Amplifiers should not be triggered on/off. When they are not in use, they draw almost no power at all and if they 'HUM' as Russound points out on their page, then it's not because the amp is on, it is because the amp is crap. I only use Rotel RMB-1048 amplifiers. I leave them on all the time. They don't make a whisper of hum when there is not a source going to them, yet they instantly are available to listen to music.
I'm not sure where you would want to setup the 4 zone distribution system or how you would want to trigger it on/off. But, typically you would need a distributed audio system pre-amp ahead of the main unit to turn on/off individual zones and to adjust volume.
At the end of the day, at a reasonable price, I would check out stuff from Home Theater Direct. They offer systems which can be controlled by your phone for multi-zone distributed systems...
Whole-house audio systems you can install yourself and control with keypads and smart devices. All HTD electronics include a 30-day guarantee, 2-year warranty.
www.htd.com
I might get something like this if you haven't bought any amp or anything else yet...
DetailsCat 5/6 cable NOT requiredIt is possible to control our Mid-Level and Lync whole-house audio systems from any iOS or Android smart phone or tablet using your existing WiFi network and our free apps. If the difficulty of running Cat 5/5e/6 cable to Keypad locations has prevented you from...
www.htd.com
