I am pairing a Grant Fidelity Tube DAC-09 (~Maverick Audio DAC/Amp-XiangSheng DAC-01) and a Little Dot III.
PC (Flac) USB > Grant Fidelity (Tube out and pre-amp mode) > Little Dot III (Gain 5) > LD Headphone jack > AKG Acoustics K-240 Studio
Stock tubes all around for now though I intend to roll some tubes in the future.
I am doing almost all of my listening with my AKGs for the moment as I wish to roll the variables slowly so I can appreciate the subtle differences which may or may not appear.( Danger of sensory overload 
)
The volume control of the Grant Fidelity is set at about 2 oclock and the LD at between 10 and 2 usually.
I must say that I am a music lover not an "audiophile" ... though I do enjoy "good sounds" I get so immersed in the music that listening to the "sounds" AKA functional autonomy ... is secondary though not completely attenuated so it is hard for me to comment in a traditional "audiophile" manner as many others do in this forum. That being said here are some impressions:
Objective :
1. Absolutely no hiss (Even with low impedance phones).
2. No background noise floor. (no hum).
3. No ground loop.
4. Gets as loud as u would want it.
Subjective:
The music (Mostly classical) is liquid ... three dimensionally sculptured ... absolutely alive to my ears ... and subtle details not heard before have "magically" appeared ... this is so much better then my Asus Xonar DS card that I was amazed actually. The sound is not grainy and retains a crystal clarity without becoming harsh or analytical ...
I am quite pleased so far. 
Other phones:
Koss UR40 60 ohm 98 dB SPL/1mW
ATH-AD700 32 ohms 98 dB/mW at 1 kHz
Sennheiser HD-202 32 ohms 115 dB SPL @ 1 kHz
AKG Acoustics K-240 Studio 55ohms 91 dB/mW, 104 dB/V
Beyerdynamics DT990Pro 250ohms 96 db
Edited by dancingpotato - 12/25/10 at 11:07pm
