The sound was so loud for 12 Volt Thunder at Union Station on Sunday that the event will be held at a different location next year.
Dave Clews, owner of 12 Volt Dave's Audio, Pottsville, said noise complaints prompted the decision to move the event.
"We want to be respectful to neighbors in the area," he said.
The event had been previously held at Roller Roost II. While the event had been held at Union Station for the past four years, Clews said the noise had never reached quite the level it did on Sunday, adding that it was unlikely the event could be held at the station again.
"A Pottsville police officer was here, and he told me we probably will not be able to use the lot next year," Clews said.
While Clews said he didn't want to single any participant out, a vehicle owned by a man from Long Island made a lot of "continuously loud" noise even when asked to turn down the volume on his vehicle's speakers.
About 42 vehicles entered the event at the lower level of Union Station. The winners received a certificate and points they could accumulate toward entry to a national competition.
Owners of different classes of vehicles could participate in a sound quality test or a sound pressure level test.
The sound quality test measured things like depth, width and tonality of music in a vehicle, Justin Campbell, a judge with the International Auto Sound Challenge Association, said.
Entrants in the sound quality test played a CD in their vehicle and were scored on how well the sound met the test criteria.
The sound pressure test involved the use of sound level meter equipment that feeds into a laptop.
"We're measuring how strong the sound wave is," Sarah Sarns, one of the judges with dB Drag Racing Association, said during the test.
Another event participants could enter was the bass boxing competition which consisted of three different "runs" the cars take to measure the quality of their vehicle's speakers.
During the first run, participants played music in their vehicles for 30 seconds with the doors closed, the second run had the driver's side door open 27 inches and the third run had both driver's and passenger's side doors open 27 inches. The three scores are then tabulated to give an overall score.
Sarns confirmed the police were there on noise complaints throughout the event.
"They were very nice about everything," she said.
The loudest vehicle of the day went to The Demo Bus, a 1996 E350 Ford diesel bus owned by Robert Jagacki, 26, of Long Island, New York. The music from the bus was 158.1 decibels, almost as loud as a fired 12-gauge shotgun, which is 165 decibels, according to www.dangerousdecibels.org.
Matt Giese, a judge with dB Drag Racing Association, said the highest measurement the system he uses will record accurately is 183 decibels.
Jagacki said he paid $1,800 to purchase The Demo Bus and invested about $37,000 in it. He worked for an audio shop before buying they bus in Aug. 2012 and is now a diesel technician.
The bus has a 7.3 engine and is about 480 horsepower. It has 12 18-inch subwoofers, 12 amplifiers, 16 XS Power AGM D1400 batteries, eight alternators with two hydraulic motors and a speaker tower.
"I had my friend hear me from 35 blocks away," he said of the bus.
The sound is so loud, it once broke the windshield, Jagacki said. A metal brace under the windshield acts to support the stress.
Though the bus could be considered a showstopper, Jagacki said he still drives it for everyday use.
"I do drive this. I drive it to Home Depot. I drive it to the mall," he said.
Jagacki said a Pottsville resident told him to turn the music down at the event, which he did. Later, he said he turned it back up twice even after a visit from the police.
Albert Akinduro, 44, of Ellicott City, Maryland, entered the event with his 2012 Toyota Camry. He said he invested about $12,000 into his car for its sound system and has been entering contests for 22 years.
"It's a hobby that gets me out of the house on the weekend," he said.