Here's what I posted to a similar question on another forum.
I haven't owned any of the standard Scramblers but test rode 3 of them before buying my Sled, which I test rode twice 6 mos apart before buying.
Here's my observations;
The std Scramblers -
Are lighter and feel a little more nimble on the street
They have the "A" throttle cam so the engine feels very responsive but a tad abrupt off idle
They are much lower and with smaller ergos all around, to the point of feeling cramped, kinda like a mini bike
The suspension is shorter travel and a bit on the budget side, read kinda harsh overall
The cast wheels on some models are lighter and are tubeless
The Desert Sled -
Much taller and feels like a full sized bike
It's about 45 lbs heavier and you can feel the difference, but the bike doesn't ride like it's ~450 lb spec curb weight, feels more like 425 lbs or so, but not as light as the std Scrambler
It comes with the "B" throttle cam so it's very smooth and controllable down low but feels lazy through the mid throttle, then picks up very quick in the last 80% of twist
The longer travel suspension is higher quality and feels better but still feels on the harsh especially how many of them come set stock, my forks were setup stupid stiff. After some miles and many adjustments mine is starting to feel pretty decent. But I badly wish the rear shock had compression dampening adjustment. I "suspect" in the end the rear shock will get replaced with one that does have full adjustment.
The wire wheels on the Sled are quite strong but heavier than the cast wheels on the std Scrambler models. They are NOT tubeless regardless of what the tires say.
The seat on the Sled feels OK for about 20-30 minutes then not so much as the foam breaks down leaving you on the irregular shaped pan
Not to knock the std Scramblers, but for me there was only 1 choice and I wasn't planning to buy a std Scrambler ever, it was just too cramped feeling for me. If the Sled had never come out I'd have bought another brand of Scrambler, either Triumph or Guzzi. But I'm SO GLAD Ducati decided to build the Sled because it's exactly what I wanted, even more than I realized after my first test ride.