u will almost never connect at 56K i did it for about 3 seconds and it went back down to 46k..most connect at 46k 42k or 36k...u will never get the full "potential" outta it...this is a good one..has the conexant chip set... http://www.directron.com/fm56svv.html
anything over $25 is a fricken waste...even over $20 is a waste
The FCC limits dialup connection speeds to 53kbps. When I was on dialup, I usually got connected at 50.6kbps or 52kbps. I'm no expert on modems, so someone else will have to help you pick out a brand/model/whatever. I don't think there's really much difference in 56k modems, but as I said, I'll let someone else handle that.
u r right beardo.......card really doesn't matter...only two things that matter r price and chipset....u want price to be cheap (under$20) and chipset to be conexant