Want great sound, rock solid drivers and monitor's that will blow you away, not for the faint of heart price wise. I this case the saying "you get for what you pay" apply's here.

Interface= RME USB Fireface UC $1298.00 CAD

Powered Monitors= Focal CMS 65 $825.00 CAD each

Total= $2948 CAD +tax

Most people try to reproduce what they hear on commercial recordings right?, well, you can't do it on the cheap. Get a great interface with solid driver's and great sounding monitor's and you won't regret it. RME are known all over the world for there rock solid driver's and clean pre-amps under XP, Win7 x86 or 64. Go demo this gear and you will buy. This equipment is top notch and will last a lifetime. You only need to buy once and be happy.

And for Daw, if you do a internet search you will find many. the better come with a little learning curve. But in the end you'll be glad you put your head to it. Nuendo and Cubase come to mind here witch is what I use. Pro to the max, jam pack with very usefull features. Lot's to think about here but, how serious are you about making music that will satisfy your ears. Food for the soul here.