Replacement Sound Card Questions and Advice Needed

[Guest]

I am looking at replacing my damaged Creative Titanium HD Pro sound card this summer. I am also looking at the possibility of purchasing a Samsung home theater system this summer, such as the HT-J5500W/ZA or HT-J4500/ZA. I plan to connect my gaming computer to the home theater unit and controlling the audio through the home theater's receiver unit. Even though I will be controlling the audio and listening to FLAC music via USB directly from the home theater system, I still would like a sound card for my computer in case I have to connect headphones or computer speakers to it. I am currently leaning toward an external sound card option, but I would also appreciate suggestions on an internal sound card solution. I am looking for a sound card that is designed for both music and gaming. I want the card to have either 5.1 or 7.1 capability, be able to provide surround sound in gaming, and provide both equalizer settings (rock, pop, classical, etc.) and environmental settings (theatre, amphitheater, auditorium, etc.) for music. I would like to connect the sound card to the home theater unit via RCA or digital optical. Price-wise, I am looking at around $150 or less.

I do have some additional questions that I would like to ask:

1. I rip my audio CD's to FLAC to retain CD quality audio. I am not an audio engineer or expert, but when I listen to my FLAC music files, would I be better off with a card that has 96 kHz or 192 kHz and 16-bit or 24-bit ripping and playback quality?

2. Would I get better sound quality through a digital optical cable or RCA cables when I connect the sound card to the home theater unit?

3. I am leaning toward an external sound card because the chances are that I can save it regardless of whether I rebuild or replace my PC or switch to a laptop. In terms of capabilities, are internal and external sound cards generally identical with the only differences being that one is inside the computer and the other is outside and the external card has less issues in terms of electrical interference?

Here are the cards that I am considering:

1. ASUS Xonar U5
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MI8IDRE/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=TLWWLRVQOS68&coliid=I2VQBC7V4X9DN0

2. ASUS Xonar U7
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00E7QA9E0/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=TLWWLRVQOS68&coliid=I3CBFPR1AOIX70

3. Creative Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro USB Audio System with SBX SB1095 http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0044DEDCA/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=TLWWLRVQOS68&coliid=I28RS0VXC23L2Z

4. Creative Sound Blaster Omni Surround 5.1 USB Sound Card with High Performance Headphone Amp and Integrated Beam Forming Microphone http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EZT7RE4/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_S_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=TLWWLRVQOS68&coliid=IKSZDO69Z5LII

5. ASUS Xonar DSX PCIe 7.1 GX2.5 Audio Engine 192K/24bit Playback Support Sound Cards http://www.amazon.com/dp/B007TMZ1MY/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pd_nS_ttl?_encoding=UTF8&colid=TLWWLRVQOS68&coliid=ILCMIWGWMB1U4

Thanks

 

[Lutfij]

Don't mind my question though how different is it from this thread? The suggestions made on your previous thread seems to be in line with pretty much what you asked for though in some ways is slightly different with an increment in sound card choices that aren't meant for your setup.