Since we have pci soundcards, I guess its useless to discuss the onboards.
What about the speakers.
It s a long discussion and it s off topic ,but i can tell you that I use usually a crappy Logitech X 530 .But when I need power for the music i connect this cards to my self made amplifier made with LM 3886 outputing into some Focal Polyglass speakers.
But enough with the off-topic.
Get the board and post feed-back.