To set up Zone 2 on an Onkyo TX-NR6100, connect the second room’s speakers to the receiver’s ZONE 2 speaker terminals, then open the Setup menu and set 2. Speaker > Configuration > “Zone Speaker” to “Zone 2.” To play, hold ZONE 2 SHIFT on the remote, press the power button until “Z2” lights on the display, and pick an input while still holding ZONE 2 SHIFT.
If you’d rather power the second room with a separate amplifier, run a cable from ZONE 2 LINE OUT to that amp instead. Either way, Zone 2 plays in 2-channel stereo. Two limits catch most people. First, sources plugged into the receiver only reach Zone 2 as analog or 2-channel PCM audio. Second, while Zone 2 speakers are playing, the main room loses its surround back or height speakers.
Pick your hookup: speakers or line out
| ZONE 2 speaker terminals | ZONE 2 LINE OUT | |
|---|---|---|
| What you connect | Regular passive speakers, wired straight to the receiver | An integrated amplifier (or powered speakers with an analog input) in the other room |
| Extra gear | Just speaker wire | An amp and an RCA audio cable |
| Setting to change | Zone Speaker = Zone 2 | Zone 2 Lineout = Zone 2 (the default) |
| Volume control | Receiver’s remote or front panel | The amplifier in the second room |
| Main room while Zone 2 plays | Surround back or height speakers go quiet | Onkyo doesn’t list this limit for line-out use |
Onkyo’s manual describes the ZONE 2 speaker hookup for North American and Taiwanese models, so check your region’s manual if your receiver came from elsewhere. If you want your full main-room system running while someone plays music in the kitchen, the line-out route with a small external amp avoids giving up any main-room speakers.
Step 1: Make the connection
Using the ZONE 2 speaker terminals
- Put the receiver in standby, or unplug it.
- Run speaker wire from the second room’s left and right speakers to the terminals marked for ZONE 2 on the back of the receiver. Match + to + and − to −.
- Twist each wire end tightly so no loose strands touch the rear panel or the neighboring terminals. Stray strands can trigger the receiver’s protection circuit.
Using ZONE 2 LINE OUT
- Connect an analog RCA audio cable from the receiver’s ZONE 2 LINE OUT jacks to an input on the integrated amplifier in the other room.
- Connect the second room’s speakers to that amplifier.
Step 2: Tell the receiver what you connected
- Turn on the receiver and switch the TV to the receiver’s input.
- Press the Setup button on the remote, or SETUP on the front panel.
- Select 2. Speaker > Configuration.
- For speaker terminals, set Zone Speaker to Zone 2. For line out, check that Zone 2 Lineout is set to Zone 2.
- Check Speaker Channels for your main room. Onkyo shows 3.1, 5.1, 7.1, 3.1.2, and 5.1.2 layouts working alongside ZONE 2 speakers.
The two settings are linked. Zone Speaker can only be set to Zone 2 while Zone 2 Lineout is on Zone 2. Once you pick Zone 2 for Zone Speaker, Zone 2 Lineout locks on Zone 2. Bi-Amp is also forced to No, so you can’t bi-amp the front speakers and use Zone 2 speakers together.
On a new or reset receiver, the Initial Setup wizard asks these same questions in its Speaker Setup step.
Step 3: Test the second room
- In the Setup menu, go to 6. Multi Zone > Zone 2.
- Select Sound Check. With “Start” showing, press ENTER.
- Follow the prompts. A test tone should play in the second room. If you’re using line out, turn on the external amp and set it to the right input first.
The Initial Setup wizard runs the same test as its Multi Zone Sound Check step.
Step 4: Turn Zone 2 on and choose what plays
With the remote
- Point the remote at the receiver. Hold ZONE 2 SHIFT and press the power button. “Z2” lights up on the receiver’s display.
- Keep holding ZONE 2 SHIFT and press the input button you want to hear in the second room.
- For Zone 2 speakers, keep holding ZONE 2 SHIFT and use the volume buttons. For line out, set the volume on the second room’s amplifier.
- To turn Zone 2 off, hold ZONE 2 SHIFT and press the power button again.
With the front panel
- Press ZONE 2, then press an input selector button within 8 seconds.
- To play the same thing in both rooms, press ZONE 2 twice instead.
- To change Zone 2’s volume, press ZONE 2 and turn MASTER VOLUME within 8 seconds.
- Press OFF to turn Zone 2 off.
Onkyo also points to its Onkyo Controller app as a convenient way to run both rooms from a phone or tablet. It needs the receiver on your home network. Our TX-NR6100 Wi-Fi guide gets it online.
What can play in Zone 2 (and what can’t)
This is the part that causes the most confusion, especially “Why won’t my TV play in Zone 2?” Here are Onkyo’s rules:
| Source | Works in Zone 2? | What to know |
|---|---|---|
| Analog inputs (turntable, CD player on RCA) | Yes | The simplest source for a second room. |
| HDMI devices | Only on HDMI IN1, IN2, or IN3 | The device must also send 2-channel PCM. Set its audio output to PCM, not Bitstream. |
| Optical or coaxial digital | Only as 2-channel PCM | Set the source device’s digital audio output to PCM. |
| NET (streaming, AirPlay, internet radio) and BLUETOOTH | Yes, but it must be the same source as the main room | If the main room is on NET and you pick BLUETOOTH for Zone 2, the main room switches to BLUETOOTH too. |
| AM/FM radio | Yes, same station only | You can’t play different stations in the two rooms. |
| DSD music files over NET | No | DSD audio from the NET input can’t go to Zone 2. |
The HDMI rule matters more than it looks. By default, BD/DVD, GAME, and CBL/SAT use HDMI 1, 2, and 3. STRM BOX uses HDMI 4, so a Roku, Apple TV, or Fire TV connected to HDMI 4 won’t play in Zone 2. Move the device to HDMI IN 1, 2, or 3 if you want it in both rooms. If you move it, update the matching input under 1. Input/Output Assign > HDMI Input.
What about TV sound? Audio coming back from your TV over ARC or eARC isn’t one of the Zone 2 paths Onkyo describes. If you need TV sound in the second room, try connecting the TV’s optical output to the receiver and setting the TV’s digital audio output to PCM. That route follows Onkyo’s PCM rule, but Onkyo doesn’t specifically confirm it for TV audio.
How Zone 2 changes the main room
- Surround back or height speakers go silent while the ZONE 2 speaker terminals are in use. In a 7.1 setup, you lose the surround backs. In a 5.1.2 setup, you lose the heights.
- Pure Audio switches to Direct if Zone 2 turns on while the main room is using Pure Audio mode.
- Zone B is unavailable while Zone 2 is on.
- The Bluetooth transmitter turns off, so Bluetooth headphones connected to the receiver stop working while Zone 2 is on.
- Auto Standby doesn’t work while Zone 2 is on, so turn Zone 2 off when you’re done instead of counting on the receiver to shut itself off.
- Standby power goes up when Zone 2 is left on.
Because of these trade-offs, turn Zone 2 off before you run room calibration. See our guide to running AccuEQ on the TX-NR6100 for the rest of that process. Onkyo also asks you to turn off multi-zone playback before updating the receiver’s firmware.
Handy Zone 2 settings
All of these are in the Setup menu under 6. Multi Zone.
- Maximum Volume (under Zone 2): caps how loud Zone 2 can go. Useful if kids or guests use the patio speakers. It applies when the volume display is set to “Absolute.”
- Power On Volume (under Zone 2): sets the volume Zone 2 starts at. Last (the default) picks up where you left off. It can’t be higher than Maximum Volume.
- Remote Play Zone: decides which room AirPlay, Spotify Connect, and music-server playback goes to. Auto (the default) plays in whichever room has NET selected. Choose Main or Zone 2 to lock it to one room.
Zone 2 vs Zone B vs a second TV
The TX-NR6100 has two other “extra room” features that are easy to mix up with Zone 2:
- Zone B sends the same audio as the main room out of the same RCA line-out jacks that Zone 2 line out uses. Onkyo designed it for things like wireless headphone or wireless speaker transmitters. It can’t play a different source. To use it, set Zone 2 Lineout to Zone B, then press Q for the Quick Menu and set Audio > Zone B to On (A+B) (both places) or On (B) (Zone B only).
- Zone 2 HDMI sends video and audio from an HDMI input to a second TV or projector on the HDMI OUT SUB/ZONE 2 jack. Set 1. Input/Output Assign > TV Out / OSD > Zone 2 HDMI to Use to turn it on.
Zone 2 troubleshooting
| Problem | Likely cause and fix |
|---|---|
| No sound in Zone 2 from a Blu-ray player, game console, or streaming box | The device isn’t on HDMI IN1–IN3, or it’s sending surround or bitstream audio. Move it to HDMI 1–3 and set its audio output to PCM. |
| Radio and Bluetooth work in Zone 2, but TV sound doesn’t | ARC audio isn’t a listed Zone 2 path. Try the TV’s optical output set to PCM (see above). |
| Can’t select “Zone 2” for Zone Speaker | Zone 2 Lineout is set to Zone B or Front. Set it back to Zone 2 first. |
| Zone 2 plays, but volume buttons do nothing (line out) | With ZONE 2 LINE OUT, set the volume on the second room’s amplifier. |
| Surround back or height speakers stopped working | Zone 2 speakers are playing. Turn Zone 2 off, or switch to line out with an external amp. |
| Main room changed inputs when Zone 2 was turned on | NET and BLUETOOTH must be the same source in both rooms, so choosing one in Zone 2 can switch the main room. |
| “Z2” doesn’t light | Keep holding ZONE 2 SHIFT while you press the power button, or use the front-panel ZONE 2 button. |
Onkyo’s official steps are in the TX-NR6100 Multi-zone Playback support article. The wiring diagrams for each speaker layout with ZONE 2 are in the TX-NR6100 instruction manual (PDF).