$510.00 for an Aluminum cover for the ARC Ref. 10?

Ah, the world and the way it works! I had to laugh (maybe cry) when I saw this post.

The ice dispenser in the door of my Viking fridge broke. (Note - this is endemic to Viking, they all break and there's a class action law suit out there seeking money for those hit with the problem). Anyway, the replacement plastic box that holds ice (full disclosure, it contains the auger for the dispenser, too) was exactly ....you guessed it.....$510. Either ARC owns Viking or $510 is the new magic number for luxury replacement parts costing $25 to manufacture..

For further context, my late labrador retriever once chewed up the plastic release button on the tip of the handbrake of my Porsche Carrera. This is 5 cents worth of plastic. Porsche wanted $1700 to replace the entire hand brake which, they explained, involved removing the drivers seat for installation. No, I did not kill the dog, but it's the last Porsche I'll ever own.

This kind of nonsense feels like a Darwinian imperative for those of us who buy this shit in the first place. It's like wearing a "Kick me!" sign on your back. Sadly, we've all done this to ourselves.

Martykl,

I guess the manufacturers of luxury items think the people that buy them are suckers and can charge whatever they want for replacement parts.

Pehare---I've done exactly that. My RM-200 MK.2 amp is the last one I'll ever buy.

Nice Bdp24 - I've always wanted to try an RM200 but don't need the horsepower w/my speakers. I remember Modjeski saying he was at an audio show a few years ago & the big ARC monoblocks mentioned above were playing & on display. He observed & commented to the salesperson that one of the sixteen kt88's in one of the monoblocks was about to go south as the gettering was about toast. I'll never forget his rather candid comment that "16 output tubes in an amp was a sickening sight" :)

Here's a $20 solution. I purchased a small 3 way fan from AC Infinity. Place it on top of the preamp blowing up. On slow and medium speeds, it is not audible. It cools down the top of the preamp quite effectively. Plugs directly into AC outlet. May also prolong tube life.
Randy