I would hope that if I could have used the new one, Simaudio would have said so. Whatever, its not that important to me looks wise, just surprised, thats all.
I actually meant that you could buy a used one here on Audiogon and swap the faces. It shouldn't cost you much more than the shipping charge for the one you'd purchase. Then, when you go to sell yours, just state in your ad that you switched face plates to keep everything honest.
For what it's worth, in 8 years of reading about and buying stereo gear, I have heard of at least one person who wanted to chance face plates on an item, not including myself. They come up for sale right here semi frequently because of this. Manitunc, you're not alone!