If you have a Firepod, I doubt that anyone told YOU to get a better soundcard. The FIREPOD should be your soundcard. Your onboard computer soundcard should be disabled. If you are using your computer soundcard's 1/8" output for monitoring you are really wasting the Firepod because it has it's own main and headphone outputs.
The number one reason to not use your computer soundcard is that it has higher latency. Another reason is possible confllicts with your audio interface. A third reason is lower fidelity, sample rate, etc.
Here's a typical home audio setup. Notice the absence of the onboard computer soundcard:
Soundcard Troubleshooting 101