Gotta love ASROCK for the price. I have 2 of their boards and really like the BIOS.
I also have an HDSP 9652 On one of those mobos and am impressed. Bought it used but could never see buying a new one for the kind of money they have been for years.
When you look at the components on one of these sound cards they sure must be a big money maker for RME. Mind you they do have good support and I guess that is what you are paying for.
Their new PCIe cards seem great but then again the price tag is prohibitive. I never could understand why motherboards are such a good deal compared to sound cards, RAM and other computer parts.

Yes, and it costs lots of dinero to keep employees around to provide this support. I am still dreaming about purchasing other RME products when personel finances dictate the time is right. The RME business model must be sound for them to last as long as they have. On the other hand it would be nice to see some lower end products with less features for consumers and pro-summers that cost less. Like say.... a 200 dollar PCIe audio card that was aimed at the mainstream market for gamester's and or amateur audiophiles. I think they would sell like hotcakes and grow the RME brand.