I have a factory DOC still in place, but no DPF. I can say that when you first start the car, yes you can smell it like any other diesel. When I come home and the DOC is at operating temperature, the smell is not worse that from a gasser. I am sure that at speed, 80-90% of the smell is gone, but I have not tried following myself
One thing I do like about a DOC is that it also converts CO to CO2.