How annoying! It was one of my most enduring criticisms of three of my previous gyms: the background music, played at sufficient volume to drown out whatever was on my own headphones. It always made me feel like a cranky old cane-waver constantly asking the desk staff to please lower the volume, which almost invariably led to a tight smile and a barely perceptible reduction.

One of the things I cherish about the YMCA: no music, ever. Bring your own. And what is so wrong about a meditative silence as one sweats?

I think durham_rambler is dead right in his assessment.