Hi, you're reasoning is fair enough
You might find these units interesting:
https://emotiva.com/products/pres-an...xmc-1-hdmi-14b
https://emotiva.com/products/pres-and-pros/mc-700
http://outlawaudio.com/products/975.html
Or if you feel brave:
https://www.minidsp.com/products/ht-series/nanoavr-hda
you can pair an unbalanced unit with a cheap behringer ULTRALINK PRO MX882 to convert unbalanced to balanced.