09 LT cluster lights not working

I just purchased the car during the day, and you can imagine my chagrin when I started a night drive only to be greeted by zero light for my rpm/speed/fuel/temp gauges. All of the indicator lights (turn signal/parking brake/air pressure/etc.) work fine, but I've got nothing for the cluster lights themselves, and no response from the dimmer switch. I've searched the forums and found this isn't an isolated problem, but troublesome nonetheless. Most fixes refer to replacing/fixing the splice pack located in the under-the-hood fuse box, but I don't seem to have that splice pack. I've triple checked all of my fuses and relays, all seem to be in perfect condition. I'm going to assume the LEDs for the cluster are fine. So that leaves me with the dimmer switch, correct?

I have no idea which way would be the easiest to get the dimmer switch and cable out enough to inspect it, I assume I'd go through the bottom of the dash? I can't seem to get it off without applying more force than I'm comfortable with, and as I just purchased the car, I'd be very happy not to break that. Is there a trick to removing it or should I just try to pry the switch itself out? Any advice or feedback would be greatly appreciated.

not from a dealer then? I would think a problem same day that they would at least try to resolve that.

if it is only the cluster, then i would check the bulbs there first. maybe someone tried to fabricate leds or something.

It was from a dealer, but they were very firm about the as-is where-is used sale of it due to the non-working stereo (blown fuse) and the previous owner's small dog that apparently loved shedding in the front of the car. I also nabbed it for an incredibly low price, which probably played a hand in it. They're also a good two hour drive away and I'm in no hurry to revisit them. Is there an easy way to sneak a peek of the bulbs without tearing up the dash? If they are aftermarket, whoever put the dash back together did an excellent job, as it looks perfect and I'm very wary of ruining that.

there are a few posts on here about pulling it out, not terribly hard. just remove the immediate surround, then the cluster.
worth checking into since I "think" there are a few other things attached to the lights, that should be out too if it were a problem outside the cluster. (obviously you have power to switch, the dimmer and rest of dash).

Apparently it was not the dimmer, jumped the wires to no result, quadruple checked the fuses. I'm seriously at a loss for what this could be.

Went back in with a multimeter; the dimmer switch's connections read 13.8v and 8v. To my understanding, that's normal and removes the dimmer switch as my culprit. I guess it really has to be the LEDs, but what in god's name would cause all of those LEDs to blow at the same time with no evidence of fuses or relays burnt?