Onkyo, Pioneer Fiscal Year Ends Soon with Looming Bankruptcy.

[Wayde Robson]

It looks like Premium Audio Co is doing some damage control after Friday's announcement and a weekend of tech news websites going full-pants-on-fire over Onkyo going away. I just got a press release from them, hopefully I didn't contribute to the "Dead Onkyo" impression people are getting from the bankruptcy news.

This answers some of my previous questions about R&D for new products.

From PAC:
Premium Audio Company, LLC Comments on Onkyo Home Entertainment Bankruptcy Filing

Premium Audio Company, LLC, through a joint venture with Sharp Corporation acquired certain assets of the audio/video business of Onkyo Home Entertainment Corporation in September 2021 – this latest filing has no impact on operations and is unrelated to the assets acquired

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. – May 16, 2022 — Premium Audio Company, LLC, (“PAC”) a wholly owned subsidiary of VOXX International Corporation (NASDAQ: VOXX), today provided comments regarding Onkyo Home Entertainment Corporation’s (“OHE”) bankruptcy filing with the Osaka District Court. PAC’s statement was made in response to misleading media reports regarding the Onkyo brand, which was acquired through a joint venture between PAC and Sharp Corporation in September 2021 and has grown considerably since.

On May 13, 2022, OHE filed for bankruptcy protection in Osaka, Japan. This filing did not include the assets that were previously purchased by PAC and Sharp. The joint venture between these companies acquired the Onkyo and Integra brands, including all intellectual property, and took responsibility for product development, engineering, sales, marketing and distribution of Onkyo’s home entertainment business. The joint venture also assumed all manufacturing of these products, which includes a variety of A/V and stereo receivers, amplifiers and hi-fi components under both the Onkyo and Integra brands.

The Premium Audio Company, through its 11 Trading Company (“11TC”) subsidiary, began as a distributor of the Onkyo, Integra, Pioneer and Pioneer Elite brands in July 2020. In April 2021, 11TC became the exclusive US distributor of the Teac and Esoteric audio brands and in September 2021, Premium Audio Company through its joint venture with Sharp, acquired the Onkyo and Integra brands, and established a licensing and distribution agreement with Pioneer Corporation. Sales of these branded products are all through 11TC, which grew from $13.7 million in revenue in Fiscal 2021 to $59.4 million in Fiscal 2022, with Onkyo branded products #1 by volume.

Paul Jacobs, President and Chief Executive Officer of Premium Audio Company stated, “Demand for Onkyo and Integra products has been very high and we expect this to intensify in the coming years. We have been working very closely with Sharp to ramp up production and have grown our business significantly since the acquisition was completed. We have big plans for Onkyo and the other brands sold through 11TC and as we build production and expand distribution, believe sales will more than double in the near-term. Rumors or any statements to the contrary about the Onkyo brand are simply unfounded and misleading.”

 

[Big-Q]

I want to see Onkyo succeed. Here is hoping they do.

 

[lovinthehd]

It looks like Premium Audio Co is doing some damage control after Friday's announcement and a weekend of tech news websites going full-pants-on-fire over Onkyo going away. I just got a press release from them, hopefully I didn't contribute to the "Dead Onkyo" impression people are getting from the bankruptcy news.

This answers some of my previous questions about R&D for new products.

View attachment 56075
From PAC:
Premium Audio Company, LLC Comments on Onkyo Home Entertainment Bankruptcy Filing

Premium Audio Company, LLC, through a joint venture with Sharp Corporation acquired certain assets of the audio/video business of Onkyo Home Entertainment Corporation in September 2021 – this latest filing has no impact on operations and is unrelated to the assets acquired

INDIANAPOLIS, IND. – May 16, 2022 — Premium Audio Company, LLC, (“PAC”) a wholly owned subsidiary of VOXX International Corporation (NASDAQ: VOXX), today provided comments regarding Onkyo Home Entertainment Corporation’s (“OHE”) bankruptcy filing with the Osaka District Court. PAC’s statement was made in response to misleading media reports regarding the Onkyo brand, which was acquired through a joint venture between PAC and Sharp Corporation in September 2021 and has grown considerably since.

On May 13, 2022, OHE filed for bankruptcy protection in Osaka, Japan. This filing did not include the assets that were previously purchased by PAC and Sharp. The joint venture between these companies acquired the Onkyo and Integra brands, including all intellectual property, and took responsibility for product development, engineering, sales, marketing and distribution of Onkyo’s home entertainment business. The joint venture also assumed all manufacturing of these products, which includes a variety of A/V and stereo receivers, amplifiers and hi-fi components under both the Onkyo and Integra brands.

The Premium Audio Company, through its 11 Trading Company (“11TC”) subsidiary, began as a distributor of the Onkyo, Integra, Pioneer and Pioneer Elite brands in July 2020. In April 2021, 11TC became the exclusive US distributor of the Teac and Esoteric audio brands and in September 2021, Premium Audio Company through its joint venture with Sharp, acquired the Onkyo and Integra brands, and established a licensing and distribution agreement with Pioneer Corporation. Sales of these branded products are all through 11TC, which grew from $13.7 million in revenue in Fiscal 2021 to $59.4 million in Fiscal 2022, with Onkyo branded products #1 by volume.

Paul Jacobs, President and Chief Executive Officer of Premium Audio Company stated, “Demand for Onkyo and Integra products has been very high and we expect this to intensify in the coming years. We have been working very closely with Sharp to ramp up production and have grown our business significantly since the acquisition was completed. We have big plans for Onkyo and the other brands sold through 11TC and as we build production and expand distribution, believe sales will more than double in the near-term. Rumors or any statements to the contrary about the Onkyo brand are simply unfounded and misleading.”

OTOH that the Voxx side was so slow in this regard isn't confidence inspiring either.

 

[PENG]

OTOH that the Voxx side was so slow in this regard isn't confidence inspiring either.

Agreed, someone probably would get fired for failing to coordinate the communication/announcements between Onkyo and VOXX..., it is obviously by the multiple threads/posts here and elsewhere there they confused even the loyal Onkyo AVR/AVP fans, and might have cause them to worry about nothing (at least not yet). It should have been easily enough to mention VOXX's side of the story in the Onkyo bankruptcy announcement.

Damage control works best before the damage is made, i.e. damage prevention instead.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

The ONLY way Onkyo will sell any AVR is if they sell them CHEAP.

But if they sell them CHEAP, how can they make enough money to survive?

It's a bad cycle that's prolonging the inevitable. That's why we keep hearing every year about the same thing - Onkyo going bankrupt.

I think the only way for Onkyo to break this cycle is to offer much better customer service and keep the prices relative to Yamaha and Denon.

Offering Dirac Room Correction was a fantastic idea, but not if it's going to cause them to bleed money, which is a recipe for bankruptcy.

1. Offer Dirac Live on high-end models (since DM and Y do not offer Dirac yet - DM may offer according to rumors)
2. Increase price of the high-end models with Dirac Live to match Yamaha and DM to stop the money bleed
3. Match Yamaha's 5YR Warranty and free shipping both ways for repairs - this will give consumers more confidence to spend $2 - 3K

 

[PeterInVan]

I bought the Onkyo A-9110 2ch amp the week before the bankruptcy announcement.
It was the best choice for upgrading my crappy JVC 5.1 AV receiver.
The Onkyo drives my ELAC B5.2 speakers which fit perfectly under my TV. I have a small sub-woofer for movie rumble.

No soundbar for me. I wanted the best sound in my living room for under $1,000. By limiting the features on this amp Onkyo was able to use top quality components.

Now I can enjoy listening to my Tidal streaming via 3.5mm to RCA cable.
And movies sound great from the TV (also 3.5mm to RCA cable).

All my gear is enclosed in a closet, so I have an old Harmony RF remote. Neat, Tidy,

I have been a techie all my life, but as I get older I want simplicity.

The only mod I had to do was paint the dots on the knobs white.

 

[Jeff Zimmerman]

I purchased a TX-NR7100 back in January because it was the cheapest Dirac device I could find. And it's really excellent TBH. Sad that Onkyo continues to struggle. In any case I really hope the Dirac correction stays in some of the more affordable receivers in Onkyo and other brands as it is hands down the best correction software I've used by far. It's running in a bad room acoustically but thanks to Dirac, I have no audible indication of speaker location. Amazing.

 

[lovinthehd]

I purchased a TX-NR7100 back in January because it was the cheapest Dirac device I could find. And it's really excellent TBH. Sad that there won't be any more Onkyos. I hope the Dirac correction stays in some of the more affordable receivers as it is hands down the best correction software I've used by far. It's running in a bad room acoustically but thanks to Dirac, I have no audible indication of speaker location. Amazing.

FWIW https://www.audioholics.com/news/despite-bankruptcy-onkyo-pioneer-elite-av-drives-on

 

[Maze400]

I purchased a TX-NR7100 back in January because it was the cheapest Dirac device I could find. And it's really excellent TBH. Sad that Onkyo continues to struggle. In any case I really hope the Dirac correction stays in some of the more affordable receivers in Onkyo and other brands as it is hands down the best correction software I've used by far. It's running in a bad room acoustically but thanks to Dirac, I have no audible indication of speaker location. Amazing.

I did the same thing but also have the NR6050 and wanted to compare Dirac live with Accueq. The interesting thing is Dirac turns off on the 7100 if you switch it to THX mode. The center channel seems to sound cleaning in THX mode and I have no idea why? I am hoping someone here can give me advice.

 

[dlaloum]

I did the same thing but also have the NR6050 and wanted to compare Dirac live with Accueq. The interesting thing is Dirac turns off on the 7100 if you switch it to THX mode. The center channel seems to sound cleaning in THX mode and I have no idea why? I am hoping someone here can give me advice.

Seems to be the case on all the Onkyo models...

I found that the center channel sounded much cleaner after running Dirac

 

[PENG]

Seems to be the case on all the Onkyo models...

I found that the center channel sounded much cleaner after running Dirac

I think people, especially the experienced ones should just get over this sighted listening comparisons thing. Been there done that, if you know which one is playing, it doesn't matter what you think you heard. It is good to see at least some, such as maze400 use the word "seems" wisely.

 

[dlaloum]

Yeah

I think people, especially the experienced ones should just get over this sighted listening comparisons thing. Been there done that, if you know which one is playing, it doesn't matter what you think you heard. It is good to see at least some, such as maze400 use the word "seems" wisely.

Every authentic audiophile should have a proper "Harman" room, with rotating speaker stand so multiple speakers can be compared "blind" - and a complete ABX test switcher, with at least 2 differing source, amplifier and preamplifier components... without that one clearly cannot call oneself "audiophile".