How To Fix Onkyo Remote Not Working Issue? Troubleshooting Guide

If your Onkyo remote not working in most cases the problem is related to the remote itself.

Sometimes it could be a TV issue so in this post, we’ll provide transparency on the causes and their respective solutions.

To fix a not working Onkyo remote, first ensure that the remote is programmed to your TV correctly and the batteries are fresh. Next, you can power cycle your TV device, remove interference and clean the remote’s hardware.

Next, we’ll take a look at what users have to say after dealing with this exact problem, and then, how they managed to solve it.

Why Is the Onkyo Receiver Remote Not Working?

If your Onkyo receiver remote isn’t working, there could be several causes for this issue.

First, it is good to reconsider if you have damaged or dropped your remote lately. The fragile hardware of some remotes can be easily damaged by drop or water damage.

Let’s exclude this possibility for now and take a look at what else might have happened:

1. Programming Issue

If the programming to the remote was not successful, the remote will not work.

2. Interference

Interference caused by physical objects or RF receivers and other transmitters might also suppress or devour the signal.

3. Worn-out Batteries

We assume that you’ve taken action against the obvious.

4. TV Problem

In cases where the Onkyo remote is programmed to the TV, the problem might be in the TV not in the remote.

We’ve included solutions targeting ALL possibilities, so by the end of the post, you’ll definitely discover and hopefully solve the problem.

How To Fix Onkyo Remote Not Working Easily?

Solving your remote issue is fairly easy if the remote’s hardware is in-tact.

Since we cannot know what happened to the remote, we’ve listed the solution in order that will save you as much time as possible.

Having that said, let’s start from the beginning:

Solution #1 Discharge Onkyo Remote

The first solution is to discharge your remote actively.

If you’ve never heard of this method, an active discharge will reset your remote entirely, and you’ll most likely have to program it over which is explained in the next solution.

Here are the steps to discharge your remote:

1. Take the remote’s battery compartment apart.
2. Eject the batteries out of the compartment.
3. Press and hold each button on your Onkyo remote for ~5 seconds.
4. Put the compartment back together.

Sometimes the discharge or also known as the power cycle does not unpair the remote, but in both cases, we recommend re-programming the remote over.

Solution #2 Replace The Batteries

It is extremely important to exclude the possibility of worn-out batteries before you continue otherwise there is no point in applying more complex solutions ahead.

Here are some additional steps to replace your Onkyo remote’s batteries:

1. Take the remote’s battery compartment apart.
2. Eject the old batteries out of the compartment.
3. Grab a fresh set of batteries for your remote and insert them in.
4. Install the compartment again.

We recommend using brand new batteries and not pieces you’ve put aside after a while of usage.

This way you will be able to determine whether the issue comes from the charge or not.

Solution #3 Reprogram The Remote

One of the most frequent causes for your remote to disconnect or become unusable is the fact that it isn’t paired in the first place.

This depends on whether programming has been done correctly or not.

To program your Onko remote, follow these steps:

1. On your Onkyo remote, press the TV/CD button and the Display button at the same time.
2. Wait for the LED of the remote to light up in bright red.
3. Enter the TV-specific code for your TV.
4. Press the power button once.

Here are some popular TV brand codes:

• Hitachi: 1004, 1009, 1010, 1013
• TCL TV: 1346, 1756
• Philips: 1129, 1236, 1237
• Panasonic: 1003,1010,1049
• LG: 1002, 1004, 1005
• Vizio: 1758, 0178, 1756
• Toshiba: 0260, 0358, 0394
• Sony: 1001, 1036, 1093

Note: If you don’t see your TV brand here, simply Google the TV code for Onkyo remote programming and you should easily discover it.

Solution #4 Remove Interference

If the Onkyo remote is not working, there is most likely to be some kind of interference disrupting your remote signal.

Interference can be caused by physical objects blocking the signal of the RF transmitters.

Follow the steps below to ensure that there is no interference:

1. Remove solid obstructions between your remote and TV.
2. Displace RF transmitters around your TV.
3. Get rid of devices on top of or near your TV.
4. Aim your remote directly at the TV.

Once done, try interacting with the TV from several different angles to determine whether there is a problem with the RF transmission or it’s something else.

Solution #5 Factory Reset The TV

For many users, the Onkyo remote issue turned out to be a TV issue.

In that regard we recommend performing a hard reset on your TV and if it does not fix the problem, proceeding with an entire factory reset.

If you have never done a factory reset, here are some universal steps to follow:

1. Go to the Menu of your TV.
2. Open the Settings in the menu.
3. Head to a “System” tab.
4. Locate the factory reset option.
5. Start a factory reset.

Once the reset has concluded, you will most likely have to reprogram the remote back to your TV again.

You can scroll up to Solution #3. When ready, test if the remote will now be able to work. If not, well, we’ve got you covered in the next solution!

Solution #6 Use Smartphone App (Bypass)

If you’re struggling to get your Onkyo remote to work with, there is a way to bypass using a hardware remote.

There is a way to control your TV via a smartphone application connecting to your receiver and in the steps below you’ll learn how:

1. Download the smartphone Onkyo receiver app from the Android or iOS app store.
2. Install the app on your phone and turn it on.
3. Turn on the Bluetooth feature on your phone.
4. Go back to the app and scan for your receiver on the Bluetooth page.
5. Once the receiver has been scanned, connect with it by pressing the connection once.

From now on you will be able to digitally guide the receiver through your smartphone, thus controlling your TV.

Why Is Onkyo Remote Volume Not Working?

If ONLY the volume on your remote does not work, we recommend making sure that you’ve applied Solutions #1, #2, and #3. From there on you’ll be left with 2 possibilities.

Your remote buttons could be dirty inside, thus not making a connection, or your TV is muted.

Try pressing the MUTE button and then the Volume Up button several times to exclude this possibility.

The next step would be to open the remote and inspect if the volume buttons are making a proper connection.

If you feel confident you can do this yourself since many users share that it’s really easy to disassemble the remote and reach inside.

The other workaround is to bring the remote for repair and hopefully, your volume issues will be solved.

Read Next: How to Connect Onkyo Receiver to Samsung Smart TV?

Bottom Line:

To fix the Onkyo remote, first hard reset your TV and power cycle the remote. Next, you can try replacing the remote’s batteries and remove potential interference. Lastly, you can perform a factory reset on your TV and if it does not work, use the smartphone application instead.

Now that you know why the Onkyo remote is not working, you should be able to confidently resolve the issue following our solutions.

If in the end, the issue is still occurring, you might have to consider getting a new remote.