Hey guys,

I'm in the process of rebuilding a computer for a new workstation that will double as a media center. It will be used for listening to music, watching tv, movies, playing games, as well as recording music (specifically guitar).

The computer as it stands right now does not have any sort of soundcard except for the onboard (Gigabyte P35-DS3R motherboard: ALC889A Audio controller) and I play my music using WASAPI. I'm looking for a sound card that has good recording capabilities but also great output sound quality. I'm going to be running this computer to a Pioneer SX-6 reciever and the reciever to a pair of Polk Audio RTi6 speakers.

I was looking at the M-Audio Delta 66 as its touted as a reasonably priced card for recording and playback. I can pick one of these up for 130$. I was also looking at the Asus Xonar Essence STX but it is expensive. Does Asus have a model that has the same soundquality but without the headphone amp? I'd like to keep the card in the sub-200$ range.

Thanks for any advice.