[premysl]

People just expect things to be integrated. Even Wi-Fi is, although it's probably typically an M.2 card. I have a <2000 computer that had both integrated audio and video, and it's kind-of become a norm.

Integrated sound cards are way more susceptive to interference, though, and the quality suffers a bit. They're merely good enough.

Also, people generally seem to use USB sound cards, as it removes even more room for interference (though my ASUS Xonar Essence STX sounds great already, unlike the integrated solution that transfers power rail and other noise).