Spiroh, there are no practical benefits to using XLR outputs in a domestic environment unless your living space is besieged by local RF and power-line interference. There is no improvement in fidelity or sound quality with XLR connectors -- only suppression of possible interference and hum.
XLR connections were designed for broadcasting, sound reinforcement, and studio applications for long microphone cable runs and equipment interconnection, where cables are run hundreds of feet and may cross power supply cables from remote generator trucks. In the vast majority of home applications, they are not necessary. Most were added as an up-market sales ploy to lure gullible audiophiles into buying expensive gear that appears "professional".
And 2X6, despite your enthusiasm for vacuum-tube distortion generators, it makes as much sense to use tube amplifiers in modern-day high-fidelity systems as it would be to use a tube-operated computer or HDTV set (the former would fill an entire room with heat-generating electronics requiring its own dedicated cooling system).
Of course, many rock guitarists like the sound of vacuum-tube distortion layered over their guitar's output, but that's a different discussion.
Regards,
Alan
