A sound card is usually an external expansion card that gives input and output of analog audio signals from and to a computer via computer software. The word sound card is also sometimes used for external sound interfaces also used for professional sound systems. It is a connector card that is used to connect external hardware devices like printers, speakers, and microphones to a computer and using it as a connection is made to the host computer through a USB or FireWire port. In the past, sound cards were connected to a CPU through PCI or AGP interface but since those cards have gone out of vogue, a new technology called USB type has been introduced. The advantage of this newer technology is that it provides a faster data transfer rate than the older PCI or AGP interface.

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