Hey all, even though this is the Low End forum, most of your low end home studios make mine look like a joke, so bear that in mind when you answer
So my home studio for the last 8 years has been a PC with an Audiophile 2496, an equally ancient ART Tube MP stereo mic preamp, AKG K141's, and a handful of even more ancient software. Believe it or not, I'm able to make pretty elaborate recordings that sound amazingly good. But I would like to step up the quality a little, and since digital recording has made some leaps in the last few years, I'm wanting to upgrade.
Problem is I don't know a thing about what's out there, and from what I have seen, there's not much going on in the way of 2-channel soundcards anymore except the Audiophile 2496 and 192. So I'm open to suggestions. I really don't need more than two channels since it's just me or an occasional guest recording here and I never use real drums. And since other than occasional parodies I send in to Howard Stern, nobody except a handful of people is ever going to hear what I record so I don't want to break the bank.
So if anyone has any good suggestions for an upgrade that will truly represent a significant tonal improvement but won't require me to sell my body to medical science, I'm all ears. Thanks in advance!