Being recently hired to build a music recording computer by a friend, I've had a fun experience with just one big problem - USB conflicts. Building this computer was a snap due to innovations and upgrades in the PC field. However, once I delivered the built PC to my friend, he couldn't get his USB interface to produce sound!

When you build a new PC from scratch, you assume that all the internal built-in devices should function properly. This is often times not the case. Typical PC manufacturers don't consider the home recording segment when they assemble their chipsets and such.

>So, what did my friend do? The cheapest (and easiest) solution is to go to your local electronics store (something like Best Buy) and ask for a PCI USB card. These tend to be cheap (under $30) and they are easy to install.

After installing the USB card, the operating system recognized it and automatically installed the drivers and he was able to use the card immediately. He plugged in his USB music interface and - presto - the music was playing loud and clear!

The great thing about these add-in PCI USB cards is that they work WITH the internal USB connections! So, this means that if you have 2 - 4 - or even 8 USB connections built-in, they can still be used to plug in your keyboard, mouse, gamepad and other devices. All around, this is a win-win situation.

Bottom Line: If you have recently bought a recording interface for USB or even Firewire (you need a "Firewire" PCI card for Firewire, naturally), and it doesn't seem to work or make sound, you should look into getting a PCI expansion card to remedy this common problem.