In terms of your sound card, I'd opt for an external card that has XLR connections as they are balanced. Balanced cables have three conductors - high, low, and ground. The Low signal is a phase reversed copy of the High signal. When it gets to the other piece of gear, the low is phase reversed again, and summed with the high signal, cancelling any noise picked up along the run of the cable and greatly improving the quality.
Maybe look at the Focusrite Scarlett 2i2 as your soundcard - http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Scarlett2i2 - or the ASUS Xonar Essense STX - https://www.asus.com/Sound_Cards_and...r_Essence_STX/ - if you want an internal card.
What's your price range here?
