CARY - Robert Carpenter doesn't like the sound of the town of Cary's latest effort to lure entertainers to the Koka Booth Amphitheatre at Regency Park.

Carpenter, who lives just east of the amphitheatre, lamented a decision made by the Town Council last month that would allow several musical acts at the popular venue to exceed an established noise limit. The exceptions, which would be limited to three performers during the amphitheater's 2010 season, will grant specific acts the right to turn up the volume.

Until recently, the town wouldn't allow any acts to play louder than 92 decibels. It recently agreed to allow three acts to exceed the limit during the upcoming season.

Town officials said it has been difficult to find the right balance between meeting citizen demands and drawing profitable acts to the amphitheatre.

"A number of artists, patrons, and citizens have complained about our noise restrictions," councilman Don Frantz wrote on his Web site. "And a number of artists have even refused to play at the amphitheater due to sound limits."

Folk-rock band The Avett Brothers, for example, opted not to return to Booth Amphitheater in 2009 after playing the venue in 2008, said Lyman Collins, Cary's cultural arts manager. Such decisions are certainly problematic for a venue that relies on larger acts to generate revenue. "I think the sound level was only part of that equation," Collins added. "There were other issues beyond our direct control."

But people such as Carpenter would like the town to enforce what it can control -- especially when it comes to loudness.

"The noise level in general is already troubling," said Carpenter, who moved into the Lion's Gate neighborhood in August 2000, about a year before the Booth Amphitheatre opened. "The idea of allowing a couple of concerts in here that are going to be even louder is ridiculous."

Residents in Lion's Gate and surrounding neighborhoods have often complained that sound, especially from hard-charging rock bands, falls on their homes with a deafening roar.

"When Heart was here in September," Carpenter said, "if I had my TV on, you wouldn't have been able to hear it as you might normally expect.

"That's unacceptable. And I'm saying that as someone who actually attends some of the concerts."

Collins said Cary is taking steps to equalize the wants of citizens and performers. In its decision during a Nov. 10 work session, the Town Council directed staff to reduce the minutes of sound level averaging during shows to five minutes, down from 10 minutes. The move ups the ante on enforcement and could result in more bands being fined if the shorter sound checks produce more violations.

The Town Council also directed town employees to perform an extensive test of the amphitheatre's sound monitoring system and to recommend any necessary changes or adjustments. And lastly, council members asked staff at SMG, which manages the facility, to maintain records of performers who choose not to perform at Booth because of the sound restrictions.

On his Web site, Frantz said the Town Council engaged in a "healthy discussion" on the sound issue before voting to allow a few performers to break with Cary's current noise restrictions, under certain conditions. Besides the three act limit, only weekend shows will be eligible to bend the rules. "Council decided on limiting the number of shows which may exceed 92 decibels to three as a 'test' to see how this works out for the amphitheater and area residents," Frantz wrote.

The idea struck a sour note with Carpenter.

"Look, I don't hate rock music," he said. "But the right answer to all of this is, you just need to turn down the music."