Hmmmn... I think I got your point.
So i guess the best way to go, considering price and audio quality, would be something like the Sound Blaster X-Fi Titanium. Still an outdated card, but now with the DDLive feature, besides allowing me to connect the PC directly to the HTB3510/55 receiver. Do you think this card would fix my issue? Or maybe an DAC, like the Sound Blaster X-Fi Surround 5.1 Pro.