For small, consumer-facing generators, the quietest model I am aware of is the Honda EU6500. These, and the rest of the Honda EU line, have the added advantage

For small, consumer-facing generators, the quietest model I am aware of is the Honda EU6500. These, and the rest of the Honda EU line, have the added advantage of being inverter generators that output a very clean sine wave. In both the live concert and movie production worlds the Eu6500 is a frequent fixture on site as the small generator of choice. I also have good experience with the smaller EU3000. The line can be found here: http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/inverter-generators http://powerequipment.honda.com/generators/inverter-generato... Yamaha also makes a line of low noise inverter gensets. They also have a 4500 watt class model. A friend of mine choose one of the Yamahas over the Honda: http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outdoor/products/modeloverview/cat/2007/55/model_overview.aspx http://www.yamaha-motor.com/outdoor/products/modeloverview/c... Please note that both the Honda and Yamaha lines are much more expensive, and put out much cleaner power, than the typical construction generators prominently featured for cheap at the big box retailer. Buy once, cry once. Since you indicate you are considering multiple generators, you could move up the food chain to one larger enclosure-mounted installed generator. There are many choices, but my personal recommendation are the ones from Onan, who dominate the recreational vehicle (RV) generator market: http://cumminsonan.com/residential/ http://cumminsonan.com/residential/ For perspective, a common "small" portable generator for technical show power is the Multiquip (MQ) DCA45. It is a 45KVA-class generator with equivalently sized diesel prime mover: http://www.multiquip.com/multiquip/DCA45SSKU.htm http://www.multiquip.com/multiquip/DCA45SSKU.htm