Studiomaster.... lets make sure we get the info right. You have the correct intent, and even some of the right advice though. First, "zero latency" and "direct monitoring" happen in the hardware BEFORE hitting the software so if a person were monitoring a VSTi for example, it would be of no benefit. Second, the fact that a Soundcard is "USB" means absolutely nothing about how well or how poorly it will work. USB soundcards are certainly more than capable of a couple of channels of I/O like mentioned above. Now, the fact that it is a consumer brand sound card, this MAY mena that it is unusable for the intended purpose of this poster.... but that has to do with this specific cards build and capabilities, as well as any possible limitations that the laptop itself is imposing.
My experience is that those people who do not know to get a proper soundcard for recording, also probably do not know how to properly tune a system and OS for RECORDING purposes. In the end, the problem may extend deeper than just the soundcard.
