One of the problems is that, as has been mentioned, the companies making the hardware don't always jump and write new drivers for the older stuff as new OS platforms come out.

That is the very thing that snagged me when I was running a D-Man PCI card on W-95. After my OS update for a business application, the D-man PCI card was not recognized by the computer.

I'm not a fan of the multifunction gizmos when it comes to music. The stuff that have mixers, interfaces and other things... two or more functions built into one unit.

I like the plain old one function interface. Maybe I'm just old school, but if something goes wrong, I have to replace only one thing at a lower cost. Besides I have also seen a number of those gizmos have other issues, such as running codecs instead of ASIO drivers.

To the folks who have them and love them..... more power to ya.

I have never used a control surface for my DAW. If that's the direction you wish to go, be sure the control surface you are considering is 100% compatible with your DAW of choice. I have all my stuff inside the box.... I use the mouse & keyboard as my control surface.

I like to keep things as simple as possible when it comes to just about everything.

You can find my music at:
www.herbhartley.com
Add nothing that adds nothing to the music.
You can make excuses or you can make progress but not both.

The magic you are looking for is in the work you are avoiding.