Bater, I was not saying that the Art is bad at all, just that the tubes in it might color your voice in a way you might not like. If you are sure you like the coloring, don't get another pre.

Soundcard wise, M-audio actually makes decent A/D converters, so it might be the very essence of A/D conversion that don't work for you sound wise. Then you could start working with recording on outboard gear, in stead. Oldschool in a homestudio, perhaps, as most go the opposite route, but it might prove rewarding for you, sound wise.

To me the mic you use sounds great for your voice. And if you want to have more nuances, you might consider running it through a DI box before running it into the Art. It could get you just the few more nuances you'd want.

I still think what you call 'harshness' comes from the tubes in the Art, but I suggest you deal with it by using a good EQ plug-in as well as compress the sibliances away you don't like with another plug-in. If you can't afford good plug-ins, you are better off with some midrange hardware to take care of that, though IMO

With low-end gear, I think you can only do marginally better that you already do with the recording of your voice, though, so in stead of wasting too much time and energy in the eternal gear hunt, save some bucks and just try to tweak what you have. I think all of the suggested mics (the Octava, MXL's, the 2200 ect.) are all good ones. But the one you work with, also sound really good for your voice.

.. I did say it sounds pretty good to me as is?

Good luck, Bater.