What about the Belles SA-100?

Yes. The Ref v2 is a total diff animal though still has the signature sound of the HotRod.
I was very skeptical before the upgrade. Wondered how much more the Ref v2 could be better than the , already good, HotRod or could it just be the name changed for marketing. But Belles proved me wrong; it's an awesome amp and a very BIG step up from Hotrod.

Your dealer is right, the upper models will leave you speechless. I have a Belles SA-100 which is in a different class. I am serious. That is also why I was wondering in the first place that this amp is not more popular among audiophiles. Anyone in need of a serious upgrade should audition this one.

I own the Belles SA-30, for a few months now, and I don't see many user reviews of this sister-model to the SA-100 either, although a few magazines have reviewed it very favorably. It truly is a phenomenally good poweramp, and one I don't see taking second seat to most any poweramp, price disregarded, with the only limiting aspect (on paper) being the stated (pure Class A) 30 watt output power. However, and take my word on this: there's absolutely no indication there's only 30 watts under the hood on the SA-30; it simply sounds unrestricted and wonderfully natural. I guess it goes to show how far 30 good watts can bring you, although with todays most inefficient speakers some might want for more power. In light of all this it may not be a cheap poweramp, but it's a relative bargain nonetheless.

Needless to say I'm also confounded by the lack of awareness on these Statement Series poweramps. Perhaps a parallel can be drawn to politics here: the more money spent on marketing/campaigning...

I guess you are right that marketing may play a role here; unknown, unloved. When I was looking for a new amp my dealer suggested to audition the Belles SA-30, even while my speakers have a difficult load. I decided for the SA-100 as that was the one available for a demo while I was visiting him. I instantly loved it, though it took quite a while to run in the amp. And I still have the feeling that it is getting better every day. So similar to your experiences with the SA-30, this is phenomenally good amplifier, second to none. It is a true gem.
Not sure about the politics, but perhaps these amps are too cheap...?

My 150a ref v2 took roughly 850 hours to reach it's peak. As good as it was about every week I was happily suprised that new nuances of sound for a more positive and natural presentation would rear it beautiful head.I don't know if most wait long enough on these to rear them at their best. But from about 200 hours mine was about 90%-95% there. And at that point even the amp was a stellar performer. I have had a few models of audio research, jeff rowland, and listened to many others in well broken in systems bat, cj, threshold and others and with the belles it is right there with these others or very very close in a properly matched system. Now I would like to try the sa 30 or sa 100. Nice to hear from you guys these amps also are something special.