late 90s is a whole different thing than mid 90s. The 97 in AC'97 is there for a reason. Would still say that Audigy 2001 front panel was peak consumer audio experience. Good access for headphone out and ASIO support, so for anyone wnating to connect you a midi keyboard for first excursion into digital music creation everything was there for a reasonable price point. Even firewire for your DV imports. A digital media entry point like no others existed at the time at that price point.