jimfogle

Sanderxpander
Anyone worried about pristine audio quality to that level will have spent enough money on monitors, headphones and room that the few hundred for a high quality audio interface really isn't too big of a hurdle.

I respectfully disagree.  You know what you know and don't know what you don't know.  In a forum you should never assume a poster posseses background knowledge beyond the scope of the post.  Everybody's life experiences and technical skills have HUGE gaps in knowledge when applied to a specific task. 
 
Many people will state you MUST have an audio interface.  That is normally because their focus is on recording so they have a bias toward needing an interface.  In THIS case that is not true as the poster stated in a followup post that his or her intent is to stay in the box using soft synths to generate audio.  Since a nonstandard path to get audio or midi into or out of the box is not required, other posters quickly determined an interface is not needed at this time.
 
If the poster has little music production experience he or she may not have reached the point where enviornment obstacles come into play.  The poster may not have the financial means to upgrade all hobby tools at the same time.  The poster may live in a dorm, be in the military or exist in some other situation where ideal is impractical.

I don't see you disagree anywhere with what I said. I'm saying that by the point it makes sense to nitpick audio quality THAT much, you will have bought (or need to buy) at the very least monitors and software as Chuck said. Getting an interface, like you said, is mostly about connectivity and performance. Because the audio quality coming out of most cards, while definitely not equal, is pretty passable. To hear a clear difference you'd need decent monitors at the very least.

Thanks to both Sanderexpander and Chuck Jones for your responses to my post.  I enjoyed the conversation.  I appreciate reading the different perspectives you both present and found both posts enlightening and helpful.  I'm sure your opinions and mine have more similarities than differences.

[as posted next, problem seems solved; it was an EastWest setting issue. may not need a sound card now.  so far ;) ]
 
I tried my EWQLSO sample library on my second SSD (before this I wasn't testing simpler instruments). Transferring files from that SSD is fast (like when loading samples).  But, now the notes often don't sustain all the way and drop off. A definite sign a sound card is needed? I tried various drivers, and ASIO4ALL, which helped but didn't solve the issue.  Anyway, isn't an external device more than I need, with all those input connectors? Portability-wise, I think internal would also be easier.
What specs should I look for in finding something?
Thanks.
 

Looks like this may be a PLAY 5.0 issue for my EWQLSO library. I think a setting there may have solved it.

jimlau
 
Anyway, isn't an external device more than I need, with all those input connectors? Portability-wise, I think internal would also be easier.
What specs should I look for in finding something?

Years ago I used an internal Soundblaster PCI card, then upgraded to an M-Audio PCI Delta-44.  I think that since PCI has now been replaced by PCIe (not compatible), that audio hardware manufacturers have focused on external audio interfaces with either USB or FireWire, and some hybrids with both types of connections.
 
I upgraded to a FireWire unit for my main PC over ten years ago, which also worked with my old laptop that came with FireWire.
 
My recent experience with my new laptop (no FireWire), using the on-board Realtek audio, is that it is excellent for audio playback.  This laptop is really just for a portable office, not a DAW, but I couldn't resist loading up the toys for use while traveling
 
I did install ASIO4ALL on the laptop because I have a compact 25 key MIDI controller that I wanted to use to play virtual instruments, and take advantage of the low latency offered by ASIO.  The native Windows drivers just offered the stock Windows audio, with poor latency performance for me.
 
My thoughts on the on-board sound with Platinum on the laptop are that it works very well for audio playback and sounds at least as good, or better, than any SoundBlaster audio card from the past.
 
The ASIO4ALL drivers give me very low latency so that I can play virtual instruments without any noticeable delays.
 
I have not tested the new WASAPI audio under Win 10 yet with the latest Platinum, because what I have works fine. Maybe soon!
 
Based on your needs, if you are concerned about portability, and you want to try a USB audio interface, there are some very inexpensive compact ones such as this:
https://www.amazon.com/Be...ativeASIN%3DB000KW2YEI
 
or this:
https://www.amazon.com/St...ds=usb+audio+interface