if you listen to say 100 stereo syetms, each containing a particular component, one may induce, if one observes a consistent sonic characteristic, that the compoent may have a certain quality. such a conclusion is based upon induction.
let's consider an example of a person, whom you observe in many different situations. suppose that person, a stranger, exhaibits a consistent characteristic. one could say, granted, with some probability, that the person has a a particular personality trait.
so to, my comment about the zanden, is a probabilistic statement.
i certain;y have a reason to consider the zanden dac as my favorite dac, even though i have not compared it to other dacs or heard it in my own syst3em.
i would go so far as to bet that in a blind test or other type of comparison with another dac, that i would prefer the zanden over another dac. i am confident of my preference for the original zanden dac, in absence of direct comparisons, because of my vast experience of listening to thousands of stereo systems.
since all answers to the posted question are opinions, i am answering honestly, based upon the information available to me.
i don't have to hear a direct comparison to form an opinion about a product.