Last Updated or created 2026-08-05

Our Onkyo was giving problems, some channels are breaking up.
To have some channels back, we needed to crank up the volume for a few seconds.

So I thought .. preamps!

So I opened the Onkyo and started investigating.

We used it as a 5.1 surround sound system. So I’ve got PreAmp channels to spare, so lets switch the boards!

Well, that didn’t work.
Reading forums, it COULD be the sound chip, on the main board.
Because of the heat over the years, it could losing contact with the main PCB.

So I put my heatgun to work, but to no avail.
One of the square chips on the right in first photo.

The AMP being 15+ years old, we decided to get a new one.
Researching best amp’s in 2026 … in our price range.

Onkyo TX-RZ50

Amazing …

Using the DIRAC sound setup, perfect again.

Using the same IP, our Home Assistant setup mostly worked without changing much.