivalent table ("what is how loud", from 10 to 310 dB)

http://www.head-fi.org/t/615928/an-...at-is-how-loud-from-10-to-310-db#post_8485684

 

[Mark (Basspig) Weiss]

I built the house with an eye toward the Soviet nuclear armageddon. At the time, we were still in the Cold War, and I built the lower level with concrete walls up to 3' thick in some parts. But that doesn't do much good once the ground starts vibrating. One can close the doors and windows, but the sub-30Hz stuff still comes through outside.

About 36 years ago, when my system was just 2,000 watts, I put on an Eumir Deodato album and I and a friend took a walk to the radio tower one mile away. We could hear the thumping from the tower site.

My usual pattern is to play a few 'warmup' songs at moderate levels and then when I get to the point of playing a new song, say a newly purchased album, I can't get enough of it, so I crank it until pieces of the ceiling start falling down. That's usually my warning that it's getting TOO loud. This week I picked up Aoi Koufuku's "Hanbun no Tsuki ga Noboru Sora" and was amazed at the sonics. No audible compression or loudness boosting tricks used in the mastering. Just tremendous pop to the dynamics, no listening fatigue, a sheer joy--yes, the orgasm for the ears--to listen to and to feel. The kick drum was so punchy that my vision blurred with every beat. Oooh, it was better than a hit of Excstacy. I'm pretty sure that song was over 140dB Friday. And it's a pretty Japanese pop/rock tune. If anyone has a problem with that, they're racist bastards.

For the naysayers, it's not like I did this at 1am in the morning. It was 5:30 in the frickin' afternoon! My one rare window where the wife and the inlaws and the kids were all out shopping together. Rarely do I get the house to myself alone. I'm not normally a violent man, but "music that soothes the savage beast" definitely applies here. I gave up a life of violence and became a bass pig forty some odd years ago. The music has kept me sane all this time. The neighbors don't know what a psychopath they are dealing with.

 

[MadFloyd]

I can't wait to see how this turns out.

 

[cjf]

May I first suggest a quick read thru this book:



Does the neighbor have a garden? Meah... No matter!

Perhaps releasing a few "Hog Wild" Feral Hogs onto the property across the way is in order

I can feel your pain. Your story is one that has played out in my head for years but, knock on wood, hasn't become a reality yet for me.

I agree with your approach in the meantime though. I would be equally as salty if the neighbors went straight to cops first before bringing their issue to me first. Becuase of their choice to go the other way, WWIII it is

 

[still-one]

Is this a mistimed April Fools joke? It is hard to believe you are offended because a neighbor complains they can hear your system from a quarter mile away. If someone can hear your "music" from that distance it is noise pollution.

 

[RogerD]

A 32 ft pipe organ rank will resonate @ 16Hz and a 64 ft @ 8 hz,with moderate volume the sound or oscillation will vibrate my half of a 2 story 3700sqft brick veneer building and I'm pretty sure it does the same for my neighbor. I have 50 inches of sub powered by about 2000 watts. Kind of speechless with 17,000 watts..

 

[DaveyF]

Begs the question..what kind of music ( yes music vs. noise) requires 17000 watts of power and that kind of decibel level??

 

[Folsom]

How much can they hear? You keep mentioning distance, but is it a faint noise that's less than the dishwasher while you're in another room with the door closed, or does it sound like The Who is playing two blocks away?

Honestly if I lived next to you in town, I'd hate you because I know it would be loud enough that I couldn't do anything in my own home at those insane levels. However you moved out into the country on purpose to do exactly what you want, so I actually respect how you feel but at the same time you only bought 1/2 acre so? It's too bad they're pushing the economics of the area; that's a problem nationwide.

I personally think people that can't politely request something of their neighbour, over minor subjects, before calling the cops are total scum. It's unfortunate that they're that awful, to immediately call the police. I suppose the reality is they can do nothing to stop you from playing music, except find other things aside from it to tattle on you about.

Mixed feelings on this subject...

 

[Mark (Basspig) Weiss]

The Art of War, great book!

I don't have any wild hogs to release. But I did find out more about the neighbors after looking the address up in the tax database and asking a few of my friends for their sleuthing skills. Apparently the neighbor is a 30 year old kid with a rich daddy who recently retired as the CFO of a major corporate interest. The kid runs a martial arts school for about a year now, according to a newspaper article that my friend dug up. A rich, spoiled brat who thinks he can make the neighborhood comply with his every desire. I was wondering why the construction noise on the other two houses quieted down like 90% when they moved in. Before that, the noise levels and duration from the construction was so bad at times that you could not carry on a conversation on my front porch. That noise was from 6:30am to past 8pm every night, even Sundays.

I wasn't offended by my friendly neighbor that is 1/4 mile down the road. We've been good friends for over thirty years. But the a-hole that moved in directly across the road from me is the offensive one. First, they cut down the forest and put this damned ugly fake neo-colonial McMansion across from me, in plain view. That kind of 'architecture' attracts the wrong type of people. Then they put their damned Hillary sign up in the yard. Now I know what kind of idiots I'm dealing with. Judging by the police response time for emergencies around here (about 45 mins), I was barely an hour into my listening session (which mind you, isn't continuous.. there are gaps of several minutes while I look up the next track I want to listen to) when they came. That means the neighbor probably called the minute I started, or very shortly thereafter.

At any rate, screw him, because he didn't come to me first. He chose this route, and if it's war that he wants, well, I'm a crazy somebitch and I'll scare the crap out of him if he keeps it up. You can get away with a lot of things, but interfere with my music time and you might not like what I do in return.