Denon Parent Sound United buys Onkyo/Pioneer

I’m not terribly familiar with the Reference Series, but i would bet that it forms a pretty tiny niche of their business. ( talking about Denon-Marantz overall business). It could still hold down the high end for the new brand. It seems better poised to survive if they can position it above the rest of the line. I would expect it to outlive Pioneer’s Elite line and Denon and Onkyo don't seem to offer anything at that level. I am always curious how much crossover Denon-Marantz has under the hood (if any).

 

Some really nice, high performing products exist with these brands. I wonder if the brands will share the same core componants and just have unique faceplates for a particular brand. Much like GM of the 80’s onward.

The first think I would do is get rid of the aweful Polk Audio emblem that was introduced a few years back.

 

I know my local dealer was at the meeting on Tuesday and he seems pretty excited about it, though he already carried Denon, Marantz, and Pioneer. He used to carry Definitive. Ut i think his relationship was really with Sandy Gross as he now handles GoldenEar. Of course theres nothing that says that they will all merge together.

 

The audio industry is starting to feel like the airlines years ago with all the consolidation, mergers and everyone buying up everyone else........

oh well, natural progression I guess...........

 

Companies buy out other companies out all the time. Doesn't mean they are shutting them down, it just means they will own more pieces if the pie!

 

When DEI/Sound United bought Polk years ago they changed the logo to what you see today, which is unquestionably horrible.

 

I thought the D3 amps that Pioneer came up with for their Elite line of receivers were fantastic. I shopped and shopped, and for the money couldn't find a receiver I liked the sound of as much, at least not anywhere near that price...

Well, oddly enough, Onkyo doesn't seem to have consolidated Pioneer's stuff yet after owning them for awhile. And Denon and Marantz have been together for years, but were still making completely separate kit. I think the assumption is for this merger to work they'll have to start consolidating engineering.

 

Since they are made in the same factory, probably have a lot in common.

 

Denon, Boston etc, under D+M holdings, which was transferred around to even Bain Capital was based on destroying and outsourcing these brands. Boston is no more after 15 years of Chinese designed garbage.

DEI -> Sound United -> many audio brands (which acquired D+M in 2017), hopefully will improve the terrible support and product design as of late, as they could hardly do worse.

inMusic is another huge acquisition conglomerate, notable for ruining US-manufacturing based pro lines like Rane, and filling AKAI keyboards and Alesis with Chinese penny pots and switches.

The reason there is no quality consumer equipment at modest prices like the 90's is these companies buy well-known brands and exploit the name by selling garbage until they run the line into the ground.

Other brands mentioned often in this forum are no more than import-export firms ordering variants of OEM base models from big Hong Kong, Taiwan, or Chinese factories. Few companies left operating reputably - Yamaha, Technics. (Sony, but they screw their customers over, 10+ examples). Audio-Technica for their cartridges. Shure. Mom & Pop Grado.

 

Are they made in the same factory? I've seen nothing to indicate Denon and Marantz share manufacturing lines. Onkyo and Pioneer didn't have time to consolidate much between that merger and the Sound United buyout.

 

That has been my understanding. That they have been made in the same factory for several years.

No real need for them to be made in different factories. Similar products, made with the same machines on the sames assembly lines.

You are just making and assembling boards and cabinets.

Don't know this for a fact, but it is something that I did read, some years back.

 

The designs are still so different I'd be surprised if they were made in the same factory. But it's possible they consolidated manufacturing - the merger happened quite a few years ago. I mean, it's what I would expect them to have done, but some of these brand collectors aren't especially well run...

 

Consider all of the SS amplifier's that are designed by companies all over the world, but the products are made in a factory in China.

These factories are making products for more than one company.

I Japan, when CD radios were big in the late 70's, different products were made in in different factories owned by other manufacturer's.

For example, two different CB companies might both have therit entry level CB's made in the same factory owned by a manufacturing company. Both companies might also have the top of the line radios made in another factory, that was owned by still another manufacturing company.

For example, I know that the top of the line single sideband Cobra CB radios were produced for Cobra in the Uniden factory.

Today, factories are just places where they stamp out products.

Some Japanese products are probably made in Japanese factories, while their entry level products are stamped out in China.

 

Why is that surprising? I hear far more car alarms sounding off through the day than good audio coming out of cars or anywhere else.

 

There's another acquisition company flying a bit under the radar...Voxx International:

• 808 Audio
• Acoustic Research
• Advent
• Audiovox
• CarLink
• Champ
• Chipmunks
• Code-Alarm
• FlashLogic
• Hirschmann
• Incaar
• InVision Technologies
• Jamo
• Jensen Electronics
• Klipsch
• Prestige
• Pursuit
• PursuiTrak
• RCA
• Surface Clean
• Terk
• Zentral Home Command

 

Doesn’t a larger outfit now own McIntosh?

 

D&M, last I heard. Watch This Space.

EDIT: Whoops, I'm wrong. Since 2014 they're owned by what's now called the McIntosh Group, evidently based in Italy. Out of D&M's clutches.

 

I am a Marantz AVR fan and from what I have read on another forum Denon and Marantz share similar designs with Marantz using better quality components. Can't say this is true but that is what I read.

 

I say many mass produced brands are made in the same factories. Its really not a big deal for high volume manufacturing to switch to different variations of products during assembly processs.

 

Marantz Reference gear is made in Japan. The rest has been made in China and now some in Vietnam. Denon has been made in China, not sure if any is made in Vietnam now.

 

If they consolidate further--my bet?
Denon-Integra-Pioneer.
Three distinct brands.
The others are duplicative.

 

Sherwood/Inkel (a Korean company) makes virtually all Denon + Marantz receivers in the same Vietnam factories.

 

Sherwood, originally an American company, like Marantz, now Korean like Harman International.

 

this is sad to read. I loved going to the high end audio store and listening and investigating all the components and their differences.

in a few year we will just have a device made by a chinese company just called Radio. what a bummer

 

My understanding was, from that article I read, was that Marantz was considered to be the premier line, over Denon.