I don't like the look of the breakout fans on either device you mention,
they look prone to failure to me. The 2 cards are similar in features, The
E-Mu can be switched to AES digital instead of SPDIF, but minidiscs are
always SPDIF, so that probably shouldn't be a consideration. Looks like
both cards are around $100 - $120.

If you wanted to use it with your laptop, The Edirol UA-1X might be more
useful for less money.