Funnily enough, the reason I installed Windows 7 was to get rid of Linux. It's great, quick boot up and shut down times. No need to wait for "windows is installing updates, don't turn off your PC". I just had to get rid of if due to software compatibility.
Although, I had no problem with HD sound on Linux. I can't remember what distro I used though. I ended up installing about 15 different ones before I found the right one.