To develop a more suitable evaluation method of ride comfort for Maglev systems, as the first step, we experimented on the influence of low frequency sound on the passengers' evaluation of the train cabin environment. There were two types of experiments, one was with 23 subjects using an anechoic chamber, and another was with 46 subjects using a train simulator. The simulator is able to recreate the environment in the cabin with sound, vibration and visual images (window scene). Experiments resulted in more subjects judging that the sound in the cabin including low frequency components (LF) was worse than that without LF in some of the evaluation categories such as 'total ride comfort' and 'perception of vibration.'

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