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Taking the plunge, Roland FR-4xb

My apartment manager has threatened to evict me if she receives one more noise complaint from my neighbors because of playing my acoustic accordion. My options now are either getting a digital accordion and using headphones or installing a soundproof booth in my apartment. Any recommendations beyond those two options?
There is no such thing as "soundproof booth" really: you can take a hefty amount of decibels out of the sound levels but if someone wants to feel offended, they still will. They are of course a viable solution where the noise level is a reasonable source for complaint and will be quite effective if there are regulations or a verdict prescribing you to stay below a level of noise measurable at the neighbors. However, when the complaints are more focused about the quality or unwelcomeness of some acoustic disturbance, you need to squeeze it below the level of detection, and that's not realistic.

The most effective solution would likely be MIDIfication of your acoustic accordion in parallel with getting some "null registers" (typically by sacrificng some existing register left as well as right and having the sliders modified, but conceivably you can also get an override added in a location not easy to access that puts the null register in comparable to how a Master switch or chin switches may work).

Except for the air use, that would give you a practice instrument that is very relevant for acoustic play. Also playing through an arranger then is a possibility, and that can be fun and help with training to keep accurate tempo. That, in turn, may mitigate your neighbor problem even when occasionally doing acoustic practice (prohibiting any musical practice tends to be frowned upon by courts): uneven and sloppy play tends to be perceived as more of an aggravation than something in straight speed.

It's not a cheap option, and it is less flexible than a separate electronic instrument. But assuming that you very much have a dedicated instrument you always play (which is not a given!), it may be the most straightforward way.

Is there maybe some cellar or garden shack or whatever in easily accessible distance that you could move to for practice? Not playing next to your neighbors is of course the simplest solution.
 
There is no such thing as "soundproof booth" really: you can take a hefty amount of decibels out of the sound levels but if someone wants to feel offended, they still will. They are of course a viable solution where the noise level is a reasonable source for complaint and will be quite effective if there are regulations or a verdict prescribing you to stay below a level of noise measurable at the neighbors. However, when the complaints are more focused about the quality or unwelcomeness of some acoustic disturbance, you need to squeeze it below the level of detection, and that's not realistic.

The most effective solution would likely be MIDIfication of your acoustic accordion in parallel with getting some "null registers" (typically by sacrificng some existing register left as well as right and having the sliders modified, but conceivably you can also get an override added in a location not easy to access that puts the null register in comparable to how a Master switch or chin switches may work).

Except for the air use, that would give you a practice instrument that is very relevant for acoustic play. Also playing through an arranger then is a possibility, and that can be fun and help with training to keep accurate tempo. That, in turn, may mitigate your neighbor problem even when occasionally doing acoustic practice (prohibiting any musical practice tends to be frowned upon by courts): uneven and sloppy play tends to be perceived as more of an aggravation than something in straight speed.

It's not a cheap option, and it is less flexible than a separate electronic instrument. But assuming that you very much have a dedicated instrument you always play (which is not a given!), it may be the most straightforward way.

Is there maybe some cellar or garden shack or whatever in easily accessible distance that you could move to for practice? Not playing next to your neighbors is of course the simplest solution.
Thanks for the response. I've also considered an already-MIDI accordion, such as the Musictech, since I have a large library of quality VSTi's I use for songwriting. Unfortunately, there are no cellars (can't build basements in Florida) or garden shacks here. It's tightly compact city with no open land, and the real estate consists of mostly apartments, townhouses, condos and commercial units. I don't even see houses with lawns here without travelling off-island. :(
 
Thanks for the response. I've also considered an already-MIDI accordion, such as the Musictech, since I have a large library of quality VSTi's I use for songwriting. Unfortunately, there are no cellars (can't build basements in Florida) or garden shacks here. It's tightly compact city with no open land, and the real estate consists of mostly apartments, townhouses, condos and commercial units. I don't even see houses with lawns here without travelling off-island. :(
If you have the parking space for a small trailer home, that would give you a movable sound booth making it easier to stay out of the reach of complaints. Of course your kind of location sounds like parking space would also be a dear commodity.
 
If you have the parking space for a small trailer home, that would give you a movable sound booth making it easier to stay out of the reach of complaints. Of course your kind of location sounds like parking space would also be a dear commodity.
Unfortunately, parking spaces at my apartment are restricted, and we can't park RVs or trailers in them. They don't even allow us to wash our cars or do any sort of maintenance on our vehicles while in the parking lot, have to take them offsite for that.
 
There is no such thing as "soundproof booth" .
I can tell you never visited inside a proper one in a sound studio… the booth I was in was at a radio station where I was making a commercial for an employer. 3 feet outside of my door of the booth was a young rock group… 1000 watt amps and full drum set, I heard NOTHING inside the booth and had both ears covered when I got out, it was very impressive, the booth walls had to be at least 3 feet thick thick and had double-doors. It may not technically be soundproof, but I heard absolutely nothing but my own heart beat in the booth! :)
 
I can tell you never visited inside a proper one in a sound studio… the booth I was in was at a radio station where I was making a commercial for an employer. 3 feet outside of my door of the booth was a young rock group… 1000 watt amps and full drum set, I heard NOTHING inside the booth and had both ears covered when I got out, it was very impressive, the booth walls had to be at least 3 feet thick thick and had double-doors. It may not technically be soundproof, but I heard absolutely nothing but my own heart beat in the booth! :)
It doesn't match what you can get installed as a "booth" inside of an apartment. Put three feet of insulation on floor and ceiling with a thin air separation and you don't have room to stand and possibly even sit.
 
Unfortunately, parking spaces at my apartment are restricted, and we can't park RVs or trailers in them. They don't even allow us to wash our cars or do any sort of maintenance on our vehicles while in the parking lot, have to take them offsite for that.
Well at least it seems purgatory now offers Internet access.
 
time to think outside the booth..

lots of retired people down there.. no doubt an arangement
could be made with some nearby campus that also has long-term or assisted
and would be glad to have a no-cost regular noisemaker, that is if you don't
mind "practicing" in a vaguely entertaining manner.. some repetition is OK
(especially in the alzheimer areas)

and i am not just guessing, as everywhere i have travelled oner the decades,
from Seattle to Monterey to Germany all around the Mid-Atlantic, i would
find some quiet non-busking beach or park or nursing home or retirement
community or local event and walk in playing then offer an hour or few to them
and share some smiles and got my practice in.. this was always my way of
doing things and making connections wherever i went..

no need to play or practice where we are not wanted.. their loss
 
Well at least it seems purgatory now offers Internet access.
Haha, yeah we do have internet here, slow as it may be. Luckily I'm only stuck here another year, then I get to move hopefully somewhere close to home at my last duty station before retiring. Granted, I'll be happy pretty much anywhere else to be honest.
time to think outside the booth..

lots of retired people down there.. no doubt an arangement
could be made with some nearby campus that also has long-term or assisted
and would be glad to have a no-cost regular noisemaker, that is if you don't
mind "practicing" in a vaguely entertaining manner.. some repetition is OK
(especially in the alzheimer areas)

and i am not just guessing, as everywhere i have travelled oner the decades,
from Seattle to Monterey to Germany all around the Mid-Atlantic, i would
find some quiet non-busking beach or park or nursing home or retirement
community or local event and walk in playing then offer an hour or few to them
and share some smiles and got my practice in.. this was always my way of
doing things and making connections wherever i went..

no need to play or practice where we are not wanted.. their loss
I may look into that, there is a college campus nearby that may have some facilities they'd allow me to use. Might also have an option at work. The beaches here are crowded with tourists, and I'd probably look like a loon practicing there, haha. I still might pick up a digital option just to have something to at least practice options during evening hours, which if I do I'll need to decide between a Roland or Musictech since the Bugari Evo seems to be unavailable anymore.
 
Haha, yeah we do have internet here, slow as it may be. Luckily I'm only stuck here another year, then I get to move hopefully somewhere close to home at my last duty station before retiring. Granted, I'll be happy pretty much anywhere else to be honest.

I may look into that, there is a college campus nearby that may have some facilities they'd allow me to use. Might also have an option at work. The beaches here are crowded with tourists, and I'd probably look like a loon practicing there, haha. I still might pick up a digital option just to have something to at least practice options during evening hours, which if I do I'll need to decide between a Roland or Musictech since the Bugari Evo seems to be unavailable anymore.
The college probably has practice rooms by the music department you can slip into….
 
Dilemma: "I really enjoy playing at home but it's not possible."
Suggestions: Lots of good ones but are they an answer or just alternatives.
Those of us with a digital instrument can list the plus points.
Is the Roland so bad ( as an add-on) as to make avoiding it the best choice?
Elsewhere I've seen comments by the yard as to why Roland is a bad idea - none of them from a Roland player.
FWIW: At least one v talented PA player here has tried and abandoned the Musictech solution and gone back to the Roland.
Hope this might help.
 
Elsewhere I've seen comments by the yard as to why Roland is a bad idea - none of them from a Roland player.
It's not as much a bad idea as a different instrument. It really depends on what kind of change @jkh0208 is willing to contemplate. Given the described situation, it is more than likely that using a Roland as the solution for practising, we are talking about a year of using headphones exclusively (or some amp or the internals at not more than a whisper, possibly not good for sensible acoustic feedback) and not touching an acoustic instrument at all during that time. Does that fit the bill? It may, or it may not.
 
It's not as much a bad idea as a different instrument. It really depends on what kind of change @jkh0208 is willing to contemplate. Given the described situation, it is more than likely that using a Roland as the solution for practising, we are talking about a year of using headphones exclusively (or some amp or the internals at not more than a whisper, possibly not good for sensible acoustic feedback) and not touching an acoustic instrument at all during that time. Does that fit the bill? It may, or it may not.
That sounds about on course for what I may end up doing, though maybe with occasional acoustic practice if I can get permission from the college campus to use a space there. If I go that route, I'm up in the air between Roland and Musictech. The Rolands look much nicer (especially the fr4xb and fr8xb, but a lot pricier) and are self contained, but the videos I've seen of the Musictechs seemed to have more convincing accordion sounds coming from the midi module (the Roland ones didn't sound real to me) and I've seen comments about the bellow action on the Musictechs being better, but then again I've seen comments saying the Rolands are better. I think this is my biggest hangup currently.
 
jkh:
Here's a comment that seems to match your exact dilemma:
" For practice purposes, I've hooked the FR-1b up with a cheap "computer sound bar", playing at nocturnal apartment house compatible levels (essentially proofhearing). "

I try to avoid exchanges like this one, beyond just giving an opinion and leaving at that.
As a one off, and given another member's reference to historical figures : I don't remember who but around 2000 years ago some clever Roman said it was a waste of time arguing over 'tastes and colours.'
I fear that might work for accordions too?
 
As a one off, and given another member's reference to historical figures : I don't remember who but around 2000 years ago some clever Roman said it was a waste of time arguing over 'tastes and colours.'
I fear that might work for accordions too?
Sure, but then the Romans had less time available for wasting than us modern ones. I'd argue that by now the lion's share of money in typical First World countries is spent on methods for wasting time. Arguments are a comparatively affordable way of doing that.
 
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