I'm thinking about getting the Cayin CS-55A which has a phono input as well as on board dac. It also has usb-b input. Right now my set up has me using my Cornwalls for music and TV. The layout is TV on a stand with an AV receiver under the TV, and my turntable and preamp are off to the side on top of a Kallax shelf. So if I did this I would probably want the tube amp next to the turn table on the shelf and run the speakers on the other wall to it. Fine. But what about the TV and streaming music? I'd like a solution for that on the cheaper side (under 500). I could run an optical cable from the TV over to the amp on the Kallax and I think that would be fine, but how best do I stream Apple Music? Should I get a device like a volumio primo, something with raspberry pi (the Primo?), or do a streamer like the Yamaha WXC-50? I even considered setting up an iPad with usb-c to usb-b to increase the resolution over airplay 2 but wondered if I could get a set up that would let me control that from the couch instead without losing quality. The last consideration is if my apartment can handle tubes. Most of my outlets are 2-prong and I think the electrical in general is old fashioned from the 40s/50s.. not sure if I'm gonna overload it with this tubes. Any advice appreciated.
I personally wouldn't use a tube amp as a hub for TV and music, seems like TV watching would be a waste of tube life. Assuming the TV has HDMI ARC, why not a Bluesound Node steamer with the TV connected via HDMI ARC and output optical to the Cayin... Unlikely you'll have an issue with the mains power unless the circuit is already heavily loaded. I would be more concerned about lack of ground causing hum with some gear. Cheers, Robert
