Pender County, NC Noise from Specific Sources: Low-Frequency Bass Limits (2026)

Code § 24-43(a) defines plainly audible as any sound, other than unamplified human conversation, that a person can detect using unaided hearing, and it gives a targeted example for bass-heavy noise complaints: when the sound source under investigation is a vehicular or personal sound production device, detecting the rhythmic bass component of the music is enough by itself to establish that the sound is plainly audible. The definition goes further and removes the usual evidentiary hurdle for these complaints by stating it is not necessary to identify the title, specific words, or the artist performing the song.

That definition feeds directly into the specific prohibitions in § 24-44, which bar operating a radio, sound reproduction device or similar equipment so that sound is plainly audible within an affected property, or vehicle noise with sound amplification, between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. under §§ 24-44(3)-(4). The noise article applies countywide, including inside any town without its own adopted noise ordinance, under § 24-42(a), and the sheriff has primary enforcement responsibility under § 24-46.