I think your question should be "which chipsets work for the type of hardware & software I will be using with my computer"? That's because, there are plenty that are fine but not authorized for use with certain hardware/software. A perfect example of that is Digidesign & ProTools. Very specific requirements are dictated for that platform.

So you best know what exactly it is you want to assemble? Or you could leave it up to companies like Sweetwater, Musicians Friend, Guitar Center that have dedicated & recommended computers that have been fairly investigated already to perform well for digital audio purposes.

Your question is sort of like "I need a car. Which one?" I would recommend one with 4 tires on it. You want to also make certain that it has an engine. So a VW engine in a Chevy Van should get you to work and something that could be used for racing five years from now. After you replace the engine & body.

I'll buy a microphone now so that I'm ready to make a recording when I purchase a recorder next year?

Nothing like thinking ahead of a head.
Ms. Remy Ann David

I was probably not quite clear there, no. I thought more in the terms of some chipsets are lousy for low latency sound, some works fine. I thought that was all there was to it.

My plan is a basic studio card as a starter, I've been considering buying a second hand machine and add an audigy2 card with the kx driver for example. Another thought is buying new and assemble a new machine myself, then most likely with a better sound card.

Software, I'm in love with project5, so that's going to be well used, but for the more serious needs I'll be using the latest version of sonar. Those two softwares are the most important to me.

Maybe this was abit clearer, what do you guys think?
In terms of soundcard, if I build and would like to have something slightly better we're talking something pretty basic, 2 in 2 out, such as the esi juli@ for example. Anything 2 in 2 out with good latency is just about enough. Ok 4 in might be nice, and a mic preamp ;) Haven't quite decided there yet, because my first thought was not to build but to buy something used and just add that basic audigy2 w kxdriver idea but as soon as I started there the ideas went bigger and bigger. As always.

Kristian

Will there is part of your problem. You're looking at crap toy audio cards for beginners that aren't recording music. I don't care what you read about them or their lousy specifications. You need a professional interface and it doesn't have to be inside the computer. In fact I would recommend you purchase an external device that is FireWire or USB with direct pass-through monitoring. You'll have to adjust the computer for proper audio operation to begin with to lower latency when you are recording by lowering buffers. Then when you're mixing, you can increase the buffers, along with the latency, since the latency will not be an issue at that stage. Because during recording, you're not going to be adding any special effects that are CPU intensive. Otherwise, your latency will become so great, everyone will think you're gay?

Bi-naural
Ms. Remy Ann David

I will primarily play vsts, and lots of them from time to time, so yes, people might think I'm gay if I use a high latency ;) Ok they won't, but I need a latency of no more than about 5ms under a pretty heavy load.

About sound cards, I know an audigy2+kx driver isn't a professional solution. But for goofing around at home possibly doing just a lil bit of composing, it certainly will be good enough. There's a hysteria out there regarding soundcards. As long as there isn't any really professional work going on, a basic card often works alright. The kx driver is actually not bad at all.