Will you be using LabVIEW to aquire the data, or some other program or language? If you are using LabVIEW, there are example programs for controlling sound cards included (see the ~\labview\examples\sound directory). If money is a concern but you still want an easy and reliable data aquisition solution, rather than using a sound card, I would recommend you look at purchasing a low cost DAQ board. Look at the PCI-6024E (see http://sine.ni.com/apps/we/nioc.vp?lang=US&pc=mn&cid=1064)
I hope this helps.
Regards,
Chad H.
Applications Engineer
National Instruments
http://www.ni.com/ask