About Us

Acoustic Frontiers in a nutshell

Acoustic Frontiers specializes in the design, build and calibration of high performance listening rooms and home theaters. We are an industry leader in the use of acoustic measurements to analyze and optimize the audio aspects of reproduction environments. Our systems are, like a sports car, optimized, tweaked and tuned for the task at hand - delivering the best audio and video quality available.

Our main service offering is a comprehensive four step process for those looking to optimize the performance of their existing space or build a new dedicated room. We also offer an à la carte approach for those needing professional help with specific aspects of their system such as acoustic treatment design, speaker positioning or subwoofer integration. We offer our services both locally within the SF Bay Area, nationally within the USA and internationally.

Our main product offerings comprise acoustic treatment from RPG and Primacoustic, power enhancement devices from Torus Power, SurgeX and Environmental Potentials and AV equipment from DEQX, JL Audio, Marantz and Seymour AV / Seymour Screen Excellence. We sell a number of these brands online, including DEQX, RPG and Primacoustic.

A profile of Nyal Mellor, Founder Acoustic Frontiers LLC

Nyal Mellor is the Founder of Acoustic Frontiers LLC. Nyal is from England originally and moved to California in 2008 to chase his dreams of mountain biking, snowboarding and high end audio. He was educated at the world renowned Oxford University and is one of 40 or so individuals in the USA to hold the Home Acoustics Alliance Level II certification. In his spare time Nyal enjoys designing digitally crossed over, digitally corrected and actively amplified speakers, expoloring different BBQ techniques and exploring the trails of Marin county with his wife and dog. He is active on internet forums including AVS, AudioCircle and What's Best and contributes to the AV community by maintaining an active blog and writing articles.

Certifications and credentials

The HAA® is a professional training organization dedicated toward home acoustics. Its purpose is to promote the correct and most effective use of acoustical design and calibration techniques specifically for the home. According to Gerry Lemay, the founder of HAA, there are only around 40 people in the whole country with Level II certification! And one of them, Nyal Mellor, is our Chief Acoustician!

The Audio Engineering Society is the only professional society devoted exclusively to audio technology. Founded in the United States in 1948, the AES has grown to become an international organization that unites audio engineers, creative artists, scientists and students worldwide by promoting advances in audio and disseminating new knowledge and research.

Published Papers and Articles

Acoustical Measurement Standards for Stereo Listening Rooms written with Jeff Hedback of HdAcoustics. This groundbreaking paper lays down a set of acoustic measurement standards for high performance two channel rooms covering frequency response, low frequency decay and many other areas.
The Three Acoustical Issues that Room Correction Can't Correct published on Hi Fi Zine. This article outlines that despite all its wizardry, room correction devices can't correct for speaker boundary interference, excessively long reverberation times or strong early reflections.
Listening Room Reflections and the Energy Time Curve published on Hi Fi Zine. This article shows that it is the spectrum, not the level, of reflected sounds that is the critical factor in determining the psychoacoustic importance of reflections.
The "Room Measuring" Series, co-authored with Ethan Winer of RealTraps and published on What's Best Forum and the RealTraps website. This article explains why you need to measure your room, what hardware you need and runs through the process of taking measurements.