switching the amplifier according to a timer

Hi all!

My current problem is that I use the Hifiberry dac+pro, with rpi3, and a standard NAD c316bee amplifier .
However it is possible to set the Volumio to play music at a certain time with the alarm, the amplifier will be stayed off at that time, even if it is in standby . So how can I switch on the amplifier when the volumio starts to play?

I wondered if it is possible to make the system work by an IR control like this:

-http://dangerousprototypes.com/docs/USB_Infrared_Toy
using Lirc

-Or with smartphone

Has anyone experience with this, or know how can i solve this problem?
I have tried some mobile application but it seems neither of them works…

Many thanks