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Subs And The Downstairs Neighbors

I live in a brownstone in Fort Greene, Brooklyn. The building has the usual suspended hardwood floors but there must be magic insulation because I can listen at 90-plus decibels and remain quite friendly with the couple downstairs. Nor do I hear anything from upstairs.

I have an Arcam A19 and a pair of LS50s. The system sounds great but one wouldn’t call it chest-thumping. So I’m thinking about a subwoofer.

In traditional New York style, my apartment is both small and expensive. So I’m looking for a cheap, low profile, downfiring sub that will fit under the couch. Monoprice? I’d rather get something used but the only other low profile model I can find is a $1200 Focal.

The secondary question is whether I’ll be defiling the sound of the LS50s by using a cheap sub. I haven’t heard the Monoprice but it’s probably doesn’t sound REL-like. Supposedly it reaches 30 db. Is that low enough? The sound doesn’t have to be great, it just has to be better than it is now.

The primary question is whether the sound will break into the downstairs apartment. Just a gut reaction but it seems like I’d be asking for trouble.

There’s an similar thread from 2008. The poster only got two responses from people with actual experience. One nearly got evicted, the other had two subs and reports that all went well. I thought I would check to see if anyone in a similar position has joined since then. Anyone?
paul6001
b_limo's avatar
b_limo
2,274 posts
 
Dont go cheap, dont go downward firing.

get that new kef sub and put it on a subdude or don’t do anything, is my advice
fiesta75
1,378 posts
 
I agree, DON'T go with a downward firing sub. They just sound pretty bad overall.
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,570 posts
 
My tendency in a situation like this would be to sell the LS 50's and get larger Kefs that go lower. If you put a sub that goes down below 40 Hz the people down stairs will definitely hear it at 90 dB. They might even notice light fixtures rattling.  The Kef Reference 1 bookshelf speaker would be perfect. You will have a little more impact without frequencies that will cause trouble.
bobthenailer's avatar
bobthenailer
41 posts
 
Theatre Solutions Sub-8
paul6001 OP
98 posts
 
Thanks to all those who tried to answer an impossible question. A few reactions:

-The new KEF mini-sub is the answer to all my problems. But $1600? I just don’t have it. Same issue with the larger KEFs.

-I’m sure the sub dude is a good product but if it can’t go under the couch, it’s just not going to work. 

-Theater Solutions Sub 8 must be the Monoprice model with a different name tag. That’s what kicked off this post in the first place. And it’s still a possibility. I’d get it from Amazon and be able to return it if there’s a problem. 

Have you heard it? How is the sound?

-Rocray: Right? And I mean listening in the mid-90s, peaks over 100.

The husband and wife downstairs are both computer engineers and both are working from home. She first bought up the noise subject by apologizing for their newborn, who she said cries all the time. I told her that I’ve never heard a thing—true—and that if anyone should be apologizing, it’s me. She also said that she’s never heard a thing.

In the stairwell, you can hear the sound clear as a bell, both up and down. If the windows are open, you can hear it on the street.

My landlord, who is a contractor, bought a building that was crumbling into the street and rebuilt himself, brick by brick. I’m sure that he’s done very well on his investment, as this four story brownstone is probably worth close to $2MM. Whatever he put under the floors must be magic. I’d ask him but I don’t want want to even bring up the subject, don’t want to go anywhere near it.

Living in the city means all kinds of trade-offs. I guess chest-thumping bass is one of them.

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