Advice on Amplifier and DAC upgrade

[Tomicooler]

Hi all,

I'm planning to upgrade my amplifier, based on the reviews here, I'm thinking to go with Purifi 1ET400A stereo power amplifier and I would also get a DAC with volume control and XLR outputs.
In the future I might buy a turntable, not for the music quality but for the ritual, an entry level Bluetooth one would suffice, but the DAC needs to have Bluetooth input to make this work.
The power consumption and efficiency is quite important, because it runs 12/7.

Source
Linux laptop (pipewire)
Firefox + Tidal (44.1khz 16 bit is the max on Firefox, but Chromium resamples)

Topping E30 DAC
Rotel Stereo Integrated Amplifier RA-930AX
Power output: 30 watts per channel into 8Ω (stereo)
Frequency response: 10Hz to 40kHz
Total harmonic distortion: 0.03%
Damping factor: 180
Input sensitivity: 2.5mV (MM), 150mV (line)
Signal to noise ratio: 80dB (MM), 100dB (line)
Speaker load impedance: 4Ω (minimum)
Dimensions: 440 x 92 x 304mm
Weight: 5.9kg
Year: 1991
Price: GBP £160 (1991)

Focal Chorus 826W 30th Anniversary Edition
Description: Three-way floor standing loudspeaker
Drive-units:
-1" (25mm) aluminum-magnesium inverted-dome tweeter
-6.5" (165mm) W sandwich-cone mid range driver
- two 6.5" (165mm) W sandwich-cone woofers
Crossover frequencies: 300Hz, 3kHz
Frequency response: 45Hz–28kHz, ±3dB
Sensitivity: 91.5dB
Impedance: 8 ohms nominal, 2.9 ohms minimum (at 118Hz)
Maximum power handling: 220W
Dimensions: 40 1/8" H (1038mm) by 11 1/8" (282mm) W by 14¼" (375mm) D
Weight: 56.8 lbs (25.8kg)
Price: $3495/pair (2010)


Upgrade Idea

AUDIOPHONICS LPA-S400ET Power Amplifier

Product type: Power amplifier
Power:
227W @ 8Ω, 1%THD
425W @ 4Ω, 1%THD
450W @ 2Ω, 1%THD
THD+N:
0.0007% @ PO=1W, f=1kHz
0.00026% @ PO=10W, f=1kHz
0.00015% @ PO=100W, f=1kHz
0.0007% @ PO=1W, f=20Hz-20kHz
0.00029% @ PO=10W, f=20Hz-20kHz
0.00017% @ PO=100W, f=20Hz-20kHz
IMD (CCIF):
0.00025% @ PO=1W, f=18kHz+19kHz
0.00022% @ PO=10W, f=18kHz+19kHz
0.00027% @ PO=100W, f=18kHz+19kHz
IMD (DIM):
0.002% @ PO=1W, DIM30
0.002% @ PO=10W, DIM30
0.002% @ PO=100W, DIM30
Quiescent noise: 11.5µV (A-Weighted)
Dynamic range: 131dB @ 4Ω (A-Weighted)
SNR: 131dB @ 4Ω (A-Weighted)
Frequency response:
20Hz - 20kHz ±0.01dB @ RL=8Ω
20Hz - 20kHz ±0.01dB @ RL=4Ω
20Hz - 20kHz ±0.01dB @ RL=2Ω
Output impedance:
Iout = 1A @ 0.07mΩ, 1kHz
Iout = 1A @ < 0.65mΩ, 20Hz-20kHz
Input impedance RCA: 47kΩ / XLR : 100kΩ
Bypass: 2.2kΩ / 4.4kΩ
Dimensions (without connectors): 19 x 35.9 x 7.8cm
Weight: 3.17kg

Gain settings:

1. Gain of +7.2dB, i.e. a total of 20dB - Maximum power reached with a 4.19V RMS signal.
2. Gain of +12.5dB, i.e. a total of 26dB (default) - Maximum power reached with a signal of 2.07V RMS.
3. Total gain of 32dB - Maximum power reached with a signal of 1.05Vrms
4. Total gain of 34dB - Maximum power reached with a signal of 0.83Vrms
5. Bypass (buffer deactivated): In this case, the signal passes directly from the inputs to the modules, allowing the lowest possible gain of 12.5dB. This mode can be interesting when using a powerful preamplifier, capable of driving a load of 2 to 4K Ohm and reaching a voltage of 10V RMS.

SMSL D-6S DAC

Output level:
XLR: 5Vrms
RCA: 2.5Vrms


Questions, concerns

1. Will this setup work? (SMSL D6-S as a preamp)
2. What is the right gain settings for me? The lowest option looks good to me, I listen to music on low volume, even on my Rotel I have never ever turned the volume knob to middle (living in a flat).
3. My Focal speakers has a max Power handling of 220W. The Power Amp will have 227W at 8 Ohm, I'm a bit scared if the SMSL DAC glitches to full volume it could kill my speakers or my ears.
4. Is this Power Amp overkill to my use case?
5. Any alternative suggestion on the Power Amp / DAC? (Apollon is prettier, but with VAT it costs 1436 Euro shipping included (Europe/Hungary). I like the design of the SMSL D6-S as well, I prefer not to have big screens or a colored one, I don't have headphones, no plan to get one, I got a Moondrop Variations IEM with a Moondrop DAWN 4.4 DAC for that purpose.)
6. Based on experience, did Audiophonics have Black Friday sales? ()

Also, if anybody is a proud owner of the SMSL D6-S DAC, could you confirm if the volume is controlled by the knob, how does it feel to turn the knob compared to a preamp/integrated amp's knob?

Thanks, appriciate your inputs.