OT: Michigan Stadium - Is it loud? What are your thoughts about the atmosphere?

Not loud enough. Beaver stadium and the toilet seat get much louder, until Donovan breaks another TD run shooshing those inbreds.

It’s loud enough when it needs to be. 

I would have to look it up, but I remember seeing a special or video of Penn State engineer's working to design their stadium rework to redirect more noise back down at the field. I feel like that is the thing we are missing most with the Big House. We lose so much noise that could affect the game on the field because of the open bowl with little to help redirect it to the field. Of course the stadium gets loud, but if we had structures or designs helping the noise get to the field and not out the top of the stadium, we could not only be the biggest but the loudest.

much improved.  vs ohio in 2021 it was the cause of 3 or 4 (IIRC) false start penalties by the pylons they called offensive linemen....

i never played at the big house, but i did get to play in front of some pretty large crowds back in the day.  the crowd sound makes a difference.  

I suppose we could do a crowdfunding or some such thing to raise money to put a roof over the place and make it louder...

Louder since they added the luxury boxes but quiet due to the open bowl. Go to a smaller stadium with upper decks and it's louder due to the decks. 

I get the impression that, on a game to game basis, we tend to be on the quieter side. Against opponents we don't perceive to be a threat, we just don't tend to get that loud.

At key moments against even middling opponents, and more importantly in big games though, we are as loud as anybody and neutral observers back that up. Home opener tends to be a little more hype too even if the opponent stinks.

I went to Beaver Stadium this year to show support after the whole "scandal's broke.  I got seats in the visitor section, and sat in the very last row.  It was LOUD.  I finally understood why the atmosphere at beaver is always rated so high.

The Big House can be loud, but it really isn't an intimidating loud.

I was against the boxes when they got built for purely emotional/aesthetic reasons - I remember my first time going to the stadium as a freshman, wondering where the big house was hiding, and then walking in and seeing it all under my feet. It was just so cool.

But I think the boxes have made it louder, the sound reflect down. The atmosphere of the games reached an ebb in the Hoke era - in part because of quality of play, in part because of some of the...initiatives? of Dave Brandon. Nowadays I go back rarely but the atmosphere is great. Went to my first night game this year. My only complaint is that nothing seemed open after the game. Would love it if some local ordinances encouraged food and drink options to be open afterwards.

We're plenty loud when we need to be. The Big House's architectural design puts us at a disadvantage against places like Beaver Stadium, but I think it's a good tradeoff. The Big House is iconic; Beaver Stadium an ugly lump of concrete.

My question is:  What do you think of Michigan Stadium and the environment?   Is it loud - when it needs to be?   Can you tell a difference?  (Especially if you go back a few years to "before" the boxes were added.)

It can be loud when it "needs to be," but Michigan Stadium unlikely will ever be the "loudest." The somewhat flat bowl angle, even with the angled structures, is just not acoustically conducive to maximizing volume. I've been consistently attending games since 1992, and yes, there is a noticeable difference since the sideline structures and giant scoreboards were added. This seems fairly obviously and not really in dispute.

Another contributing factor, imo, is the cramped nature of the bowl. I find it difficult for larger folks to truly unleash their excitement because many cannot freely move their arms.

If it were up to me, and money was not an issue, I'd widen all of the bowl seats, and I would add additional suite/covered structures in the endzones so that the scoreboards were fully framed. I'd aim to keep capacity the same or increased despite the seats being widened. In addition to angling the new endzone structures down, I'd also add additional noise-deflecting materials on the existing sideline structures. Finally, the South Endzone needs added speakers to increase the band presence and the piped-in music across the entire stadium.  

Loudest football stadium I have personally watched a game is Seattle (Lumen Field f/k/a Century Link when I attended -- 2nd loudest in the NFL at 137.6 db). The noise was extremely uncomfortable.  Apparently, Arrowhead is the loudest in the NFL at 142.2 decibels (i.e., above the "human pain threshold" and very dangerous).

You just need to travel north across town to the loudest college football stadium.  University of Washington recorded 133.6 decibels against Nebraska (pre- Scott Frost).  By comparison, Michigan apparently has recorded 110 decibels -- loud as metal band, but quiet enough that your ears won't bleed.

Generally it’s quieter than one would expect for 110,000+ people.

Logistically the bowl is great, but it certainly does not trap sound in like a lot of other stadiums.

It also depends on the vibe in your section. My section used to be kind of "sit down" bluehairs heavy 15 years ago, but now is more vibrant and young. We are on a corner so even against lesser opponents, we tend to stand most of the time and it's a lot easier/conducive to being loud when you are standing.

This reminds me that at Lucas Oil there were a ton of Michigan fans who have never been to the Big House at the B1G title game. It showed. They sat down for large stretches, never cheered on the defense and would be extraordinarily loud when the M offense was on the field. Maybe it was just my section, but it was frustrating and weird.