Easy to find used pro level equipment from 20 years ago for cheap, assuming you have compatible drivers. Personally I use Yamaha UW500 for recordings as it does analog and toslink and Yamaha drivers are still updated for modern windows. It is limited to 44k (CD quality), but 48k (DVD quality) is simply not needed for stuff this old.

I use Behringer interfaces. A UMC404 is my main one, plus a bunch of UCA202s that I use for miscellaneous things (great for simple stereo line in and out). They're so cheap that it's a no brainer. I have never noticed even the slightest bit of noise coming from them in recording or playback, and I have never had any complaints about the sound quality.

Reel to reel 4 track tape for authentic 1980s hiss. 🤣

But (cue Rod Serling) you are now entering.... the audiophile zone... nothing you do will be right, so whatever it is you do, make it amenable to you, easy and cheap.

I use old recorder (Zoom H6) powered by batteries. This usually solves problems with ground loops and electrical noise.
Battery-powered laptop with USB sound card/audio interface should also solve these problems.

Btw, this is interesting question in the context of ISA sound cards. They usually have two output modes (via jumpers) - line output and amplified output for passive speakers.

I have SB Vibra 16S CT2800 that sounds better through the amplified output, via line output the low frequencies are totally lost.
I don't know yet how to record sound from amplified output, I think I'll have to use power divider to avoid burning out the recorder inputs.

Not sure about USB, but the PCIe Sound Blaster ZxR is excellent.

Look at the SnR ratings and any real-world actual testing you can find and go from there.

Thanks for the recommendations, y'all. I've been researching the devices you recommended + doing some add'l reading. Will return & share what eventual "solution" I go with, and how well it works out.

I've been using RME products for a long time for my music production stuff and recording vintage PC sound card outputs. Some older USB products (Babyface) should not cost too much. I don't know the market situation of RME in the US, may not exists at all.

There are some nice, expensive USB DACs available. I just ordered a used Creative AE-9 as I found out that the issues I had been seeing in Windows 11 with the ZxR are because Creative dropped support and never fixed the issues with Windows 11.

Still a great card if using Windows 10 though. Works fine on Windows 11 as well, but sometimes it will not be detected properly on boot and sometimes will decide it doesn't need to output anything when the computer is already booted up.

A cold reboot fixes that. Some people apparently disabled and re-enable it in Device manager to fix it but I never had that work.

I picked up a Zoom H2essentials to give that a try, after having Zoom products recommended not only by here by ott, but also based on my own research.

As a test, I recorded the opening theme to Metal & Lace, in stereo FM, using a Pro AudioStudio 16 (via its OUT, not the headphone jack). I need to go back and adjust the card's volume down a bit, but other than that I think it sounds OK? (Aside from some light hissing at the beginning of the recording, of course.)

But I'd appreciate some feedback, if any of y'all have a moment. Thanks in advance.

Using a modern battery powered recorder, pretty much any noise on the recording will be from the sound card itself. In terms of noise management, you want to make sure any mixer lines on the sound card not being used are muted (EG line in and CD audio). If the card has output gain 1x/2x/4x like an SB16 it should be set to 1x.

For any mixer lines you are recording (E.G. OPL or digital FX), set them to maximum, or the highest level that is still balanced if you want music and FX, set the card's master output level to the highest it can go before causing the recorder to clip. Reduce the recorder's level to compensate.

I found a Sound Blaster Live 24-bit USB in a friend's junk box about five years ago, and it works remarkably well when recording on a laptop. Using it on battery removes any line noise/ground loops from the laptop, and the audio quality for 16-bit/44 kHz recordings is pretty good to my ears; it's about as good as one an get out of old sound cards, at the very least!

DeathAdderSF wrote on 2026-02-25, 20:07:

I picked up a Zoom H2essentials to give that a try, after having Zoom products recommended not only by here by ott, but also based on my own research.

As a test, I recorded the opening theme to Metal & Lace, in stereo FM, using a Pro AudioStudio 16 (via its OUT, not the headphone jack). I need to go back and adjust the card's volume down a bit, but other than that I think it sounds OK? (Aside from some light hissing at the beginning of the recording, of course.)

But I'd appreciate some feedback, if any of y'all have a moment. Thanks in advance.

You say "stereo FM", but my quick research says this game is pure single-chip OPL2 mono. So I assume you mean dual-channel mono right?
The hiss at the start is most likely from your sound card itself, lowering volume will help hide it, but you can easily just zero out that noise using any decent wav editor.

For fun, I recorded this track on every real chip variant I own.
Recordings were all done using Yamaha UW500.

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-02-28, 10:28:

You say "stereo FM", but my quick research says this game is pure single-chip OPL2 mono. So I assume you mean dual-channel mono right?

The game supports stereo FM on the Sound Blaster Pro (CT-1330), 8-bit PAS & PAS-16. You can see it noted in the game's installer, and can actually hear it in my previously attached recording if you listen closely enough.

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-02-28, 10:28:

The hiss at the start is most likely from your sound card itself, lowering volume will help hide it, but you can easily just zero out that noise using any decent wav editor.

Thanks. I'll significantly lower the volume in my second recording attempt.

I also plan to try setting the PAS-16's "ext, spk, mic, pcm, int" to 0 and see if that helps eliminate some of the hiss.

DeathAdderSF wrote on 2026-03-01, 06:31:

The game supports stereo FM on the Sound Blaster Pro (CT-1330), 8-bit PAS & PAS-16. You can see it noted in the game's installer […]
Show full quote

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-02-28, 10:28:

You say "stereo FM", but my quick research says this game is pure single-chip OPL2 mono. So I assume you mean dual-channel mono right?

The game supports stereo FM on the Sound Blaster Pro (CT-1330), 8-bit PAS & PAS-16. You can see it noted in the game's installer, and can actually hear it in my previously attached recording if you listen closely enough.

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-02-28, 10:28:

The hiss at the start is most likely from your sound card itself, lowering volume will help hide it, but you can easily just zero out that noise using any decent wav editor.

Thanks. I'll significantly lower the volume in my second recording attempt.

I also plan to try setting the PAS-16's "ext, spk, mic, pcm, int" to 0 and see if that helps eliminate some of the hiss.

It supports double opl2 then? Didn't see this info listed anywhere. Your recording sounded the same in both ears when I listened, but I'll take a look at the wave form later.

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-03-01, 08:56:

It supports double opl2 then? Didn't see this info listed anywhere. Your recording sounded the same in both ears when I listened, but I'll take a look at the wave form later.

It's unmistakably stereo, the percussion is only on the left channel

SuperDeadite wrote on 2026-03-01, 08:56:

It supports double opl2 then? Didn't see this info listed anywhere.

Cobra Mission, another game from Megatech Software, also supports stereo OPL2. This isn't common knowledge, I guess?