Onkyo Updates its Integrated Amps and its Identity
This year Onkyo turns 80. But lest ibe mistaken for some dinosaur, it came to CES 2026 with a new identity, new messaging, and new gear to back it up.
Now a part of Premium Audio Company and a close partner with Klipsch, Onkyo’s new messaging is aimed at movie lovers, music fans, and avid gamers alike. The company may be an octogenarian, but it is not chasing after the dwindling supply of aging audiophiles with a nostalgia play. It aims for greater relevance, including in the 2-channel category.
The key component contributing to Onkyo’s symbolic rebirth is the Premium Audio Company Technology Center (PACTC) located in Osaka, Japan. Per Onkyo, 59 engineers work on creating the next generation of Onkyo products. Each engineer brings an average of two decades experience to the table, so that’s a millennium’s worth of knowledge working as a team.
The outward sign of this effort is the new minimalist logo. It “tips its hat” to home theater by evoking cinemascope through the use of wider letter spacing. Moreover, you’ll see that logo show up on Klipsch gear that features active amplification.
The Muse Series
Onkyo’s new Muse series offerings bring up-to-date functionality that listeners expect from network integrated amplifiers: App control, streaming, room correction, and big VU meters. OK that last feature is not expected, but it sure looks good, and is useful.
The Muse Y-40 is the “budget champion” at $999 that outputs 125 Wpc into a 4-ohm load. It’s got HDMI eARC, support for MM Phono, and native Spotify Connect, TIDAL Connect, Qobuz Connect, AirPlay 2, and Chromecast.
The Muse Y-50 adds numerous key features: A phono stage that supports both MM and MC, room correction, a subwoofer output and has both 8K HDMI in and out, not just an eARC port. And the power doubles to 250 Wpc into 4 ohms. The room correction is proprietary=
The only catch I can see is that you could be shopping for an AVR with that kind of money. The Y-50 adds a lot of useful functionality for the extra $500.
The key is that these 2-channel solutions offer relative simplicity versus AV receivers, and look good doing it (those meters!) with the Y-50 looking like a perfect match for a nice, minimalist system consisting of new high-end TV in the living room and some ass-kicking Klipsch speakers (or whatever brand speakers you choose). Surely worth a listen.
