Suggestions on Sound Card purchase

[quicksrt]

Hello,

I am about to buy a new sound card. The main reason is to get digital out directly to a DAC or directly into my amp via opticle in. My Onkyo amp is pretty clean and powerful at 6 X 100 w. I may just use the built in DAC for starters.

Now my reason for posting this question here is that I may as well get a cool card that has 5.1 input for recording in and not just play output. tosLink opticle output is what I was originally looking for until I realized surround recording will be needed at some point. I am building a music server system and playing back my collection in FLAC.

I used to have a Turtle Beach Montego card with digital i/o daughter borad. That fried in a bad power failure with the whole computer. I replaced it with another Turtle Beach card (no digital out on this one) which has been used ever since for needle dropping. So I would not mind a TB card again and do not need 7.1 or anyhting beyong 5.1 in and out, plus toslink.

Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Thanks.

-Q

 

[georgeshannon]

I can recommend the M-Audio Delta 1010 LT Sound card. For less than $200 it works well for me. It has all the features you listed.

 

[quicksrt]

I've heard nothing but good things about M-Audio cards (other than hard set up). But I am hoping for sub $100 price. I know that is pushing it.

 

[Malcolm2010]

I've heard nothing but good things about M-Audio cards (other than hard set up). But I am hoping for sub $100 price. I know that is pushing it.

Be very careful if you intend to use the 1010lt with Windows 7, there are lots of issues with newer Intel I series processors. The 1010 drivers are in poor shape, check the official forum here :- http://forums.m-audio.com/showthread.php?17641-**Official-Info-Delta-Series-Driver**-Updated-5-26&

Windows XP is 100% ok as are SOME motherboards with Windows 7 (mine is an Asus p5QL pro and is 100%), just a heads up.

Malcolm

 

[arnold_layne]

There's lots to choose from in multichannel input sound cards. I currently use a Edirol FA-101. I use it to make quad to digital transfers. Works well in Windows 7 64bit.

 

[quicksrt]

I will be running XPpro on the machine. I may just buy a cheaper card for sever/computer digital out, and build the 5.1 recorder later out of another computer. I have tons of computers around, and not a lot of cash to spend.

 

[Bob Romano]

I can recommend the M-Audio Delta 1010 LT Sound card. For less than $200 it works well for me. It has all the features you listed.

I agree with George. I have used mine with WinXP and Win 7 with no problems at all.

 

[ghalteman]

I posted a question on the site about getting an SPDIF DTS output from my Echo Layla 96/24, which was an expensive soundcard in it's day. Does anyone know how to get it to pass a DTS signal to my decoder?

 

[BlarJotunn]

I am setting up a PC that will be used as an HTPC as well as for sound/video recording/editing. My question: is there software that will allow Blu-Ray playback of Dolby and DTS HD 7.1 audio trough the M-Audio Delta 1010 (or a similar unit) analog outputs? Or am I stuck with HDMI for HTPC Blu-Ray audio?