Audio Research Ref 3 : heat and top space needed?

You mean top of unit to bottom of cabinet?Or total cabinet height?

I have my Ref 3 running in a 10" open architechture rack, and it runs cool, no heat issues at all. ARC recommends 3" of clearance, you could probably get by with the 2" of clearance, but not in an enclosed cabinet, open rack design only.

Cheers,
John

The bottom of the shelf is 9 inches from the top of the shelf,
so the amp would have about 2 inches clearance on top of it.
It's an open shelf (on all 4 sides), a tall Billy Bags rack.
Is there a lot of heat coming out of the top?
Thanks again.

There isnt alot of heat from top, its warm but not hot on my dad's Ref3.

That's too much money invested to even mess around or to cut corners. Make sure you've got at least 3 inches clearance on the top as recommended. It heats up pretty good.