dynawolf

Looking to get a trainer to spin and watch TV. No Zwift needed.

fietsbob

Magnetic or fluid, but what you set up on can also be quieter ..
When isolated from vibrating the floor..

Teamprovicycle

I THINK rollers .

bobwysiwyg

Had the same issue. Consider wireless head phones. Mute the TV proper and control volume via the headphones. They're pretty inexpensive as well.

Machka 

Fluid

Pendergast

Speedway2

I gave up on the trainers that attach to the bike and bought a dedicated stationary bike with belt drive and magnetic tension. Super smooth and quite.
Saves buying a new rear tire come spring.

biketampa

do you need it to provide resistance? already pointed out are rollers and stac zero. newest stac zero can provide resistance. direct drive trainers are now very quiet.

TiHabanero

Without question it is rollers. 4 inch drums or larger are the quietest. Virtually no noise. Fixed trainers do make more noise than rollers. I have one of each and know first hand.

rdrsonthstrm

I ride the Kurt Kinetic Road Machine. I consider it very quiet although I have nothing to compare it to.

I'd liken the sound to a very, vey low hum, almost like white noise. I frequently ride and watch the tube and don't need to crank the TV (which is about 15 feet away) to hear it.

I'd think once you are spinning the constant hum will be no trouble for the little ones to sleep through. I'll bet my set-up makes a more disruptive noise when I shift than when I am spinning.

nomadmax 

I have a set of E-Motion rollers with magnetic resistance that are pretty quiet. The only thing I have quieter than that is my Lemond flywheel spin bike.

Cougrrcj 

I'm a non-supported roller fan - because not only do you get training, but also develop a smooth pedal-stroke. Rollers with resistance is even better! This will help you (for years) for longer/endurance rides! Mashing wastes energy.

canklecat

My older Cycleops magnetic trainer is so quiet I can easily hear minor differences in drive train noise, whether my chain needs to be lubed or replaced, and whether the friction shifter needs to be trimmed slightly.

It's set up in the living room on a carpeted floor, next to the heavily upholstered sofa, which probably soaks up some noise. I live alone, other than three cats, so it doesn't bother anyone. My neighbor across the hall has no carpet and the sound from his TV carries (he's 90something and hard of hearing so his TV is cranked up to 11). But my TV doesn't carry past my front door, even when it seems loud to me.

Ditto the entertainment TV thing. I tried cycle training videos this summer after an injury sidelined me for a few months. Boring.

I switched to binge watching sci-fi series I'd been intending to watch anyway -- first Orphan Black, the The Expanse. Sci-fi is great -- loud, lots of action, good energy to motivate me. The 40 minute episodes are perfect for high intensity workouts -- plenty of time to warm up and cool down on either side of the HIIT sessions. I set the timer on my phone to prompt me for the intervals. Or I'll watch two or three episodes back to back for longer endurance training. Only problem with watching entertainment shows is occasionally I need to rewind to catch a scene I missed while my head is down and I'm huffing and puffing through a hard interval.

Overall it helped keep me in shape over the summer. I didn't lose any average speed. The main difference on the road was getting readjusted to balance, especially on fast turns, and the sensation of climbing and riding into headwinds. Nothing I've tried on the indoor trainer really feels like climbing.