"google" is a handy research tool for finding information.

sorry, couldn't resist.

there are lots of external soundcards out there. as i said in a recent thread related to this very same topic, unless you have a fairly 'large' budget, you'll have to settle on an external soundcard that is *not* bit-accurate. in dollar amounts, i mean, if you can't afford $300+ for the soundcard, then you probably will not get a bit-accurate external soundcard... at least not without some serious hunting and luck.

but if you aren't planning on doing digital conversions (MD/DAT > hard drive), then bit-accuracy isn't as big of an issue. also, if this is the case (you're not looking to do bit-accurate digital transfers), then you can get something like an Edirol UA-1D for $50 or so on ebay (brand new).