[blastroknow]

The A>D with a dat is a good suggestion - I use my Sony dat with SBM {super bit mapping} for all my A>D. Route your cassette in the DAT analog in and then spdif or optical out to your soundcard. The dat option gives you great metering for levels, too. You can shop for an old sony dat with lots of hours on the head and SBM and just use it for A>D {I've seen them for $50} - just put it in record mode with no tape and it will pass the signal through.

I love a hi gain no dolby cassette sound . . .