Does anybody own or have heard the DCS Delius ?

I can't tell you about the current generation but up to about a year ago the Delius was a very mechanical and hard sounding DAC. People use the Purcell as a band-aid with the Delius to round off its horrible and very digital sound. This wasn't a DAC for people who understand music. You're better off looking for a used Meridian 566 or a Meitner Bidat, both will sound better than the Delius or the Delius/Purcell combo!

Mama

After a long and scrupulous search I have chosen the Delius/Purcell combo to partner my heavily moddified Philips CDD882 transport (with the famous cdm1 mkII drive mechanism). I compared this set for several weeks with ML 390S as a cdp and as a transport with the ML360 DAC, ARC CD3 cdp, and for a short time with Krell SACD and Electrocompaniet ECD-1 (just to be sure I was not going to spend too much ;) The ML gear sounds very very good, and the 390S/360 excellent. Still I preferred the dCS/Philips combo because to me it sounds just more analogue and relaxed than all the others. So no regrets since i bought dCS some 9 months ago (second hand, that is).
In the meantime i replaced the Philips by an even older Studer A727 because this professional machine can be slaved to the Delius as masterclock (and is equipped by an even better cdm1 drive mechanism). This improves the sound further. For the first time my digital front end surpasses my analogue turntable in every respect. Internal modification is in progress, can't wait to hear the results!
The rest of my set: ARC LS25 II, Spectral DMA150, Kharma Ceramique 1.1. MIT Oracle interconects and Siltech/FIM AC chords on seperate group.
I prefer using the Purcell, but IMHO it's sheer nonsense to say in general the Delius sounds harsh without it. As always: system quality & synergy rulez.

My conclusion: this is a DAC for people who LOVE music.

cheers

After a long and scrupulous search I have chosen the Delius/Purcell combo to partner my heavily moddified Philips CDD882 transport (with the famous cdm1 mkII drive mechanism). I compared this set for several weeks with ML 390S as a cdp and as a transport with the ML360 DAC, ARC CD3 cdp, and for a short time with Krell SACD and Electrocompaniet ECD-1 (just to be sure I was not going to spend too much ;) The ML gear sounds very very good, and the 390S/360 excellent. Still I preferred the dCS/Philips combo because to me it sounds just more analogue and relaxed than all the others. So no regrets since i bought dCS some 9 months ago (second hand, that is).
In the meantime i replaced the Philips by an even older Studer A727 because this professional machine can be slaved to the Delius as masterclock (and is equipped by an even better cdm1 drive mechanism). This improves the sound further. For the first time my digital front end surpasses my analogue turntable in every respect. Internal modification is in progress, can't wait to hear the results!
The rest of my set: ARC LS25 II, Spectral DMA150, Kharma Ceramique 1.1. MIT Oracle interconects and Siltech/FIM AC chords on seperate group.
I prefer using the Purcell, but IMHO it's sheer nonsense to say in general the Delius sounds harsh without it. As always: system quality & synergy rulez.

My conclusion: this is a DAC for people who LOVE music.

cheers