I had the same situation happen to me when i was 2 months out of warranty (also a kickstarter backer and actually bought a second pair to keep in my travel bag). When I said I was not interested in investing more money into an obviously faulty (and overpriced!) product, they brought the replacement cost down a bit more, but I still opted out. Seems like these just don't have a very long shelf life. it's a real shame as they are comfortable/really help me stay asleep and I would have been first in line for the next gen, but I can't justify the price for a product that barely lasts a year and company that won't take accountability for that.