Alright, I guess I didn't realize that. How about just "very moddable", with no attempt at comparison?
Basically, it's designed to be opened and mucked with.
And I thought they still made the Link DAC III? Well, looking here, they still make the Nelson variant for under $1K ([radio announcer voice]1380 w/USB input![/radio announcer voice]).
And besides, I don't think those Parasounds are still in production either -- I wouldn't compare apples to oranges. Do they even do 24/96?